The Right To Vote/the Right Not To Vote.

[Guest Zoe Grace]

People rant a lot about the right to vote in this country and what a priviledge it is...how you should vote because you have the right to.

 

Well what about the right NOT to vote. You also have the right not to vote and I think for those so inclined that choice should be respected as well.

 

Some people say..."You should vote because you might not always have the right to vote." (and of course they follow that with: "And if you don't vote, you have no right to complain...sure i do...it's called "free speech")

 

I think however that I shouldn't vote...while i still have the right NOT to.

 

There are actually many places where it is MANDATORY to vote...which is so fucked up I can't even deal with it...

 

So yeah...here is an article:

 

http://www.australianpolitics.com/voting/s...ompulsory.shtml

 

I'd pay the fine.

 

Oh...I was also just informed you could always vote "donkey" you fill out the voting slip wrong, so it doesn't count. hehe.

 

Or...you could also do a write in vote and vote ANYBODY. I'd vote like "bill gates" or "Britney spears"

 

hmmmm now i'm kindof hoping some fucknut institutes mandatory voting, then i can vote britney spears just to piss them off each election.

 

OR...i could vote for myself...

 

Or buffy.

[Renfield]

I don't care if a person votes or not. The less people vote the more important my vote is. It is possible for a small number of people to make a large difference in local elections.

 

In Austrailia:

The following people are not entitled to enrol and vote:

 

* prisoners serving a sentence of five years or more

* people who have been convicted of treason and not pardoned

* people who are incapable of understanding the nature and significance of enrolment and voting

I wonder how they decide who is incapable?

[Fweethawt]

Buffy is gay.

[Casey]

I don't care if a person votes or not. The less people vote the more important my vote is. It is possible for a small number of people to make a large difference in local elections.

 

In Austrailia:

The following people are not entitled to enrol and vote:

 

* prisoners serving a sentence of five years or more

* people who have been convicted of treason and not pardoned

* people who are incapable of understanding the nature and significance of enrolment and voting

I wonder how they decide who is incapable?

 

I myself don't know, but a mate of mine once suggested to me ( both in jest and with a drink or two taken) that you might write to the Electoral Commission to tell them you're dead, and that they now being informed of your condition, would they please remove you from the Electoral Roll? To date I have not tried this method.

 

The late great Australian author Frank Hardy once cynically observed that if you didn't believe in the Resurrection Of The Dead, you ought to go to Port Melbourne on Election Day. Not only did the dead arise and vote, quite a few of these unfortunates had to go to work the following Monday.

Casey

[Ladyfractal]

People rant a lot about the right to vote in this country and what a priviledge it is...how you should vote because you have the right to.

 

As you might imagine, Zoe, I have a somewhat different perspective on this. I think of the right to vote as something extraordinarily precious because of family history. My family is originally from the Deep South and neither of my parents (who were born in the 1920's) ever cast a vote until the Voting Rights Act passed in 1965. By that time, my father had served in the Army the four years of WWII, awarded a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star but when he came home he was not able to vote. Now, I know you are not saying that that is okay so please don't take me to be making that point.

 

Rather, I am making the point that the reason I vote is because it is just outside of my lifetime that blacks in this country *could* vote universally. Not participating in the electoral process is a luxury of complacency that I do not understand.

 

You certainly have a right not to vote, no matter how much I might not understand why you would not want to.

 

Cheers

lf

[The Sage Nabooru]

I believe that in this day and age the Right to Vote in America is little more than a token right; that is, oppression of freedom dressed up to look like freedom. It's little better than the Communist party system: You have the right to vote, but there's only one person on the ballot. We are only one better than that.

 

I voted for the Democrats last election just because I didn't want to vote for the Republicans. I was lucky in that I was from a largely Republican region so the voting machines we used were easy-to-use, efficient, and working in mint condition. But did I want to vote for the Democrats? Not particularly. I feel that Kerry could've driven this country into ruin just as easily as Bush could have, but at least religion wouldn't be such a big deal.

 

Both parties have only one agenda: Protecting their own self-interests. The entire goal of each party is to gain control of the most seats and the most money.

[vampyre]

I vote because I feel it is the closest I can get to my opinion actualy mattering.

 

There is something wrong with poth of the parties, red states and blue states, they both want to take away freedoms and make the public believe their version of the truth.

 

IMO there needs to be a third party that says as long as you arent hurting anyone else you can do whatever you want.

 

P.S. Buffy is gay.

[woodsmoke]

I vote because I feel it is the closest I can get to my opinion actualy mattering.

 

There is something wrong with poth of the parties, red states and blue states, they both want to take away freedoms and make the public believe their version of the truth.

 

IMO there needs to be a third party that says as long as you arent hurting anyone else you can do whatever you want.

 

There is. It's called the Libertarian party. But because people vote the lesser evil instead of their actual conscience they don't have a shot at winning.

 

Also the fact that the Republicrats have taken very deliberate steps to make the legitimate rise to power of a third party a practical impossibility.

 

Not saying they might gain a little more steam with a larger following, but really, there's only so much you can do when the system is rigged against you from the start. To say nothing of the fact that even if they did get into "power," nothing would change. Political parties are just fronts for the corporateocracy.

 

Jesus, I sound like a fuckin' conspiracy theorist.

[Knightley]

I say bullocks. I know that not every vote counts, so what's the point anymore? As long as people leave me alone, they can do whatever they want. People should also have the right to be apathetic should they choose to, I see nothing wrong with it. If people want to judge me for that, oh well. I'm sure they're not crying home at night over the fact that I will choose to not vote.

[Nihil]

George Carlin wrote, next time someone gives you that civic bullshit about voting, remind them that Hitler was voted in a full, free democratic election.

[nirrti]

Nowadays, I often feel like Stanley on "South Park" when it comes to voting. You know, that episode in which he's given a choice between a turd sandwich and a douch bag for his school's mascot.

 

My great-great grandmother was a volunteer worker at the polls and my grandfather guilt-tripped me from day one about how I'm obligated to vote since black people haven't always had the right to cast ballots. I go to the polls but it seems fruitless because it doesn't change anything about the greed and corruption that's so prevalent in this country. And only two parties? What the hell kind of choice is that? They're both out for themselves and could care less about what we want. One just happens to be more honest about it.

 

 

 

 

Oh, and Xena is the one who's gay, not Buffy. *runs*

[Gaura]

That's right, Zoe!

 

There ARE options out there, and if people like Ex-C's were to get our there and vote in better blocs we could really start to make a difference. I've been a Libertarian activist for some time now and people are SCARED to vote outside the mainstream. Wrong answer! That's just the illusion the major parties weave to keep you trapped as surely as the evangelicals try to keep you trapped with Jesus. But we all broke free from that one, right?

 

There are options. Vote Libertarian, Vote Green, vote whatever suits your fancy. I doubt people here would be Amer. Const. Party, or Natural Law, but they are also options. There are options, more than vote or don't vote.

 

And I don't know a d%$% thing about Buffy.

[Dhampir]

I'm black. And I did grow up with one of the hardest hardline civil rights (and pre-civil rights) era people as a father. However, I'm with Nirrti and others, when I say that not only should I not have to vote, but that I have the right to complain when I don't. What's the use of voting for the lesser of two evils? If I can't accept either evil, why should I be a party to it? To what purpose would I waste my vote on someone who could never take the victory (third or non party candidate)? It's best to preserve your vote I think, like the Amish preserve virginity, till a candidate that fits your minimum requirements comes along and is worthy of casting a vote.

[Lycorth]

I'm black. And I did grow up with one of the hardest hardline civil rights (and pre-civil rights) era people as a father. However, I'm with Nirrti and others, when I say that not only should I not have to vote, but that I have the right to complain when I don't. What's the use of voting for the lesser of two evils? If I can't accept either evil, why should I be a party to it? To what purpose would I waste my vote on someone who could never take the victory? It's best to preserve your vote I think, like the Amish preserve virginity, till a candidate that fits your minimum requirements comes along and is worthy of casting a vote.

 

Damn straight, brotha

 

I vote with my back. I simply turn around and walk away. I have no use for "the system" and fail to see how change can be wrought, given the numbers and influence of those already in power, both the seen and the unseen. Once I believed very strongly in the political system, but after many years of involvement, I cannot continue to be dishonest with myself, much like after many years of Xianity I couldn't lie to myself anymore and just had to ditch the whole mess.

 

Personally, I prefer to live my life well and raise any children I might have as best as I can, so that when this civilization crumbles (as they all eventually do), they or their descendants will be better prepared to hopefully build something better out of the ashes. I'd rather try to live rightly and be a good influence to those around me than waste time on pipe dreams and throwing rocks at tanks.

 

Until someone comes along who is worthy of a vote, and unless I am convinced that my vote actually is worth anything, I will continue to vote with my back - and with my feet one day, if need be.

[The Sage Nabooru]

From now on I figure I will either vote Libertarian (don't know much about them, but they seem to hate taxes, which is a good thing as far as I'm concerned) or Green.

 

I figure, I might as well say SOMEthing. It's worse to not do anything then to not at least try. This country has gone through other parties, the Whigs, the Democrat-Republicans (yes, very early in this nation's history), the Federalists, the Prohibitionists, whatever. In the 90's we had an Independent representative in Congress. Maybe that movement just needs to grow.

 

Revolutions - velvet or otherwise - don't happen by turning your back. And I think this country is right about due for a revolution.

[Vigile]

I think at this point I would go so far as to say that the right to vote is nothing more than a placebo that placates us masses and makes us feel as if we actually have a say in how we are governed.

 

Maybe that's a good thing since the alternative would be revolution and nothing ever good comes out of those either.

[narcissist]

That's right, Zoe!

 

There ARE options out there, and if people like Ex-C's were to get our there and vote in better blocs we could really start to make a difference. I've been a Libertarian activist for some time now and people are SCARED to vote outside the mainstream. Wrong answer! That's just the illusion the major parties weave to keep you trapped as surely as the evangelicals try to keep you trapped with Jesus. But we all broke free from that one, right?

 

There are options. Vote Libertarian, Vote Green, vote whatever suits your fancy. I doubt people here would be Amer. Const. Party, or Natural Law, but they are also options. There are options, more than vote or don't vote.

 

And I don't know a d%$% thing about Buffy.

I agree with this. The Australian system is different to the US (at least). Among other things, the upper house has a proportional representation system which allows minor parties and independents a greater chance of being elected, and have even held the balance of power in the past, with all its political machinations and maneuverings....

 

I can tell you from experience, having worked at a polling place on election day, that every vote in Australia is counted, even the donkeys. There’s a lot less opportunity for corruption in Aussie elections than there seems to be in the US, probably because Australia has a properly funded national electoral commission who runs the show, and there's no silly voting machines to detach the chads, only pencil + paper.

 

I have friends that don’t vote. If you don’t want to vote, that’s OK with me, but you kind of forfeit your right to be taken seriously whenever you comment on those you didn’t vote for or against.

 

To paraphrase a couple of Aussie TV comedians: “In Australia, if you don’t vote, you get a $50 fine. In America, if you don’t vote, you get George W Bush.”

[greygirl]

To paraphrase a couple of Aussie TV comedians: “In Australia, if you don’t vote, you get a $50 fine. In America, if you don’t vote, you get George W Bush.”

 

Heh, it's funny because it's true.

 

Yes, you have the right to not vote. But by not voting, you're still making a decision. You're making the decision to let someone else decide for you. You're voting to place your fate in someone else's hands without even putting up token resistance. You're voting to go along with whatever somebody else wants.

 

Yeah, you can still bitch if you don't vote. It's still a free country (for now). Just don't expect me to take you seriously when you do.

[Vigile]

Your points would be true were it not for documented vote manipulation and the fact that the vote in the US is made up of an electoral college.

 

Under the electoral system, only a handful of voters in a handful of swing states choose the president. I'm from Idaho. Mine, or any who think like me, will never overrule the Republican majority required to give our electoral votes to another canidate.

 

Not only is the system electoral, it is also manipulated by a twisted web of gerrymandered districts. The ruling party (guess who) has used its power to rezone these districts in such a way that they can almost assure themselves victories in the future. Lawsuits have been raised in the past when racial profiling has been used as a criteria of gerrymandering (e.g., zoning out or in sections of black communities to dillute their vote), but they continue to use other criteria to bring in the vote they want.

 

So, yes, if you live in Ohio or Florida, or another swing state, by all means vote. The Diebold machines may change your vote, but at least you will feel you did your patriotic American duty.

[greygirl]

Your points would be true were it not for documented vote manipulation and the fact that the vote in the US is made up of an electoral college.

 

Under the electoral system, only a handful of voters in a handful of swing states choose the president. I'm from Idaho. Mine, or any who think like me, will never overrule the Republican majority required to give our electoral votes to another canidate.

 

Not only is the system electoral, it is also manipulated by a twisted web of gerrymandered districts. The ruling party (guess who) has used its power to rezone these districts in such a way that they can almost assure themselves victories in the future. Lawsuits have been raised in the past when racial profiling has been used as a criteria of gerrymandering (e.g., zoning out or in sections of black communities to dillute their vote), but they continue to use other criteria to bring in the vote they want.

 

So, yes, if you live in Ohio or Florida, or another swing state, by all means vote. The Diebold machines may change your vote, but at least you will feel you did your patriotic American duty.

 

If you're only talking about Presidential elections, then you're right. There are more things to vote on than just who's going to be the President, and on those, your vote does count. Voting in local elections is far more important, in my opinion.

[Ladyfractal]

 

If you're only talking about Presidential elections, then you're right. There are more things to vote on than just who's going to be the President, and on those, your vote does count. Voting in local elections is far more important, in my opinion.

 

GG:

 

You're largely correct. While folks focus on the national elections largely our lives are far more affected by local or state measures and politicians. In California, the state I lived longest, I saw all manner of things put to statewide referendum. It is those things that have a huge impact on our lives. Yes, the Presidential elections matter but who your senator and representatives (or MPs ) are matters far more.

 

Cheers

lf

[Kurari]

You said exactly what I was thinking, Greygirl.

 

I vote because I want my bitching rights.

[Vigile]

If you're only talking about Presidential elections, then you're right. There are more things to vote on than just who's going to be the President, and on those, your vote does count. Voting in local elections is far more important, in my opinion.

 

But that's just it. That's why I raised the gerrymandering issue. Even with local elections, the vote is manipulated (legally, I might add) to ensure a certain outcome. Maybe people are pissed off enough to through the Reps out of the House this year, but it's going to be tough to overcome all the district rezones they made in their favor over the last few years.

 

As for city/county level elections, I guess I'm pretty ambivalent.

[Dhampir]

"Derr you can't complain 'cuz you din't vote!"

 

"I have every right not to vote on ballots containing nothing but unworthy candidates. Besides, you didn't vote for the guy."

 

"I voted for the other guy, and he woulda did better, so I can complain."

 

"Yeah, but your guy didn't win! And why didn't he if he was the better man for the job? All you're defending is the right to vote for a loser! You might as well have not voted at all, so If you have any rights here, so do I."

[Amethyst]

I vote, but mostly as a protest against the party I don't like. And yeah, I realize it's mostly just a placebo/illusion/whatever you want to call it. But I think it's better than staying home on election day. Each to their own.