In the 2000 Presidential election, 100 million eligible voters chose not to vote... almost half of all those who could have voted. In 1996, more than half didn't vote. In 2000, Minnesota led all other states with 68.8% voting, while Hawaii was on the bottom with 41%.

Typically, when voters think that a certain outcome is likely, fewer bother to vote. When an election is viewed as close, the percentages creep higher. Yet, even in an extremely close election such as 2000, 100 million voters still didn't bother. I think we can draw one conclusion from that... that half of the eligible voters think the election doesn't make any difference. After watching a GOP President with a GOP Congress rule for 4 years, take us to war, and do more spending than Democrats, I suspect that even more voters will be convinced that there is no significant difference between the major parties... and will stay home on election day.

It's also true that few voters will vote for any candidate they don't believe has a chance to win. That was proven in Wisconsin, where a post-election poll showed that the Libertarian candidate for Governor would have gotten about twice as many votes if voters though he had a chance of winning.

As bad as the presidential elections are, the voting for Congress is far worse. Barely 30% voted for the person who represents them in the U.S. House. Almost 15% of those House races were not even contested by both major parties... they were "gimmes"... no choice at all.

In 2000, 77% of U.S. House races were "landslide" wins... the average victory margin was 40%.. no contest.

I've written about the obstacles the two ruling parties' place in the path of anyone else trying to win an election. Virtually every aspect of election law (written by R's and D's) is designed to reduce competition. Truth is, the Republican and Democratic parties have our nation by the throat, and they're squeezing it for all they're worth, draining the lifeblood of our nation.

The R's and D's pander to everything that is weak and corrupt in our citizenry. They use massive, expensive propaganda to convince us that we can't trust ourselves... that we need them to tell us... nay, FORCE us, to do what is "good for us". They drive wedges into our populace, by pandering to one group at the expense of another, then reversing and angering the other side as well. They produce innumerable laws and regulations that can be enforced or ignored, as their whims may dictate, giving them the power to reward or punish for purely political purposes. They use our tax money to build their own political strength, by rewarding their collusive complicitors and thus handicapping their competitors. They buy votes, they buy silence, and they buy support.

The two major parties, through their insane power, have corrupted all 3 branches of government beyond recognition. The President ignores Congress and finds ways to do what he wants. Congress ignores the Supreme Court with regularity, passing laws they know will eventually, and at great expense, be ruled unconstitutional. When that does happen, they simply rewrite legislation to work around the ruling, ignoring the intent of the Court. Even worse, federal agencies ignore The President, Congress, and the Supreme Court and do whatever they damned well please.

If we don't find an effective way to stop this R(ape) and D(destruction) soon, we're going to find ourselves living in a broken economy with very few freedoms left to us.

I would love to see all 100 million non-voting Americans go to the poll next November and vote for the Libertarian presidential candidate, but I know that those non-voters cannot believe that candidate has a chance of winning... so why bother? The "fix is in", so why fight it? It's a self-destructive attitude, but I understand it.

For all of you who are greatly dissatisfied with the limited choices you have, but cannot bring yourself to vote for a Libertarian President, I have another choice for you to consider.

NOTA (None of the Above) is always a choice on Libertarian ballots. NOTA will, as usual, be formally nominated to the ballot at the Libertarian convention, and that candidacy will be taken seriously. NOTA is likely to receive a substantial number of votes, for a variety of reasons, one being to remind candidates that they cannot ever take votes for granted... that there are NO gimmes in libertarian circles.

I want you to imagine what would happen if NOTA was on the ballot in November. Imagine a choice for all those who are fed up with the Republican Party, but cannot bring themselves to vote for a Democrat. Imagine all those Democrats equally disillusioned with the Democratic Party, but think they must vote D to keep a Republican out. Imagine all the voters who have come to hate both major parties but don't see a "protest vote" they can make. Now imagine those 100 million non-voters at last having a clear way to express their disgust with the whole political situation.

NONE OF THE ABOVE! I'm calling for a write-in vote for NOTA. It's short, simple and effective. What a message we would be sending to each other, and to the corrupt manipulators of both major parties.

The nicest thing about NOTA as a write-in candidate is that you can vote for NOTA for every single office on the ballot... THE ULTIMATE PROTEST VOTE. NOTA for President, NOTA for Senator, NOTA for each U.S. House seat... and for every other office on the ballot.

It's past time for the American public to regain control of government, and we cannot do it through the major parties. Your write-in votes for NOTA can make a statement... the statement shouted by Peter Finch in the 1976 movie "Network"... "I'm mad as hell and I'm not gonna take it any more".