tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4058766287077382431.post3841103706660193697..comments2024-03-23T04:01:39.348-04:00Comments on Understanding Society: Voter registration, Mississippi, 1960Dan Littlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15953897221283103880noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4058766287077382431.post-39962953801509663582022-08-23T12:39:44.912-04:002022-08-23T12:39:44.912-04:00A point of clarification; Bob Moses' voter reg...A point of clarification; Bob Moses' voter registration efforts were not directly associated with the NAACP. One of the voter registration efforts that he joined was the SCLC's SCOPE Project. The other was SNCC which brought him the most recognition as an activist.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4058766287077382431.post-89873485398881467542012-10-11T19:49:25.792-04:002012-10-11T19:49:25.792-04:00I never spoke of a prerequisite expertise, nor eve...I never spoke of a prerequisite expertise, nor even that a vote could be invalidated if someone (arbitrarily) determined an opinion was invalid. I simply suggested that I think it would be positive in a broad sense for each American to know about the federal and state laws under which he or she is bound, especially those about which they directly effect through voting. <br /><br />I find this especially true in a representational democracy, which I believe you characterize very poorly. The prerequisite of any democratic government is the idea that the people are capable of governing themselves freely and with liberal mindedness; democratic citizens do not so much have a right to vote as a duty to vote well--to vote in accordance with what they believe will create a free, good and excellent society.<br /><br />I will agree with you when you say that each citizen does not need to be informed about each issue; that is, of course, why we elect representatives to vote among themselves about what is best generally. However, it *is* each citizens duty to be informed about each issue in which his or her popular vote directly effects government--such as elections for president, senate, congress and even state propositions. And in these such matters, I find that an accounting of why a vote was cast a particular way an interestingly positive idea--as a way, perhaps, to help citizens take their duty to vote more seriously. There is a certain flippancy in the current American mindset about their civic duty which cannot bode well for a democratic society.<br /><br />I disagree a strongly as I'm able about your last point--that the purpose of a democracy is to force politicians to be responsive to the public, not force the public to be educated about politics. That is a precise definition of tyranny. A representational democracy can only be deterred from tyranny when they indeed are educated and partake in matters of the state/federal government. We should at all times encourage an informed and serious vote, and discourage an indifferent and uninformed vote.<br /><br />(as an aside, because I don't wish that last phrase of mine to be misconstrued, an informed vote is simply a vote which is thought through--an opinion which a citizen has formulated thoughtfully given the facts available to him--and in good conscious. I believe that a good and thoughtful vote begins not at the polls but at our schools, where we ought to teach each of our citizens the means through which they might become liberal minded, and therefore fit to rule themselves. To even further clarify (and this perhaps may frustrate some), I believe that each citizen should feel the weight of their civic duty to educate themselves liberally and to vote accordingly.)dissatahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03258066135701695545noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4058766287077382431.post-39906591360529511052012-10-11T14:49:43.264-04:002012-10-11T14:49:43.264-04:00Another interesting but unrelated aspect of this i...Another interesting but unrelated aspect of this is the effective establishment of Christianity by asking about a "minister of the gospels" (which excludes rabbis, imams, etc), in direct violation of the First Amendment.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4058766287077382431.post-67432465966335241252012-10-11T10:42:18.129-04:002012-10-11T10:42:18.129-04:00There are any number of problems with what you'...There are any number of problems with what you're describing, but you will definitely never find this expertise you're looking for to be uncorrelated to race, wealth, or general social class. The likelihood of voting in the current system is already correlated to those things.<br /><br />You're misunderstanding the purpose of representative democracy, it is supposed to force politicians to be responsive to the public. Not force the public to be educated about politics. JustBob81noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4058766287077382431.post-46344473855641800252012-10-10T22:02:56.692-04:002012-10-10T22:02:56.692-04:00ballot (thank you autocorrect)ballot (thank you autocorrect)dissatahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03258066135701695545noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4058766287077382431.post-42024593845507608372012-10-10T22:00:38.367-04:002012-10-10T22:00:38.367-04:00While I do understand that the form was manipulate...While I do understand that the form was manipulated to prevent certain citizens to vote, I find the concepts of the form, that one ought to show a certain understanding of one's citizenship rather positive. <br /><br />Perhaps the concept is too idealistic to work in any real, nitty-gritty reality, but it would be nice to encourage (if one cannot mandate) that all citizens who wish to vote must give a a reasonable explanation of why they support or don't support each policy, law, or candidate (anything which may be voted in by popular vote). <br /><br />Maybe in this day of computers and the anonymity of the internet, such a thing may be done and reviewed without any consideration to race, wealth, or general social class. <br /><br />(if anything, having such a part as an optional element of a voter ballad would be incredibly interesting from a simple polling/political science standpoint.) dissatahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03258066135701695545noreply@blogger.com