My inital reaction to this is, "goddamn Communist!" but, on further reflection, he has a point. Voting - taking the time to get informed, schlepp to the polls, stand in line (which there would be if it were mandatory), and wade through the ballot - has an opportunity cost, not a big one, but it is there. So it costs you something to vote, but nothing to stay home. If failure to vote were 1) leiniently enforced, 2) an infraction on the order of a parking ticket, rather than a crime, and 3) carried a minor fine, that would ilustrate to people that there is a cost to not voting. Yes, I know there is a cost to not voting - at the moment his name is Bush - but it takes a ton of work to hammer that into some folks, and usually, only age ever does bring people around.
So failure to vote is $10 or $20 bucks. I can live with that, waived if more than half the election in each category (federal, state, local) are uncontested. If you want to make the point that all the choices suck, go write in "None of the above" or "You all suck".
It's worth thinking about anyway.
(Edited to take the sting out of that first sentance.)
SF: When I say Goddam Communist, I am indulging in hyperbole. Should have stuck a
![Big Grin](/tfp/images/smilies/biggrin.gif)
after it.