Do you think it's right to complain if you didn't vote?

Yes. If you feel the president is doing a bad job then it's okay to complain, regardless if you voted or not. I never understood the logic in "if you didn't vote, you can't complain."

 

We give up when the tasks and answers become to complicated and lack fun and imediate personal gain..

 

if you were somehow conned out of voting, or not allowed to, then hell yes, you have ever right to bitch about that. but if you could easily have gone to the pols, didn't accidentaly sleep through them, and weren't otherwise prevented in any way from going, then the only legitimate complaint would be the lack of acceptable choices on the ballot.

if nothing else, that is what third parties and write ins are for.

 

People have a right to complain regardless of whether they vote or not. It is really one form of protest, they are just making themselves heard. Mostly, so far as I am concerned, a vote is just a 50/50 chance of making a difference anyway, not very good odds.

 

That's like saying if your candidate lost the election, you have no right to complain about the actions of the candidate who won. The sad thing is that even if your candidate, who you voted for, does things you don't agree with they seem to think you no longer have a right to complain or be listened to except and until the next election comes around.

 

If you vote then you are giving your consent to be governed, regardless of who wins and who you vote for, every vote is a ticket of consent to whomever comes into power to be in power and do what they want. You voted, you accepted that. If you don't consent to every single candidate then technically you shpuldnt vote.

Those who dont vote have every right to complain

 

Well said!

 

Really? You actually are willing to concede power to someone you have voted for to do what ever they want? Then I guess there is no need at all for the Constitution any longer.

 

i didnt read all the posts but i noticed a few that i did read say that there are only two candidates and the people that vote them in shouldnt be able to complain.
this is such ridiculous nonsense, there are 6 or 7 party's that run for president. i agree that people are idiots for continuing to vote for the two that are clearly puppets to the biggest corporations. but there have been a few candidates since i have been voting that looked like they wouldnt be bought. and its all you people that vote for those same two guys acting like they are the only ones, that are to blame. and if you dont vote then sure you can complain but dont complain to me.

 

Not sure what you are saying here. The quote you refer to was about what Mamapeace said. I was agreeing with what she said.

And no, I am not willing to concede power to someone I voted for, especially since I have not voted for years, it being against my beliefs. Voting for someone is not supposed to be about giving away any power anyway, it is supposed to be about putting someone in office who is supposed to represent you to the greater world, which never happens except in a few cases.

So far as the Constitution goes, it is an ineffectual document that, while filled with noble sentiments, only has power so long as the people, not the government, are willing to stand behind it. I think you misunderstand what the document is. It is supposedly the will of the people putting constraints on the government, however, since the people seem to not care enough to stand up for themselves, the feds are allowed to do whatever they want, with impunity. This is the problem with democracy, it is easy to usurp.

 

So you are saying that by not voting, you are withholding your consent to be governed?

But, with no further action beyond not voting and simply complaining, is it likely that you will ever prevail and simply have unconditionally surrendered to allow yourself to be governed by what ever means those who DO vote have produced, without need of your consent?

I do understand quite well what the document is, and how we have allowed each of those who we have elected to govern us to, gradually over time, reinterpret it to fit their own agendas in acquiring greater powers over us.

 

I am saying that I am withholding my consent to be governed by others. I consider voting for a person to "represent" me a worthless act, since they do not represent my interests.
Actually, I don't complain, I don't think I ever said that, I merely upheld the right of people to complain as a form of protest. I will never willingly allow others to govern me. I am quite capable of doing that on my own. My wife and I have created our little island of our own ideals here on our little farm and what we hoped would be a community with others. We live according to our beliefs. When we butt heads with government officials it is usually over the sort of things they think we need to be protected against, like needing a permit to build shelter for ourselves. While it is near impossible to prevail in this sort of thing, we at least make it known that we strongly disagree with the need others have for imposing their rule over us. We are quite capable of determining the best way to live our lives, and if we err, then we alone suffer the consequences. If our house falls down on us, then it was our fault. A building code is no insurance that a house will be safe, etc. Ultimately, we pay whatever fines we have to, but we use every tool we can to argue our point. So, we have no problems standing up for what we believe is right, and taking non violent action ourselves when we see the need.

Voting does not insure that the people who get into office will act in your best interest. So, all you are doing when you vote is hoping that someone will get into an office and do so. History shows us that your interests are the last thing these people have on their mind. People who seek to rule are interested in ruling, not your interests. So far as I am concerned, it does not matter who gets voted into office, little will change in your personal welfare resulting from who gets into office. You do that yourself. Note that the only positive change that occurs politically is when the people take a direct hand in matters, such as the recent changes to MJ use, and changes to state tax structures occasionally. I vote for those kind of things, just not for some persons office. If we had the power of referendum at the federal level, then I think we would see some real change. I think we actually have that power, since it was not given up in the constitution, but I don't know how to make that work.

I am glad we agree on the Constitution. I think it was a better try at doing something good, but as always, when the people look to others to do things for them, it has become an instrument of oppression, instead of the tool meant for good.

 

It's not a waste of a vote. You only get one vote, and showing the big powers that they can't have it sends a message.

Sitting at home is a waste of a vote, because they will just assume you are too lazy and ignorant to vote. They actually love you for it, because it keeps the little guys down.

Here in Canada, the green party just got their first seat in parliament. :2thumbsup: progress is possible.

On topic, I think anyone is entitled to complain if something sucks, but I also think everyone should vote. Write in anybody else you want, but stand up and be counted.

 

It depends on the circumstances. If you wanted a particular party to win, but the other party won, then you have no right to complain about it since you did not vote. If you dislike both parties and did not vote for either party, then you do have a right to complain because both parties were horrible candidates according to you and one of them won.

 

Well, I must admit, I believe we probably agree on far more than we might disagree on.

 

I have the right to complain no matter what. It's my government and it directly affects me. No one can agree 100% on a candidate, and if they do, they're probably a sheeple.

 

I voted yes.

 

Ive often wondered what would happen if someone stood as a 'No Vote Candidate'-somewhere you could place your vote to protest that no one standing in the Election represents your interests-a protest vote.

As it stands in the UK we have two & a bit parties fighting over the center ground with little to choose between them. The remaining candidates are mostly single-issue or no hope extremists. Its a poor choice the US & UK (& others) have had to put up with too long.

All a 'No Vote' voter can do at present is spoil their ballot paper-the point is lost. A 'no vote' count may be a good indicator of the true health of our democracies !

 

I voted libertarian.

 

i have been voted to be the president of the united states by someone somewhere. if only a couple hundred million others felt the way that person did.

 

I voted libertarian, but some people can't vote, I think in some states a convicted felon can't vote, I have a felony...in Maryland you can't vote if your still serving time on probation or parole, but if you've served ur whole sentence and its over with you can vote.