Undecided? Just don’t vote.

In a response to the “Don’t Vote” video (see below), Joel Stein, a columnist for the Los Angeles Times, encourages people not to vote. Stein makes the argument that those who do not have strong feelings for either presidential candidate simply should not vote. By making this argument, Stein explains that the Get Out the Vote campaigns force people to register and vote when they are not certain about the candidates. Therefore, these campaigns are not necessary and Stein argues that people simply should not vote.

Voting, Stein says, is not an “act of charity,” in fact it really does nothing except make the voter feel as if they had a hand in helping decide who becomes our next president. Stein goes as far as saying “if your mere opinion added to our nation’s well-being, it would be patriotic to take telemarketing calls” and he would read the e-mails his readers send him. Clearly, Stein is trying to make light of the truth that the voters’ opinion does not really matter since we have the Electoral College, which has no law binding them to vote in correlation with the population of their State. All of these Get Out The Vote campaigns may not even have an effect on this election since high voter turn out doesn’t make our democracy any stronger. Citing Canada as the perfect example of this, with typical voting turnout being more than 75 percent, their leaders still are not significant world players. Stein then goes back to the original idea of voting not being an act of charity, saying that if voting really helped other people, we would get orange drink and cookies along with the “I voted” today sticker, just as you would had you donated blood.

Even with all the Get Out the Vote campaigns and ads that will “guilt you into casting a ballot”, almost half of those who are eligible to vote still won’t, and Stein says that this is a “legitimate expression of feelings about or political system.” Stein goes as far as comparing this to “American Idol,” explaining how “none of the contenders convinced you but that your vote is available next time to someone who does.” It becomes obvious that Stein is not a fan of all the Get Out the Vote campaigns since he explains that they scare people into voting claiming that if they don’t vote they will lose their right to complain. However, Stein makes the argument that not voting allows you the right to complain. Since the odds of voting for the winner are slightly better than even, which means that you can’t complain when he is elected.

Then Stein rips into the “don’t vote” video, with its “heap of celebrities” and “superior, self-satisfied tone” which made Stein not want to vote for president but also “throw away [his] Writers Guild award ballot.” Once again, minorities and young adults are singled out as groups that won’t turnout to vote, so campaigns must use time and effort to register them and attempt to increase voter participation.

According to the latest census figures while 71 percent of voting-eligible whites are registered, only 61 percent of blacks and 54 percent of Latinos are registered (Breed 2008, http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22626208/). This is why most of the Get Out the Vote campaigns are targeting minorities because they are least likely to use their right to vote when they can in fact have a great impact on the turnout of the election. One Get Out the Vote group specifically targets newly sworn in citizens by sitting outside the federal court chamber in Las Vegas on the first two Friday’s of every month. This group registers anywhere from one hundred to one thousand Latinos each Friday (Breed 2008, http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22626208/). Those who run these Get Out the Vote campaigns are addressed point blankly by Stein as liberals. With poor people, minorities, the undereducated and the young the least likely to register to vote, the higher the turnout in these groups the better off the Democrats are. By focusing on registering minorities they will build up the liberal base, turning the country and political system completely blue. However, this simply is not true. While African Americans typically lean Democratic, there has been a shift by Latino’s toward the Republican Party over the past few election cycles (Breed 2008, http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22626208/). In fact, in 2004, Bush worked hard to appeal to Latinos, which led to record numbers of Latinos voting for the Republican Party.

Stein then makes the claim that casting a ballot only tricks people into believing that they hold power, therefore they are less likely to revolt. So these Get Out the Vote campaigns are only wasting their time because, according to Stein, it is not worth it to vote since our vote does not really count. If Get Out the Vote campaigns real objective were to strengthen the democracy, they would be working to get rid of the Electoral College not registering minority and young voters.

Stein’s comical editorial in response to the “Don’t Vote” video and Get Out the Vote campaigns leads to questioning the political system and specifically the Electoral College. It is true that the Electoral College can potentially silence the voice of the people, yet for the most it helps amplify the voice of the people. By discouraging people, Stein is likely appealing to many of the minority and young base, making the hard work that these Get Out the Vote campaigns have done obsolete. Stein plays directly on fears that by registering minorities will turn the country blue which is an unfair generalization. While Stein may have been trying to be funny, this article will probably do more harm than anything else.

For more information please go to the direct article which can be found at: http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-stein10-2008oct10,0,5964903.column
As Well As:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22626208/