The conundrum of compulsory voting

[aeondaze]

I don't vote. Its a simple fact and tomorrow while most of the other Aussie plebians that are registered here will be linning up like begrudging but albeit compliant little serfs I'll be doing whatever the fuck I feel like, happy in the knowledge those psychotic misfits we call politicians don't have my consent to govern.

While this may not seem like a big deal in the US, here in Australia its complusory and most have been conditioned to view that sort of behaviour in almost the same light they would a serial sex offender. Reactions from others to my act of defiance run the full gambit from disdain through to disbelief and even anger. Some try to appeal to my rational side with a perverted sanctity that it just doesn't deserve and claim it is a precious right (which is a the states official doctrine and it thouroughly disgusts me to my core) Others become indignant and try to claim that it disqualifies my right to have an opinion on ANY subject (actually from a close family member). Stating this fact to another can reveal many things about that particular person, its like a trap of sorts, they are compulsively driven to spew something they think is either inteligebly clever, conedscending, judgemental and even on the odd ocasion empathetic; if only they had the intestinal fortitude to escape the group think and actually do it themselves.

The funny thing is rarely does anything ever happen. They tried enforcing it in Victoria a few years back by issuing notices to those not enrolled threatening fines for not enrolling of which about 45% didn't respond, these were issued second letters threatening legal action if they didn't pay the fine, of which about 30% didn't pay the fine which left like about ten people. One guy actually tried to take it to the supreme court but it was thrown out and he was ordered to pay the fine. His argument was that the constitution expresses voting as a natural right, and that as such this would also entail the right not to vote, however the court upheld the electoral comisions interpetation that it was a 'civic duty'.

But to me the irorny is that I live in a country were I can be fined for not voting for a bunch of people who basicaly are legally exempt for making fraudulent promises to the public at large. The policticans act with impunity, promising anything they like and are under no obligation to deliver on those promises at all, and this phenomena is not restricted to my country, this is across all so called 'western democracies'. The insult in Australia is I get fined for calling them out on their fraudulent actions and refusing to take part in their macabre circus.

This has now become the time of the electoral cycle that I love because I get to rub it in peoples faces (I have to say I actually feel a little schadenfreude) and they hate it. Recently someone enquired as to why I don't vote and I simply explained "from my experience spectators at a circus aren't supposed to participate"

So heres to to tomorrow my fellow ausie serfs, \uu\

[govcheetos]

'civic duty'.



Ha!

Well put aeondaze. Are these your words or is it taken from somewhere else?

Either way, an excellent post.

[Twisted Titan]

The reason you are forced to vote is that you validate the abuse of your oppressors.

They know it.


And since they just about banned every form of firearm ,they can loudly spew this happy horseshit with little fear of reprisals.


This is the type of governence a unarmed populace breeds

[iOWNme]

The 'Government' uses FORCE to compel you to do something that you do not even have the Right to do: Delegate a Right you do not have as an individual to another in order to CONTROL your neighbor. And that is what ALL VOTING is.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiAThxUM_Mg

[Glass]

the only thing compulsory about voting is the attendence at a voting place on the day. It is still a secret ballot. You are expected to submit some paper in the boxes. You can be creative or not. It costs $20 or $50 not to vote. Dont remember which. You can easily make that $400+. Pretty sure the fines can be beaten. people have but I am unsure how.

They like postal votes for obvious reasons. Electronic will change things. I know people not on the rolls. Never were.

[Serpo]

I wont be voting for any party(have to enroll to vote and get fined) as they all put poison in the water and food ,tax people until death,belong to secret societies ,lie ,steal through inflation.

No way should any sensible person vote for something totally immoral and to be fined for not doing this is another reason not to vote.

I dispose this corrupt system so much that to actually cast a vote for it is......insanity.

[aeondaze]

the only thing compulsory about voting is the attendence at a voting place on the day. It is still a secret ballot. You are expected to submit some paper in the boxes. You can be creative or not. It costs $20 or $50 not to vote. Dont remember which. You can easily make that $400+. Pretty sure the fines can be beaten. people have but I am unsure how.

They like postal votes for obvious reasons. Electronic will change things. I know people not on the rolls. Never were.

and you know this from personal experience, right? No, I didn't think so. So far my defiance has cost me $0, that right nothing. I'm not saying I can't be fined, but I am saying so far I haven't.

So it is safe to say you'll be turning up at the polling booth Glass, even if you don't cast a vote? This speaks volumes to me about your compliant nature and unwillingness to take a risk and stand up to the thugs, even when the risk is non life threatening and insignificant, sorry.

[aeondaze]

I wont be voting for any party(have to enroll to vote and get fined) as they all put poison in the water and food ,tax people until death,belong to secret societies ,lie ,steal through inflation.

No way should any sensible person vote for something totally immoral and to be fined for not doing this is another reason not to vote.

I dispose this corrupt system so much that to actually cast a vote for it is......insanity.

Your not voting because you aren't an Australian citizen are you?

[Glass]

unfortunatelty the last time it cost me $400 and I didn't have the resources or knowledge to beat it. I am still unsure what the path is, so if you can enlighten me. I too would not vote.

[Serpo]

Your not voting because you aren't an Australian citizen are you?

I am an OZ citizen

Never enrolled

[aeondaze]

unfortunatelty the last time it cost me $400 and I didn't have the resources or knowledge to beat it. I am still unsure what the path is, so if you can enlighten me. I too would not vote.

Ouch. Why didn't you just serve up an excuse, there are plenty of them.

What I find interesting is that someone like me can abstain from voting time and time again and not be fined yet someone who diligently votes election after election then doesn't gets whacked. Either they are trying to keep in-line those that were previously in-line, or it goes a little deeper into the technicalities between enrolling, being registered and actually voting.

I had a friend who worked for the electoral comission and she was my biggest supporter, she basically explained to me that once they move you off the electoral roll, you are under no real obligation to put yourself back on it. They have taken you off (for whatever reason) and as long as you don't register a new address, they won't prosecute you for not voting.

Enrolling is a different matter, if you have NEVER enrolled they will at some point try to force you to enroll by issueing an infringement notice and threaten to fine you if you don't enroll. Anyhow my frined explained to me that as long as I ignore their letters (which they have stopped sending) I am basically free not to vote, and this has been my experience for nearly twenty years now.

[Glass]

well I'm pleased for you. I never enrolled and I had the experience you state of receiving a letter. I do not know what triggered it but it was some thing like getting power connected. Problem is this goes to fines enforcement which then goes to transport confiscation. If you pay the fine it's no conviction but if you contest then it is. so my strawmans record shows this. The fine is pretty small but it's not the point. I shouldn't be forced to hire a re-presentative. I can handle my own affairs.

I know other people who are not on the rolls also but I see no means to be removed other than at the comissioners discretion. I tried that. I've posted quite a bit on here about my adventures with govt. Still on going after 2.5 years. You take some ground, you lose some ground and you fight back. It's wearisome though. I can see the appeal of being a hermit...

[aeondaze]

Ha!

Well put aeondaze. Are these your words or is it taken from somewhere else?

Either way, an excellent post.

Yeah, I penned this one. Sat up last night ruminating on my thoughts and decided to post 'em.

Thanks by the way ;)

[Jewboo]

I don't vote. Its a simple fact and tomorrow while most of the other Aussie plebians that are registered here will be lining up like begrudging but albeit compliant little serfs I'll be doing whatever the fuck I feel like, happy in the knowledge those psychotic misfits we call politicians don't have my consent to govern.



http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/uploads/image/8/7763.jpg http://munfitnessblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/aussies-fattes-nation-in-world.jpg http://cdn.theatlantic.com/static/mt/assets/the_daily_dish/images/2008/05/20/obesemattcardygetty.jpg

https://observationblogger.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/fat.jpg


Don't vote for Trump









:rolleyes: Ok Aeondaze...thanks for your advice

[mick silver]

http://www.dailystormer.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/31095510a1145f164e.jpg

[PatColo]

Compulsory voting is a travesty. And when there's no one you can vote "for" in good conscience? Voting infers that you're a willing participant in "the process" and you'll abide by the outcome... :(

Reminds me of the bumper sticker, "Don't blame me, I didn't vote!"

I think it was Oz that I heard had a clever system where you could make a primary & secondary vote... so your primary would be for that maverick long shot non-mainstream candidate, otherwise known in the US as throwing your vote away-- but in Oz, you'd make your 2nd choice a backup for if/when your maverick candidate didn't win. Is that the case in Oz?

Separately, I find it hard to believe Oz'ers are the world's fattest! I understood 'murkans held that honor! Is it true!? Have the processed food companies been spiking your food with extra msg?

[Glass]

that is why it is compulsory. To make you included.

We have a system of 2 houses, Legislature and Senate. In Queensland they have 1 house, but they are basically lawless anyway.

Vote allocation is called preferential. You can mark 1 box for the political party you want. So Red Blue or Green are the big 3. Then there are other smaller parties that are putting up representatives in multiple districts/seats. Then there are independents who are a single person politicking in one seat only. If you vote for them they usually have no chance of an outright victory in that seat (getting a majority of ticked boxes) So they trade their votes to another party. They choose which party they prefer and their votes go to that party.

So you can cast a vote for one party/representative who is not one of the Big 3 and your vote will go to one of the Big 3 anyway because the person you actually voted for gives the votes they receive to one of the Big 3.

Thats a simple description. It is a bit more complicated in that a party or candidate can have preferences based on percentage. So the person you vote for might pass their votes to another low level person party, who doesn't get anywhere outright either and then they take their votes and the ones they got given by person X and hand those on to their preferred bigger representative and so on. But then it might be split... so that of all those votes some might go to the Red team and some other percentage might go to the Blue team. They might not all go to the Red team.

And finally you can set your own preferences by putting a number in every box of every person from 1 to what ever number people are standing. So 1 to the blue team and give the red team the last number. For the Senate, I think it's the senate, there can be more than 50 people standing. So you have to number everyone 1 to 50 in order of preference. The voting sheet can be 1 meter long.

If you miss a box, your vote is invalid and is automatically cast according to the overall outcome. If at the end of the count Red got 46% of the vote and Blue got 30%, 46% of invalid votes would go to Red. Same with Donkey votes, which are basically incorrectly completed or blank votes. They used to discard these from memory but now they divide them up according to the preferences. So even if you go to get your name checked off the rolls, and don't cast a vote, you still vote.

[palani]

I find that more important than who gets into office is the mechanism by which I am made whole when they damage me in the performance of that office. This question may be asked and settled by administrative procedure or offer and acceptance. Witnesses come in handy.

[boogietillyapuke]

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