Choosing Not to Vote

American Thinker.com ^ | March 10, 2020 | Robert Dimoro

[Kaslin]

Despite the best efforts of political operatives, the majority of the electorate fails to vote in the majority of elections at all levels of government. There are logistical hurdles that exacerbate this problem, such as the bewildering fact that election day isn’t a national holiday and that young adults aren’t taught how to vote or how to register to vote by their schools or parents. However, the main cause of the problem is about the attitudes of individuals themselves toward voting.

One individual who declines to exercise his right to vote is Quillette writer Coleman Hughes, who, in a blog post, made the case for why his individual vote doesn’t matter. He takes the principle to its logical extreme and argues that, even in races deemed “close,” elections are never decided by a single vote and, therefore, doesn’t see the value in his casting a ballot.

In fact, Hughes argues that his career as a political writer influences more people than his single vote ever could. This may be true, but he wrongly conflates the importance of his going to vote with the amount of influence that his individual vote carries. The reason for this will be elucidated soon.

Hughes does, however, acknowledge that voting is “collectively essential” even though “individually pointless,” which indicates that he does value the practice of voting as a collective enterprise. However, this reasoning is paradoxical -- it’s precisely because voting is collectively essential that it’s also individually essential, as the collective is made up of individuals rather than being an amorphous entity.

[real saxophonist]

If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice.

[ifinnegan]

“the bewildering fact that election day isn’t a national holiday and that young adults aren’t taught how to vote or how to register to vote by their schools or parents.”

Writer sounds like a liberal.

[samadams2000]

I always support a persons decision to vote or not vote on Dec 4rth.

[Buckeye McFrog]

The Democrats are working on making it mandatory to vote.
Bank on it. If that happens they’ll never lose another election again. Right now we only win because most of the gibmedat lemmings won’t get off the couch.

[MrEdd]

Trump got a lot of people who weren’t voting to vote.
Enough of them to replace the Neocons (a large number of whom had defected to Hillary as it turned out) and overwhelm the Democrat vote harvesting machine.

I said Trump accomplished that. Actually, I suspect that the violent attack on the voters at Trump’s Chicago rally had quite a lot to do with it.

I suspect that what we have seen these last three years will cause a continuation of that effect.

[alternatives?]

I bet Hughes influences a lot fewer people than he thinks he does.

[real saxophonist]

I’m quite sure of that.

[Fiji Hill]

In California, there’s a movement to institute compulsory voting, which will force voters to participate in the one-party elections that we already have. Soviet Union stuff.

[trebb]

Hmmmm - I remember all the leftists who took offense at the “Support our Troops” stickers because we had no right to tell them what to do...I say we start putting a lot of “Vote” signs out to piss them off even more...
Maybe some extra wording like “Vote or I’ll tell the cops on you”

[wbarmy]

voting is “collectively essential” even though “individually pointless,”

I learned this stuff in the U.S.Army, and I am sure the other services, in their own unique way, teach it to their officers and recruits.

If a rifle line, or pike line, stands against a charge, the army or battle will collectively do well. If the line breaks and people start running away, your individual chances to survive might go up, but the unit as a whole is lost and so is the battle.

This writer might feel his individual vote is useless, but if the whole electorate feels that way, the battle is lost.
(Just ask the conservative Virginians how that last vote went.)

[Kaslin]

I have been voting since 1980, Ronald Reagan was the first presidential nominee I voted for in the general election. I did not vote for him in the primary, but I did when he ran for reelection. I take voting very serious, and have never missed an election.

My husband doesn't vote anymore and it's just as well, because I had to tell him who to vote for and that is not good. He used to drink a lot. I myself never did. I can not drink much liquid, whether it's alcoholic or not. By the time a drank one bottle beer he drank five,

[elpadre]

In years gone by, non-voters would often say that the two parties believed the same, had identical platforms, etc., and they were somewhat right.

But today, the differences between the two parties are stark. The Republicans are more conservative than ever and the Democrats are so far left they should re-name their party to the socialist party.

[campaignPete R-CT]

In these parts, Unitarians & Congregationalists vote heavily. Primaries, local & mid-term.

Catholics & Evangelicals ... not so much. Presidential only.

Some say they are “avoiding the near occasion of sin”. Don’t want to vote for the wrong person.

3rd-grade theology.

[catnipman]

it’s probably a blessing that so many don’t vote, because the great bulk of them are so oblivious of what’s going on that they’re totally clueless of the issues ... ignorant “voters” are how socialist dictators are always initially voted in ... ranging from Weimar Germany to Venezuela ...

[chajin]

If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice.

You are choosing to let everyone else pick your leaders for you. You are also choosing to call the sacrifices of Americans from 1775 to 2020 to ensure your right to vote as having no value whatsoever.

[Kaslin]

It will be if the dems don’t vote.

[Kaslin]

I don’t even know what Quilette is.

[jackibutterfly]

"The author, DIM oro, is on the left."

Which left? Our left or their left?