devi: (thegap)
devi ([personal profile] devi) wrote2008-01-18 12:03 pm

Whooo should you vote for? Who who? Who who?

Well, this quiz by [livejournal.com profile] hatmandu and friends has certainly fulfilled its stated goal of making me want to find out more. I don't know nearly enough about Kucinich, or indeed Gravel.

Who should you vote for?
Dennis Kucinich120
Mike Gravel108
Barack Obama101
John Edwards91
Hillary Clinton87
Rudy Giuliani-15
Ron Paul-27
John McCain-36
Fred Thompson-72
Mitt Romney-117
Duncan Hunter-132
Mike Huckabee-138
You expected: Barack Obama
Your recommendation: Dennis Kucinich

Party: Democratic


Born: 1946, Cleveland, Ohio


Family: Married three times; one daughter


Career: Radio talk-show host, lecturer, consultant


Political career: Cleveland City Council (1969); Mayor of Cleveland (1977-79); Incumbent Member of the US House of Representatives from Ohio's 10th district


Hot topic: Federally funded healthcare to all citizens


Did you know? When Kucinich refused to sell Muni Light, Cleveland's publicly owned electric utility, the Cleveland mafia put a hit on him. A hitman from Maryland planned to shoot him in the head during the Columbus Day Parade, but the plot fell apart when Kucinich was hospitalized and missed the event.


Supported by: Viggo Mortensen, Sean Penn


***

There are Obama posters popping up in Oxford already and it isn't even our election. Last night Dan and I found ourselves watching The Manchurian Candidate - the remake, that is - which I'd somehow thought was a running-and-shouting-and-exploding standard thriller. Instead it was a paranoia-filled conspiracy theory drama happening around a US election, clearly scripted by people who'd watched an awful lot of The West Wing. All the fake news footage with its clunky graphic design took me back to our all-night election party of 2004. Hey, party round mine this November! With donuts! And hopefully this one won't end in despair!

[identity profile] bateleur.livejournal.com 2008-01-18 12:33 pm (UTC)(link)
The trouble with that quiz is that the wording of the questions means most left-wing Europeans will get Dennis Kucinich. Because to us the idea of federally funded healthcare is pretty obvious and this is his defining policy. In the US it's far too radical, though. It would make him auto-lose against almost any Republican candidate.

Given that this quiz is entitled "Who Should You Vote For?" the Democrat Electability question could be reworded as "I'm happy for the Republicans to win the election because I was too idealistic to vote tactically". And then that question should be weighted by comparing your other answers to the leading Republican candidates and scaling up accordingly. It would end up being the only question that matters!

[identity profile] bluedevi.livejournal.com 2008-01-18 12:40 pm (UTC)(link)
Probably true - but does it actually matter if Europeans get a candidate who's not likely to win? We can't vote, so the quiz is mainly interesting to us as a tool for finding out which candidate best matches our views, which may not be the one we think. Leave the tactical voting choices to people who actually can, I feel.

[identity profile] bateleur.livejournal.com 2008-01-18 12:49 pm (UTC)(link)
I see your point, but to me that's not interesting unless the candidate is credible.

After all, there are US politicians who aren't candidates at all who are a far better match for my views.
ext_3375: Banded Tussock (Default)

[identity profile] hairyears.livejournal.com 2008-01-18 04:08 pm (UTC)(link)
Interesting... I wonder what the question weightings are. Anyway, I got this:

Who should you vote for?
Barack Obama75
Dennis Kucinich69
Mike Gravel66
John Edwards45
Hillary Clinton33
John McCain21
Ron Paul-10
Rudy Giuliani-12
Fred Thompson-33
Mitt Romney-66
Mike Huckabee-69
Duncan Hunter-87
You expected: Barack Obama
Your recommendation: Barack Obama

Party: Democratic


Born: 1961, Honolulu, Hawaii


Family: wife and two daughters


Career: Business International Corporation; NYPIRG; attorney and constitutional law lecturer


Political career: Member of the Illinois State Senate from the 13th district, 1997-2004. Incumbent Junior Senator from Illinois since 2005


Hot topic: Universal healthcare


Meanwhile, you're getting election posters in Oxford because there are expatriate American voters resident in Oxford. One of the highest civilian concentrations outside London. Unlike the bankers here in London, they tend to be politically-engaged... Although, being academics, somewhat liberal-leaning.

Also, the parties will spend a great deal on campaigning with the Rhodes scholars and may even go to the lengths of canvassing them individually: these people are an important constituency of future opinion-formers. Those that aren't already party members and attached to one of the candidates' personal retinues, of course: Rhodes scholars tend to be very, very politically engaged. Outside that meritocratic elite, the American students we see in Oxford are likely to come from backgrounds so priveleged as to be effectively an aristocracy; a vote's a vote, and getting in there early may well secure a lifetime of substantial campaign donations.

Then there's the tourists: never give 'em a moment's peace - visiting voters can still be bombarded with campaign material.


[identity profile] hatmandu.livejournal.com 2008-01-18 04:50 pm (UTC)(link)
Thanks for posting, [livejournal.com profile] bluedevi. Oh, and the weightings are available if you register at the site :)
ext_3375: Banded Tussock (Default)

[identity profile] hairyears.livejournal.com 2008-01-18 05:54 pm (UTC)(link)


I have a particular concern over the 'Do you think wealthy families should pay more tax' question. It's the only substantive economics question, and it divides the tax-and-spend liberals from the caricatural 'I want to pay less tax and to hell with the roads and schools' Republican.

Unfortunately, answering 'No' lumps together the tax-and-spend populists with fiscal conservatives on both sides of the political divide who are horrified by the flood of irresponsible and unsustainable tax cuts from the current Washington regime.

[identity profile] thecesspit.livejournal.com 2008-01-18 06:00 pm (UTC)(link)
I believe both the Democrats elect delegates to their conference on their overseas constituency (7 according to wikipedia which is spit in the ocean, but every delegate will count).

Interesting I got Mike Gravel. Both him and Kucinich are pretty much out of the running, but as pointed out by a few people here, running is often to a) gain experience b) push an agenda c) make some waves.

Merely mentioning universal health care and reformation of tax structures brings a debate in that wouldn't have otherwise existed. Same with Ron Paul. He'd not win, but he's creating enough of stir to be taken notice off.

Bateleur's argument is specious in a primary election. It's not about voting for who you like best who you think might win. In fact that's a daft way to decide your vote in any election. You don't get a prize for picking the winning or second placed candidate....

[identity profile] verlaine.livejournal.com 2008-01-18 11:46 pm (UTC)(link)
Who should you vote for? (http://www.whoshouldyouvotefor.com)
You expected: Barack Obama
Your recommendation: Barack Obama

Party: Democratic


Born: 1961, Honolulu, Hawaii


Family: wife and two daughters


Career: Business International Corporation; NYPIRG; attorney and constitutional law lecturer


Political career: Member of the Illinois State Senate from the 13th district, 1997-2004. Incumbent Junior Senator from Illinois since 2005


Hot topic: Universal healthcare


Did you know? He is the only African American currently serving in the US Senate


Supported by: Oprah Winfrey, Eddie Murphy, Will Smith, George Clooney, Halle Berry, Scarlett Johansson, Morgan Freeman, Michael Jordan, Jamie Foxx, Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Ed Norton, Jennifer Aniston, Zach Braff, John Cleese, Leonard Nimoy and Brooke Shields

[identity profile] verlaine.livejournal.com 2008-01-18 11:48 pm (UTC)(link)
Obama is the sane horse to back in this race. He's as extreme a candidate as could imaginably be elected, in the current state of the world.

[identity profile] verlaine.livejournal.com 2008-01-18 11:49 pm (UTC)(link)
And, of course, the dream President is not Kucinich but Colbert :P

[identity profile] cpio.livejournal.com 2008-01-19 02:47 pm (UTC)(link)
I'm a bit confused about some of the questions on this quiz. For instance:

"The nominee should be a person of colour"

Strongly disagree / Disagree / Neutral / Agree / Strongly agree

Now, I would tick strongly disagree here because I don't think there should be any requirement or advantage for a nominee to be black but that does not imply that I favour a non-black person to be a nominee because of their skin colour nor does it mean that I would rather not see a black person be a nominee. It just means I very much disagree with the assertion that a nominee should have a particular skin colour, in this case black.

Cake or death?

[identity profile] bluedevi.livejournal.com 2008-01-22 01:19 am (UTC)(link)
Hmm, yes, I hesitated over that one too. Perhaps "it is important to me that the nominee be white" would have worked...
Edited 2008-01-22 01:20 (UTC)