German Election

For me, its not that they don't have an effect. Its that I have no idea how the different possible outcomes of the german election will impact all of those things. And I suspect most people don't, because its not something that is really that predictable. Abstract and unpredictable. There's literally no reason for me to pay attention.

I live in a blue state, so I don't bother voting red. My "screw em" is just not bothering with going over there and casting. Mine doesn't matter to me.I almost voted one time though... my cousin's roommate from back in college was running for lieutenant governor. He was such an asshole back then that I was going to go and vote just so I could vote against him (he was running for the red team by the way). Something came up and I just didn't do it, but he lost regardless.

Obviously if one knows nothing about something they will find it unpredictable.Those who are interested in any political event are usually interested on the basis of wondering what effect different outcomes might have.Thus the interest would take the form of reading newspaper articles etc. that explore the consequences of different results. That sort of thing.If one isn't interested enough to take that sort of interest then being unable to predict the effects seems more like a consequence of disinterest than a cause of it.

I believe that even if I spent the time and effort to learn about the candidates' policies and how they could potentially affect those things, then I still wouldn't be able to accurately predict what would really end up happening.It'd be like voting for a weather man:

CS has a point. Even if you do take an interest and read all the articles you can find, we still don't really have any decent grasp on how different economic policies in Germany will impact the world economy - much as some commentators would like to pretend otherwise. It's easy to look at what has happened and concoct a story that explains it, sounds very convincing, and might well be true. When it comes to prediction, however, we're pretty much shooting blind. If I'm being honest, I think my interest in these things is more of a hobby. I watch elections a bit like sporting events. I love elections to the European Parliament because the scale, the sheer number of parties in involved and the varying local and national issues that all go in to make up the result. I think I'm not the only one, either.

On that basis it's barely worth anyone investigating policies in any election or ever voting for anything.There is a case for that and based on your posts in this thread I'm guessing that is not too far from your position on these matters.

I think local elections can have a direct impact on my day-to-day life and the outcomes of them can be predicted well enough to pay attention to and actually vote in.Its when you start getting into broader ones where you start to loose the connection. And to go to elections in foreign countries just makes that much more of a disconnect.

Now that's just silly and a total misrepresentation of what CS said.You vote where you can vote to attempt to influence what you can influence.CS cannot vote for British or German or Canadian or Russian or Ugandan politicians.

Yeah you are probably right. I, like you, am a bit of a sad-hobbyist with regard to taking an interest in these things.But it does surprise me a bit when the reaction to a political event somewhere as significant as Germany is treated as just an inconsequential irrelevance by most of the rest of the world.The rest of the world takes a pretty keen interest in US elections for example. And the general assumption is that this interest is based on the wider effect a US election outcome will have on the world.But the same doesn't seem to apply to the election under discussion. Maybe language is a factor (it's not in English so the English speaking world ignores it). Maybe people don't think Germany is as significant in world terms as you and I seem to consider it to be. I dunno.

CS said he doesn't vote in US elections either.....

in Message 52 CS said "I think local elections can have a direct impact on my day-to-day life and the outcomes of them can be predicted well enough to pay attention to and actually vote in."

Have you read Message 47Anyway - This idea that any election one doesn't personally get to vote in obviously disqualifies one from having an interest in it's outcome is just silly.Why do you think the US election gets so much media coverage around the world?You must find that very perplexing......

Perplexing would be that anyone every showed an interest in soccer or cricket or scotch whiskey or "We've got talent" shows.The outcome of other government changes can be of interest but only as far as adjusting what I do based on the outcomes.I rightly should have no interest (as in vested interest or influence) in what other nations choose as their government. I should have only slightly more interest in the German election then on how Cardiff City is doing.

Why do you think the US election gets so much media coverage around the world?

I did go vote one time right after I turned 18 just because I had no idea what it involved.It felt like a pointless waste of time.I don't think that nobody should vote, though. It just doesn't matter to me personally.