The Lesser of Two Weevils

"Voting for the lesser of 2 evils is still voting for evil".

I'm not a Republican anymore.

My family is still mostly Republican, at least my parents are, and I think my brother. My elder children swing conservative with a very obvious leaning towards social liberalism- like libertarians but with a conscience and heart.

Alec is still a work in progress- HIS work and HIS progress, not our indoctrination.

The men I voted for in my youth were clearly Republican candidates, but not a one of them could get on the GOP ballot today for so much as dog catcher. They'd all be labeled "Too Damn Liberal".

That's how far to the Right everything has pitched. Regardless of all the squawking about the "liberal agenda" in the media, the government, society...anything even close to Center now is seen as "Far Left Extremism".

Specifically, anything that calls for any sort of compromise.

So I can't get behind the GOP anymore.

Conversely, there are issues that I can't get behind our current President on. I understand that every damn thing he's attempted to do has been obstructed by the Right- the Right has made it very clear that their one main top most important goal is to make Obama a one term president. I understand that the key to working in DC is compromise (even though the Right has completely forgotten that). But there are things that he's said and done that should never have been said or done, especially by a Democratic president.

Citizens United has been integral in the Taming of America- the hogtying and trussing up of the citizens and the now-legal purchase of our government by the guys and gals on Wall St. has pretty much made the whole shebang a pointless exercise.

So why do it?

Why vote?

After all, if you're playing the game, part of the system, you're part of the problem not part of the solution.

The entire house of cards needs to come down and be re-shuffled once the jokers are taken out.

It 'could' happen if a 3rd party candidate actually won.

That ain't gonna happen. It SHOULD happen, and it COULD happen, but most Americans are too wore out from working themselves to literal death just to keep out of the poorhouse or too scared from staring at their liberal/fundamental/black/white/gun freak/treehugging neighbors waiting for them to do something dangerously traitorously unpatriotic so they can...what? Shoot 'em? Report 'em? Shun 'em at the grocery store?

I'm voting.

I'm voting because women before me fought, were jailed and beaten and mocked and shamed for the right to vote and I won't disrespect them.

Doesn't mean my vote will count against all the corporate money making the real decisions, that the outcome hasn't already been cast- but I'll vote all the same.

Because I'm not voting and going home and forgetting everything else.

I'm voting because I'm an American and it's my duty and my privilege to do so.

But the ballot is just part of it. Our system is broken and needs fixing, and that needs to be addressed through peaceful protest, through boycott, through physically showing up in masses to express displeasure at how OUR dollars are being spent, how OUR elected officials are voting against our interests.

Anyone who says, "That will never work" isn't paying attention to the rest of the world where it IS working...right now.

Masses of people who are tired, and sick, and generally fed up are standing up and yelling, "We're mad as hell and we're NOT going to take it anymore!"

Europe. Mexico. Middle East. Japan. Iceland. Mad as hell and not going to take it anymore.

So I'm voting not to abdicate responsibility for the way things are.

I'm voting as a gesture to what it is supposed to stand for...and then working like hell to get us back there.