Why and How I Vote

How do you vote? Do you pick candidates who are relatively close to your own moral values and principles (say more than 70%)? Do you only pick a candidate who believes in 100% of what you believe? Do you not vote at all when you do not like either candidate? Do you vote for "the lesser of two evils"? Do you hate that there is really only 2 choices for every election? Do you vote AGAINST someone else or FOR someone else? Do you NOT vote because that is also an expression of a vote? Or do you vote because you feel like you have to or you would be wasting a privilege that other people fought/fight for?

Let me tell you this much. I have my reasons, you have yours. All reasons are valid to the beholder even though some, I think, are careless and truthfully featherbrained, sometimes facetious and even foolish. I believe that I am a very principled person. I stick by my morals and views rigidly and lengthily. Honestly, I think you should, too, if you have identified what those principles are that you hold dearly. I think you should vote for who ever fits those principles as closely as possible. I hold high expectations of my candidates (say 90%) of my principles should be similar. Why should I have lower my expectations? Why should I have to "pick my poison"? What if I don't want to pick poison! I want to pick honest, principled, and adamant candidates. SO SHOULD YOU! And if you can't find that candidate in the 2 people that the media and Democratic and Republican Committees have pre-selected for you, then vote third party or write in who ever is the right person FOR YOU. You aren't voting for others, you are voting (or not voting) for yourself. The democratic system through elections by the people was not meant to be an altruistic form of government. It was a form utilized by our founders to empower the individual, unfortunately it is being used as a means to empower the "have-nots" against the "haves" through majority rules democracy. Finally, the voting routine is not a game of revenge or spite in my eyes. Voting is a respected activity among people who feel like their candidate earned there vote, not by people who were pushed away by a candidate or despise the other.
That aside, what should you come away with from my rant?

1. Vote for the candidate that embraces the majority of your core principles.
   (Its okay to have deal breakers like "well he supports these three great things but this ONE thing is so detrimental". Use your best judgement, we all have our sacred cows sometimes, mine is economics)

2. Don't ever pick poison. Do the right thing or don't do at all. Unless you like poison....
   (Remember: Its your right NOT to vote as well)

3. Don't vote out of spite or hatred for someone else.
   (It only further perpetuates hatred of one end of spectrum and polarizes the people, and it gets equally bador worse leaders into offices of power)