Ten Reasons I Don't Vote

Having been a nonvoter ever since November 2012, I've wrestled a great deal with the reasons for it. Already, I was threatened by the oncoming storm of hopelessly theocratic lunatics charging the gates of the Republican Party, most notably Todd Akin, and I thought that men like Mitt Romney, Marco Rubio, Rand Paul, and such could be, if not ideal, then at least sensible options to lead the party into the future. Romney's failure in the face of my calm assurance he would prevail made the fact that, like Sergeant Schultz, I knew nothing unmistakable and it is that absolute collapse of my confidence in my powers of political discernment that initially threw me from the horse. Well, since then I have acquired new reasons to not vote on a daily, sometimes hourly, basis. Time and distance from defeat and disgrace has made my decision resolutely redoubled. At no point in the days since have I been given a single good reason to enter a polling place again in my life. Presented here are ten of the reasons I no longer vote. Resorting to list form is a way of organizing my thoughts. Before I begin, I want to make it clear that I propose no solutions to the problems I raise and haven't the foggiest idea what to do about any of it. If I did, I'd vote for someone who I thought would do those things.

1. Hate is inescapable.

Vote for the R and you vote for the hatred of the homosexual. Vote for the D and you vote for the hatred of the affluent and anyone born into money. I cannot any longer vote for hate.

2. I don't have the slightest idea what I am talking about.

Age has brought the purest and most terrible form of wisdom there is. That is knowing what you don't know. It was easy to vote when I thought I knew everything. Understanding the world is more complex than I can grasp. I may as well flip a coin before I pull a lever.

3. Compromising what you believe kills you inside.

Socially liberal. Hawkish on foreign policy. Fiscally conservative. The D is the first, isn't the second, and isn't the third. The R isn't the first, is the second, and is the third. So every time I pull the lever, I make a blow against every socially liberal belief I have. Gays, women, uncensored art, drugs, gambling, prostitution, and more all sacrificed because I want tough foreign policy and more financial freedom. That's a deal with the devil and I'm done making it.

4. I cannot any longer tolerate the news.

To be a good voter, you must watch the news. I can't. My life requires I am not constantly mired in maddening futility.

5. I can no longer debate politics with my heart in it.

You have to really care to discuss the issues of the day effectively. I feel myself not caring when I try. There's no there there. This has to do with the lack of certainty I once had.

6. My party is doomed.

Cubs fans, (for a long time) Red Sox fans, and Cleveland Indians fans may be willing to back a loser to the death, but I can't. Republican is another word for evil. A whole generation believes that and the social conservatives representing us play into their hands. We're over and I'm not going to keep kicking a dying horse to try and make it go to a destination it'll croak long before it ever reaches.

7. I'm very fatalistic when it comes to policy.

The people will vote as they will and who they elect will do as they do. Having accepted that, I don't really have any fight left in me. I just hope everyone else elects a good government and accept my powerless nonrole in the whole thing.

8. I've never gotten anything out of it.

I've been paying attention to politics since I was 11 years old. For 20 years, I cared, I argued, I watched the news, and I voted. For this, I got the second Bush Administration and the Obama Administration. Yelling obscenities at my testicles would've yielded more impressive results.

9. I'm simply happier not voting.

All the energy I used to use thinking about politics is great for thinking about work, hobbies, philosophy, religion, and any number of other enjoyable activities. What good is being a politico if it makes you miserable?

10. I'm no longer viewed as a threat by anyone.

There's a fire in arguments when people think you vote that isn't there otherwise. This is especially helpful in issues that are tangentially political. People don't jump to conclusions or get defensive when it's clear you've gutted and gelded your own political power. That makes for more peaceful discussion, which is enjoyable.

-Frank