After watching much of the Democratic National Convention, I am in a bit of a political mood. So, let's get out the vote -- NOT!

Every year, as we approach another election, we hear all sorts of appeals to get out the vote. It is your responsibility as an American citizen to cast a vote. Exercise your constitutional right. Your civic duty. A privilege of democracy. A moral obligation. If you don't vote, you lose the right to complain about whoever gets in. Rock the vote!

I don't buy it.

I believe the "get out the vote" campaigns are all wrong-headed. These are not usually impartial urgings to foster the ideal of democracy, but generally partisan politics disguised as a public service. Certain groups vote in lower numbers than other groups, and the "get out the vote" folks seek to mobilize those non-voters for their own goals. In plain language, lots of young and minority folks don't bother to vote, and the Democrats think that if they can get them to go to the polls, most of them would probably vote Democratic. (Yes, I am seriously generalizing here.)

What's wrong with this is that, while all citizens have the right to vote, it is perhaps not in the country's best interest to encourage the clueless to cast a ballot. If someone doesn't have enough interest in politics to follow the race, why encourage them to vote? Do you want people voting solely on the impression of a candidate they get from TV commercials? Do you want our next president to be elected based on who has the best hair, or the whitest smile? Or would you rather have the president selected by an educated section of the population who judge the candidates based on things like their past records, opinions on issues that matter, debates, and other sources of information?

"Get out the vote" gets out the moron vote. Our nation's founding fathers knew the unwashed masses could not be fully trusted to make wise choices, which is why we're actually set up as a democratic republic instead of a true democracy, and why the election process has such oddities as the Electoral College instead of just using the popular vote. Unfortunately, democracy is just too important to leave up to the people. So, get out and vote . . . or don't. Hey, look, MTV's running The 100 Most Shocking Moments In Rock History!