Today's voters may be forgiven for having similar disillusionment with the political process -- but noninvolvement, I must insist, is not an option.
Folks who stay away from the polls "as a protest," or because "they're all crooked," ignore the fact that their "protest" is indistinguishable from apathy. Rather than saying, as some do, "Don't vote -- it only encourages them," I would say that it is not voting that encourages irresponsibility and unresponsiveness on the part of elected officials, and that leaves our government as easy pickings for special interests.
But, some will say, what should we do when there's no one worth voting for? When neither of the major parties offer someone whom we can support, or when the similarities between candidates overwhelm the differences? If you don't have the option of voting for a third-party candidate (and the system is set up in such a way that this is a rare option indeed), there is still a way for you to let your political opinion be known at the polls.
I call this method "Vote for Yourself" (VFY).
If you have no other option, no one else that you deem worthy of your vote, don't stay away -- rather, just write in your own name. (After all, who else shares more of your values? Who else can you count on to look after your own interests?) Imagine the impact that a widespread VFY campaign could have -- "The Republican got 17% of the vote, the Democrat got 15%, and Other got 68%..." This, more than almost anything else I can think of, would get the attention of the established politicians, remove any illusion of "mandates," and give clear evidence of the level of disaffection among the American electorate for "politics as usual." Remember, the only "wasted vote" is the one that you don't cast -- or that you vote in a way contrary to your conscience. Go to the polls this November, and, if you have to, Vote for Yourself.