#cutting off your nose to spite your face helps no one and Biden sucks but has still made impactful positive changes

[alcoholodeck]

This makes me hopeful, but DO NOT make the mistake of thinking "my vote doesn't matter" or "oh, i don't need to vote because we're safe" or the creeping conservative psyop that "both sides are the same" because Biden has some awful conservative views. yeah, he's not doing enough to stop the genocide in Gaza. and that's horrendous and history will not look on that fondly. but he's also not on the knife edge of nuking Gaza. he's not foaming at the mouth to hand Ukraine to Russia. he's not fearmongering about refugees or trying to reinstate the Muslim Ban that Trump literally signed and would gleefully do again.

This presidential election is entirely about harm reduction. Nobody loves voting for "the lesser of two evils" but make no mistake that there IS a lesser and greater evil here. every vote counts. and every voter who stays at home (without filling out a mail in ballot) or "votes their conscience" by picking a third party candidate who unfortunately simply does not stand a chance, is risking the literal end of American democracy (not to mention the catastrophic effects that would have globally).

If you have enough moral fiber to not want to support Biden, what you can do instead of throwing away your vote is to begrudgingly vote for Biden to stop the worst case scenario and then GET INVOLVED IN YOUR LOCAL COMMUNITY. Organize protests. Donate to reputable organizations helping Palestinians in Gaza. Run for office! I offhandedly replied to a text message two months ago about potentially being interested in getting involved in a local office and people will not stop asking me if I want materials, documentation, help and guidance on how to run for a local political position. You CAN run for local office. You CAN organize protests and make your voice heard. You CAN advocate for and create real change from the bottom up. And that starts with preserving democracy as best we can at the top and making ripples that turn into waves from the ground level.

Stay hopeful, stay smart, don't fall for voter apathy psyops, and BE the change you want to see in your community

“Trump can’t win the general election with 78% of the Republican vote. In 2020, Trump got 94% of the Republican vote and lost. The country would be well served if most of the Haley voters either voted for Biden, voted third party, stayed home or wrote somebody in for president. They don’t have to vote for Biden to thwart Trump. Even Fox “News” has admitted that Trump can’t win without Haley’s supporters. Another symptom of Trump fatigue is that Mike Pence has declined to endorse his candidacy. This is huge news. What if Al Gore had refused to endorse Biden? In addition, 41 out of 44 Trump cabinet members have declined to endorse him. These are the people who know Trump best. This gives millions of Republicans a permission slip to not vote for Trump in November.”

—

Republicans In Disarray - Why Trump Won’t Win

I don’t believe we can take a single moment’s rest until he is vanquished, and I’m terrified he will find a way to successfully execute the coup this time, but this writer has some good observations that can help keep us focused.

[cleoselene]

I find it frustrating that you assume I’m seeking attention and refuse to earnestly engage with my feelings when I say I don’t wanna vote for the guy who is actively helping Israel commit genocide. Also, as a disabled person like me, why aren’t you mad at him for pretending the pandemic is over and removing all covid mitigations and making society unsafe for us?

if you're voting for Cornel West, you're voting for whoever Harlan Crow wants you to vote for. If you're voting for Jill Stein, you're voting for whoever Vladimir Putin wants you to vote for. Either way, it's nonsensical and useless. My first election was 2000, go read the wikipedia article about Florida and Ralph Nader, it's not my fucking job to educate you on the meaning of a third party candidate in an electoral system that is a Single Member District Plurality.

As a disabled person on Social Security and living in the bottom quintile of this economy, the Biden Administration has made my life MARKEDLY better. Medicare improvements alone have been a revelation. I now have so much more money in my pocket, no copays on my medications or any of my doctor visits ever, my food stamps have gone up. We are the only major economy in the west that is experiencing economy growth.

Biden has been dealing with a 50-50 Senate and has accomplished more than Obama did with a Supermajority in 8 years. I'm sorry that you probably learned about foreign policy three months ago, but if you think literally anyone else who has a snowball's chance in fucking hell will be better for Palestine, you are delulu as all fuck. Biden is not helping commit genocide, you are spouting internet catchphrases. Biden is not even on speaking terms with Netanyahu at the moment. Blinken has been repeatedly pressuring Israel to pause the fighting because Americans are being held hostage in Gaza. You speak like someone who learns literally all of their information from social media.

You're disabled like me, why are you giving away your country to fascism for one foreign policy issue you probably barely understand and literally no other viable candidate will be to the left of Biden on? Do you think Trump, who your vote will actively assist, will be any better? The guy who literally moved the American embassy in Israel to Palestine in a move designed to be deliberately provocative to Palestine? That Donald Trump?

Assume Biden literally told Netanyahu to stop. Netanyahu would not stop. It would not happen. We have not approved any aid to Israel, even, because guess what: Congress hasn't approved anything whatsoever.

And that is more words than I have been willing to give to anyone who responds to this post because in 2016 I gave a lot of words to people who ended up being Russian psyops agents, and I am tired.

But hey, vote for Jill Stein. Women dying in Texas of miscarriages going septic clearly mean fucking nothing to you, as long as you can keep your Internet Moral Purity Fad Of The Moment.

edit: re Covid that was a global loss and it sucks and I have no Immune B cells and I don't go out anymore but that is hardly uniquely American. Everywhere is pretending it's over. no one cares about sick people anywhere. anyway grow up and realize the world is complicated and if you're a single issue voter like this you are cutting off your nose to spite your face

[walnutbun]

Adding to this: vote411.org offers a way to view what's going to be on your ballot just by entering your address (or, y'know, your neighbor's address, if you really want to be safe). vote.org does too, but they want more info from you.

Both sites will also help you register to vote and/or check your registration, which is SUPER FUCKING IMPORTANT especially right now. Republicans have been (and AFAIK still are) purging voter registrations. Even if you're 100% sure you're registered, CHECK. It's free, it's quick, and it's extremely important, because you know they'll be fighting tooth and nail to make sure that ballots from unregistered eligible voters don't count.

They'll also show information about your state requirements for absentee voting (aka mail-in voting), and help you request an absentee ballot. If you're planning to vote by mail, you NEED to do this early - and make sure you're eligible under your state's requirements. If you're able to, though, I would urge you to vote in person - absentee ballots will absolutely be scrutinized to hell and back this election. If voting in person, the sites also show you information on early voting.

Finally, some unrelated tips:

As OP noted, you shouldn't wear anything political to your polling place, and you shouldn't try and convince people to vote one way or another (or engage with anyone who is doing so). There WILL be people there doing this. Do your best to avoid engaging with them. Personally, I would recommend not talking with anyone that isn't working the check-in desk - just cast your vote, grab your sticker, and leave.

Another point OP made is that some areas have laws against photographing your ballot - this is true, and doing so in these areas can (and likely will) result in your ballot being tossed out. Even if you know for a fact that you don't live somewhere that has those sorts of laws, though, I strongly recommend not taking any photos or videos inside the polling place - especially of your ballot.

If your local polling place uses electronic voting machines and doesn't allow you to request a paper ballot (I'm unsure if this is a legal requirement or not), double-check your selections on the summary screen and on the print-out (if possible). If the summary screen doesn't match what you selected, go back and redo your selections. If the printout doesn't match, inform a poll worker. It is unlikely that any electronic voting machines are "rigged", but glitches are possible (as is hitting the wrong button by mistake), and it's better to be safe than sorry.

Finally, encourage your friends and family to vote. If you have a vehicle, offer to transport them to the polling place if they need a ride. The most important thing we can do this cycle is encourage voting - Trump doesn't have an issue getting his supporters to go vote. Democrats, historically, do, and Biden is no exception. If you've got family or friends who intend to sit out, do your best to explain what's at stake. As a reminder, the Supreme Court just ruled that the President cannot be held criminally liable for any actions taken that constitute "exercising [their] core constitutional powers" or are otherwise "official acts".

Also. If you're considering sitting out, protest voting, or voting third party solely (or primarily) because "Biden sucks" (or something similar), you're cutting off your nose to spite your face. Whether we like it or not, our options are Trump or Biden - and Biden is the only one of those options that gives us a chance of seeing another election.

Because I remember disinformation being spread around the last few elections and I’m sure assholes will bring it back:

YOU CAN’T VOTE ONLINE.

YOU CAN’T VOTE FROM YOUR PHONE.

IN MANY STATES THERE ARE LEGAL CONSEQUENCES FOR PHOTOGRAPHING YOUR BALLOT.

DO NOT WEAR CAMPAIGN GEAR TO THE POLLS.

DO NOT TRY TO PERSUADE PEOPLE TO VOTE FOR A CANDIDATE AT THE POLLS.

DO NOT ENGAGE IN ANY KIND OF POLITICAL DISCOURSE AT THE POLLS.

NO ELECTION IS EVER A SURE THING, EVEN IF YOU’RE IN THE BLUEST OR REDDEST OF STATES.  IF SOMEONE TRIES TO TELL YOU THAT YOU CAN SIT THIS ONE OUT, THEY ARE EITHER IGNORANT OR MALICIOUS.

VOTE.