In a country where the majority of the people do not vote, the so called Slackers can actually make the real difference. It's a pity if that goes wasted, no doubt about it. But it's a real pity if they only live the illusion of choice, without making any.

In a two party system like the USA there is no space for other candidates. I wonder if there really is a debate over the major issues. Think about it: people always complain about third party candidates, saying that they steal votes from Democrats, others say the steal form Republicans, therefore to vote for a third party means you are dispersing your vote and hurting the system.

OK, what if the system is broken? To this point, I don't see very many differences between Obama and McCain. To be fair McCain disastrous strategy of lies and deception is almost embarrassing, while Obama is playing a fair campaign.

Last week alternate candidates Chuck Baldwin, Cynthia McKinney, and Ralph Nader agree with Ron Paul on four key principles central to the health of our nation. These principles should be key in the considerations of every voter this November and in every election.

I already covered a story according to which 89% of Americans will pay less taxes under Obama than McCain. OK, politicians can SAY anything and then DO the opposite, but that's completely another story. Let's look at the facts and stick to their programmes. Use this tool to calculate whether you'll pay more taxes under McCain or under Obama. Have fun!

CNN posted an article online summarizing the Tax Policy center's report comparing John McCain and Barack Obama's proposed tax plans.  It is available here.  The numbers are remarkable, but CNN failes to notice the obvious punchline: 89% of Americans will pay less in taxes under Obama than McCain.

Data tables below the fold. Here is a table showing the change in your tax bill in 2009 vs 2008 if McCain or Obama's policies are fully implemented:

I've been asked by many people my current position about the US politics. Furthermore, I've been asked whether I support Obama or Clinton (for some reason nobody thinks I can be for McCain... :P). I generally see and hear very superficial arguments and sadly very label-oriented, eventually everything goes down to race, sex, blind political orientation without a real sense of the facts. Democrats are X, Republicans Y, women Z and so on, and the only thing to support their thesis is their personal experience or even their general inclination. No real reasoning takes place, there is no research, global data taken into account. Leave away the moral issues, forget about personal integrity. There are, however, some who really think for themselves and who present their view with intelligence and coherence throughout their career. One of these people is Lawrence Lessig.