On Voting and Gambling

Voting has always felt somewhat like gambling to me. The possibility of actually obtaining the hoped-for outcome is slim to none, but you're supposed to give it the benefit of the doubt anyway.

I've been saying for years that my political philosophy class in college taught me primarily that democracy corrupts more functionally than other systems of government, which is useful because every system of government corrupts. Ours does still function, even with how far removed it is from the Founding Fathers' intentions.

What is the purpose of the circus we call the race for the presidency? Is anyone's mind changed by campaigns, conventions, and debates? Or is it all merely expensive entertainment for the masses, wherein each citizen gets to watch "their guy" and "the other guy(s)" make spectacles of themselves?

Even the lectures I heard this election cycle about responsible citizenship and the common good and whatnot: not one of them managed to be nonpartisan. If someone is considering abandoning their support for a particular candidate, telling them that their only acceptable option is to do so is probably not going to be helpful. Changing hearts and minds is a slow process that demands both openness on the part of the listener and thorough, balanced honesty on the part of the speaker. 

The trouble with gambling is that I pretty much always lose. The apocalypse that was so widely predicted didn't exactly happen the last time Obama won, though he did do more damage than I expected him to (considering the limitations of the executive office). It won't be a walk in the park this time, but we'll manage.

And just think! The spectacle begins again in just about two years. I'll vote next time, but count me out of the proceedings, thanks.

Ut inimicos sanctae Ecclesiae humiliare digneris: te rogamus, audi nos.

Ut regibus et principibus christianis pacem et veram concordiam donare digneris: te rogamus, audi nos.