World reaction to long queues of voters in US • Hacker News Board

Re: World reaction to long queues of voters in US

#71

Post by sudeepj » Wed, Oct 14, 2020, 3:30 PM UTC

bmax20 wrote: post #60

sudeepj wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

With all her flaws, India's elections and its election commission does a stellar job. Just look at the stats for 2019 elections [1] (copying few of them): 1.035 million: The total number of polling booths across India. 2: The maximum distance in kilometres from any given voter’s house to he nearest polling booth 3.96 million: Number of electronic voting machines (EVMs) in use this election 1.7 million: Paper trail or…

EVMs have always had vulnerabilities and should not be trusted. They are forbidden in Germany. https://indiaevm.org/

The comment was not about the EVM but the sheer personel & logistics deployed to make voting as convenient as possible. Remember India is not a rich country like US, so think in that context as well.

Re: World reaction to long queues of voters in US

#72

Post by jimbob45 » Wed, Oct 14, 2020, 3:30 PM UTC

AdmiralAsshat wrote: post #5

The people behind this would tell you it's a "feature": by making it incredibly undesirable for people in densely-populated areas to vote (which almost universally lean Democratic), you ensure that only the "right" people are able to vote.

It is a feature but not how you’re describing.

The US governing system is designed in such a way as to move at a glacial pace but also to not make mistakes or over correct. The polling systems may seem broken now but will inevitably get corrected over time.

Further, the US take states’ rights seriously and allows states to make many key decisions in terms of how they wish to hold elections. The thinking is that you’d rather have Johnny down the street dictate your election than someone you’ve never heard of in Washington DC.

It’s en vogue to shit on the US election system right now but y’all are still using first-past-the-post just like the US. Seems a bit hypocritical.

Re: World reaction to long queues of voters in US

#73

Post by [deleted] » Wed, Oct 14, 2020, 3:30 PM UTC

dvtrn wrote: post #16

AdmiralAsshat wrote: post #5

The people behind this would tell you it's a "feature": by making it incredibly undesirable for people in densely-populated areas to vote (which almost universally lean Democratic), you ensure that only the "right" people are able to vote.

I eyeballed a few people making that very same argument right here on HN but draped in the typical and disgusting line about “personal responsibility” when someone was lamenting how difficult some states are making it to even get registered.

[deleted]

Re: World reaction to long queues of voters in US

#74

Post by bpt3 » Wed, Oct 14, 2020, 3:31 PM UTC

Taek wrote: post #2

It's both amazing and terrible. Amazing to see people standing up for their rights and voting in the face of adversity, these voters deserve praise and are role models for the country. Terrible because it means that they are in corrupt districts that are not properly facilitating democracy. Worthy of a federal corruption investigation potentially resulting in criminal charges. Though I am very glad people are willing…

The election is a still almost a month away. I fully support improving election processes and infrastructure and think election officials could have foreseen this demand, but I would argue that most of your comments are hyperbole.

No one in the US is required to vote weeks in advance of election day in person.

Re: World reaction to long queues of voters in US

#75

Post by pdonis » Wed, Oct 14, 2020, 3:31 PM UTC

The article only mentions in passing that these lines were on the first day early voting was open. Of course if everybody tries to show up on the first day, you're going to have long lines. Those polling places will be open for a total of three weeks (up until the weekend before election day--and in many US jurisdictions early voting lasts even longer, in my area it opened two weeks ago) and for most of that time there will be no lines at all. But that won't get reported in the news because it doesn't fit the "voter suppression" narrative.

Re: World reaction to long queues of voters in US

#76

Post by singlow » Wed, Oct 14, 2020, 3:31 PM UTC

cletus wrote: post #4

In Australia we have two things the US system desperately needs: mandatory voting and preferential voting. Preferential voting allows you to vote for a third party without wasting your vote. The standard argument against mandatory voting is people not wanting the uninformed to vote (trust me, they're voting) and the usual US predilection against that infringing "freedom". I was sympathetic to this until I saw the US…

It is several weeks until election day. Right now some areas have early voting available. Early voting is available in most areas every day of the week for several weeks prior to election day, including weekends.

During early voting you can choose to vote at any location in your county which often include convenient places such as the grocery store, instead of being required to vote at your assigned district polling center, which is usually a public school, but is sometimes another government or community building.

I cannot remember waiting in line to do early voting even once. Sometimes I would go to the grocery store two or three times during early voting and see a line to vote, and I just wait until I see no line. There are always surges in the first and last days of early voting, but a big lull in the middle.

Re: World reaction to long queues of voters in US

#77

Post by 12xo » Wed, Oct 14, 2020, 3:31 PM UTC

A little out of left field but here is my opinion on why we are here.

None of this is possible without the perverted media market that view based advertising has created. The entire political landscape has grown to this mess because of "Click Bait" style ad metrics.

Every single news outlet, media outlet and otherwise has been corrupted and perverted to seek instant gratification and has lowered their editorial bar so low that they'll say, show, do anything that gets more attention. Because attention brings them more ad $.

Without the money flowing from ads via these false metrics, none of these media outlets could exist let alone thrive. And they, are the reason America is so divided. Sensationalism is what is driving the discourse, not intelligence or reason. The power brokers know this and the leverage it very, very well.

We have created a US where information is the ball, and our lives and the policy that governs us, is the sport.

Re: World reaction to long queues of voters in US

#78

Post by Sargos » Wed, Oct 14, 2020, 3:31 PM UTC

TedDoesntTalk wrote: post #28

cletus wrote: post #4

In Australia we have two things the US system desperately needs: mandatory voting and preferential voting. Preferential voting allows you to vote for a third party without wasting your vote. The standard argument against mandatory voting is people not wanting the uninformed to vote (trust me, they're voting) and the usual US predilection against that infringing "freedom". I was sympathetic to this until I saw the US…

In the US, one can vote for any party (preferential voting). There are other parties in America but you seldom hear about them. Two examples are the Green Party and the Libertarian party.

In a first past the post system like the US has it will always mathematically be a 2 party system. Maybe the democrats or republicans actually self destruct and cease being a party and one of those other parties take its place but there can never be a 3 party government in our system as it's impossible.

Re: World reaction to long queues of voters in US

#79

Post by eej71 » Wed, Oct 14, 2020, 3:31 PM UTC

manishsharan wrote: post #9

I think the most worrying aspect is an emerging strain of political thought in the US that USA is merely a republic but not a democracy. I find it quite shocking that it has gained a great deal of acceptance. edit : typo

I'm one of those people. I certainly see America as a republic first and foremost.

I appreciate the design of America that incorporates democratically electing one's representives in the House of Representives while balancing the downsides of such a process against other forms of voting.

It's necessary to capture the passions of the body politic at large - which democratic voting does! - but it's also necessary to introduce mechanisms that can serve as a counterweight to the madness of crowds that have been frequently observed in history in America and other countries.

If you haven't done so, do read The Federalist Papers.

Re: World reaction to long queues of voters in US

#80

Post by luckylion » Wed, Oct 14, 2020, 3:31 PM UTC

qwerty_123 wrote: post #11

The lack of voting booths does seem a bit silly, in the UK during elections there is usually voting booths in pretty much every church, school and town hall so you'd struggle to live more than a mile away from one. I once got called a "god botherer" by some kid after leaving to vote in a church, that was a bit bizarre.

> in the UK during elections there is usually voting booths in pretty much every church, school and town hall so you'd struggle to live more than a mile away from one.

On election day or in the month leading up to an election? We have plenty of places to vote at in Germany, but only on the day of the election, not for early voting.