“The terrorists are beyond reason. They must be destroyed,” John Kerry recently said in a speech at New York University. I see a more imminent threat to democracy than terrorism: the two-party system.
Although Kerry endlessly criticizes Bush’s dealings in Iraq, he perpetuates support of such actions. By saying that the terrorists must be destroyed, he is only encouraging America’s war-crazed mindset.
It is time for America to abolish the two-party system. We need a candidate who thinks and acts reasonably. We need someone who understands that to stop the cycle of hate we must begin with ourselves.
There is no way to “destroy” the terrorists. We can kill a few, along with numbers of civilians. Will this stop others from hating the United States? Of course not! It will make them hate us more.
I don’t claim to have the answers. I know withdrawal of the troops would be detrimental to the U.S. and Iraq. I don’t know how to attain world peace. I do know, however, that we must change the way America thinks, and neither of the major party candidates is going to begin that difficult struggle.
Changing the way we think is possible, despite what skeptics say. I have come across several people at Guilford who believe that greed and aggression are part of human nature and that we can never overcome them.
These people are right that negative energy will inevitably exist on some level. A utopian society is an unrealistic goal-just read George Orwell’s 1984 or Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World.
However, we can focus our attention on problems at home like education and poverty. We can stop military recruitment in schools. We can teach our children that everybody, no matter what nationality, is equal.
How can we say that America practices democracy when the two presidential candidates with a chance of winning have similar views on so many issues? Ashton Carter, an official for Clinton’s Defense Department and one of Kerry’s senior military advisors, said, “There is no peace candidate in this race. No candidate who is a peace candidate ought to win.”
I have a feeling much of America feels otherwise. What about those of us who do want a peace candidate to win?
Presently, America is not a country where just anyone with aspirations can come to power. It takes money and influence, and having a ketchup heiress for a wife or an ex-president for a father sure helps. Having additional parties would allow people with less funding to have chances at office.
We need a candidate who doesn’t have extensive corporate associations. With Kerry’s wife’s billion dollar Heinz fortune, the Kerrys will be the wealthiest family to occupy the White House if he wins. Likewise, the Bushes control a multi-million-dollar oil business.
How can we expect leaders to act in the people’s best interest when they are so preoccupied with their own? Having more parties to choose from will allow people who genuinely want to help the country to lead, rather than only those who seek control.
Despite my seemingly endless complaints about the two-party system, I am going to vote for Kerry. I feel like a sell-out giving my approval to a man with whom I disagree on so many issues, until I remember that in every situation it is important to take the most positive action possible.
The best thing I can do right now is to support Kerry, simply because he is better than Bush. Because one of them will win, it is important to make sure it is Kerry.
The best thing we can do together is to support run-off elections, where voters rank their first, second, and third choices. This eliminates the “winner-takes-all” system that is currently in place. Run-off elections will give third-party candidates a chance and allow Americans to really have a choice in how their government works.