Independent President
| Published 10/22/04

Graphic by: Ande Hearn

Don't worry, I'm not going to use this internet medium to hold a dictatorship over you all and demand you vote a certain way. But, I am going to tell you how I'm voting and why.

I am tired of the mudslinging back and forth between Bush and Kerry; Cheney and Edwards.  I've listened to the recent debates and I pity Bush, while I wonder about Kerry's strange orange glow.  If the two of them got together and campaigned, I'm sure we'd have a wonderfully arranged plan on the war in Iraq...but then Bush would capture some guy we weren't going after and Kerry would support it, and then criticize it.

Okay, so maybe I've been overcome by the mudslinging myself.  Maybe what the candidates have been saying about one another has affected my opinions of each of them.  Maybe the fact that I listen to the Glenn Beck show on 101.7 FM makes me biased.  But, am I not entitled to an opinion?  After all, the entire government is biased one way or the other, so what difference am I, one little citizen, going to make?

Truth is, I don't know which candidate to believe.  The campaign trail thus far has simply led me further into confusion, and quite frankly has brought out lying in each individual running for President.  I would like a feeling of trust to arise within me towards one of them before I can cast my vote their way.

I also don't see the point in being a die-hard Republican or a die-hard Democrat.  One year you may have Saint John running for office as a Republican, so you vote for him because of your party affiliation. But, the next year you may have Adolph Hitler running as a Republican...do you vote for him as well?  Or do you "commit treason," switch parties for the time-being, and vote for the opposition?

Before I dig myself further into a hole, I'd like to say that I'm new to this extreme political interest deal.  I've only recently began paying a lot of attention to the debacle.  Maybe I don't have the accredidation in your mind to be speaking out about this, but then again, maybe my new-found interest gives me just as much accredidation as anyone.  I'll leave that for you to decide.

But, for now, my vote lies with the Independent Party.  I'll continue listening to my biased radio station, watching my biased news channel, and reading my biased media.  However, I'm exposing myself to bias' from each side and trying to determine the truths involved.  My vote can still be swayed if I hear something I like, or more importantly, see something go into action that will really be beneficial to our country.

Unfortunately, I have also been questioning the validity of actually casting a vote.  After all, I'd only be voting for popularity, and then the electoral college would step in and decide the finality of it all.  But, I kind of like the idea that I have a voice and can make such an important decision, even if it doesn't make a whole lot of difference in the long run.

And, lastly, to campaign independently for the independent party I'd like to say...Vote Nader for President!

... I mean, you know, if you want to.