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Voting is Depressing

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  • Voting is Depressing

    Yesterday, there were 5 local races on my ballet plus 3 state wide ballot initiatives.

    2 races were one candidate only.

    1 race was a foregone conclusion. (The winner got 60% of the vote.)

    Only 2 races had any part where the voters vote mattered.

    If it wasn't for the state ballot initiatives, I'm not sure I would have voted. Voting is sure depressing and practically meaningless when you live in a one party area.
    "For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings." Hosea 6:6

    "Theology can be an intellectual entertainment." Metropolitan Anthony Bloom

  • #2
    Voting really is pointless as the chances of any one vote ever tipping a race is nearly zero. I do it because it's fun but that's it.
    "I am not angered that the Moral Majority boys campaign against abortion. I am angry when the same men who say, "Save OUR children" bellow "Build more and bigger bombers." That's right! Blast the children in other nations into eternity, or limbless misery as they lay crippled from "OUR" bombers! This does not jell." - Leonard Ravenhill

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    • #3
      Originally posted by KingsGambit View Post
      Voting really is pointless as the chances of any one vote ever tipping a race is nearly zero. I do it because it's fun but that's it.
      Alright, I'll say it: dude, you need a hobby. Have you ever considered watching professional sumo?

      I DENOUNCE DONALD J. TRUMP AND ALL HIS IMMORAL ACTS.

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      • #4
        Originally posted by Zymologist View Post
        Alright, I'll say it: dude, you need a hobby. Have you ever considered watching professional sumo?

        ... Or Lucha Libre.

        ETA: I live in a similar situation. The way Canadian Federal Elections work... the election has already been decided by the time I vote. It all depends who's pissed off Eastern Canada the LEAST. Also, I really don't have a Libertarian Candidate where I live, so I'd just be going to the Polls to spoil my ballot or have it go on record I refuse to vote for any of the boneheads they've got running.
        Last edited by Chaotic Void; 11-08-2017, 06:36 PM.
        Have You Touched Grass Today? If Not, Please Do.

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        • #5
          Originally posted by KingsGambit View Post
          Voting really is pointless as the chances of any one vote ever tipping a race is nearly zero. I do it because it's fun but that's it.
          Years ago I had a book that contained a relatively long list of elections, with a couple being important, that were decided by just one vote.

          I'm always still in trouble again

          "You're by far the worst poster on TWeb" and "TWeb's biggest liar" --starlight (the guy who says Stalin was a right-winger)
          "Overall I would rate the withdrawal from Afghanistan as by far the best thing Biden's done" --Starlight
          "Of course, human life begins at fertilization that’s not the argument." --Tassman

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          • #6
            Originally posted by KingsGambit View Post
            Voting really is pointless as the chances of any one vote ever tipping a race is nearly zero. I do it because it's fun but that's it.
            I get your point. On the other hand, it would be nice to get the next morning and not already know the results before I turn on the local news.
            "For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings." Hosea 6:6

            "Theology can be an intellectual entertainment." Metropolitan Anthony Bloom

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            • #7
              Originally posted by rogue06 View Post
              Years ago I had a book that contained a relatively long list of elections, with a couple being important, that were decided by just one vote.
              I remember seeing a debunking of a similar list somewhere.
              "I am not angered that the Moral Majority boys campaign against abortion. I am angry when the same men who say, "Save OUR children" bellow "Build more and bigger bombers." That's right! Blast the children in other nations into eternity, or limbless misery as they lay crippled from "OUR" bombers! This does not jell." - Leonard Ravenhill

              Comment


              • #8
                Originally posted by KingsGambit View Post
                I remember seeing a debunking of a similar list somewhere.
                I'll bet you pee in the punch bowl when you go to a party, don't you?

                I'm always still in trouble again

                "You're by far the worst poster on TWeb" and "TWeb's biggest liar" --starlight (the guy who says Stalin was a right-winger)
                "Overall I would rate the withdrawal from Afghanistan as by far the best thing Biden's done" --Starlight
                "Of course, human life begins at fertilization that’s not the argument." --Tassman

                Comment


                • #9
                  There was an entire chapter in Freakonomics basically arguing the same thing I've said in this thread. The only online write-up that they did was in the NY Times and is paywalled.
                  "I am not angered that the Moral Majority boys campaign against abortion. I am angry when the same men who say, "Save OUR children" bellow "Build more and bigger bombers." That's right! Blast the children in other nations into eternity, or limbless misery as they lay crippled from "OUR" bombers! This does not jell." - Leonard Ravenhill

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    It's only depressing if your side loses, which seems to happen about 50% of the time.
                    Some may call me foolish, and some may call me odd
                    But I'd rather be a fool in the eyes of man
                    Than a fool in the eyes of God


                    From "Fools Gold" by Petra

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                    • #11
                      Voting is a duty, first and foremost.

                      All votes count - and it was never about winning by 'just one vote' - it's about people having a say in who represents them. The idea is for a bunch of people to say the same thing or you end up with no representation at all - and ten thousand candidates.
                      "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose." - Jim Elliot

                      "Forgiveness is the way of love." Gary Chapman

                      My Personal Blog

                      My Novella blog (Current Novella Begins on 7/25/14)

                      Quill Sword

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                      • #12
                        There’s an argument in the UK for proportional representation, which basically means that everyone’s vote matters, and what you’re left with is a coalition government.

                        This means that all parties retain seats in government proportionate to their votes in the election (an oversimplification but the point remains).

                        Currently, it’s first past the post. Which means that like a republican in a democrat state, my vote doesn’t matter, unless everyone changes their mind & votes with me.

                        In the UK, this could technically be inacted, however it’s unlikely given that the two main parties gain a lot from the current system.

                        I’m assuming it’s more complicated where you boys & girls are.

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                        • #13
                          Originally posted by EvoUK View Post
                          There’s an argument in the UK for proportional representation, which basically means that everyone’s vote matters, and what you’re left with is a coalition government.

                          This means that all parties retain seats in government proportionate to their votes in the election (an oversimplification but the point remains).

                          Currently, it’s first past the post. Which means that like a republican in a democrat state, my vote doesn’t matter, unless everyone changes their mind & votes with me.

                          In the UK, this could technically be inacted, however it’s unlikely given that the two main parties gain a lot from the current system.

                          I’m assuming it’s more complicated where you boys & girls are.
                          It would require a constitutional change - depending on which level of government you are talking about.

                          I think it's a mistake to look at voting as if it were a simple equation with positives and negatives cancelling each other out. It's actually a measure - more like volume - and the aggregate numbers DO matter.
                          "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose." - Jim Elliot

                          "Forgiveness is the way of love." Gary Chapman

                          My Personal Blog

                          My Novella blog (Current Novella Begins on 7/25/14)

                          Quill Sword

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                          • #14
                            True- our last actual representative vote was funnily enough for Brexit. There everyone’s vote counted, opposed to general elections where it doesn’t quite so much- at least not in the same obvious way. One of the shocks I think was due to the fact that we’re not used to all of our votes counting.

                            I imagine it’s sort of similar there- if you’re in a state which is heavily blue or red, you vote because it’s your civic duty- but are resigned to the fact that unless everyone else’s changes their mind, your state will still be pure blue/red- or at least where it counts.

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                            • #15
                              Pretty much - but the map does change over time. Much of the red territory now was once solidly blue and vice versa.
                              "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose." - Jim Elliot

                              "Forgiveness is the way of love." Gary Chapman

                              My Personal Blog

                              My Novella blog (Current Novella Begins on 7/25/14)

                              Quill Sword

                              Comment

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