http://mises.org/Community/blogs/radicalidealism/archive/2007/12/22/voting-is-the-worst-kind-of-political-apathy.aspxMost economists agree that from a cost-benefit perspective, the cost of voting far outweighs any material benefit . For example, in a presidential election, your vote is one out of 120+ million. Your chance of casting a tie-breaking vote is infinitesimallyenCommunityServer 2008.5 SP2 (Build: 40407.4157)http://mises.org/Community/blogs/radicalidealism/archive/2007/12/22/voting-is-the-worst-kind-of-political-apathy.aspx#7716Thu, 27 Dec 2007 23:19:48 GMT944abf2b-d1be-4bf2-990d-438cb0e377e9:7716Radical Idealism<p>Dear Ron Paul Supporter, Do you honestly believe that your candidate has a chance in hell of winning</p> <img src="http://mises.org/Community/aggbug.aspx?PostID=7716" width="1" height="1">http://mises.org/Community/blogs/radicalidealism/archive/2007/12/22/voting-is-the-worst-kind-of-political-apathy.aspx#7684Thu, 27 Dec 2007 18:52:26 GMT944abf2b-d1be-4bf2-990d-438cb0e377e9:7684ricarpe<p>I liked the 'blog posting, especially the comment on politicians' reliance upon the intellectual elite. &nbsp;But, I believe you could also include their reliance upon the corporate elite as well. &nbsp;Politicians, regardless of party affiliation, receive massive donations from businesses and individuals. &nbsp;I know that this is a form of lobbying, as you stated, but doesn't it also show that the vote from the common man does not count as much as the vote from the psuedo-aristocracy?</p> <p>I posed this question to some of my younger classmates at university. &nbsp;The young idealists brushed off my question by responding that I was a jaded Conservative who was angry at the outcome of the 2006 elections. &nbsp;Oh, how wrong they were...</p> <div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://mises.org/Community/aggbug.aspx?PostID=7684" width="1" height="1">http://mises.org/Community/blogs/radicalidealism/archive/2007/12/22/voting-is-the-worst-kind-of-political-apathy.aspx#7238Sun, 23 Dec 2007 15:24:40 GMT944abf2b-d1be-4bf2-990d-438cb0e377e9:7238Julian Fondren<p>On the bundle of promises you win in an election, see Albert Jay Nock's essay &quot;What the American Votes For&quot;, which you can find in <a rel="nofollow" target="_new" href="http://mises.org/books/snoring.pdf">mises.org/.../snoring.pdf</a></p> <p>An excerpt: <a rel="nofollow" target="_new" href="http://politics.reddit.com/info/62nys/comments/c02n3qv">politics.reddit.com/.../c02n3qv</a></p> <div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://mises.org/Community/aggbug.aspx?PostID=7238" width="1" height="1">http://mises.org/Community/blogs/radicalidealism/archive/2007/12/22/voting-is-the-worst-kind-of-political-apathy.aspx#7150Sat, 22 Dec 2007 09:47:56 GMT944abf2b-d1be-4bf2-990d-438cb0e377e9:7150Brainpolice<p>You make some good points and I agree with the overall sentiment of this post. You mention that the resources spent donating to politicians and the internal political process can be used in more efficient ways. Immediately the market itself pops into my mind. </p> <p>While of course I would never argue that voting and contributing to campaigns implies consent to the state, it does take resources that could have been used productively on the market and directs them to the institutional framework of the state, even if one's intent is to reduce political power this way. </p> <p>These resources would be better used on trying to form alternative private institutions to compete with the state, in my view (and, being an agorist, I don't discourage this being done illegally either). And on funding and persueing educational projects on the ideas of liberty and sound economics, such as the Mises Institute. </p> <div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://mises.org/Community/aggbug.aspx?PostID=7150" width="1" height="1">