There are few men of intellect that I admire more than Dr Sowell. Sadly I am just not smart enough to see the benefit in choosing an evil and corrupt spoiled narcissistic moron over his female counterpart.
There are basically three ways of casting a vote in a year like this. First, vote for the major party candidate you genuinely like and/or respect. I've always managed to do that in past years; I liked both McCain and Romney and didn't feel like I was merely casting a vote out of party loyalty.
Second, vote for the lesser of two evils (or more accurately, vote to defeat the greater evil). For most here, like Thomas Sowell it appears, their reluctant vote for Trump is actually a vote of necessity to defeat Clinton, the perceived greater danger. For those of us who truly believe that Trump is the greater danger, and who live in a swing state where their vote matters, I believe the moral imperative is to vote for Clinton. If Trump's the danger, that's how you best defeat him.
Third, vote third party. As some have pointed out, if you count yourself a #NeverTrump, there's a whiff of narcissism here. While it is admirable that so many folks here, long-time Republicans though they may be, will never vote for the Orange Mussolini, a vote for a third party candidate is essentially a declaration that I won't sully myself or my conscience by voting for trash like Trump or Clinton. That's a tempting emotion - who doesn't want to vote with joy, to vote for a candidate or a principle in which he or she believes, rather than do the necessary duty of voting to defeat a clear and present danger?
Lately, I've been boosting Gary Johnson, and even given a few bucks to Evan McMullin, as my protest against the vile choice of Too Corrupt vs. Too Crazy. But I truly don't know who I will vote for when I step into that booth. I'm a Pennsylvanian, perhaps the ultimate swing state. My vote and those of other Pennsylvanians, in all likelihood, will matter, perhaps critically.
The present danger is fascism, and I pray for the strength to do the right thing. And in this, I have a serious question for sinkspur. Sink, you've been a most steadfast and eloquent advocate of the case against Donald Trump. You won't vote for him, yet you've said without equivocation that you will not vote to defeat him. What do you have to say to someone like me on the horns of a moral dilemma? Is it enough to, publically and with passion, make the case against Trump, to persuade as many people as possible of the existential danger he represents, and then go into that booth and vote for a vanity candidate?
