Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Ya-ta Boy]

John Adams is famously reported to have said that during the Revolution, 1/3 supported independence, 1/3 opposed it and 1/3 were ambivalent. That may be a more fundamentally important piece of trivia than noted before.

This year, the total US population is 305,186,613 with 24.6% being under age 18 = 76.25 million. If you subtract the under 18s, you get 229 million eligible voters.

Obama got 65,319,143; McCain 57,349,323 for a rough total of 122 million or about 1 in 2.

For perspective, in 2004:Bush = 62,040,606; Kerry = 59,028,109 for a rough total of 121,000,000.

Even if there was a large turnout of new voters, especially black voters, there should have been more total voters this year. There wasn't really.

Two wars and a financial disaster and still 107 million eligible voters stay away from the polls. Of those, some unknown portion are the froot loops who say it doesn't matter who you vote for but I don't really think that is all that many, in spite of the evidence here at Dave's.

I kind of wonder if some of the stay-at-homes this year were the moderate conservatives like David Brooks, George Will, Peggy Noonan etc who rejected Sarah Palin but just couldn't bring themselves to vote for Obama.

[BS.Dos.]

While there were a million or so 'new' votes, that still surprises me. I had a bet with YBS a few weeks back about expected voter turnout. I said it'd be a record turnout, while he said he thought it'd be lower. Turns out I was right, but it's still lower than I imagined.

I also bet that the independent vote would be higher. Any idea of the numbers?

[Ya-ta Boy]

No, sorry.

I was expecting a much bigger turnout this time, given the amount of media coverage and the importance of the election. What brought me to post the above is that I think we've reached our upper limit in the number of voters, short of a civil war or something.

I have this visual image of 'undecideds' as a few million truly undecideds fading off into a vast pool of both undecided and uninterested.

[The Hammer]

McCain 57,349,323

I'm sure glad that these knuckleheads were defeated.

[BS.Dos.]

[Ya-ta Boy]

I taught high school in one of the better educated states (for what that's worth) and it was stunning in government class just how dim some people can be.

My first day each semester (in our school we offered government in senior year) I started each class with this: Welcome to government class. You are one semester away from graduating. The State says you can't graduate without passing this course. You can graduate without passing English class, you can graduate without passing biology, but unless I give you at least a D- at the end of this course, I'll see you back here next semester. Wake up and smell the coffee. You aren't little kids any more.

My experience tells me we don't really want to wake up the sleeping giant. They are pretty stupid and should be kept away from polling booths and sharp objects. In the years since I stopped teaching that class the dim bulbs have pretty much condensed into my memory of James A. I'm sure the reason is that James A. was the cause of my being called down to the cop shop one afternoon--the only time in my life. James had asked someone to shoot him in the hand just to see what it was like and told the story in my class one day. Need I say more?

[bacasper]

I don't find that so surprising. If I had to take your class I think I'd shoot myself.

[Ya-ta Boy]

It's not likely that you are as quick on the draw as I am. I'd probably get you first. And I didn't shoot to wing.

My mantra: I don't like it that you have the Constitutional right to vote and cancel my vote. I care.

I probably shouldn't admit this, but it's true. I made a deal with one kid to pass him with a D- if he swore never ever to vote in his life.

[Kuros]

Actually, Ya-Ta knows more about U.S. History and the Constitution than just about anyone on this board.

And he's been teaching since before I was born, so, he can't be bad at it . . .