I think the straight-ticket party structure is a joke.

Straight-ticket voting should be abolished, and people who really have information and education on the candidates should cast votes.

This would exclude, unfortunately, a majority of this website and probably half the country.

Seriously, too many stupid people vote...it's unfortunate it has to be that way, but I would make a requirement that people first had to pass a basic civics test before they could vote.

It would weed out the retards and possibly give us elected officials who were more accountable.

quote:

Originally posted by bauhaus:

quote:

So no, I'm not saying that all high school drop-outs shouldnt be able to vote or they are uneducated (I know a lot of drop-outs that are doing fine in their professions)

Professional bowling shoe cleaner? You live in the south of course drop outs can do fine in their professions, driving tractors isnt hard.

Have you ever personally driven a tractor? Seeing that youre from California, I'm going to go out on a limb here and say you havent. I live in a place where its not uncommon to see tractors on the actual road/highway (yes, we are Hicktown USA but I wouldnt have it any other way), and driving a tractor isnt as easy as it looks...I cant drive a tractor very good, and believe me, I've had the experience. So before you go off spouting about things you havent actually done, you need to get experience first. Please and Thank You.

While this sounds like a great idea. I think if it was ever implemented it would cause so many problems. I am thinking that it would develop a class system. It might turn into if you get a 10 on the test you can vote locally 50 statewide etc etc. It would make people unequal. The one thing that I think should be done though is that people under 18 could take a test and be able to vote now that would might be something to think about.

Wow, lots of replies to give.

clpo, you make things interesting with your humor hah.

But Kitsune, I actually agree with what you say.

themadtapper, just because people drop out of school (society says that an education in a government-run school is needed -- this is false) doesn't mean they wouldn't know the electoral system.

If my voting requirements and opinions bar women, children, black men, white men, etc. from voting, so be it.

Is it any wonder that the U.S. Constitution has been perverted in such a way that this nation of ours is on the fast track to being a Third World socialist hellhole?

The First Amendment, by the way, does not guarantee anyone the right to vote. Let's get that cleared up right then and there. It's obvious that the person believing this myth doesn't need to vote -- ever.

States decide who votes. And, I believe we should bar anyone who ever refers to this country as a democracy.

That'd weed out pretty much everyone.

While were at it...why don't exclude immigrants, women, blacks, and non land owning males from voting too.

I agree with Joey. For all you who think he's saying that only the super-smart should be able to vote, read it again. He's not asking that. He's merely asking for people to know the basics. As in, who the candidates are (first and last name, preferably) and what their stances are. For instance, someone who thinks he's voting for Harold Bush, the Democrat, needs to be shot, or at least prohibited from voting until he knows what he's doing.

quote:

So no, I'm not saying that all high school drop-outs shouldnt be able to vote or they are uneducated (I know a lot of drop-outs that are doing fine in their professions)

Professional bowling shoe cleaner? You live in the south of course drop outs can do fine in their professions, driving tractors isnt hard.

"And, who, good sir, will be declaring who is smart and who is not?"


I never said who was smart or not, I said the uneducated - meaning the people who know nothing about the candidates running, and issues they will be voting on. I was talking a to man over the summer who didnt even know Howard Dean (he didnt even know his name, I had to refresh his memory) had dropped out of the race (this was weeks after he did). And I thought to myself, this scares me because he will be voting about soemthing he knows nothing about...

So no, I'm not saying that all high school drop-outs shouldnt be able to vote or they are uneducated (I know a lot of drop-outs that are doing fine in their professions) or people that dont go to college (my parents didnt and theyre more up on the issues than most Harvard students...) but people that know nothing about the political world have no sense in voting...

You should consider that the uneducated are actually the majority not only in this country but in the world. Taking voting rights from them would be eliteist.

um...okay...
In your opinion what is an uneducated person?
Is it someone that dropped out of high school? Is it somene that didn't go to college?

I mean you can't revoke someone's right to vote under the 1st amendment, everyone has the right to free speech and when of the right age entitled to vote. Voting has nothing to do with education, class, race, sexual orientation, gender, or age.

Regardless of any of that in America we all have a voice, and voting is the way our voice is counted, sorted and then decicded as to who will be our leaders.

Are you serious?

Democracy was created for the people, not just the Harvard graduates or millionares.

In my opinion, those who stick their heads in books all day and don't get up off their ***** to form their own opinon rather than spouting the rhetoric of old should not be allowed to vote. They are worse. The rich and powerful are who allow these canidates to be chosen in the first place.

Do not be blaming the masses of the mistakes of few! We are only given canidates of shaddy calibur and little results.

Do not be so high and mighty in your intelligence when most of this board displays little more than the ability to "parrot" back to us the words of others for they have not the ability to make such weighty decisions for themselves.

And, who, good sir, will be declaring who is smart and who is not? Let's us not forget that man is quite fallible and the system even more so. One man's right is another's wrong.

"Ever consider the fact that the election results will affect the idiots of the world, too?"

Theyre never going to know what is going on because VH1 and MTV cant fit all the issues going on in the world in 30 seconds each hour...

Ever consider the fact that the election results will affect the idiots of the world, too? They have to have a say. I agree that a lack of understanding of issues is terrible, common, and damaging our society as a whole. But it would be inhumane, oppressive, and logistically impossible to weed out people who don't understand what's going on.
Also remember: half the people on earth are below average.

quote:

Originally posted by JoeyDauben:
I think the straight-ticket party structure is a joke.

Straight-ticket voting should be abolished, and people who really have information and education on the candidates should cast votes.

This would exclude, unfortunately, a majority of this website and probably half the country.

Seriously, too many stupid people vote...it's unfortunate it has to be that way, but I would make a requirement that people first had to pass a basic civics test before they could vote.

It would weed out the retards and possibly give us elected officials who were more accountable.

you understand that this same argument was used to keep blacks from voting, right?

I agree with you. I can't vote because im a teenager nor because im a puertorican and we have no saying in presidential elections. I support your point of you eventhough i dont have a voice in the us elections.

Though, for the first time ever, I think joey may have a point, America was founded by the people, for the people. I think that means that everyone should have the right to vote. But then again, if the uniformed were not allowed to vote, Kerry would have won the election.

I have to agree with you JoeyDauben. I think that people eligible to vote should be required to take a test on the politics, local and national, and issues going on in the country then. Too many people rely on the 30 second news briefs on VH1 for their opinion on the war, president bush, kerry, etc. And the sad thing is that the uninformed people's vote counts as much as the informed...

The majority of this website cant vote in the first place. How about high school drop outs cant vote.