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[No_way]

People who dont vote, to me, are just wannabe anarchists.  DO SOMETHING.

As I've said TWICE in this thread alone: voting is NOT the only means of action.

I am simply baffled by how so many people can read over me saying that, not respond to it, and then yet again say that people who don't vote don't do anything.  Remarkable.

Have you signed a petition?  Have you attended or organized a rally?  Have you written letters to the media, politicians?  Joined any sort of political organization, whatsoever, ever? Have you been involved in political life in any way other than marking an "X" every few years.  For most people the answer would be no.

It is truly disturbing how so many people can do nothing (in this I INCLUDE voting) and then shout from their high horses about how they hate people are not doing anything.

This is my major problem with voting: besides doing no good, and legitimizing the whole charade, it convinces people that they are doing something so that the don't feel the need to get involved in any more effective way.

Think:  If voting was a threat to the establishment, would they spend millions of our tax dollars encouraging us to do it?

[BwiBwi]

Have you signed a petition?  Yes

Have you attended or organized a rally?  Yes

Have you written letters to the media, politicians?  Yes

Joined any sort of political organization, whatsoever, ever?  Yes

Have you been involved in political life in any way other than marking an "X" every few years.  Yes

The sad thing is, the more you attend the more you think the public need better information.  Many options, choices, consquencies are just not in plain sight.
Making decition just from short news broadcast, a few paragraphs in the newspaper here and there, is just not enough.

Chris being envolved with negotiating with politicians he probably will know each seemed simple yes no question will effect a good number of other subjects.

[No_way]

I agree, Bwibwi.  Issues are too complicated to be addressed in a news clip or some political spot.  But people don't seem to really want to know how complicated things are.  It's easier for busy people to have simple opinions about what the perceive as simple issues.   

For the most part voters are so underinformed that I don't consider the voting results to be a good measure of anything.  It's a selfselection opinion poll.  It's totally invalid from a scientific perspective, but it's the "perfect" way to pick a government 

[marmot]

Whats absurd is following your argument to its logical end, nobody voting.  What then?  You have a plan to get things working?  Give me a break. If everybody voted, we'd have a representative government.  Trouble is, many people share the same attitude as you do, and dont contribute to the process....and the status quo is upheld.  People the world over that dont take the right to vote for granted like you do would die for the opportunity for their children to live in a country like ours where it is possible....i wouldnt call it shouting from a highhorse encouraging people to vote...

As for voting being an "establishment" means of controlling the masses, I think without proof of some massive conspiracy that falls a little short....

I DO agree that most people who vote are uninformed.  If more people were informed voters, maybe you would feel different?  To me, its a shame that somebody like you ISNT voting; you are the ideal person to vote, youre informed, passionate and decisive.....

[No_way]

...If everybody voted, we'd have a representative government.  Trouble is, many people share the same attitude as you do, and dont contribute to the process....

And yet again I point out that voting is not the only way to contribute.

It's not a "conspiracy", it's structural.

As far as every one voting being better... In Australia it is a crime not to vote.  They have a voter turnout of around 90%.  It Australia a liberal-democratic utopia?  No.  Even a brief inquiry into into the matter will show that their parliament deal with the same old stuff, and in the same old way as every other legislative body.

Thank you for your complaments, but even if I did vote (and there was someone worth voting for) it would be counteracted by some overly emotional, easily swayed, reactionary and possibly sociopathic voter for the other side.  Who know?

So many decisions are not up for election.  Do we get to vote on GM thowing 50,000 workers to the curb?  No.  Do we vote on the importation/export of toxic/radioactive material? No.  There are millions of life changing decisions made every day that are simply beyond the scope of government.   

As for people who died for democracy, our current "democracies" are the products of revolutionary struggles like the French, British and American revolutions.  Do think that people that fought and died in order to form parliaments in the first place would be very happy to see how their legacy has developed over time (hijacked).  We have countries run by the same type of wealth and privilege they feed to muskets and guillotines 200 years ago.  Liberal democracy at its root IS revolutionary.  I'm not some odd new radical, it is people with my views that made parliaments a reality to begin with.  "It's better than nothing" or claiming that I don't care about the people who died for democracy are not valid points.  The people who dies originally would not be very impressed with the people who encourage us to vote for the lesser of two or three evils. 

If anyone doesn't believe me, read "Common Sense" my Thomas Payne THEN get back to me.

Thomas Jefferson thought that America should have a revolution every 10 years or so in order to clean out the established power.  If you look at Canada and the US now you can see why.

[Uncivil]

Must be nice to be so infallible that voting is beneath you.  To paraphrase, democracy is a lousy system but is the 10 times better than the other s out there.  If you don't want to particpate in the process I don't give a rats my friend about your opinion about it.  Go join the rest of your irrelevant comrades in beliviing you can change the world from the outside.

[Big Steel]

This is why I don't join in political debates.

Must be nice to be so infallible that voting is beneath you.  To paraphrase, democracy is a lousy system but is the 10 times better than the other s out there.  If you don't want to particpate in the process I don't give a rats my friend about your opinion about it.  Go join the rest of your irrelevant comrades in beliviing you can change the world from the outside.

It always degrades to this!!  Be nice guys, eveyone has a right to their own opinion and a right to voice them!!!  No need to start calling someone down because they think differently then you!!

[BwiBwi]

Well it's all in the name.

This is why I don't join in political debates.

Must be nice to be so infallible that voting is beneath you.  To paraphrase, democracy is a lousy system but is the 10 times better than the other s out there.  If you don't want to particpate in the process I don't give a rats my friend about your opinion about it.  Go join the rest of your irrelevant comrades in beliviing you can change the world from the outside.

It always degrades to this!!  Be nice guys, eveyone has a right to their own opinion and a right to voice them!!!  No need to start calling someone down because they think differently then you!!

Democracy, human rights.... all's good. But when is it too much?

When we get less than 2/3 voting population to vote and when the most voted for candidate only account for 35% or anything below 50% is he/she a true representative for the majority? In the eyes of law yes but to mathmatical numeration and logic... no.

[Steelhawk]

John Cummings for fishery minister!  If PC wins, he will definitely be the best & most informed federal fishery minister for BC.  I have never heard any MP who is more in touch with our fishery and who has been always speaking on the side of the sport fishing community. Too bad I don't live in his riding. 

[Fish Assassin]

John Cummings is a joke. He's the Conservatives version of the NDP's Svend Robinson. If I recall Harper removed Cummings as the fisheries critic. Very unlikely he will be appointed Fisheries Minister.

[rerigger]

F A
you may not like the man [ Cummings]
but you must admit he is a one issue candidate
and the one issue is >>>>>>>>>>>> SALMON

a simple fisherman who got involved in the Reform party
because he wanted change
is he a good politician probably not
it takes years of training to learn to speak without saying anything.
and they teach that primarily in law school and political sciences ,
how can you expect a simple fisherperson to catch on ?.
Cummins has my vote and has as long as i live in his riding .
simply because he cares about his main issue SALMON
and does more than any politician to bring publicity to that issue .