STV Vote - Yes OR No?

I dont know how many of you are aware of the additional Single Transferable Vote on May 12th (STV-BC).

At first I thought this was a great idea meaning that in the next election if a party like the Green earns 12% of the votes, then they get 12% of the seats. Unlike right now, its to whom ever wins a riding, something a small party like the green may never accomplish for years.

It also means that your single vote CAN actually make a difference.

However some think this is a bad idea as it will leave our Provincial Parliament divided up with to many individual representatives and they will be less likely to get along.

Thoughts?

http://stv.ca/

[Grapes]

Rhia I had the same problem trying to embed a video..

Anyways..

I'm voting yes on STV. There are a couple of reasons for this. One is that it's time to try something new that can adjust for the inequities our current system has produced. The other is that neither the Liberals nor the NDP have been placing as much emphasis on the environment as I'd like (they wouldn't dare, in this economic climate..) so I want the Greens to have more power than usual, to make sure that voice is heard in all decisions going forward (I apologize for using that phrase).

If we adopt STV and it proves, over the next several years, to produce inefficient governments that can't push decisions through, it's not going to be the end of the world, and we could have future referendums and votes on whether or not to keep it.

There's no reason not to give it a shot.

[C_squared]

Vote yes on STV if you know what's good for you.

Think of the children.

[ebbomega]

Slightly Offtopic but this is how you get the youtube tags done.

Between the tags, just put everything after the "watch?v=" in the tags and it'll show the video.

[miss.myra]

I'm sort of on the fence still.

Being of moderate poltical mindedness myself, I can still appreciate that parties like the Greens deserve more representation in provincial and federal politics having family members that are active in the party and have ran in a few elections.

One potential thing I can see this creating is more and more minority governments, which is fantastic if the party you don't like gets elected to power because none of their bills will really pass, but really little to nothing gets accomplished. I know it's not the end of the world, but when you consider the millions and millions of tax dollars, union dues, corporate sponsorship,etc that gets blown up to advertise and run an election for a government that ultimately did nothing is a complete waste of money and time.

[Piquant]

I'm voting yes

[ebbomega]

I see no problems with perpetual minority governments. I'd rather that party "pet projects" and controversial bills get held up, while the essential services and duties of parliament/legislature are still being kept up (or else the governing minority party faces a vote of non-confidence).

BC is a perfect testbed for it. Idyllically I'd even see the NDPs in power with a minority, with the libs keeping check on them not getting out of hand with spending (Fast CAT projects and the like). Now granted, they'll have to have a lot more compromise in their platforms but I think the outcome would be a provincial government that wouldn't expedite the privatization of social services (the one thing I'm against the Libs for in this election) but wouldn't just crumble to the every whim of any labour union they come across. Basically I want social awareness with a fiscal backbone...

What appeals to me the most out of minority governments is that it keeps a more frequent check on the governing party than just facing election whenever they think it's a good idea.

As for the "more frequent elections" complaint, well, keep in mind that the last premature election called by a governing minority party wasn't while they were facing any non-confidence issues nor any major legislation that would indicate the defeat of the government.... they called it themselves because of political gain, not because of government instability. That tactic is hardly the exclusive domain of minority governments in Canadian politics.

[Vitamin-X]

I have a few problems with the STV proposal.

The first is massive districts. Districts that had 45k people could balloon to up to the neighborhood of 350k. So when you call your mp it could be "who the hell are you and where are you from?" game.

Secondly, most people barely manage to educate themselves about
one or two candidates; now imagine people being expected to know, evaluate and rank their preference of five or six or( god forbid) more.

[mapleleaf4ever]

No.

For reasons I've already mentioned.

But I can't vote in this election anyways. *le sigh*

[SEAN!]

i dont know what it is or its significance so im voting no

[ebbomega]

Originally Posted by SEAN!

i dont know what it is or its significance so im voting no

Wouldn't it just make more sense to abstain in that case?

[SEAN!]

Originally Posted by ebbomega

Wouldn't it just make more sense to abstain in that case?

mapleleaf, werd on that karma message brother.

ebbo, the beauty of democracy is that even uninformed assholes like my self have their opinions regarded with the same legitiamcy as the reasonable and informed.

Originally Posted by SEAN!

i dont know what it is or its significance so im voting no

I fixed the youtube videos for lazy learners. Basically it gives smaller parties like the greens a fairer chance to win some seats.

[ebbomega]

Originally Posted by SEAN!

ebbo, the beauty of democracy is that even uninformed assholes like my self have their opinions regarded with the same legitiamcy as the reasonable and informed.

I understand this. However, if you're admitting your own ignorance on it, why just arbitrarily pick? Personally I prefer to defer to those with an actual opinion.

Granted, those people usually aren't the majority of the voting population, but a guy can dream, right?

[glorywithheld*]

I'm voting yes, I really hope this gets passed. Sometimes you have to switch things up a bit to keep those in power on their toes and not get too comfortable. Also I think it better reflects the people's will, which is what government was intended for to begin with!

[crackdragon]

def voting yes

[mapleleaf4ever]

remember when it was voted down last time?

yeah.

exactly, so why try cramming it down the public's throat again?

*shakes head in disgust*

Originally Posted by mapleleaf4ever

remember when it was voted down last time?

yeah.

exactly, so why try cramming it down the public's throat again?

*shakes head in disgust*

I believe you need 60% Yes for it to pass... last time the vote was 58%.

If anything, our individual vote has more power with the STV and minority parties will finally get a chance to win a few seats. It will also decrease the chance of votes being split up when people have a hard time deciding which candidate to vote for.

Taking the time to research your candidates will finally have more meaning and use to it. No more strategic voting or voting for the lesser or two evils. Its a newer system that is also being used in New Zealand, parts of Australia, Isl of Man, and a few Scandinavian countries.

We know the system we use now is not the best, why not try something new? We will never know until we try.

[rustybob]

A vote for STV is a vote for the NDP, no thanks.

[dj_soo]

A vote for STV is taking a vote away from the Liberals, yes please.

[Grapes]

Originally Posted by mapleleaf4ever

remember when it was voted down last time?

yeah.

exactly, so why try cramming it down the public's throat again?

*shakes head in disgust*

58%+ of the votes were "yes".

I also liked comparing a choice on a ballot to having something "crammed down our throats". No, Myanmar has their government's decisions crammed down their throats. We have choice.

[mapleleaf4ever]

How wide the Left Wing is out here.

[dj_soo]

^ and thank god for that - there's way too many right wing wackos as is.

[tiedye]

Voting yes.

I've been making it a point to educate all those close to me on the pro's and con's of STV (because everyone should be thoroughly informed) all week so I'm not going to get into it here. You all seem to know what's up - well, except my sorely misguided bro Shompton.

[decypher]

Voted yes last time, will vote the same way again.