quote:

ORIGINAL: Kittenluv954
Mhmm, must be that. so nevermind then, there is NO truth to what i am saying, and our government is corruption free. check.

in case you didnt read my first post, it said i have never voted. there has never been an instance where the person i voted for didnt win, or issues didnt go "my way". not once in my life. i have no stake in this, none, im not remotely interested in politics. its a game played behind closed doors, by the wealthy and powerful. i was only commenting on being forced to vote, per the topic of discussion.

quote:

ORIGINAL: epiphiny43

BS to most of the above. Both sides.
What is missing is that few Think about how they vote. Most human decisions are emotional, not educated rational thought. (My take agrees with: Liberals are defined by their hopes; Conservatives by their fears." but neither is actually Rational.) What too many current campaigns try to do is get enough people upset about bullshit/irrelevant issues to Need to vote, not educate the populace to current Actual issues and the likely consequences of who is elected and what policies they say they will follow. Mandatory voting brings in all: the cynics who think the process is polluted if not totally corrupt, often the Most educated; (Someone try to convince me the Tea Party luddites are knowledgeable!) as well as the 'sorta' interested who don't think there is enough difference between a Demopublican and a Republicrat to matter; and the conspiracy addicts who don't even believe the public figures have anything to do with the real governing. And all the rest. A democracy, or a Democracy, is the wishes of the People, not just those who can take time off to vote, have child care, are upset by formulaic Faux News 'stories' or are the blind being led by the blind. Disenfranchising the 'less interested' is just another form of elitism, like Nobility, Property Owner voting qualifications, gender discrimination or racial disqualification. Voting shouldn't be Mandatory, just tie all entitlement programs (Including medical) to your citizenship (voting record)?? :D If nothing else, it might cut the tax rate and deficit?
For better or worse (WHAT could be worse than our current Legislatures, State and National, and Presidential elections?), let the People Speak. It won't be pretty, but it would be democratic.

quote:

ORIGINAL: Aylee

quote:

ORIGINAL: servantforuse
The electorial college is there for a reason. Without it, 5 or 6 states could decide a national election.

That and many states (especially in "flyover country") would be ignored.

quote:

ORIGINAL: servantforuse

There are people out there that can't name the president, vice president and a host of others. They have no clue as to what is going on in politics. We do not need idiots like that being forced to vote.

quote:

ORIGINAL: slvemike4u

quote:

ORIGINAL: servantforuse

There are people out there that can't name the president, vice president and a host of others. They have no clue as to what is going on in politics. We do not need idiots like that being forced to vote.

So damm true,just think of the folks that post around here who don't seem to realize the current President's name is Barack Obama

And if things go as I expect them to go,a whole bus load of you won't learn how to say Madame President Hillary R. Clinton either

quote:

ORIGINAL: slvemike4u

Never has a point been so readily proved by another poster...my sincere thanks for your help CD.

Also a fine example of why mandatory voting would be a bad idea....anything that forces those not intelligent enough to understand the importance of voting to ,in fact,vote is a bad,bad idea.

quote:

ORIGINAL: NorthernGent

Republic? Democracy? In the context of my post, to which you responded, it doesn't matter.

The idea was that power should be spread fairly evenly and as such an informed, invested populace would follow.

But, it hasn't. Something like 40% of the United States population, that's something like 125 million people; did not vote at the last general election.


A few percent more voted at the last general election in my country.

This is not what was conceived during the enlightenment. It was assumed that people would be falling over themselves to make their voice heard.

quote:

ORIGINAL: epiphiny43

BS to most of the above. Both sides.
What is missing is that few Think about how they vote. Most human decisions are emotional, not educated rational thought. (My take agrees with: Liberals are defined by their hopes; Conservatives by their fears.

quote:

ORIGINAL: BamaD

quote:

ORIGINAL: NorthernGent

Republic? Democracy? In the context of my post, to which you responded, it doesn't matter.

The idea was that power should be spread fairly evenly and as such an informed, invested populace would follow.

But, it hasn't. Something like 40% of the United States population, that's something like 125 million people; did not vote at the last general election.


A few percent more voted at the last general election in my country.

This is not what was conceived during the enlightenment. It was assumed that people would be falling over themselves to make their voice heard.

Just because you can make them vote doesn't mean that you can make them do so intelligently.

quote:

ORIGINAL: ThatDaveGuy69

I can't begin to tell you how incredibly stupid and uninformed your statement is. Our government does not provide the people to vote for - we the people do that.
Don't believe me? Get involved with your local government. Attend village board meetings or whatever you have where you live and you will see how important it
is to vote for people who have interests similar to your own. Does your town have a mayor? Do you feel he/she is corrupt? Then back a candidate you feel you can
trust. Better yet: run yourself!

But don't ever say all the choices are bad when you're not willing to get up off your ass to work for change.
As a Floridian, you above most others should recognize just how important it is to vote.

quote:

ORIGINAL: Kittenluv954

i dont vote, and until our government can provide a person worth voting for? i never will. the lesser of two evil isnt good enough for me to begrudgingly cast a vote for someone i wouldnt even want in my home for coffee. anyone who needs a demographic specialist to go into an area to find out what the people want to hear, and a speech writer to say it- is full of shit. lastly, i think its all fixed anyway. i think the next in line is decided behind closed doors before the last ever leaves office. who can prove the entire country voted for the other guy? i think its a red herring, purposed to keep us busy believing our voices matter, and they dont. so yeah screw voting and wasting my time on politics lol. in case none of you have noticed, we have several apocolyptic snowballs headed our way, silly things our government has ignored for centuries like water supplies drying up, a financial reckoning we cant afford, fossil fuels being depleted... who cares who is president when we are all starving to death because we cant afford the $1000 it will cost to have a pigeon fly us a loaf of bread from the last place in the world making it? seriously. we have MUCH bigger fish to fry, and nobody is paying attention as it is.

what about I DON'T TRUST POLITICIANS isn't clear here? what about I THINK VOTING IS A SHAM didn't I articulate? I am not refusing to take part because of laziness, I am refusing to take part because I believe "the vote" is bullshit. Read carefully, I believe the next president is decided BEHIND CLOSED DOORS by "interests" and those who have the money to pay for them. In other words, I BELIEVE the votes are all gathered at the end of the day and thrown out before a "winner" (you know, the guy they already decided on last year....) is announced. yes, I really believe this. If a fortune 500 company decides to change presidency, the next president is decided on in the boardroom. after lots of projections, and statistics talk, they all get together and decide who will best lead the company next. why? because it's an important decision, and with that kind of money on the line, they aren't leaving it up to the common moron who works in the copy and mail room. I DON'T BELIEVE our country does it any differently. That decision is made by those with money, and power, FOR those with money and power, and for the further acquisition of both. It has NOTHING to do with the common citizen, and so I remove myself from the charade. The end, it's really not more complicated than that.

quote:

ORIGINAL: joether

quote:

ORIGINAL: Kittenluv954
Mhmm, must be that. so nevermind then, there is NO truth to what i am saying, and our government is corruption free. check.

in case you didnt read my first post, it said i have never voted. there has never been an instance where the person i voted for didnt win, or issues didnt go "my way". not once in my life. i have no stake in this, none, im not remotely interested in politics. its a game played behind closed doors, by the wealthy and powerful. i was only commenting on being forced to vote, per the topic of discussion.

If you have never voted, that I and everyone else who do vote, and have voted....

....Don't give a fuck what your opinion is on government. Your given that opportunity each election. Be it local, state or even federal to vote. Dont care what your excuses are. Its your civil duty to vote! You want to skim out on voting? Fine, just don't open your mouth on what that government does. Because no one will give a shit.

quote:

ORIGINAL: slvemike4u

quote:

ORIGINAL: servantforuse
There are people out there that can't name the president, vice president and a host of others. They have no clue as to what is going on in politics. We do not need idiots like that being forced to vote.

So damm true,just think of the folks that post around here who don't seem to realize the current President's name is Barack Obama
And if things go as I expect them to go,a whole bus load of you won't learn how to say Madame President Hillary R. Clinton either

• A Conservative interpretation of the US Constitution
  
• Personal Responsibility
  
• Help for the truly needy
  
• Limited Government
  
• Consumption Tax (non-profit charities and food exempt)
  

quote:

ORIGINAL: NorthernGent
Republic? Democracy? In the context of my post, to which you responded, it doesn't matter.
The idea was that power should be spread fairly evenly and as such an informed, invested populace would follow.
But, it hasn't. Something like 40% of the United States population, that's something like 125 million people; did not vote at the last general election.
A few percent more voted at the last general election in my country.
This is not what was conceived during the enlightenment. It was assumed that people would be falling over themselves to make their voice heard.

quote:

Voter turnout in the United States fluctuates in national elections, but has never risen to levels of most other well-established democracies. In countries with compulsory voting, like Australia, Belgium, and Chile, voter turnout hovered near 90% in the 2000s. Other countries, like Austria, Sweden, and Italy, experienced turnout rates near 80%. Overall, OECD countries experience turnout rates of about 70%, while in the U.S., about 60% of the voting eligible population votes during presidential election years, and about 40% votes during midterm elections.

• A Conservative interpretation of the US Constitution
  
• Personal Responsibility
  
• Help for the truly needy
  
• Limited Government
  
• Consumption Tax (non-profit charities and food exempt)