If you do not vote, should you be allowd to complain about what happens in government?
930825
If you are eligible to vote and do not vote, then no, you should not complain. But, if you could not vote because of your age or legal status  then I suppose you can, if and only if you participate in civic affairs.\nI personaly feel that it is not enough to just vote, but to actually get your voice heard through civic participation.
776202
I don't think so.  If people don't want to vote, why make them?  Will it mean anything if they just pick random people because they don't want to be there?
479962
There is no problem with compulsory voting in a democracy. A democracy is not a state of unmitigated freedom. There have to be social rules and laws for any form of government. Without compulsory voting, you get the mess we have in the USA, where one party has deliberately set out to take power away permanently from the other party. Unfortunately for them, they chose a stooge for a leader and it's all about to fall apart.
979208
Yes, if you don't vote in an election, you should re-register.
604735
Are you aware of the Jim Crow laws? They made intelligence tests required. Remember, this legally keeps people from voting. I think almost everyone has an opinion. We should all be allowed to vote, even if we don't like who the people choose. I think if you don't vote everyone should know, and you should be banned from complaining. If you don't care enough about your nation to vote for the leader, what gives you the right to complain about it? This, of course, could not apply to those under eighteen or who were not of legal voting age when the last election occured. I think voter education would be much more productive. Politicians need to tell everyone exactly where they stand on topics, there need to be sheets comparing each persons stand on hot issues distributed to the masses. This can be difficult to do, but if all parties joined to make it happen, we would have smarter voters. People would, in theory, vote for politicians they side with. Then you would know whomever is in office is the favorite.
968454
Yes, I will. I am 58 and have voted in every election since I came of age, except for two times, , both mid-term elections like this coming Tuesday, which I missed because I was in a fast attack submarine on deployment in the Western Pacific.The way I see it, if you don't vote, you don't have the right to complain about the results.
291034
No, it would be a contradiction in terms. A right implies free choice to express that right, or not. That which is mandatory takes away one's freedom to do otherwise. Voting IS a right, even a privilege. But choosing not to exercise that right is another freedom in and of itself.\n\nLook, I know where this notion is coming from and on some level I can understand it. Entirely too many people in this country, including well-educated people, routinely fail to vote, even in national elections. It's annoying, especially when the hardliners on both sides of the political divide tend to turn out in droves and vote in lockstep. No wonder there doesn't seem to be any middle ground in American politics anymore. It would be nice to see more people voting and I do my best to encourage it among my more apathetic friends. But making it compulsory is a terrible idea that, thankfully, will not happen here. For what it's worth, even when it's a matter of having to decide between the lesser of two evils, I always vote.\n\nP.S. My first real office job involved working for and with lawyers. I learned a lot. Mostly I learned that a great many lawyers are complete jackasses who are out for self-aggrandizement and personal gain at any cost. This explains much, I think.
299326
I vote, but I live in the U.S.  In my opinion voting is definitely important.  I also think that people that don't vote should not run their mouths about who is currently in office because had they taken the time to go vote they may have been able to sway the outcome of the election.
918987
No, if you do not vote then you are slapping the face of all the U.S. soliders that died fighting for your right to vote.
910962
Yes, how can we be a country of the people if the people don't talk.  I might not agree with others but they should vote to make sure the people's will is being followed.  I like to think I am in the majority, but I do conceed I might not be.
236316
It's more. You have a _responsibility_ to vote. Voting is the orgasm of democracy. Unfortunately, most citizens can't get it up.
207134
I guess if you don't care, you just don't vote. Like a lot of people on Election Day.
759117
YES- Absolutely. As individuals, the best thing you can do to change anything is vote.\nIf you don't vote, you don't get to complain.\nThanks so much for bringing up an important point.
815557
why we should exercise our right to vote
1088338
people are getting lazy, most think that if they vote it wont make a difference (when it really does) and so they dont vote. when the rest of us make a decision that people dont agree with they gripe. if you vote, congratulations, and if you ever talk to someone who doesnt vote and gripes about the gov't tell them to change it by voting
785690
You make an excellent point first of all. There are indeed many people who vote with minimal knowledge of the issues and of what's at stake. I can attest to being one of those people myself, but the fact of the matter is, I know the basics of whom I will vote for and whom I will not (I live in Michigan), and to propose a test to qualify to vote is essentially stripping people of their right to vote all over again. I blame the Government Officials (I do not use the term 'Politician') because they make it into a popularity contest. I also blame the media because they egg it on, but I digress.
960466
Hahahahahahaha\n\nSeriously, I'm not sure - the right to vote maybe?