There has been enough hype made over the Presidential elections the past few weeks to make anyone tired of politics.

With televised debates taking up valuable prime-time viewing space on nearly every channel the past three weeks, I am left to wonder if anybody really cares anymore.

How many times do we honestly need to hear Gore and Bush Jr. go round and round before we realize that neither one of them is going to give us a straight answer to a realistic question?

The more the two candidates talk about their political views and feelings on important issues the more obvious it becomes that the next President of the United States will be the one who is better at telling the people what they want to hear.

Do you really think that either of these candidates actually cares about John Q. Public? Of course they do on election day, but as soon as the polls close all of those people who were their chief supporters and all of us normal Americans who put them in power become obsolete.

Once they gain what they have desired, all the baby kissing and all of their dying promises to serve the American people get washed away with the realization of big-time Washington politics.

Everything we see on television and all of the stories we read in the newspaper that attempt to sway our vote one way or another are not the truth behind the presidency, they are a pageant put on for our entertainment. Just wait until after the elections are over and look for the results of all of this fanfare. When you can’t find it, you will realize that you have been tricked into investing in everything that is wrong with America.

So what can we do to make a difference about what is wrong with the country? If you listen to the campaigns they will tell you that to have your voice heard it is vital you vote in the election. If you do this, not only will your voice not be heard, but you will have done exactly what the candidates want you to do, give them support. A president cannot be elected if they do not receive any votes, so if you want your voice to be heard in opposition to these injustices staying home on election day is the best thing to do.

You will hear politicians say it is sad that voter turnout is so low in the United States. Yet it is this majority of non-voters whose message should speak louder than those that do vote.

If so many people do not care about who runs the most powerful nation in the world, politicians should realize they are doing something wrong.

The major problem that people have with politicians is they are only worried about what happens in D.C. and not about small-town America. Bush and Gore have tried to show they are sensitive to real Americans by telling human interest stories to tug at our emotions.

While this is a good attempt to pull themselves away from Washington, there have never been two candidates that we could get any closer to in the White House.

Gore has been there for the past eight years living in Clinton’s shadow and Bush’s dad was there just before that.

So once again the two major candidates are simply representatives of what Washington politics tell them to do. Of course we have Ralph Nader thrown in the mix to give us an outside presence.

Unfortunately for him I don’t think the entire United States will be as smart as the residents of Minnesota and elect someone who has the guts to stand up to the masses in D.C.

The next president will undoubtedly continue the long tradition of big-money Washington politics while leaving the promises made to the American public unfulfilled, but they can’t get there without your vote.

So I plead to you, don’t give them the satisfaction of having your vote. Please stay home on election day.