So where does Gary Johnson fit in on the issues as compared to public opinion?
Take a look for yourself...
77% of the American people support the legalization of medical marijuana.As you can see, the vast majority of Americans agree in principle with Gary Johnson on many of the issues that confront us today; the economy, spending, war and civil liberties. Unfortunately the mediots and their masters are all too happy to ignore Gov Johnson, much like they do with Ron Paul, because they know that it will put an end to the big government gravy-train that they have been riding for so long.
So does Gary Johnson. Barack Obama and Mitt Romney don't want patients to have that option.
75% of the American people think the defense budget should be cut.
So does Gary Johnson. Barack Obama and Mitt Romney both want to spend more.
74% of the American people want the Federal budget balanced.
So does Gary Johnson. Barack Obama and Mitt Romney, not so much.
72% of the American people think we're spending too much money on foreign aid.
So does Gary Johnson. Barack Obama and Mitt Romney want to keep spending.
66% of the American people now oppose the war in Afghanistan.
So does Gary Johnson. Barack Obama and Mitt Romney both want to stay.
65% of the American people think we should be involved in far fewer military interventions overseas.
So does Gary Johnson. Barack Obama and Mitt Romney are happy to send our troops out.
50% of the American people favor legalizing marijuana.
So does Gary Johnson. Barack Obama and Mitt Romney want to continue the drug war.
50% of the American people favor marriage equality.
So does Gary Johnson. Barack Obama is a recent convert; Mitt Romney isn't.
So why do the polls show that Barack Obama is polling at about 47%, Mitt Romney at 42%, and Gary Johnson at only 6%?
. . . because 75-80% of the American people don't know who he is, or what he stands for.
It's time for real change if we have any hopes of turning things around. With the opinions of so many people squarely in line with Gary Johnson's beliefs, the paradigm must shift away from the the thought that you are throwing your vote away on a third-party candidate.
The amount of daylight between Obama and Romney on the key issues is infinitesimal and debating which man is a better candidate for the future of America is about as significant as the debate over which is better, Coke or Pepsi. It doesn't matter, they're both the same.
If more Americans voted their conscience, instead of for the lesser of two evils, we would be in a better position to turn things around and end the stranglehold that the Republicrats have on power.
Remember, a vote for the lesser of two evils is still a vote for evil.
Except for a very few "swing" states, Americans don't even have to worry about "the lesser of two evils." For example, I live in Washington State. It's so reliably "Blue" that I can vote for Johnson confident that Obama will win Washington's 12 electors anyway. Put another way, if Romney wins Washington, it will be such a sweep, that again my vote for Johnson won't matter.
ReplyDeleteThe closest election in memory had Bush narrowly beating Gore. It came down to several recounts in Florida; the closest of which had Bush up by 357 votes. So, if you're not casting 358 votes, your vote would not decide the election. (That was “The most important election of our lifetime,” but did it really matter – no matter how you voted?)
Voting is a self-actualizing event. Smart voters cast a vote to assert their authority and to identify policies important to them – not simply to try to choose the winner.
Before you get policies you want, someone has to vote in politicians who subscribe to those policies. You can start right now building a party with ideas you support, or you can put if off until later. But, the sooner you start, the sooner you will get there. 72 years before women got the right to vote, a small group gathered in convention at Seneca Falls NY to suggest what was a preposterous idea. But if you consistently support something good, as those pioneers found out, it will someday come to pass.
I believe in personal freedom and fiscal restraint. I believe in a smaller federal government, with more control exercised by the state and local government. I believe in ending the war on drugs, in same-sex marriage, in dramatically reduced military spending. I believe in lower taxes and an end to corporate welfare. No one else supports all that, so I'm casting my vote for Johnson – even if it doesn't decide the election.