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Compulsory voting

J

jihe

Senior member
Does anyone else see the merit in this? Maybe then the candidates won't spend billions to get people to vote and instead try to develop and sell actual policies? Frankly I am appalled by the amount of campaign spending. And maybe it actually gives third parties a chance since now people disillusioned with both parties simply won't get their asses off the couch to vote.
 
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Bad idea. Very bad idea.

The people who don't take the time to vote are the kind of people you don't want to vote.

Plus, if we forced people to vote the vote getting process would become one big give away. Candidates would fight over who can give away the most money and benefits to their voters. Would be a disaster for the country.
 
jihe said:
Does anyone else see the merit in this? Maybe then the candidates won't spend billions to get people to vote and instead try to develop and sell actual policies? Frankly I am appalled by the amount of campaign spending. And maybe it actually gives third parties a chance since now people disillusioned with both parties simply won't get their asses off the couch to vote.
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wouldn't help. Nobody really knows what they're voting for as it is. It would be better to have voting on a day when people normally have off. or make it a national holiday.

and get rid of attack ads. make candidates run on issues and not just against the other guy.
 
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jihe said:
Does anyone else see the merit in this? Maybe then the candidates won't spend billions to get people to vote and instead try to develop and sell actual policies? Frankly I am appalled by the amount of campaign spending. And maybe it actually gives third parties a chance since now people disillusioned with both parties simply won't get their asses off the couch to vote.
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You can't force people to take part in an election - it sort of goes against the idea of a Republic.
 
Vic Vega said:
You can't force people to take part in an election - it sort of goes against the idea of a Republic.
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No it doesn't. You could have an authoritarian republic. If anything, it just goes against our country's idea of freedom.

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Ideally, I'd like to see more people involved in the political process, but that would require people pulling their heads out of their asses and thinking about the real issues instead of just taking soundbites out of the news and attack ads.
 
Vic Vega said:
You can't force people to take part in an election - it sort of goes against the idea of a Republic.
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If you accept that citizenship in a Republic entails duties as well as benefits, voting in elections could easily be assumed to be one of those duties.

I must, however, disagree with the OP's idea that compulsory voting would somehow reduce campaign expenditures. It might well result in more spending as campaigns attempt "saturation" techniques to reach even the most reluctant participants.
 
Just because you have the right to vote does not mean you should be required to exercise that right. If anything, we should make it easier to exercise that right by moving voting to weekends and/or making election day a national holiday.
 
Do a wikipedia search on it-I'd link but Andatech's dynamite linker seems to be fubared today. Quite a few countries have this-lots don't enforce it, but some major democracies do, like Australia.

I'm undecided about this-I think voting is a social obligation in a democracy, as well as a privilege, but I can understand the impediment to civil liberties argument. No way such a system would decrease our flood of political commercials.

How about a penalty for not voting, as you are acting as a lesser citizen/freeloader then. Maybe a xx% discount (or fixed amount discount) on federal taxes for those who do vote & you claim it just like you claim your exemptions? Lie on the tax return and it's tax fraud-and easily checked against the voter rolls in an audit.
 
ProfJohn said:
Bad idea. Very bad idea.

The people who don't take the time to vote are the kind of people you don't want to vote.

Plus, if we forced people to vote the vote getting process would become one big give away. Candidates would fight over who can give away the most money and benefits to their voters. Would be a disaster for the country.
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Isn't it a good thing that candidates try to benefit most voters instead of just appealing to their so call "core constituents"? As it is now people who don't vote are simply ignored, which just reinforces their apathy.
 
dawp said:
and get rid of attack ads. make candidates run on issues and not just against the other guy.
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Cannot agree more on this. The attack ads are a disgrace. I thought we were over those when we moved on from kindergarten.
 
jihe said:
Does anyone else see the merit in this? Maybe then the candidates won't spend billions to get people to vote and instead try to develop and sell actual policies? Frankly I am appalled by the amount of campaign spending. And maybe it actually gives third parties a chance since now people disillusioned with both parties simply won't get their asses off the couch to vote.
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Then take the money out of the game. Eliminate the ability of corporations and unions to spend on political campaigns in ANY way. Let only living human people participate instead of "corporate people."

Reduce the amount every person can donate to any one candidate, do away with the PAC's and other political groups who siphon money from the business entities and are able to spend nearly without restriction.

Free speech is about speech...words, not about money...nor spending it on politics.
 
ProfJohn said:
The people who don't take the time to vote are the kind of people you don't want to vote.
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Frankly speaking, seeing how those that do vote are doing so because the majority of them are easily manipulated by simple psychological ploys embedded into ads, FUD, doesn't speak so glowingly of them being the cream of the crop either.

Apathy can be just as much of a statement as vocal activism.
 
You should not force someone to vote.

Now, removing the political party affiliation from being stated on the ballot might help.
 
Yep! That's what we should do in the first country in history to honor and protect the rights and freedoms of the individual! Force them to vote!

Um... no.
 
RightIsWrong said:
Frankly speaking, seeing how those that do vote are doing so because the majority of them are easily manipulated by simple psychological ploys embedded into ads, FUD, doesn't speak so glowingly of them being the cream of the crop either.

Apathy can be just as much of a statement as vocal activism.
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Another shining example of leftist elitism, folks!!!

The unwashed masses are too stupid to decide what is good for them!
 
What we need to do is make voting easier. Enact same day registration like some places already have. Of course, Republicans will oppose anything that makes voting easier.
 
Throckmorton said:
What we need to do is make voting easier. Enact same day registration like some places already have. Of course, Republicans will oppose anything that makes voting easier.
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What we need is a greater effective choice in parties. Of course Republicans and Democrats will oppose anything that threatens their oligarchy.
 
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