I doubt the sincerity of any religious expression on the part of politicians at that level, so the religious pandering does not tend to bother me. If I really thought that the president and vice president prayed together regularly to make decisions, then I would probably be more worried than I am now.

Okay, let's say there is this titanic miracle that Cancer is Cured, Aides gets a Vaccine, and both George Lucas and Uwe Boll are no longer allowed to even look at Cameras or get within 200 yards of a movie set....

And Ron Paul gets elected president by a sudden popularity swell thanks to all the Facebook Pictures of his face and clever captions.

What do you think that Presidency will accomplish?  Fix everything all the sudden?  Or will he completely embody the term "Lame Duck President"?   He would have Zero support in the House and the Senate and he has no Supreme Court Justices to back him up.   He would accomplish Diddly Squat.   His presidency would amount to Jack s___.

For anyone to effect anything - He would have to have Infrastructure under him... a foundation.  A martial artists talks about his Stance and that being where he gets his strength from.  Same thing as this... A sudden 3rd party sweeping the Whitehouse - Neat trick.  But useless because he has no foundation.  He would be useless and be made to look foolish.
And for God's Sake - Find someone that doesn't look and sound like a fluffing lunatic like Ron Paul.  He has to have Charisma.  He has to roll fluffing 20's on Charisma.  Ron Paul is a gigantic dork that doesn't even wear a suit that fits him.  You need someone that will bring voters FLOCKING to him by the Stadium full.   
Like this:
http://m.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/romneyryan-rally-planned-for-waukesha-sunday-night-096f6lt-165842666.html

You third party guys - Stop Aiming for the Whitehouse!  It's not TIME.  You have to build your base.  Get your guys into School Boards, City Councils, State Houses and Senates... Then go for Congress and once you have established a solid foundation - Then you go for the Whitehouse with a Chance in Hell to actually win it.

UNTIL THAT TIME -
Stop wasting our time and stop splitting our VOTE!   You guys are being used... by Media Matters and the like to Split our Vote... You are termed "USEFULL IDIOTS" by the Left because you are Serving Their Purposes.  You split our vote and that makes beating the GOP and staying in power all the easier!

A Better Plan?  And Easier Plan? 
Let's FIX the GOP and put it in the RIGHT TRACK.  Make the GOP Conservative again. 
How?  Take some Seats back from them and push the Lean back to the Right.  It's DOABLE.  We're seeing it already working in some states.  It's far easier to fix the GOP than it is to establish a 3rd Party.

Voting isn't something one does to FEEL good.

FMJ, buddy, you're young, hopefully you'll learn this lesson faster than many of us did:

The Presidential election is the LEAST of the votes you might/will cast this year.  The real votes go to your city council, school board, state representatives, and maybe your congressmen.  Local politics is where real change can be affected, and where reform truly begins.  And THOSE are the votes that matter.  So even if the big ticket sucks, get educated, then get out and vote, ESPECIALLY for the small tickets.

As an atheist I have to ask why ones religious ideas, beliefs, and (generally) practices should even be a deciding factor in the selection of the leader of a nation that SUPPOSEDLY has a policy of separating church and state?

It is just pandering to believers.  Remember that the first goal is to get elected. The second is to stay elected.  Public expressions of faith cost a politician next to nothing so is a cheap way to influence votes.  Personally I doubt that any of the major candidates believe in anything except power.

Obviously, the one who listens to the higher power is going to make better decisions/be a better person/etc!

Obama is an atheist?  I thought you guys were claiming he was Muslim.

Obama is an atheist?  I thought you guys were claiming he was Muslim.

Well, he hangs out with Rev. Wright, preacher of Black Liberation Theology, which is kinda-sorta-if-you-squint sharing some points with Rastafarianism...

I could see the Big O rocking some dredds... 

I will say that voting is important. No matter what. Even if you are voting against gun rights or voting in a state that has no chance of going to your candidate, vote. Out of respect for all of those who fought and died for that right.

Does that make me happy with those who vote third party? No. But it doesn’t matter what I want. Respect our servicemen alive or dead.

But I will say this. Those that think that giving Obama another four years is something they can live with? Yeah, um. You suck. Because it’s not all about you. What if something happens to one of “our” supreme court justices in the next four years and they have to step down (or worse)? Guess who gets to pick the new one?

And to think that, “Hey, Obama can make things so bad people will vote Republican next time around.” It’s just plain stupid. Okay, there is probably a better chance but it’s not written in stone.

I would vote for a guy wearing a Spongebob Squarepants costume before voting for Obama. This man NEEDS to be stopped. He must NOT get the smug satisfaction of another four years.

Do I love Romney? No. I don’t. But do NOT tell me that I’m not voting my conscience when I vote for him. Because that is EXACTLY what I’m doing.

I think a C+ is generous for Romney.       It is more like a choice between an F and an F-  to me.  One may be slightly less evil,  but we are losing no matter which one we end up with.

For better or worse we have Romney/Ryan and Obama/Biden to pick from. As our esteemed Mr. Ogre pointed out, voting for a third party is, essentially, throwing a vote for Obama. Is Romney perfect? No, but he would be, at the very least, answerable to a Republican dominated House and, in the future hopefully, a GOP dominated Senate. With our electing of better candidates for Senate and House we can make sure that Romney toes the line. Our Senators and Congressman are more susceptible to the will of the voters as well. The upsets of incumbents and the Tea Party are an good example of that. As for myself, I am voting for Romney not because he is the lesser of two evils, but because he has at least an understanding of the capitalist ideas that are integral to the American way but also because he chose a running mate who has experience with the budget process and is all about fiscal responsibility. And the fact that Romney is a lot less likely to force through legislation that is anti-2nd Amendment than Big Ears Barry might have a part in my choice after all. We might not win, but it's not going to be because I stayed home that day.

That attitude is really starting to piss me off.

You and me both.  But it's trendy now to say things like "Oh I don't like either of them" and "We'll lose no matter what".  It's uncool to pick sides these days.

This is the game.  You play, or you lose.  There is no "I'm out" or other such bulls___.  If you're a citizen of this country and have the opportunity to vote, you WILL vote for one of two candidates.  One way or another.  Stay home on November 6th, it doesn't matter.  You voted for Obama or Romney.

I expect someone will say something like "This is the attitude that got us where we are" or some other such nonsense.  Bull.  These are the facts.  Cry cry cry your little eyes out, and they will not cease to be a facts.  Today, this is the situation.  Change the game by playing the game.  And keep playing.  You don't turn a system this size on a dime.  You nudge it slowly until it's going in the direction you want to go, then you work tirelessly to keep it going that way.  Then just maybe, during your lifetime, you'll be half way there.

And therein lies the problem children... you all think you can make it happen now.  The people who voted for Obama thought that, and look what happened. 



Honestly, I'm more pissed off now than when I started typing this.  Dems or liberals aren't the problem.  WE are.  They have their s___ together.  They change the game by playing it.  But we're all a bunch of ball hogs running around on our own trying to play our own game, then scream foul when everyone doesn't want to play.  We out number "them", but we can't even agree on how to make a ham sandwich.  Makes me f___ing sick to my stomach. 

I like Romney more than Obama.  I think he's a basically honest man who knows how to work with large numbers and properly delegate to people.  I'm going to vote for Romney.

And no... I'm not Mormon.  I've never been Mormon.  I've never considered becoming Mormon.  I don't care that he's Mormon.


-T.

That's probably true to some degree for both sides.  What matters is how much derision there is, and which side has more.  As mentioned, the DNC has historically had their crap together.  The RNC, not really.


-T.

Heh - that depends on which part of history you're talking about...