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Ask HN: How do you decide who/what to vote for?

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Re: Ask HN: How do you decide who/what to vote for?

#11

Post by decafninja »

I'll vote for anyone who isn't Trump, hasn't sworn fealty to Trump, and isn't likely to kowtow to Trump or his acolytes and their agenda. That basically means a Democrat, but it also means writing in my neigbor's cat if that is the alternative to a Trumpist candidate.

There are "establishment" Republicans I still respect and might vote for under normal circumstances, but not in today's political environment.

That said, I disagree with a ton of things with the Democratic party and liberals/progressives in general too, but at this point, purging Trumpism is what I see as most important.

Yes, I understand there are broader issues that fueled the rise in Trumpism in the first place, and agree they need to be handled and heard.

Re: Ask HN: How do you decide who/what to vote for?

#14

Post by bruce511 »

BillyTheMage wrote: post #5

I vote for people who share my values. I do not vote for people who are against my values. As no politicians share my values, and as I do not believe in lesser-evilism, I haven't voted in a long time.

Failure to vote, is not voting-for-no one. It is spliting your vote 50/50.

If you're happy with that then by all means, don't vote.

But please then don't complain about taxes, or depending, or policy, or whatever. If you think its all the same, then what's the point of complaining.

Personally, I don't think you'll ever find a politician who shares your exact set of values, much less a party. That's OK. For me, one party represents more of my values than the other. When push comes to shove I'd be happier with more than less.

Re: Ask HN: How do you decide who/what to vote for?

#15

Post by ttymck »

fargle wrote: post #9
BillyTheMage wrote: post #5

I vote for people who share my values. I do not vote for people who are against my values. As no politicians share my values, and as I do not believe in lesser-evilism, I haven't voted in a long time.

i don't do this. while it's a romantic ideal to "not believe in lesser-evilism", it doesn't help anyone. someone is going to be elected, with or without your voluntary participation. so rather than vote (or not) for the "lesser evil", i take the approach to objectively look at the probability of benefit to my own situation, period . don't anthropomorphize politicians (or larry ellison). adjusting for lying, external…

> objectively look at the probability of benefit to my own situation, period.

> for once being selfish is exactly the right thing to do - if everyone did this, then it would yield the best result for the greatest number of people.

This assumes a sufficient number of people are capable of _accurately_ assessing what is in their best interest. To some, this might sound as romantic as not believing in lesser-evilism.

Re: Ask HN: How do you decide who/what to vote for?

#16

Post by bruce511 »

b20000 wrote: post #7

what we need is a site to vote on issues. the government then implements what the result of the voting is. there is no campaigning. no speeches and no bullshit. the people make all the decisions.

This cones up from time to time, and you'll get downvoted for saying it (not by me) because it's unfortunately a positively terrible approach.

Firstly, very few people, much less the "common man", understand any issue or the nuances, balances, or consequences of any one decision.

Most (not all) "issues" are much less clear-cut than you might imagine. Even issues that appear to have a high majority get bogged down by detail. "Most" would argue for gun control. Very few ever agree on what that control should look like, or how far should it go.

Simple majority voting on every issue would boil down to populist rhetoric.

For starters, I propose no taxes. Of anything, at any level. I'm pretty sure that would be popular. 49% of people explaining why taxes are necessary would result in the collapse of civilization (I'm not even being hyperbolic.)

Or what about "0% immigration, deport all non-US-citizens". That'd likely pass and next years crop will rot in the fields."

Besides, how do you even get a meaningful vote on issues without "campaigning, speeches, media, etc". Do you expect my mom to have a coherent understanding of whether the intersection of 4th and 2nd should be a stop sign, traffic light, or roundabout. Or whether the F39 7th gen fighter should be made by Lockheed or Boeing?

Re: Ask HN: How do you decide who/what to vote for?

#17

Post by HenryBemis »

decafninja wrote: post #11

I'll vote for anyone who isn't Trump, hasn't sworn fealty to Trump, and isn't likely to kowtow to Trump or his acolytes and their agenda. That basically means a Democrat, but it also means writing in my neigbor's cat if that is the alternative to a Trumpist candidate. There are "establishment" Republicans I still respect and might vote for under normal circumstances, but not in today's political environment. That sai…

I don't live in the US, so I don't 'interfere'. I do monitor/watch US tv/media online (i.e. Tucker Carlson AND Stephen Colbert AND SNL AND others..)(yeah I know..)

I also listen to podcasts, and very recently Lex Fridman had Mark Cuban on (I've binged at least 10y worth of Shark Tank in the past). There was one thing that Mark Cuban said that it hit me. "Trump never admits being wrong" (or something to that effect). And since he's a human (with 3 marriages, a porn-star affair/whatever-that-was while married, everyone near him quits or goes to prison, etc. It hit me! "He never admits being wrong". I then thought my early years in life, where all the bad stuff happening to me were always 'someone else's fault - never mine'. And then I grew up (?!) and I know and admit when I drop the ball, apologise, make things good, learn & grow and move on.

But "never does anything wrong" and "always the fault of other people" are two huge red flags. I do invest in US stocks and ETFs, so whoever you (folks in the USA) vote for, please make sure the economy goes strong :)

Re: Ask HN: How do you decide who/what to vote for?

#18

Post by joshxyz »

bruce511 wrote: post #16
b20000 wrote: post #7

what we need is a site to vote on issues. the government then implements what the result of the voting is. there is no campaigning. no speeches and no bullshit. the people make all the decisions.

This cones up from time to time, and you'll get downvoted for saying it (not by me) because it's unfortunately a positively terrible approach. Firstly, very few people, much less the "common man", understand any issue or the nuances, balances, or consequences of any one decision. Most (not all) "issues" are much less clear-cut than you might imagine. Even issues that appear to have a high majority get bogged down by…

i like this take. people like being heard, but people don't like putting in the time to really weigh on things, let alone being accountable.

Re: Ask HN: How do you decide who/what to vote for?

#19

Post by BillyTheMage »

bruce511 wrote: post #14
BillyTheMage wrote: post #5

I vote for people who share my values. I do not vote for people who are against my values. As no politicians share my values, and as I do not believe in lesser-evilism, I haven't voted in a long time.

Failure to vote, is not voting-for-no one. It is spliting your vote 50/50. If you're happy with that then by all means, don't vote. But please then don't complain about taxes, or depending, or policy, or whatever. If you think its all the same, then what's the point of complaining. Personally, I don't think you'll ever find a politician who shares your exact set of values, much less a party. That's OK. For me, one pa…

Which genocide should I be more in favor of?

Re: Ask HN: How do you decide who/what to vote for?

#20

Post by giantg2 »

codingdave wrote: post #2

https://ballotpedia.org/ is where I go. It has a ton of information, and while all political content is going to have some spin to it, they appear to try to present all sides fairly.

It can also be worth checking out ontheissues.org. I tend to like their bullet format with the link to the voting records.
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