Nobody Wants to WORRRK! T_T

[ProfessorDetective]

Well, it's only a crime if they catch you. So, if no one is even TRYING to catch you...

[Nealithi]

Quick insert question. Is there less voter turnout and disenfranchisement (IE apathy to voting at all). And the people at the top only count two types of vote? Republican or Democrat. Thus all other votes are listed under 'didn't' vote?

I ask because I have had associates and friends who only vote third party and their reason is they want to break the two party system.

[TGLS]

Quick insert question. Is there less voter turnout and disenfranchisement (IE apathy to voting at all). And the people at the top only count two types of vote? Republican or Democrat. Thus all other votes are listed under 'didn't' vote?

I ask because I have had associates and friends who only vote third party and their reason is they want to break the two party system.

No, they count all the votes and use that number to determine the turnout. For example, in a town with 100 eligible votes, and they voted like this:
-> 40 Republicans
-> 38 Democrats
-> 3 Libertarian
-> 1 Green Party
-> 12 Write-ins
The turnout would be calculated as 94%, not lumping in the 16 "no-chance" ballots as didn't turn out. This is how they know how many people voted for the Greens, Libertarians, & other parties. By the time the election is officially called, it's possible that not all of the votes are counted before the election is called.

[Captain Crimson]

No it aint.

Criminal opportunists will always exist, for power, pleasures, treasures, and gain. Deal with it.

Quick insert question. Is there less voter turnout and disenfranchisement (IE apathy to voting at all). And the people at the top only count two types of vote? Republican or Democrat. Thus all other votes are listed under 'didn't' vote?

I ask because I have had associates and friends who only vote third party and their reason is they want to break the two party system.

The sad reality is third parties are hamstrung by the winner-take-all structure of the modern day electorate. Makes it really hard for third parties to get any headway, and it's what makes me kinda feel the DNC, for all their preaching, isn't serious about wanting to reform or abolish the electoral college - they just wanna reserve the right to complain and blame the other side while they get stinkin' rich. At least the GOP makes no bones about it, they prefer the electoral college as is. So at least they're not making limp-wristed lip service to something they are not.

[TGLS]

Makes it really hard for third parties to get any headway, and it's what makes me kinda feel the DNC, for all their preaching, isn't serious about wanting to reform or abolish the electoral college

The electoral college has a minimal impact on third party performance in presidential elections.

Let's jump back to the most recent major independent run: Ross Perot in '92. If you do the math, in order to win the electoral college, Perot would have needed to peel off about 20.37% percent of the vote from the Democrats and Republicans, giving him a popular vote of about 35.6%. If it was only necessary to win the popular vote, and not the electoral college, he would only need to peel off 19.37% (though the margin would be extremely thin).

Having a president in the first place probably hurts third parties more. The president drives turnout for the downballot races, and winners in lower offices (i.e. congressmen, governors, mayors, dogcatchers...) slowly move up the ballot like some kind of political farm system. The cost of mounting a presidential election is so high, that third parties aren't running successful congressional campaigns (there have only been six house representatives who weren't either D or Rs since 1961).

[Captain Crimson]

I'll take that L on the chin.

[Fuzzy Necromancer]

No it aint.

Criminal opportunists will always exist, for power, pleasures, treasures, and gain. Deal with it.

bad actors always exist. Implying that they will be more numerous if we stop spending making city budgets for police look like the Dril candles tweet is facts not in evidence. Also you don't seem to know what the word "Criminalizing" actually means.

[Fuzzy Necromancer]

Hey, you care about labor relations and workers rights, right? You know the main thing we give police scifi weapons for? To break up worker strikes and unions. If we want to get back to the topic at hand, one big reason we have a bloated, over-paid police force with tanks and grenades is to break up labor power and militarily occupy the working populace.