The Lesser Evil vs. the Greater Good

In a thoughtful piece on lesser of two evils voting and third party politics at Gather, Kristen D. writes:

Some people may decide that they actually like a certain candidate, and decide to vote for that one. Unfortunately, many of us are not so lucky. Many people decide not to vote, because they don't feel their vote will matter. If they don't like either candidate, perhaps they would like a third party candidate to win. The latter situation is the most unfortunate, because it feels as though you are betraying your beliefs if you. Many people don't realize that they have options. Even if they do, third party candidates are often made to seem as if voting for them is a waste of a vote. This is easy to do because the Democrats and Republicans have so much money behind them, and with that comes a great deal of power. Whenever there is even the slightest chance of a third party voice being heard, powerful spokespeople for the two major parties will come out and slap them down. With only a small fraction of the money of the two major parties, the third party candidates have almost no way of defending themselves, or showcasing their platforms . . . We need to demand new ideas and voices can be heard. Issues do not come in black and white. Every issue has a variety of solutions, as well as an option to overhaul what we currently have and come up with a completely new and innovative idea. The public should demand more access to diverse political ideas. In a free country, we deserve to have the right to choose from all the choices available, not just two primary choices that are shoved in our faces on a daily basis. That is not truly freedom of choice, it is just the lesser of two evils, once again.

As I've said before, the lesser of two evils is the enemy of the greater good.