Their view is that since they voted for someone based on Party and little or no other criteria, we have to do it, too. Otherwise, they will decry us as being 'smug' when we tell them that we voted for individuals based on our principles, rather than which Party they belonged to. And, if we cannot find any candidates whose principles we agree with, we are declared poor citizens for not holding our nose and voting for somebody -- usually somebody of the Party they support.
I vote for the person I feel is best for the job, whatever their Party. I have never hidden that fact or stated otherwise. I will do so in the future. I will not vote for Bush. I will not vote for Gore. I will not vote for Clinton.
I *did* vote for Buchanan; not many others did. He lost. That's how our elections work. I don't feel at all ashamed I voted for someone who lost. I *would* feel ashamed if I voted against my own principles and the person won -- even moreso if that candidate proved even worse once elected than advertised. I don't vote for winners; I vote for whom I think is best for the job.
Party, in itself, means nothing to me. It may give me an indication of the person's principles, but I can usually learn those while the candidate is campaigning and, if applicible, by the candidate's voting record. Parties may be inevitible in our form of government, but it doesn't mean I have to support them.
Tuor
Give me liberty or give me death.
A truth lost on modern man is that a man really has nothing BUT his principles. Everything else is crap, in the end.
There are actually serious voices in our rapidly sinking culture who advocate FORCED voting. At the rate we are going, it will be implemented one day, just before forced volunteering, or forced teaching of our children the opposite of our beliefs, or forced abortions, or forced eating of your young.