One paradox of U.S. election results is that such a large number of voters claim to be dissatisfied and independent... not beholden to any party... but that when they go to vote, almost all of them vote for either a Democrat or a Republican for President and for most other offices. When American citizens are polled for their opinions, the results are encouraging. Usually, the public's views reflect a lot of common sense. What happens to that common sense, dissatisfaction, and independence on Election Day?

There is certainly the factor of voting for one candidate to help them defeat another. A great many Republicans hate what their party has rotted into, but they hate the Democratic party even more, so they remain loyal to the GOP. The same can be said of many Democrats, who have watched their party descend from what was once support of individual rights and protection from minority persecution. But, they hate the GOP even more, so they choose the lesser of two evils.

Other voters have one or two "hot-button" issues that they think are important enough to serve as a basis for making their election choice.
Some of the "hot-button" issues among liberals currently would include

(1) protecting civil liberties
(2) opposition to war
(3) ending the War on Drugs

I could add more issues, and they will differ from one part of the country to another, but here in Minnesota, traditionally liberal, I will have no difficulty in finding individuals who consider these issues to be of paramount importance. They're considered liberal positions, and each can generate uproars of self-righteous indignation.
Liberals are positive that the GOP is the clear "enemy" on these issues, so they vote Democratic, disregarding the evidence that the Democratic party has participated in, and often instigated, violations of the very positions liberals feel so strongly about.

I can do the same with conservative "hot-button" issues:

(1) smaller government
(2) lower taxes
(3) gun rights

Conservatives are positive that the Democratic party is the clear "enemy" on these issue, so they vote Republican, disregarding the evidence that the Republican party has participated in, and often instigated, violations of the very positions liberals feel so strongly about.

Do the liberals of conscience get what they hope for?
Do the conservatives of conscience get what they hope for?

Not even close... they get to watch as their vote of conscience is twisted and aborted into results they abhor. Many spend the next 4 years excusing their vote or issuing disclaimers, and wondering how their vote could have had such awful results.

The message sent from liberals of conscience who vote Democratic is
"I approve of what you've done and what you want to do". That's the interpretation the party justifiably makes. The Democratic party and their candidates can't discern any other "message", nor do they want to.

Exactly the same message goes from conservatives who vote Republican...
"I approve of what you've done and what you want to do".

Such voters of conscience do NOT get their message across. The major parties receive their votes and conclude that whatever they've been doing is what the voters want more of. George W. Bush can easily conclude that whatever is in his mind is supported by all those who voted for him. John Kerry can easily conclude that whatever he has done for decades in Congress is what all those Democrat voters want MORE of.

No, I'm not naive enough to believe that either Bush or Kerry really gives a rats-ass about what the voters really want; the point is that they can justifiably claim that a vote for them is a vote of support for whatever they choose to do. It's a vote of trust... a vote of confidence. If it's a clear-cut election victory, they can claim a "mandate" for whatever actions they may choose.

Regardless of your political ideology, if you want your vote to mean something, that vote must carry an understandable message. If Bush and Kerry don't deserve your vote, then DENY it to both, rather than picking the lesser of two evils. Find the candidate whose ideology best fits your ideas of the direction our nation should move in, and VOTE FOR THAT CANDIDATE. It makes no difference whether that candidate can win; your vote will count... and it will send several messages:

1. I'm unhappy with the direction our nation is going.
2. I don't think that two powerful parties is enough.
3. I'm not falling for the "lesser of two evils" any longer.

Until Americans stand up and clearly declare what they want... until they deny election results to those who have deceived us repeatedly, our results will continue to get worse.