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Did something I swore I'd never do...

Donahue said:
I don't see any real need for it.

Aside from the military, we have four years to prepare and make arrangements for voting day then when the day comes we generally have a window of 12 hours or so to get to a polling station that is usually a stone's throw from our houses. There are absentee ballots if something comes up to take you away from your home on Election Day.
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In 2004 I had to wait in line for 2 hours to vote and ended up having to leave the line because I had to get to class. I then went back AFTER class (big mistake, should have just skipped) and stood in line for ANOTHER 2 hours to vote.

In 2008, I voted early. Took me 10 minutes.

Allowing only 1 day to vote is inconvenient and will inevitably leave people out of the process.
 
tessaesque said:
In 2004 I had to wait in line for 2 hours to vote and ended up having to leave the line because I had to get to class. I then went back AFTER class (big mistake, should have just skipped) and stood in line for ANOTHER 2 hours to vote.

In 2008, I voted early. Took me 10 minutes.

Allowing only 1 day to vote is inconvenient and will inevitably leave people out of the process.
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People will always be left out of the process though. I just don't see any real inherent advantages to extending it to multiple days and plenty of room for corruption.
 
Donahue said:
People will always be left out of the process though. I just don't see any real inherent advantages to extending it to multiple days and plenty of room for corruption.
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50 state election boards disagree, so obviously there is SOME advantage.
 
Donahue said:
People will always be left out of the process though. I just don't see any real inherent advantages to extending it to multiple days and plenty of room for corruption.
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I used to agree with your point-of-view. Over time it occurred to me that there are no significant disadvantages, either.

I do favor ID requirements, but that can be implemented whether voting is one day or 30 days. Other than that, the only reason is "because that's the way we've always done it".


tessaesque said:
50 state election boards disagree, so obviously there is SOME advantage.
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While I am now on your side of this issue, I have to play Devil's Advocate and point out that just because government thinks so isn't necessarily convincing. I mean, as just one example, pretty much all state governments think that a guy who got drunk and urinated publicly at a frat party when he was 19 yrs old is somehow automatically a threat to small children and should be labeled as a "sex offender".
 
radcen said:
I used to agree with your point-of-view. Over time it occurred to me that there are no significant disadvantages, either.

I do favor ID requirements, but that can be implemented whether voting is one day or 30 days. Other than that, the only reason is "because that's the way we've always done it".



While I am now on your side of this issue, I have to play Devil's Advocate and point out that just because government thinks so isn't necessarily convincing. I mean, as just one example, pretty much all state governments think that a guy who got drunk and urinated publicly at a frat party when he was 19 yrs old is somehow automatically a threat to small children and should be labeled as a "sex offender".
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You're comparing a criminal act (i.e. something that has the potential to cause harm), to a policy that expands the ability of a citizen to exercise their constitutionally given right. I'm not sure that quite adds up.
 
tessaesque said:
You're comparing a criminal act (i.e. something that has the potential to cause harm), to a policy that expands the ability of a citizen to exercise their constitutionally given right. I'm not sure that quite adds up.
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The subject matter is irrelevant. The point is that just because government thinks something doesn't automatically make it a good idea.
 
radcen said:
The subject matter is irrelevant. The point is that just because government thinks something doesn't automatically make it a good idea.
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Nor does it automatically disqualify it from being good or bad.

Are you arguing that expanding the ability of citizens to exercise constitutional rights (in ways that cause no harm to other citizens, I would add), is a bad thing? Are you suggesting that they got it wrong?

Look, multi-day voting costs money and requires a lot of planning, arrangements, volunteer acquisition and training..it's arduous. I seriously doubt that all 50 states would bother with providing early voting options if it weren't more beneficial TO do it than it is NOT to do it.

And yea, the subject matter IS relevant. When the subject matter is the application of constitutional rights, it's a bit dishonest to try to call it apples-to-apples with some guy pissing in a street.
 
tessaesque said:
Nor does it automatically disqualify it from being good or bad.

Are you arguing that expanding the ability of citizens to exercise constitutional rights (in ways that cause no harm to other citizens, I would add), is a bad thing? Are you suggesting that they got it wrong?

Look, multi-day voting costs money and requires a lot of planning, arrangements, volunteer acquisition and training..it's arduous. I seriously doubt that all 50 states would bother with providing early voting options if it weren't more beneficial TO do it than it is NOT to do it.

And yea, the subject matter IS relevant. When the subject matter is the application of constitutional rights, it's a bit dishonest to try to call it apples-to-apples with some guy pissing in a street.
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Way to miss the point. Never mind. :roll:
 
radcen said:
I used to agree with your point-of-view. Over time it occurred to me that there are no significant disadvantages, either.

I do favor ID requirements, but that can be implemented whether voting is one day or 30 days. Other than that, the only reason is "because that's the way we've always done it".
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I disagree.

I think the longer voting is extended the more fraud and controversy we'll see. That's a long time to hold on to ballots and assume none of them are going to walk away.
 
tessaesque said:
Big Bird. After being drug into the debate Wednesday night he announced that the U.S. people should write him in so that PBS and Sesame Street might be saved. He's only 46 points behind in the polls and might win Alaska!
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So he's ahead of Ron Paul. Good job, Big Bird.
 
Donahue said:
I disagree.

I think the longer voting is extended the more fraud and controversy we'll see. That's a long time to hold on to ballots and assume none of them are going to walk away.
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Hard to say, but I think the opposite is probably true. More mistakes and fraud are likely when the polls are slammed with tens of millions of voters in a very short period of time.
 
ksu_aviator said:
I have to vote early. I'm rarely in town on election day. I know some people don't like that early voting is out there. But, people like me can't get to our polling location and it is impossible for our employer to accommodate every employee. So early voting is important to me.
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Coming from the other side, I'm with you. My work schedule can be very erratic, so having the chance to do it on a day when my schedule is lighter makes me feel much more secure. I think it's also good for so many people who work in the service sector who would have a tougher time getting away from work on Election Day than others.

Aside from making it a National Holiday, early voting is the best way to make voting more convenient for working people.
 
FilmFestGuy said:
Coming from the other side, I'm with you. My work schedule can be very erratic, so having the chance to do it on a day when my schedule is lighter makes me feel much more secure. I think it's also good for so many people who work in the service sector who would have a tougher time getting away from work on Election Day than others.

Aside from making it a National Holiday, early voting is the best way to make voting more convenient for working people.
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Even if it were a national holiday, that only ensures that government and bank workers get the day off, similar to Memorial Day or Labor Day. Restaurants and retailers would still be open and those people would still be working.
 
radcen said:
Did something I swore I'd never do... I voted early.

There's something that makes me feel all warm and fuzzy about going down to the polls ON ELECTION DAY and casting my vote(s). Today I was down at the county building doing other business, and my state opened early voting last week, and decided to go ahead and cast my vote while I was there. I figured since I have read and listened and researched for so long that my mind has been made up for awhile now. I seriously don't expect some new revelation to come out that might make me change my mind.
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Your candidate might turn out to be a serial killer in the next month =P. jk jk neither Obama nor Romney are serial killers ...or are they? They sure seem like they wish the public thought the other guy was.
 
radcen said:
:lol: Ok, in other words, you got nothin'.
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If you're so insecure in your own beliefs that you have to resort to this sort of nonsense to make yourself feel better than sure, whatever you say pal.

I'm sure everyone who disagrees with you just has "nothin'" too.

:roll:
 
Samhain said:
In Ohio, employers need to give a "reasonable" amount of time for people to vote. Not going to vote early when I can get paid for it.
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Are you serious? And you really think this is okay? Sheesh
 
Donahue said:
If you're so insecure in your own beliefs that you have to resort to this sort of nonsense to make yourself feel better than sure, whatever you say pal.

I'm sure everyone who disagrees with you just has "nothin'" too.

:roll:
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Dude, you made the claim, not me.
 
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