Matt Stone and Trey Parker tells it like they see it
Depending on your point of view the dynamic duo behind South Park and Team America were either striking yet another blow for voter apathy, or a step in the right direction for producing informed voters in a recent interview when the pair told uninformed and undecided voters to stay home.
"Stay home, it doesn't matter who you're gonna vote for. If you really don't know who you're gonna vote for, or are uninformed, or haven't really thought about it? Just stay home." Matt Stone remarked in an recent interview for Team America: World Police. He went on to say: "What we said according to Rolling Stone we have said a thing about voting where we bait each other where we thought to encourage uninformed voters to go vote isn't going to help the country that much. If you don't really know what you want to do and not really sure then just don't vote. And this whole idea of you have to vote no matter what, just get out... "
Trey Parker in turn had this to say: "We always said the campaign was about getting informed. I think that just vote or die I just think is ridiculous. That is just our personal opinion just talked about if you don't know anything and if you are just going to vote for George Bush because he is already in office or if you are going to vote for John Kerry because he is on the cover of Rolling Stone, don't vote. And there is no shame in that. The only shame is not really knowing anything, being uninformed and going voting."
Personally, I believe that you should be well-informed before making your decision at the polls, so I agree with the sentiment that if you aren't relatively up to speed with what is going on... you shouldn't cast a vote. Simple as that. Why should you as voter expect, no rather demand, your representation to be informed when you can't bother to inform yourself?
I mean, It isn't really representative government if one votes without taking all the available information into account.... especially about the local and state initiatives and measures on the ballot. I think that those small local things get the least amount of attention, when they are perhaps more important than who is president or your representative in some cases in the long term.