hensh65 Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 I believe people should have to attend a free politics/economy class or two which universities would be forced to put on for free (well, funded by the government) before people were allowed to vote. Most people have no idea how politics or the economy works, why should they have a say in how it's governed? If they want to have a say then they can attend a class a learn what their vote actually means and can make an informed decision rather than the usual "I'm rich, I should vote Tories" or "I'm public sector, I must vote Lab" etc. Perhaps then the politicians would actually have to make legitimate policies rather than the current saying what the public wants to hear crap. I don't agree, Take John Major who left school with 3 O levels and none of them were maths. He was trusted with the budget and by your opinion he shouldn't have a vote never mind run the country. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetSet Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 Interesting to see that Miliband completely ruled that out last night. A brave move, as now he's 100% reliant on getting more seats than the Tories and moving in with Clegg. Hmm, a clever or not so clever tactical move, depending on your point of view. He won't be able to form a government but together with the SNP will vote down the Queens speech thus forcing another election. He's then hoping that labour voters in Scotland will return and that he can get enough seats back from them to win the subsequent election. A risky strategy, could backfire badly, the stakes are high. Pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HaydnH Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 Take John Major who left school with 3 O levels and none of them were maths. He was trusted with the budget and by your opinion he shouldn't have a vote never mind run the country. He later got 3 more o'levels including Maths and took a correspondence course in banking going on to be an executive for Standard Chartered Bank... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hensh65 Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 (edited) Take John Major who left school with 3 O levels and none of them were maths. He was trusted with the budget and by your opinion he shouldn't have a vote never mind run the country. He later got 3 more o'levels including Maths and took a correspondence course in banking going on to be an executive for Standard Chartered Bank... So he LATER got a basic exam in Maths and did a correspondence course before getting a job as a runner at Standard Chartered Bank and working his way up through the ranks to become an Executive. You see this as the qualifications needed to run a country? Perhaps this explains why he presided over Black Wednesday when the UK LOST over 300 million pounds in one afternoon ! I think he could have done with a longer correspondence course don't you ? Just checked it was £3.3 billion they lost. Edited May 1, 2015 by hensh65 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted May 1, 2015 Author Share Posted May 1, 2015 And the economy is now stronger than it ever was before Black Wednesday. These crashes seem horrendous at the time, but ultimately they mean very little a few years later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
choptop Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 Just seen this thread. All you people who are not voting need to remember that you relinquish the right to have a point of view regarding the General Election, or anything else that goes on in this country. If it was me I would make it law that you must vote. OK. I am off my soap box now 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hensh65 Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 And the economy is now stronger than it ever was before Black Wednesday. These crashes seem horrendous at the time, but ultimately they mean very little a few years later. I am sure £3.3 billion would come in handy, my point being, you cant stop people voting due to the qualifications they have when the people in power hardly fill you with confidence. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davedutch Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 Choptop, I agree, it should be compulsory to vote, but ONLY if a "none of the above" option is included, that would be a huge wake up to politicians if none of the above got the most votes as it would clearly show the level of disaffection / apathy in the country. as for who should run the Country, I personally feel we need a few more years of continuity so conlib but a change to the voting system before the next election to better reflect the majority. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted May 1, 2015 Author Share Posted May 1, 2015 None of the above should never be an option, IMHO. If you don't like what's there, then get out and put yourself forward and make the difference. It's too easy to say they're all the same but they're really not. There's a lot of politicians that I wouldn't trust, but there's plenty of decent ones too. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted May 1, 2015 Author Share Posted May 1, 2015 but a change to the voting system before the next election to better reflect the majority. We had that referendum already, and nobody wanted PR. We're not the Scots y'know, just voting until we get the answer we want Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davedutch Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 Ekona, none of the above simply provides a vehicle for people to show the politicians that they are not representing the majority view and would, hopefully, lead to changes in political approach. Regarding pr I am not sure "we" understood the issue, also with compulsory voting I believe pr would be more reflective. Also I don't recall it being described as a once in a lifetime vote like the Scottish independence vote. one good thing that came from the Scottish vote is their increased political awareness, we need to spread that throughout the UK! I don't care who you vote for but you should vote (imo) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted May 1, 2015 Author Share Posted May 1, 2015 NOTA (is that even an abbreviation?) is just a cop out. Given that the political spectrum is wider than ever with UKIP and the SNP making very good gains, I cannot see how someone cannot find a party that falls with their values. You may not agree with every single policy, but you probably agree with enough to give them your vote. I would hope that both the PR and the Scot vote are once in a lifetime referendums, as otherwise it just makes a mockery of it. If people didn't understand the difference between PR and FPTP, then that's just one of those things. I don't think it wasn't understood, more that the vocal minority managed to get a referendum on something that actually very few people gave a toss about changing. Absolutely with you on compulsory voting, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davedutch Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 How do you address the issue of wasted votes because party "x" is a shoe in ? To be compulsory surely people must believe their vote counts in some way even if just to let the winner know they haven't necessarily got a real majority and hopefully make them pull their socks up. btw, I would never waste my vote with nota and I agree it's a cop out, but imagine the uproar if 51%+ voted nota, the winning party wouldn't have a valid mandate! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted May 1, 2015 Author Share Posted May 1, 2015 Half the trouble is that people don't vote for who they want to win, they vote tactically. That's why the smaller parties never really have a chance, unless they get lucky with a charismatic leader on a TV show like Cleggy last year. One of my mates is a Lib or Green supporter according to VFP, but he's going to vote Labour just to try and keep the Tories out. That's a wasted vote for me, as he's not actually voting for his party of choice. That's why they never get in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davedutch Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 I agree with you on tactical voting, hopefully, another coalition or a minority winner will go some way to showing the smaller parties can have clout if they are given a chance to fairly represent their supporters. I believe coalitions are here to stay and this will give increasing power to the smaller parties, even if on a vote by vote basis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coldel Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 Just seen this thread. All you people who are not voting need to remember that you relinquish the right to have a point of view regarding the General Election, or anything else that goes on in this country. If it was me I would make it law that you must vote. OK. I am off my soap box now Why should people not have a view? If you dont attend a football match does that mean you cannot comment on the game? I have heard this a few times, and its just wrong, why can someone not have a view just because they didnt vote? Plenty of people give a view on my cars I buy but none of them have actually owned one? I just find this idea that you 'gotta be in it to have a view' just a bit odd. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AliveBoy Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 Just seen this thread. All you people who are not voting need to remember that you relinquish the right to have a point of view regarding the General Election, or anything else that goes on in this country. If it was me I would make it law that you must vote. OK. I am off my soap box now Why should people not have a view? If you dont attend a football match does that mean you cannot comment on the game? I have heard this a few times, and its just wrong, why can someone not have a view just because they didnt vote? Plenty of people give a view on my cars I buy but none of them have actually owned one? I just find this idea that you 'gotta be in it to have a view' just a bit odd. It SHOULD mean that if you (not you personally, proverbial "you") don't play in the team you shouldn't be able to refer to the team you support as "we". Never understood why football fans do that anyway I digress Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gangzoom Posted May 2, 2015 Share Posted May 2, 2015 (edited) I don't really care who wins...But if UKIP get any significant number of seats me and the wife will be seriously consider giving up UK citizenship and moving back to SE Asia, most likely Singapore. I've always felt an underlying degree of racism in most UK cities (which is 'normal'/ to be expected), but the popularity of UKIP just confirmed my fears. Having UKIP win any large number of seats is a clear message to the world that the UK doesn't want foreigners, and if your not white, and anglo saxon than you should be treated as a second class citizen. I for one am not going to let my family hang around in a country shifting to the far right....History has shown that a strong nationalist movement is often the pre-requisite to some rather horrible things I know that's probably what UKIP voters wants any way, that way we immigrants can vacate our jobs for hardworking 'British' people....Good luck finding 'British' people who want to work 78hrs shifts in the NHS!! Edited May 2, 2015 by gangzoom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sipar69 Posted May 2, 2015 Share Posted May 2, 2015 I'd be very surprised if they get more than a few seats. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted May 2, 2015 Author Share Posted May 2, 2015 UKIP aren't against foreigners. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jetpilot Posted May 2, 2015 Share Posted May 2, 2015 Just seen this thread. All you people who areting need to remember that you relinquish the right to have a point of view regarding the General Election, or anything else that goes on in this country. If it was me I would make it law that you must vote. OK. I am off my soap box now Why should people not have a view? If you dont attend a football match does that mean you cannot comment on the game? I have heard this a few times, andwhy can someone not have a view just because they didnt vote? Plenty of people give a view on my cars I buy but none of them have actually owned one? I just find this idea that you 'gotta be in it to have a view' just a bit odd. Of course you can have a view, but if you choose not to vote, its redundant and immaterial, certainly in my opinion. A better analogy would be, you decide what your next cars budget is, but let the fourm decide what to buy for you. No one would then be interested in what you thought as you relinquished your freedom to choose. UKIP aren't against foreigners. If you believe the media they are I will echo your thoughts elsewhere, If a mature intelligent individual cant side to one particular parties policies on the whole, i believe that to be just plain obstinant and martyrism. There is a party out there that will suit everyone, mostly, try one of the online tests and go with whomever they place your vote with after some honest answers to key questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glrnet Posted May 2, 2015 Share Posted May 2, 2015 Just seen this thread. All you people who areting need to remember that you relinquish the right to have a point of view regarding the General Election, or anything else that goes on in this country. If it was me I would make it law that you must vote. OK. I am off my soap box now Why should people not have a view? If you dont attend a football match does that mean you cannot comment on the game? I have heard this a few times, andwhy can someone not have a view just because they didnt vote? Plenty of people give a view on my cars I buy but none of them have actually owned one? I just find this idea that you 'gotta be in it to have a view' just a bit odd. Of course you can have a view, but if you choose not to vote, its redundant and immaterial, certainly in my opinion. A better analogy would be, you decide what your next cars budget is, but let the fourm decide what to buy for you. No one would then be interested in what you thought as you relinquished your freedom to choose. UKIP aren't against foreigners. If you believe the media they are I will echo your thoughts elsewhere, If a mature intelligent individual cant side to one particular parties policies on the whole, i believe that to be just plain obstinant and martyrism. There is a party out there that will suit everyone, mostly, try one of the online tests and go with whomever they place your vote with after some honest answers to key questions. I did that and it certainly makes you think a bit more than perhaps you might have done, I was pleased to note that I won't be changing my voting intention. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jetpilot Posted May 2, 2015 Share Posted May 2, 2015 I was split between my normal vote and ukip, I was concerned with my regular party loosing votes though so thought maybe i should be voting tactically I answered honestly and it echoed where my vote should go, ukip, so will stay with that. Interesting to note though that my usual vote wasnt far behind in % though, I guess the two things that tip it over the scales are immigration and the eu. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AliveBoy Posted May 2, 2015 Share Posted May 2, 2015 I don't really care who wins...But if UKIP get any significant number of seats me and the wife will be seriously consider giving up UK citizenship and moving back to SE Asia, most likely Singapore. I've always felt an underlying degree of racism in most UK cities (which is 'normal'/ to be expected), but the popularity of UKIP just confirmed my fears. Having UKIP win any large number of seats is a clear message to the world that the UK doesn't want foreigners, and if your not white, and anglo saxon than you should be treated as a second class citizen. I for one am not going to let my family hang around in a country shifting to the far right....History has shown that a strong nationalist movement is often the pre-requisite to some rather horrible things I know that's probably what UKIP voters wants any way, that way we immigrants can vacate our jobs for hardworking 'British' people....Good luck finding 'British' people who want to work 78hrs shifts in the NHS!! Do you read the daily mail by any chance? I'm not voting ukip, but what you've written is completely incorrect. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bytespc Posted May 2, 2015 Share Posted May 2, 2015 Just seen this thread. All you people who areting need to remember that you relinquish the right to have a point of view regarding the General Election, or anything else that goes on in this country. If it was me I would make it law that you must vote. OK. I am off my soap box now Why should people not have a view? If you dont attend a football match does that mean you cannot comment on the game? I have heard this a few times, andwhy can someone not have a view just because they didnt vote? Plenty of people give a view on my cars I buy but none of them have actually owned one? I just find this idea that you 'gotta be in it to have a view' just a bit odd. Of course you can have a view, but if you choose not to vote, its redundant and immaterial, certainly in my opinion. A better analogy would be, you decide what your next cars budget is, but let the fourm decide what to buy for you. No one would then be interested in what you thought as you relinquished your freedom to choose. UKIP aren't against foreigners. If you believe the media they are I will echo your thoughts elsewhere, If a mature intelligent individual cant side to one particular parties policies on the whole, i believe that to be just plain obstinant and martyrism. There is a party out there that will suit everyone, mostly, try one of the online tests and go with whomever they place your vote with after some honest answers to key questions. And there in is the rub....the mainstream parties are running scared , the vitriol against the party and anyone who suports them is in some instances reminiscent of the tactics used by Dictatorships against dissenters of the established regime and yes I acknowledge the irony. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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