Do you think voting for a third party candidate is a wasted vote?

I'm in flux on this one. In the last election, I voted for Chuck Baldwin, who was a Christian conservative candidate running for the Constitution party. I justified it, (right here on Sodahead, in fact), on the basis that the Republican ticket (McCain/Palin) was going to be just awful, and so was the Obama/Biden ticket. It was a lose - lose situation in my opinion. In hind sight, seeing just HOW bad the Obama thing has worked out, I feel sad. However, the other part of my justification was that it takes pioneers in voting if we are ever to change our world from this 2 party system in which no matter how much we're divided as people, doesn't seem to change for the better no matter who is in office. If we always do what we always did, we'll always get what we've always gotten. I didn't think that Baldwin would be elected, but I felt that if people didn't start voting for guys like him, we're going to be eternally in this Dem/Republican rut where neither of these parties as a whole seems to provide persons who represent the values that brought about each of their parties to begin with.

Having said all that, I believe that the country is in a real fix right now, and it's probably important to vote for a Republican president. Not because I believe they'll make a hugely positive impact on any of the problems we face economically, because neither party has control over human greed. The big thing is to restore the balance of power. The Supreme Court may have two slots filled under the next president, and since our country seems to keep turning to the judicial branch to legislate, it's very important to have a conservative and constitutionally sound bench. Many deeply important issues which will determine whether or not we become a soviet style socialist state will be brought before the court over the next decade as the foundation of the Constitution is tested in ever manner by Marxists anxious to put the whole thing to bed, and go to a UN type of "human constitution", which will forever change the sovereign nature of the United States. So, the time to prove a point about the two party system is past for the time being. Once there is a nominally conservative administration, we can turn to protest votes. As for me and my family, and most everyone I know, including those who voted for Obama last time, are voting for the Republican nominee this time around. Would I rather that the nominee was more like Santorum and less like Romney? Well yes, but that's personal opinion from a person who shares Rick Santorum's world view on virtually everything. But if Romney is the nominee, well then so be it. At least he's not McCain. He is somewhat conservative. He will appoint conservative judges, and he will campaign for a conservative congress. He'll appeal to the Reagan Democrats who will hold this particular election in their hands.

Just my 2 cents.

Peace,

Steven