Don't Waste Your Vote

It is a commonly accepted myth that voting for a third party candidate is a "wasted" vote. Nothing can be further from the truth. In fact, the opposite is usually true.  The major party candidates tend to stray very little from the party line, so a vote for them is typically for nothing more than a vote for a talking head that represents the party power brokers. Add to that the fact that , despite the name calling and mud-slinging, there is little difference in practice between those two parties. Both Republicans and Democrats increase debt and taxes to increase their power and grow the government. The people are increasingly frustrated and unhappy with this. When Democrats are in control, they vote Republican to try and change things. When Republicans are in control the people vote Democrat to try and change things. The end result is that nothing changes, because there is no significant difference between them. That is why the President has such a low approval  rating, and why Congress' approval rating is far worse. At this point the majority of people have figured this out, and don't vote at all. They know voting for the Republican or Democrat is just a waste of time, and end up wasting their vote on no one. Less than half of eligible voters end up casting their ballot, and nearly all are frustrated with the end results.
If just those discouraged people would vote for the independent and third party candidates, things would change dramatically. Those votes would not be wasted.  Republicans and Democrats would have a very hard time winning elections. The establishment power brokers would not be able to control the government, and therefore the people. Independent and third party candidates owe no loyalty to these power brokers. They cannot be controlled by anyone but the electorate, the people that vote. That is what scares the establishment. That is why lawmakers and the two major parties work so hard to keep independent and third party candidates off the ballot and out of debates. That is why they work so hard to perpetuate the myth of the wasted vote.
Repeatedly doing the same thing over and over again, and somehow expecting the results to change is a definition of insanity. Yet this is exactly what we have been doing every election year. The results are always the same. It's time for REAL change, to stop the insanity. Stop wasting your vote. Vote for the independent or third party candidate that WILL make a difference. The candidate that votes his or her conscience, not what their party boss or campaign contributors tell them to. Our founding fathers set up a fantastic system of government where the power comes from the people. That system has been corrupted, but all is not lost. That corruption hinges entirely on believing that any vote for an independent or third part candidate is wasted. It is time for that myth to die. Take the power back, it's yours. Don't keep wasting your vote on the same establishment candidates that vary in little more than appearance or name. Don't waste your vote by staying at home. The establishment parties are depending on you to do just exactly that. Your country desperately needs you to dismiss that myth and fight back at the ballot box.
A vote for me isn't a wasted vote. The votes for me are the only ones not wasted. It only takes a few successes to bring down the myth, to dramatically change things for the better. You have the power to do that this November. Make your vote count. Vote for change. Vote for a difference. Vote for a Libertarian. Vote for an Independent. Vote for me. You can make a difference, you do have a voice.
 

Minimum Wage

There is a proposal to raise the minimum wage in Arkansas over the next few years. This is an issue that will have a clear divide between republicans and democrats. Both parties love this issue because they can use it in their election propaganda without having to worry about anything substantive occurring.  This simply isn't really an issue.  The minimum wage in Arkansas is currently well below the mandated federal minimum wage, and as such effects almost nobody. Raising the rate to the federal level will have absolutely no affect at all on anything other than allowing democrats and republicans to publically disagree with each other. Do we really need a law to accomplish that? Raising the rate in the future to something slightly above the federal level will still not have much of a net overall effect.  Some low paid workers will see a small increase in pay, but not enough to lift them out of poverty or provide a liveable wage. Some employers will end up hiring fewer workers, so those just entering the workforce will have an even harder time finding a job. Other employers will just pass on the increased labor costs resulting in inflation. This issue is insignificant to the point that I don't really care that much about it one way or the other. Generally I think the market can do a much better job of setting fair wages than the government can, but in this particular case the proposal is so miniscule that I don't think it really matters. As such, I would pass on my thoughts to the people in my district, and vote on such an issue in whichever way they thought best.