You have a better chance of winning the lottery than you do affecting an election.  Steven Landsburg, writing for Slate Magazine, noted in 2004 “Even if you voted in the most hotly disputed state in the mostly hotly disputed election in American history, your vote did not change the outcome. Your individual vote will never matter unless the election in your state is within one vote of a dead-even tie.”  Your vote would then only matter if your state affected the Electoral College balance, Landsburg said.  And the odds that will happen are smaller than the odds of winning the lottery and putting that money toward your political causes. If that’s not enough to convince you not to vote, note the odds you’ll die in a car accident are significantly higher on Election Day. An American Medical Journal analysis of Election Day traffic deaths over the past eight presidential elections reported, on average, 24 more people died in car crashes during voting hours on presidential election days than on other October and November Tuesdays.That’s an 18 percent increased risk of death. Compared with non-election days, an additional 800 people suffered disabling injuries, according to the Los Angeles Times. Possible reasons for the increase included rushing to polling stations, driving on unfamiliar routes and being distracted by thoughts about the election.That’s right, thoughts about the election.Do you want to die because you’re too busy performing your civic duty?This makes me ponder the amount of lost economic activity caused by voting. Chances are, the winners on Election Day will not only break campaign promises, but also flip-flop and make huge mistakes.  It’s best not to encourage them. Voting leads politicians to engage in a life of constant campaigning rather than a life of public service. If we only have two voices being heard on Election Day, and we don’t agree with either of those voices, should we be expected to choose between the lesser of two evils? Jesus wouldn’t pick the lesser of two evils. He’d wash his hands of the entire situation. In fact, Jesus wouldn’t vote. There’s something righteous and revolutionary about not voting. This is the problem with allowing only two candidates to compete while they claim to voice the opinions of the American people.Voting for a particular candidate aligns the voter with the policies of that candidate. If I vote for John McCain or Barack Obama, I lend them my voice. And if I sign my voice away on Election Day — and I’m lucky and my candidate wins — I become nothing more than a puppet for the administration. If I lose, then my voice truly counts for nothing. If the vast majority didn’t vote and the candidates only had to persuade, say, 5 percent of the population to get elected, the administration would hold no credibility with the public. The message sent to the establishment would truly be one of change.  This might have no effect at all on government. Or it might convince politicians to shape up. If the cost of freedom is responsibility, then voting is not a privilege so much as an inconvenience. If men can’t govern themselves, they can’t be expected to govern others. The answer is self-reliance. Don’t disengage completely. It isn’t your duty to vote, but it is your duty to stay informed and help offer solutions. Rather than vote, spend time doing something productive, like going to work or school. Hell, take the day off and have a nap. Invent something. Just don’t vote. Wendy McElroy, editor of a feminism Web site, put it best in an article on LewRockwell.com, a site run by Ron Paul’s former chief of staff:  ”It is commonly said, ‘If you don’t vote, you have no right to complain about the outcome.’ The opposite is true. By playing the game, voters agree to the rules. Only those who don’t play and withhold their consent have a right to complain about the outcome.” If you don’t vote, it will send a message that we need to change not only the candidates elected, but also the ways in which we elect them. Make a political statement by not playing according to the rules of the establishment. Don’t buy the philosophies they’re selling you. Make your own and live by them.But don’t conform to non-conformity by not voting just because you’re too damn lazy or uninterested. Don’t be a part of the silent majority.  Don’t vote because it’s the right thing to do for yourself and your community. And for America. Not voting is as American as apple pie or baseball. It’s a part of our national identity that we shouldn’t be willing to sacrifice. —-Contact Daniel Lumetta at [email protected]