Voting for two bad candidates

'Ask Angie' is the Daily's weekly advice column. E-mail questions to angie@tuftsdaily.com.

Q: Having just received my absentee voter ballot, I have a dilemma. My state is having gubernatorial elections and I strongly dislike both candidates! For whom do I vote for, if at all? Am I a bad democrat (small "d") if I don't vote? Should I vote for the candidate that I dislike the least?

_Vexed voter



A: Good for you _ not every student took the time to register as an absentee voter! It's great to hear you're taking the elections so seriously. Without knowing what state you're from, it's harder to give you good advice. Have you considered voting for an independent candidate, or does your state only have two candidates running? Some people believe that voting for an independent candidate is "throwing away your vote", but look at Jesse Ventura, who successfully won an election to become Governor of Minnesota. There are other things to vote for in an election and you are certainly allowed to abstain from picking a gubernatorial candidate. Many people also believe that most elections come down to picking the "lesser of two evils", and if you believe that it will be either one or the other, then go with your instinct. As we learned in the last Presidential election, every vote counts. This is your vote and your decision to make, do what you can be proud of.



Q: Ever since I have been at college, I have been the biggest procrastinator. All I want to do is hang out and party, and my work always waits until the last second. I have never been like this before, but I can't seem to motivate myself. What can I do?

_Slacker boy



A: Hey, welcome to college life. Most people have a brush with procrastination a little too hard and often get in trouble before their work ethic gets back on track. It's good that you recognize this _ that's the first step to procrastination-free living. Unfortunately, motivating yourself is the only way to make this work. When you get assignments, plan out a schedule to slowly complete work over time. Study daily. To reward yourself for this work well done, you can go out and party with the rest of the big kids. You'll be a lot more relaxed and able to enjoy yourself without knowing you've got to still write a five-page paper by 3 pm the next day. As your work starts getting harder, it will become nearly impossible to function this way. Start changing your habits now and save yourself the trouble later.