A Broader Look at Voting
Lately, I've been thinking a lot about voting. That isn't a shocker. I'm certainly not the only one thinking about voting right now. It’s a topic that is front and center in many people’s minds right now as the 2024 presidential election is upon us.
I am not going to tell anyone to vote or not to vote in this piece. I merely want to discuss a few points in the attempt to look more broadly at the subject of voting than we Americans tend to do. I waited until the election was right on top of us to even put this piece out so that anyone who reads it would know that my aim was not to necessarily influence anyone to make a different voting decision than they already planned to make. I merely want us all to think more deeply about what voting is and isn’t.
A year ago I wrote a piece about voting which I would encourage you to read before reading this one. These are just some additional thoughts complementary to the ones I wrote previously in that piece. It will give you some of my background thoughts that I am expanding upon here. What I write here now is in basic accord with what I wrote eighteen months ago in the previous piece with perhaps a few refinements that are the product of my continued thinking on the topic.
As with many topics that I think about frequently, I constantly evaluate my own ideas and refine my thoughts.
The same goes for my opinions on voting. I feel differently about voting now than I did in the distant past. Yet as I say that, I must clarify what I mean. It's not so much that my thoughts on the principle of voting in the abstract have changed. Rather, it's that my thoughts have changed with respect to voting in presidential elections at this point in time and most specifically with this current 2024 election between former president Donald Trump, current vice president Kamala Harris, and a field of a few other candidates.
Perhaps these same ideas here expressed could be evaluated for their potential application to presidential elections during other historical periods, other federal elections (such as elections for members of Congress), or elections held at other levels of government, but my focus here is on the current presidential election. That said, I’m not going to focus much on the merits or deficiencies of either main candidate but rather what it means to vote or not vote at this time.
Focus on National Level Politics
We have an unhealthy fixation with what happens in D.C. This is entirely antithetical to the way our constitutional system of governance was established. The states created the general (federal) government to execute certain powers that were more appropriately handled by a central body. Over time, that government has arrogated more and more power. The states have often been complicit in this federal encroachment even though it has resulted in a diminution of their own powers. The American public - with our collective ignorance of history coupled with our apathy towards civics - has also enabled the locus of power to shift away from the states and people respectively and towards D.C.
National Level Politics and Voting
This preoccupation with national level politics has led to an obsession every four years over the presidential elections. Were we to follow the Constitution, the federal government’s powers would be limited and we would feel less threatened with the prospect of a new national executive entering the Oval Office. This phenomenon works the other way as well. People expect too much of the president. They demand actions from the president that he can’t lawfully perform and also blame him for things that are outside his executive purview. In this regard, we the American citizens share some of the guilt in creating what the office of the president has become.
Despite the fact that a sizable portion of the population has become apathetic about the fate of the nation, that certainly is not the case for many others. Plenty of people want to feel as if they're doing something, contributing something, or taking part in an effort to move the country in a more positive direction. These are noble desires. They just need to be coupled with actions that work toward achieving positive outcomes.
Of course, this is my analysis based on my opinions. You may disagree with the reasons I give below or the importance I attribute to them. You may even disagree with the premises built into what I lay out here. Even if you disagree, I hope that maybe something I share here can help you consider the topic of voting more broadly even if your position ultimately remains unchanged. At the same time, it may enable you to understand the perspective of those who take a different view but may also have sound reasoning to support their stance.
Does Voting Matter?
Does your vote matter? If so, does it matter in the way you think it matters? If it doesn’t matter, why not?
I don't think it's easy to categorically say whether or not voting matters despite the fact I firmly believe that Election Day holds little to no bearing on which candidate will be the next president. However, that does not necessarily mean that voting does not matter at all. There are ways in which voting could potentially matter but for reasons that extend beyond just choosing the next president.
Many people who have long been disabused of the idea that voting determines the next president may still feel a duty to vote, almost as if there are metaphysical justifications for still submitting their ballot. Perhaps they feel a drive to make their choice known despite knowing the elections aren’t what we have been told they are. I don't necessarily discount this perspective or judge those who hold to this idea.
Others, just as keen with their intent, may opt out of voting so as not to contribute to the collective consent farming that voting can elicit.
It's important for us to understand how profoundly the concept of intentionality relates to voting. The “consent of the governed” can play a significant role even in our own system where we seem to have little say in what policies are pursued.
Current Electoral Context
As I have made clear, I think our election system has been thoroughly taken over and that we have little say in what happens in the choice for president. There are some who may think the same but assume this is because our elections aren’t secure. I think that’s of course true, but it’s not the whole story. Elections aren't just stolen on Election Day. The entire institution of presidential elections has been taken over.
This means that elections are controlled in a far more comprehensive way than just via ballot harvesting or other fraudulent activities dealing with the act of voting itself.
The entire campaign season is about the creation of narratives to corral the people into accepting a pre-determined outcome. Many Americans, believing the people have chosen these outcomes, therefore offer their consent to the pre-determined president and the path the new national leader will take the country down (based on the orders he receives from the powerful networks that control the presidents, the political parties, and other institutions such as the media). As we have seen in recent decades, the direction will typically involve the further destruction or enslavement of the country’s citizens through war, debt, the contamination of food, and a never-ending onslaught of propaganda.
However, the eventual outcome of a given presidential election doesn’t begin with the campaign either. It begins much earlier. It’s my firm belief that the lives of the candidates are steered in such a way so as to place them in the position where they can be offered to the masses as a viable candidate at the right time. I don’t pretend to know exactly how they do this, but it is no secret that certain families have enormous wealth, power, and influence developed over generations. Individuals are probably identified early on for specific roles on the world stage that serve the pyramid of power. Some of these are designated as future political leaders to serve at the behest of the networks behind them while feigning loyalty to their country and countrymen.
The 2020 Election
Was the 2020 Election stolen or was it never ours to begin with?
We have long heard of the concept of “free and fair” elections, but in recent years it's been reduced to nothing more than a meme. We've been told that free elections are a hallmark of those societies built upon the voice of the people and the rule of law.
The 2020 Election changed many Americans’ perceptions of presidential elections. I tend to take a different approach to that election. Do I think Biden received more votes, popular or electoral, than Trump? No. Not at all. In that regard, I think much the same as many others who question the results and I would agree that it was “stolen.”
Where I likely part company with those who question the 2020 Election is that I think our elections haven’t been free and fair for a long time. The election four years ago just made that fact clear. In my previous voting piece, I referred to its intended gaslighting effect.
There’s another reason I think the 2020 Election operation was performed by those controlling our country. I think it was to serve as a key component in the narrative that Trump is an enemy of the deep state regime (when in fact he is one of their greatest assets right now). This narrative has continued to be more elaborately developed over the last four years.
In that vein, I think the January 6th operation served the purpose of further dividing the country. Trump supporters were incensed at the stolen election and perhaps rightly so. That said, they were manipulated into gathering around the Capitol in protest. While that in and of itself is perfectly legal and understandable given the situation, these well meaning people were unaware that a trap had been laid for them and that the man they were there to support felt no particular loyalty to them. It was a setup. As a result, many good conservatives have languished in incarceration as political prisoners, not necessarily of Democrats per se but of the American regime (which controls both parties to fuel the dialectical engine that is politics).
My assumption is that Trump had been told, by whomever controls him and put him in power in 2016, that he would not return to the White House in 2020. If that is in fact the case, then Trump knew that he wouldn’t serve two consecutive terms. This would explain why Trump never truly challenged the 2020 electoral results. Sure, he loudly complained and even put together a team supposedly dedicated to legally overturning the results, but this never came close to yielding an authentic effort to seek redress.
(It remains to be seen whether or not he will serve two non-consecutive terms, though I believe he will. This would mean the same networks of power put him in office in 2016, took him out in 2020, and then re-inserted him into office in 2024. I don’t find any of this to be outside the realm of possibility and in fact this is what I assume will happen).
Voting
Let’s move on to voting. Simply put, I think there can be valid reasons to vote. I also think there can be valid reasons to not vote. I also think there are invalid reasons to vote and invalid reasons to not vote.
By examining some of the sound reasons to vote or not vote as well as some of the poor justifications for each, perhaps we all can better assess our own thoughts on the act of voting. It may also assist us in our ability to engage in fruitful dialogue with those who may hold a different opinion on the subject.
It should go without saying, but let me reiterate that these are what I deem to be valid or invalid reasons. Your list may vary.
Valid Reasons to Vote
If you insist on voting, then don't vote for the lesser of two evils. Go into voting with a clear-eyed assessment of what voting is and isn’t. Understand that the candidates are totally controlled and that the outcome has already been determined by the crime syndicate running this country. Understand that you are performing your duty expressly to preserve the civic sanctity of the institution of voting. You should feel largely unconstrained and able to vote for whomever you wish to see as POTUS regardless of whether or not that person is a viable candidate or even a candidate at all.
Perhaps you feel the need to cast your vote. You may feel a duty to your nation or even to God. You may feel that this duty transcends the outcome of the election. You may even be fully aware that the elections are totally controlled. If this describes you, then I would say that you are at least engaging in voting with your eyes open as to what you are doing.
Some citizens are single issue voters and therefore believe one specific item of a political platform is so important that they believe it outweighs the other policy issues. In this case, voters may feel a moral justification to vote for the candidate that promises fulfillment of the voter’s wish for their primary issue. If this is you, the same rule above applies here. If you know full well that the system is controlled but still feel an ethical obligation to vote in favor of what you deem to be of unmatched importance, then perhaps it could be considered a valid reason to vote.
I mentioned intentionality above. This is a subject which doesn’t get the attention it deserves. Our motivations matter and our intentions are very powerful. I think there exists the possibility of voting without necessarily consenting to the further destruction and enslavement that will come at the hands of the candidate the voter supports. However, this requires a specific intentionality that probably eludes the majority of voters who aren’t thinking in this way at all.
Some might accuse voters of being naive, but if the voter is truly awake to the reality of elections and sound in their intentionality then perhaps this critique is unfounded.
Valid Reasons to Not Vote
A sound case can also be made to abstain from voting. Voting, in a functional republic, is a cherished activity. However, one could argue quite cogently that to vote in a system that has completely inverted our political & electoral processes is to participate in a type of civic blasphemy.
To deliberately opt out of the election is to cast a type of vote. In this case, it’s a “vote” that says "I reject the mockery you've made of this hallowed activity and refuse to participate in its desecration."
Not voting isn't "doing nothing." Refusing to feed the beast that is devouring us is one of the most important steps that we can take right now. Often the harmful actions we stop doing are as important as the helpful ones we start doing.
No one should feel obligated to play in a game rigged against them. Consent is important to the evil occult networks that control so much of our political and cultural institutions. We do not have to become agents of our own destruction or enslavement. Once again, the intentionality of opting out is important. This intentionality separates the deliberate non-voters from those who don’t vote out of complacency or laziness. Safeguarding our consent against the monsters that have invaded the pillars of our society is of paramount importance.
People often quip that if you don’t vote, you can’t complain about the outcome or about the new president’s policies. I think we can perhaps turn that idea on its head. Might we instead say that only those who refused to consent to the fake election can truly criticize the outcome?
Obviously complaining and criticism aren’t themselves actions, but alerting people to stop consenting to slavery is part of the plan of action to get through this.
Some might accuse non-voters of being subversive (even if they are perhaps unaware of the subversion). I would respond that this is an overly reductive way of thinking of the decision to not vote. Actively deciding not to vote is not subversive. In fact, it’s actually counter-subversive. Our political system has been entirely subverted already by those eroding our culture, institutions, and society. Refusing to play their rigged game is to challenge their ongoing subversion of our system. (This doesn’t mean that there is no subversion occurring; there is, and it will be addressed below).
Invalid Reasons to Vote
Many people vote out of pure naivete. They believe that it is a right coupled with a duty and they are proud to do it. They resolutely go to the polls, submit their ballot, put on their “I Voted” sticker, and then immediately make a social media post (complete with photo proudly showcasing their nifty sticker) to proclaim that they have performed their civic duty as a freedom-loving American.
The problem with this is that it perpetuates the falsehood that these votes will determine the election outcome and that these faithful patriots have a say in choosing the next president. It causes people to invest time and energy in actions that produce limited solutions. They are virtually empty actions. That is tough to hear, but it is the uncomfortable truth. If we refuse to accept the uncomfortable truths, we will continue to see presidents that engage in needless war, rack up debt, and break the law with no reservations whatsoever. We will see our countrymen continue to lose their lives, their jobs, wealth, and freedoms.
If we lived in a true republic, voting would be a worthwhile endeavor and should be encouraged. That is not our reality. Our system is too inverted from its intended purpose. Voting will not change the system. The system must be changed first for voting to ever matter.
One of the most common arguments to justify voting is that we must understand the reality of the situation, accept the options before us, and therefore choose the lesser of two evils. I can understand this perspective, and while I don’t think it is entirely inaccurate, I do think it is limited. It generally presupposes that at least one candidate, while not perfect, is measurably better than the other. I think that is an incomplete picture of the current election and most presidential elections. The reason the candidates are running is because they are controlled. Too many voters assume that at least one of the candidates is sincere and that their platform represents a fairly authentic portrayal of their desires for the country. That’s just not the case. These candidates are not loyal to the country or the citizenry. They will do what they are ordered to do by those who put them in power (which is not the American people).
The same could be said for other justifications built on some strategic calculus that presupposes a role of the voters in determining the outcome of the election.
As a final note in this section, I must distinguish between naivete on the one hand and hope or optimism on the other. One can be optimistic even while having a true appraisal of the gravity of a given situation. Voters voting out of valid reasons may do so while exercising hope. Those abstaining from voting for valid reasons may also do so out of hope. In either case, that is distinct from the naivete that blinds the actions of those who vote out of a total unawareness of the current status of presidential elections. Talk about “low information voters…”
Invalid Reasons to Not Vote
There are also invalid reasons to not vote. There are plenty of people who are too lazy or complacent to vote. The main impediment that keeps them from voting is their own apathy.
This is a terrible reason to abstain from voting. Sadly, many Americans are lazy. Beyond that, many live as if they are in a trance. They are inundated with propaganda and competing narratives. Many don’t even try to search for what’s true because they are either totally uninterested in the health of the country or don’t make it a priority amid the other things going on in their lives. This apathy likely accounts for a fair portion of the non-voting population.
A lot of people in this category are the victims of a concerted effort to drive people to give up in whole or in part. In giving up, these individuals abdicate responsibility for their lives or their freedom. These people are the victims of the subversion mentioned earlier that is in fact going on. There are specific efforts designed to cause people to lose faith. These people may assume that nothing in the political space matters or that political affairs are impossible to influence. Some people may begin to even question the idea of truth and whether or not it is even attainable.
This despair or nihilism is unhealthy and often is a byproduct of the constant barrage of propaganda and narrative engineering we are subjected to. Nonetheless, these constitute poor reasons to not vote.
Conclusion
My point is not to tell others whether or not to vote but to urge all of us to be realistic about what voting is and isn’t. I’m often accused of having a dismal outlook of the state of our country, but I would counter that by saying that I have a realistic outlook. The situation is dismal. It’s important we acknowledge that and then move forward and improve. We can’t do that while people are still encumbered by unrealistic appraisals of where America is and what she needs to survive.
Understanding what it means to vote or not vote is an important theme at this juncture in America’s trajectory.
As I laid out here, it’s less about whether or not someone votes and more about the intentionality behind their decision.
People have to work through these issues for themselves. They need to wrestle with these decisions and come to their own conclusions. Many people aren't doing that. They're not grappling with these issues the way they should be. It should be a struggle to work through these ideas because there are no easy answers. Those who have easy answers often haven’t navigated the complexity of the issue.
I'm not totally against voting. There may be a valid reason for it. There are also however valid reasons to not vote. If you still feel that you have a moral obligation to vote, then go ahead. Nothing wrong with that. But it doesn't make you morally superior to those who choose not to engage in the charade. The intention behind your decision to vote or not vote is as important as the act of voting or abstention from voting.
Again, I am not making any definitive statements against the principle of voting in the abstract. I am more focused on the particular election between current presidential candidates in the 2024. My comments aren’t directly tied to other elections. I encourage Americans to get as involved as possible at the state and local levels.
On a final note, your choice may be binary but not necessarily in the way you might be thinking. It is not just about voting or not voting. The real binary construct is: either consent to your own enslavement...or don't.
We must stop looking to be saved by D.C. when we need to be saved from D.C.
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I'm not voting. I refuse to feed the beast that's literally destroying lives.
What do you think of that Brad?