Ah boy. So I got this anonymous note in response to my Santa Claus voting thing which I’d posted on craigslist as well. If you’ve not read that post, go back and check it out, cause its probably the best explanation I’ve ever made of why I’m against voting. And, it has nothing whatsoever to do with “apathy.” Anyway, as I said, the person who wrote this to me was so sure in their opinions that they didn’t bother to use their real name or their real email address. In which case, I feel totally fine about repeating it in its entirety here.

Have you heard of local and state elections? And were alive during
the last election? Do you really think that votes don’t matter? You
and about 25 million people like you didn’t vote during the last
presidential election because you didn’t want to choose the lesser of
two evils, and now look where that got us? Do you think that the
people who run for office have some sort of super hero power that
makes them totally unable to influece? Come on dude, these are just
people. You could run for office, albeit, you would need a lot of
backing, and in this capitalist society, you’ll need money, but with
the right ideas, you can get out there and find people who will follow
you. Whatever you do, don’t complain about the way things are run if
you aren’t taking part in the most simple civic duty out there,
voting. is it really that hard for you to do a little research and go
out there and make a decision? You have plenty of time to read
Craigslist, how about going to www.ontheissues.org and checking out
what the people who are running for office stand for and making a
decision?
We can’t all run a society individually, that goes against the very
idea of a society. But we can determine who follows our beliefs the
most closely and vote for them.
I’ll make it even easier for you:
http://electionimpact.votenet.com/declareyourself/eligibility.cfm
Go to that site and take the five seconds it takes to register, quit
being an apathetic moron, and remember people like Medger Evers who
died for this very simple right.
Political apathy is sooo 1999.

ps.. …and no, people asking you to vote are not asking you to vote
democratic, they’re asking you to have an opinion for once in your
life. do you have this much trouble deciding what to eat for dinner?

I’m not gonna launch into a huge thing about why I think this letter is so retarded, or about how they clearly clearly missed the point of everything which I was saying in my original post. I feel like pointing our every flaw I see in their arguments would be giving them too much credit for having even thought about this at all. In any event, Mystery-Responder, I wish you well and hope all your dreams come true.

Alright, no, I lied. I can’t bear to leave the points above unrefuted, so here goes:

1. “Do you really think that votes don’t matter?”

   Historically, the electoral college system was created because the founding fathers did NOT trust the populous to make a good decision about who would become president. Further, Gore won the popular vote by a large number, as I recall. Second, Gore technically probably won the electoral vote as well. But the Supreme Court, not the people, or the electoral college even, chose to create Bush as supreme imperial dictator.

2. “Do you think that the people who run for office have some sort of super hero power that makes them totally unable to influece?”

   No, I just KNOW for a fact that the only thing they respond to is money. And why should they respond to anything else? Government is a business, after all, and its run on behalf of business.

3. “You could run for office, albeit, you would need a lot of backing, and in this capitalist society, you’ll need money…”

   Precisely my point.

4. “Whatever you do, don’t complain about the way things are run if you aren’t taking part in the most simple civic duty out there, voting.”

   First off, I can and will complain. Second, non-voting is exactly as expressive as not voting. Possibly more so. Third, your argument is essentially (to paraphrase Aron), “You can’t boycott Coca-Cola unless you drink Coca-Cola products.”

5. is it really that hard for you to do a little research and go out there and make a decision?

   Not at all. In fact, I have spent a great deal of time and done more than just “a little research.” In fact, I have done hundreds of hours of research through all variety of media sources, and historical documentation. And based on all the research I have done, and continue to do, this is in fact the decision which I have chosen to make. And I firmly stand by it.

6. We can’t all run a society individually, that goes against the very idea of a society.

   Not so. Society consists entirely of individuals, each of which is an inviolable sovereign entity.

7. But we can determine who follows our beliefs the most closely and vote for them.

   Why? What’s the point? Why can’t I follow my beliefs myself, rather than running around trying to find somebody else follow them for me?

8. quit being an apathetic moron,

   This has absolutely zero to do with apathy. If this was about apathy, I would have not written anything at all in the first place.

9. and no, people asking you to vote are not asking you to vote democratic,

   Yes, in fact they are asking you to vote democratic. Why else would they be mobilizing people?

10. they’re asking you to have an opinion for once in your life.

    I have tons of opinions. In fact, I could bury you in a field of my opinions and you would never find yourself again. You could become the next Jimmy Hoffa.

In retrospect, this wasn’t worth responding to, afterall. Or posting about. Although, that thing about Jimmy Hoffa was pretty good, I thought. Oh well.