Q: Dr. Hurd, I agree with you that the choice for President is terrible. I want greater freedom and individual rights in both the personal and economic realm, and I want a strong, principled defense against terrorism. But I’m voting Democrat. Let the Democrats destroy us rather than the Republicans, if we’re going to be hurt either way. This will give the Republicans time to regroup and hopefully become a better party.
A: You can accomplish this by abstaining from voting. If Republican turnout is low and McCain loses because of it, this will send a message to Republicans that they must field a better candidate next time. If Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama win in a landslide, because non-Democrats vote them in as well, this will send a message to the government that socialism and fascism are desired. I can hear it now: “Hillary’s Mandate for Change.” Or: “Obama–the new Reagan, only the mission will be more government, not less.” Do you really want to contribute to this?
People have to get past this idea that not voting is a waste. Sometimes it’s the only way to protest. If you really want a better alternative to the Democrats, that’s fine. I do too, and I agree that McCain isn’t it. But this doesn’t mean you have to endorse the consistent implementation of evil, which, in the form of Obama and Clinton, are the closest our country has yet come. Think about what you’re doing before you take this approach.
The premise of voting Democrat so that the Republicans can regroup and later save us is that Republicans are, at the core, the better party. I see no reason to assume this. The Republican Party is populated with numerous religious fanatics and nuts–the American version of the Taliban–as well as more reasonable people. The Democratic Party is populated with a bunch of pacifistic, anti-American socialists–as well as more reasonable people. What makes you think that electing Hillary or Obama is going to deliver us into the hands of a Republican Thomas Jefferson in 2012? Dream on. America’s political problems run much deeper than the problems presented by either of these two parties. It’s going to take more than a Democrat or a Republican to solve them. It will take a revolution “in the hearts and the minds of the people”–just like the last time. Nothing less will save us.