BS: ? Raise the voting age to....

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Slag
Date: 05 Oct 10 - 06:33 PM

Well, I'm not quite on the floor yet but I AM laughing my head off! OOOooo! Grade AAA light amber. Hook me up LH and I'll see it your way!

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Bee-dubya-ell
Date: 05 Oct 10 - 10:14 AM

I suppose it could be argued that, at age 18, many people haven't developed the capacity for independent thought. They tend to either blindly ape the social and political attitudes of their parents or blindly rebel against them. But, then again, I know people in their 20s, 30s, 40s, and 50s about whom the same thing could be said.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Little Hawk
Date: 04 Oct 10 - 10:26 PM

Let the chimps run the country for a term!

The campaign slogan:   "This time...why not the worst?"

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 04 Oct 10 - 06:37 PM

But politics is already full of 'old women' ... :-P

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: gnu
Date: 04 Oct 10 - 06:33 PM

Okay... let`s up the ante... raise the ages per the original post and only allow women who have children to hold political office.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 04 Oct 10 - 06:07 PM

Country Womens Association

:-)

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Little Hawk
Date: 04 Oct 10 - 10:53 AM

CWA? No, I don't think so... Please elaborate.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 04 Oct 10 - 10:34 AM

... except one run by little old women - or don't you have the CWA there?

:-P

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Little Hawk
Date: 04 Oct 10 - 09:44 AM

Right on!!! There is nothing nastier than a society run by a bunch of old men...

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: GUEST,redhorse at work
Date: 04 Oct 10 - 08:41 AM

If you want to know what happens when you restrict voting to the over 50's, you need look no further than the Vatican..........

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 04 Oct 10 - 07:16 AM

I've always been inclined to favour the idea of using a kind of jury system, as in Flora G's suggestion, either to replace or augment elections,

(Interesting to see Slag's assumption that anything outside the USA is irrelevant - an example of the truth that the bigger the country the more parochial things seem to get...)

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: GUEST,Patsy
Date: 04 Oct 10 - 04:25 AM

Raise the age to 25 I would say. Even at 21 lifes issues haven't been experienced yet. At 18 I am sure that I wasn't serious about it, I was still at home paying housekeeping money to my parents, so even as far as running a household was concerned I didn't have much idea.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 06:13 PM

"Brazil has got one thing right.. they are required to vote by law. "

Australia got there first ....

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Little Hawk
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 06:12 PM

By the way, I believe gnu is a fellow Canadian, so this thread was started about Canadian voting anyway, not USA voting...not that it really matters.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 06:12 PM

"those with a mentality of a three year old and Weenie Dogs would be voting"

I thought the fact that they DO was one of the main problems in the US political system ... of course, some of them also stand for office .... and get elected ...

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Little Hawk
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 06:01 PM

Oh, I don't count down there, eh, Slag? ;-) Well, tough beans, bucko! You don't count for much up here either, but I'll be happy to hear you sound off about us any time you want to, because it's a free world...not just "a free country". A free world allows free speech. Yes, Freedom! William Wallace and General Brock both fought hard for that, and so will I. That's why Canada is called "The True North Strong and Free". Have some Canadian Maple Syrup and take a break, buster.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 05:44 PM

I'll just hop to the bottom with this: How Washington Women Won the Right to Vote.

The right to vote was hard fought for a lot of people. Too bad they don't consider it an obligation to both think and vote.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Slag
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 05:39 PM

LH, you old Fart, what do you know? Whiney Dogs and guitars! Listen to a member of the younger generation ( you are a half year older than I)! Before I looked in on this thread, I had the number 50 in mind. There you go gnu! And as Foolestroupe pointed out, the number 18 came up as the result of protests against the draft during the Viet Nam War. Reference McGuire's "Eve of Destruction" for one. FS gets a gold star for the day.

At first blush, GUEST's idea of some sort of test looks attractive, perhaps to some, but it is more than a slippery slope, it's a plunge into oblivion. Who makes the test? Who determines the requirements. Our Constitution specifies who the citizen is, what the age of majority is and that is the only necessary and sufficient requirement to be a voter. This as the electorate, provides a true and representative survey of citizens who care enough about their country to go out and vote their conscience. That's all, or it doesn't work in a free society.

Sorry LH you don't count down here. You really have nothing to say about our political structure! If Canada had a test and you had your way (lowering the age limit) why three year olds, those with a mentality of a three year old and Weenie Dogs would be voting! What next? They then, might even let YOU vote! Shudder! We should poll Chongo on this one.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: gnu
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 04:48 PM

BTW... looks like the fav in Brazil today is the first female leader.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: gnu
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 04:32 PM

Brazil has got one thing right.. they are required to vote by law.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 04:23 PM

Guest,FloraG must have seen the same recent article I noticed (but didn't make notes on) declaring that a careful analysis, including computer simulations, showed "conclusively" that most businesses would do better if persons to be promoted were selected at random.

A series of "studies" (published in a series by Scientific American ca. 1968?) back in ancient times when computer simulations were first practical, fairly conclusively showed that fewer people would be dissatisfied if each person was allowed one vote against a candidate of his/her choice, with the candidate receiving the fewest "black balls" being the one elected. Even better would be having voters each able to vote against half-plus-one of the candidates, if one could figure out how to disallow the "nobody" vote if there were only two candidates.

Of course, even the best method and rules on eligibility can't really triumph over ubiquitous stupidity and ignorance, which - to my observation - aren't really very unevenly distributed between age groups.

John

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: GUEST,FloraG
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 01:57 PM

Stop voting all together. Just ask anyone who wants to represent the country to put their name forward and be able to commit to 6 years. ( 2 to learn the job, 2 to work at it, 2 to take a leadership role). Then let a random computer pick 50 people each year to replace the 50 retiring ones. Much more representative.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Little Hawk
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 01:56 PM

There's no explaining such a phenomenon, McGrath! Horrifying. ;-) Maybe it's your British ale that is responsible.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 01:55 PM

It seems to me that most of my friend's adult children are several shades to the right of their parents when it comes to economic political issues.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: akenaton
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 12:18 PM

120.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 10:07 AM

... and turn them into Soylent Green?

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Paul Burke
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 05:40 AM

There's absolutely no evidence that people examine issues more closely as they get older, and experience only seems to confirm their prejudices, so lower the voting age to three, and stop it at thirty.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Little Hawk
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 04:44 AM

By the way, I'll be 62 this month. But I'm still young at heart.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Little Hawk
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 04:41 AM

The older demographic are the people who consistently vote in droves for the most conservative and reactionary politicians, they are the people who most fear and resist change, and they are the people who are most likely to adopt the position "I'm allright, Jack!", and therefore support the most powerful monied players in the political game.

Stephen Harper (of the Canadian Conservatives) draws his strongest support from the over-50s.

The town I live in is a "retirement town" with an aging population, and people here would elect a Conservative over any other party even if the damn Conservative party ran a dog or a monkey for public office!

Am I in favour of raising the voting age? Hell, no! I think we should lower it. I am in no whit impressed by the "knowledge" of people over fifty, but I am nervous about their strong and obvious tendency to blindly support the forces of reaction.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: GUEST
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 01:49 AM

It has nothing to do with age and everything to do with knowledge.Voters should be able to pass a citizenship test before being allowed to vote.All of them.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Sandy Mc Lean
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 12:58 AM

I'll bet a lot of over 50's voted for Harper, 'Nuff said!

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 03 Oct 10 - 12:09 AM

The voting age got lowered to 18 cause people complained that 18 was old enough to die for one's country, but not old enough to vote.

If you want to raise the voting age, I'll support you if the Military also cannot accept anyone under that age also.

Now 50 sounds about right, I'd say - that would slow the Military Dictatorship Expansionist Regime somewhat - so then all the Generals would have to be - what, at least over 80 ...

Hmm, then they could all get wheelchairs BEFORE they retire, instead of having to fight VA after retirement ...

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Joe Offer
Date: 02 Oct 10 - 05:37 PM

Well, they say that most of the Tea Party people are over 50. They say that in the 2008 election, the vast majority of voters under the age of 21, voted Democratic.
I think we should lower the minimum voting age....

-Joe-

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: gnu
Date: 02 Oct 10 - 05:27 PM

Wesley... "And I'm sure that before women and blacks were given the vote that there were may folks who thought they were doing the right thing by keeping them out of the voting booths."

Right. I guess I'll just leave for now. That is too much for my blood pressure pills to overcome.

gnightgnu

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Wesley S
Date: 02 Oct 10 - 05:20 PM

My previous thread on the same topic. On that day I was in 100% agreement with you gnu. Tomorrow may be different.


Should everyone vote?

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: maple_leaf_boy
Date: 02 Oct 10 - 05:16 PM

Do most people under 30 vote anyway?

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Wesley S
Date: 02 Oct 10 - 05:13 PM

Dumb is everywhere. Smart is too. And I'm sure that before women and blacks were given the vote that there were may folks who thought they were doing the right thing by keeping them out of the voting booths. How times change.

My sister once said that she couldn't vote for a particular candidate because she "didn't like his smile". She's better now.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: gnu
Date: 02 Oct 10 - 05:07 PM

I'll bet there are not near as many 18 year olds that know the issues as well as the 50 year olds.

Yes, they probably wouldn't come up with the same conclusions as you would because they don't have the life experience you do.

No, it's not a perfect solution BUT it is not all we have, as I have proferred.

No, you can't keep the dumb ones out BUT we could try... at least try.

No, we can't "single out" the dumb ones, but we can take rationable measures to TRY to mitigate the manipulation of the populace by inane goverment. Or, is that a false hope... is even the "over 50s" a wasteland of ignorance and apathy?

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Wesley S
Date: 02 Oct 10 - 04:52 PM

Actually I'll bet there are a lot of 18 year olds that DO know the issues well enough to vote. They may not come to the same conclusions I would but it's a big world out there. Until they come up with a written test to decide who knows the issues and who doesn't then we just have to pick an age and then go with it. That's not a perfect solution but it's all we have. You can't keep the dumb ones out. Even if we could decide who they are.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: gnu
Date: 02 Oct 10 - 04:44 PM

That is my point exactly. I don't think ANY 18 year old KNOWS the issues. Especially those which affect that 18 year old with LIFE and DEATH consequences.

Subject: RE: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: Wesley S
Date: 02 Oct 10 - 04:36 PM

OK - what brought this on?

I don't care about the age really as long as the voter takes the time to explore the issues and get informed.

Subject: BS: ? Raise the voting age to....
From: gnu
Date: 02 Oct 10 - 04:28 PM

... oh, I dunno, say 50. And, election to political office to, say, 50?