People must vote for individual principles, not party or personality.
Partisan dogma and the cult of personality, is discouraging people from voting their conscience.
Party affiliation is destroying this country and we are watching the polarization of society, nearly to the point of civil war. I’m not making predictions here, and I certainly hope and pray that it does not come to that. However, we are on a bullet train to that destination if we do not put some things into perspective and reverse course. The only US President that did not belong to a political party was George Washington. Washington knew the pitfalls associated with this split of ideologies but, this partisan charade started with John Adams as he feuded with Thomas Jefferson, and it has continued to fester since that time. Prior to the Jefferson/Adams divide there were similar ideological differences among the founding fathers, but they did not result in a fracturing of the country along party lines. Opposition was embraced and the conflict that ensued made arguments for both sides stronger because it encouraged them to engage with those that were in direct ideological opposition. We lack this adversarial interaction now as both sides are always trying to silence ideological opposition.
The real danger of party affiliation, especially in our current political climate, is that it gives people the impression that a political party makes up one’s identity, while individual morals and principles are secondary. People tend to vote for party rather than the individual that will represent the respective constituents. Partisanship divides not only elected officials, but also the electorate that is responsible for choosing the individual that will act as their voice in DC. This partisan component of our political system also forces people into a box, discouraging anyone from taking a moderate position on any major issue. This is why there has been a huge shift to registering independent or NPA (No Party Affiliation), depending on your home state. Registering independent is a choice but in States like Florida with closed primaries, if you register as an independent you do not get to vote in primaries. This coercion steers people in the direction of choosing a lesser of two evils and pick a side.
In recent years, presidential elections have been perverted into nothing more than a popularity contest. Barack Obama was a great example of someone that got elected solely on charisma but void of any sound policies. Hope and change was the policy and his healthcare proposal that would soon be referred to as Obamacare, destroyed the health insurance industry in America causing people to lose their plans, their doctors, and eventually caused premiums to skyrocket. Critics of Obamacare screamed from the rooftops, trying to warn everyone of the pending disaster that was the ACA (Affordable Care Act). But Obama was a master salesman and he sold it with his big smile and charming demeanor. “That one may smile, and smile, and be a villain”.
This brings us to third party candidates, and why they don’t normally stand a chance in a general election for president. Ross Perot did exceptional in the 92’ election with George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton. Some say that he cost Bush reelection. But Mr. Perot was an outlier and we have not seen another garner that kind of support until this year with RFK Jr., who just chose his running mate. While we have not seen general election results yet, Mr. Kennedy is currently polling in the 20%s range. But if history serves as a guide, Kennedy will not likely be victorious, but serve as somewhat of a spoiler. Why do third party runs generally fail? Because the powers that be force people into that “box” that I spoke of earlier, suggesting that you must fit into one of the two major parties. Many people believe the lie and succumb to the choice of the two corrupt major parties. The establishment will even go so far as to say that if you vote for a third party that you are ‘throwing your vote away”. People do not like to be singled out, so this scares them into making a binary choice. The worst part of this whole scam is that it forces you to hold your nose and pick a side, even if you do not like either of them or their policies. This is the lesser of two evils conundrum that so many of us struggle with every election cycle.
The two-party system that we have been forced into for over 200 years, makes national unity difficult and creates distance between you and your family/friends. It also falls into the postmodernist trap that is defined by oppressor vs oppressed, each side of the aisle calling the other, dictators, racists, sexists, etc. We don’t have to necessarily eliminate the two-party system, we just need to remember that we should vote for an individual based on morals and principles, not for a party collective or for the sake of falling in line. Vote for the individual and not for the R or D behind their name. If your guy happens to be third party, then vote for him/her, and don’t allow anyone tell you that you are throwing your vote away for voting your conscience. America was founded on the idea of the individual. The collectivist mentality comes to us from the twisted mind of Karl Marx via the “Communist Manifesto”.