During the 2008 election I took an economics course offered every four years called Economics and the Election. Throughout the semester we badgered the professor to tell us who he was voting for and finally on the last day, after much anticipation he told us. He tallied up all the issues and where the candidates stood as well as his thoughts on them. The resulting score favored John McCain by about 16 to 4. Then he finally announced that he had not voted for John McCain, or Barrack Obama but in fact had voted for a third party candidate none of us had ever heard of. Shocked and disappointed, our class begged the obvious question, What the hell?
Our professor, the former state economist of Vermont, simply laughed saying, and I quote "Who cares? My vote doesn't matter!"
As surprising (and ironic) as this may be, we actually learned on the first day of class that economically speaking, voting isn't worth the time and effort. When you put everything in perspective, the marginal cost of voting outweighs the marginal benefit. The marginal cost is the extensive time spent researching issues, listening to debates, following current events and stories, in addition to the inconvenience of voting itself. The marginal benefit is the hopelessly minimal effect that your vote has on society and your life.
As pessimistic as that may sound you still posses a ballot of extreme significance, your wallet. We live in a capitalist society with a relatively free market. This means that that market is a reflection of who it serves, aka us. My favorite example of this is Walmart. Most people claim to dislike Walmart and use it as an example of an evil corporation that runs local shops out of business and exploits its employees. The large scale public opinion of Walmart is that it is "bad" and the people who run it are also "bad". If we live in a capitalist society where supply (businesses) reflects demand (the people) then how is it possible that Walmart exists if everyone claims to hate it? The government certainly doesn't subsidize it. You didn't vote for one to be put in your town, yet there it is. The truth is that every dollar spent at Walmart is a vote against your local shop. Every DVD purchased is vote for the employees they exploit. None of this is news but it is something to think about. Every dollar you spend is a vote for or against something that affects your life.I personally am not avidly for or against Walmart although I do try to support local businesses. I don't do it out of some moral crusade against big business, thats simply what I prefer and therefore what I "vote" for.
The types of stores that surround us aren't the only thing our monetary ballots count for. Instead of casting an insignificant vote for a politician who might follow up his promise to improve the environment, you can buy green products. Not only does using such products have a lower impact on the environment but it also encourages businesses big and small to be more green if they perceive that is what the people want. My sociology professor said it best "If people stopped buying candescent light bulbs today the factories would close tomorrow"
Over the course of the next couple days think about what you are buying and what it is that you are really voting on. My grandmother was actually sued by Walmart for trying to fight one being put up behind her house. However, she still purchased her dog food there because it was the cheapest in town.
Also, here's a hilarious South Park Episode about Walmart that is also very insightful if you can read between the lines.
http://www.southparkstudios.com/episodes/103890
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