2008 US Presidential Poll

[Dave Sinkula]

Just to measure this site's preferred candidates, but possibly to stir up another hornets nest. :D

More info.

The poll had a limit of 10 items.
There are more R's than D's because I made this poll and because that side is more contested.

[alc6379]

Dunno why, but I'm digging Obama. I seem to be able to stomach him more than the others. On the R Side, the only person that appeals to me is Romney, and I don't even know why there, either...

[Jx_Man]

just vote..not comment

[scru]

Isn't voting supposed to be anonymous? :P

[Ancient Dragon]

Obama is the smoothest talker of the bunch. Hillarity Klinton wants to cut all the senior citizen's social security and medicare benefits, freeze all raises for the next 4 years, and cut all military pay and benefits. She has already written/sponsored a bill to do exactly that. That's terrible.

[twomers]

I voted for Hillers to keep Dave happy.

[sneekula]

Obama is the smoothest talker of the bunch. Hillarity Klinton wants to cut all the senior citizen's social security and medicare benefits, freeze all raises for the next 4 years, and cut all military pay and benefits. She has already written/sponsored a bill to do exactly that. That's terrible.

Why does someone always take a cheap shot at her name? Frankly, I didn't expect that from you AD. You should be ashamed.

[scru]

Can somebody explain to me how presidential elections work? Why are Clinton and Obama both Democrats? Aren't they sort of running against each other?

I don't get it...

[sneekula]

Can somebody explain to me how presidential elections work? Why are Clinton and Obama both Democrats? Aren't they sort of running against each other?

I don't get it...

These are the primaries, where each party selects their electable presidential candidate. A time when there is a lot of mud slinging and much blatant lying. A "hornets nest" of special interests, as everyone wants a free government handout!

[Ancient Dragon]

Why does someone always take a cheap shot at her name? Frankly, I didn't expect that from you AD. You should be ashamed.

Maybe I should, but I'm not :)

[Ancient Dragon]

Can somebody explain to me how presidential elections work? Why are Clinton and Obama both Democrats? Aren't they sort of running against each other?

I don't get it...

All 50 US States will be holding conventions, meetings or caucuses to decide which candidates their state will vote for duirng the national convension. At the national convention the delegates from the 50 states will vote for the presidential candidate of their party. The two major parties in the US are Democrats and Republicans. There are other parties but only those two have been in power during at least the last century.

The Democratic National Convention will be held in Denver Colorado on Monday, August 25 to Thursday, August 28.

The Republican National Convention will be held in Minneapolis-Saint Paul Minnesota from September 1-4

The US Presidential Election will be held on November 8, 2008. The US American people do not vote directly for the President and Vice President, but instead vote for electors who meet in January to elect the President. And the new President and VP assume office in January 20.

[MidiMagic]

The problem is that I really don't like any of them.

But the ones I really don't want are the ones who would have government take over health care. They would likely remove the alternative medicines I need due to allergies to "save money".

[sneekula]

The problem is that I really don't like any of them.

But the ones I really don't want are the ones who would have government take over health care. They would likely remove the alternative medicines I need due to allergies to "save money".

Do they have an "Alternative Medicines" Lobby?

[vmanes]

Can somebody explain to me how presidential elections work? <snip>

I don't get it...

AD explained the outward mechanics of it all. What "really" happens is the candidate who can come up with the most money (meaning he/she becomes beholden to the special interests) and the most mud on the other candidates gets to the head of the pack, and represents his/her party in the election.

The election is when the party workers make sure they get as many people to the polls as possible, whether eligible or not, dead or alive, to cast their votes. The news media will predict the winner 10 minutes after the polls open, based on interviews with the first 20 people to have voted. This then influences the other 100,000,000 potential voters as to whether they should bother.

Unfortunately, the people who would probably make good presidents have sense enough to stay out of the race.

Sometimes I wish there was a box on the ballot - "None of the above"
Val

[Dave Sinkula]

People only vote for the "electable" candidate who must be the media-anointed one who gets money, perhaps?

[Ancient Dragon]

Just in case anyone hasn't heard yet Obama won in Iowa tonight and Hillory came in 3d. I'm glad it turned out that way and hope it's like that in all 49 other states.

[Dave Sinkula]

I'm preparing my conspiracy theories as we speak!

[Infarction]

I put Ron Paul in this poll, but only because I disagree the least with what I've heard about him. Some of the candidates I have more issues with, others I haven't heard enough about.

[Dave Sinkula]

Well, at least remember the Chicago phrase:
Vote early, vote often!

[MidiMagic]

The reason that we always get an oddball in office is that there is a bias in the Plurality Voting System we use.

Whenever more than two candidates run, the Plurality Voting System is biased in favor of the candidate most unlike the others.

So the primaries and the national conventions will pick the oddest Democrat and the oddest Republican to face each other.

Then, if there are other parties running in the general election, the Plurality Vote will select the odder of the two candidates mentioned above.

The existence of a third party in the race actually changed the outcome of the Presidential election in 1992 and 2000 (and several other years before 1930). In 1992, Ross Perot handed the election to Bill Clinton just by running, and in 2000, Ralph Nader handed the election to George W Bush.

[madoverclocker]

hillary clinton really doesn't have a chance of being elected, she didn't from the begining. edwards and obama have motivated grass roots movements, hillary's sucess thus far has hinged on being married to bill clinton but i don't see that winning the democratic nomination let alone the general election. i'm projecting the rest of the race being neck and neck with edwards and obama.

[sneekula]

Bigotry is very much alive and strong in the US. Professor Obama, who is half black half white, will have a hard time succeeding as a black man.

Already the hate e-mails are flying, calling him Osama and telling folks that he went to a muslim school in Indonesia.

[EnderX]

Bigotry is very much alive and strong in the US. Professor Obama, who is half black half white, will have a hard time succeeding as a black man.

Already the hate e-mails are flying, calling him Osama and telling folks that he went to a muslim school in Indonesia.

Please explain why you're certain that this is the case. It sounds, to me at least, as though you are trying to set up an excuse should Obama not succeed.

I don't know about the 'Osama' part. Most of what I've seen in that direction simply gives the fact that his full name is Barack Hussein Obama, with a slight emphasis (perhaps overemphasis) on the middle name.

I can't vouch for the 'muslim school' bit, but apparently Obama did, in fact, attend schools in Jakarta, Indonesia for four or five years. (Wikipedia lists the time as when he was 6-10.) And Indonesia is predominantly (again according to Wikipedia, 88%) muslim.

[Ezzaral]

Even given the difficulties that some voters will have with electing a minority candidate (read not a white male), I have heard recent speculation by the pundits that a black male may be more electable than a white woman. Who knows what basis they are making those speculations on, but it does give a sense of the current feelings on minority candidate viability.

[jwenting]

Like it or not Ezzaral, most people couldn't care less about a guy's (or gal's) colour of skin as long as (s)he makes the right sounds and moves.
Of course that statement excludes John Edwards and Shrillary Clintoon which are not humans at all.
Shrillary should also be excluded on the ground that it's already served 2 terms as president, using its husband Billy "suck it hard, Monica" Clintoon as its cover.

[EnderX]

Please lay off the intentional mispellings of names, jwenting. I happen to agree with the political and social persona you present here (can't verify they belong to the real-world version, although I would strongly suspect so). However, with the name calling and insulting, you present a rather unpalatable face for your beliefs. This gives those who oppose you a chance to ignore your points in favor of yelling 'hah! Looser!' or the like, and has a fairly strong chance of causing someone who has not yet made up his or her mind on the issue to turn against your viewpoint simply because of the method in which it is expressed.

From what I've seen, insult is never a valid method of argument when the stakes are high. This doesn't stop those who have no other argument from using it, sadly, but for someone who could make a case without using insults to resort to them seems to indicate that they have given up on the actual debate. I would hope that the situation hasn't yet become that far gone.

[Ezzaral]

Like it or not Ezzaral, most people couldn't care less about a guy's (or gal's) colour of skin as long as (s)he makes the right sounds and moves.

Actually, I'm not sure that is the case. There are still a lot of people who cannot move past their biases and bigotry to accept a female or non-white candidate. It's pathetic in this day and age, but prejudice is still very much alive. I agree that many, including myself, do not care, but I'd have a hard time stating that most don't.

I really hope to be proven wrong on that assessment if the election comes to it. Truly, I really do.

[EnderX]

I really hope to be proven wrong on that assessment if the election comes to it. Truly, I really do.

Can you honestly prove that someone made their decisions based on skin color/gender, rather than on the issues?

[Ezzaral]

Can you honestly prove that someone made their decisions based on skin color/gender, rather than on the issues?

Nope, not if they lose, but if a minority candidate wins then at least it will show that the majority did not let sex or race decide the candidate for them.

[Dave Sinkula]

There are still a lot of people who cannot move past their biases and bigotry to accept a female or non-white candidate.

Damn liberals. :D