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Help Your Users Vote

29 points by sama 10y ago

ptomato 10y ago
If you send me a push notification unrelated to your app, I will immediately uninstall your app, and you will deserve it for being a spamming sack of shit. I strongly suspect I'm not alone in this.
chasenlehara 10y ago
Ugh, no. Not all tech companies should do this. If your service actually helps me vote (provides information, gives me a ride to my polling place, etc.) then sure, it’s part of the value you offer. But if your app has nothing to do with voting, it’s spam to send me an email or push notification about voting.
cpursley 10y ago
Bias test: If you had a way to know with 100% certainty that a user would be empowered by this to go vote for a candidate which you vehemently oppose, would you still show them this banner? Also see Mike Rowe's (of Dirty Jobs) thoughts on this: > Remember - there’s nothing virtuous or patriotic about voting just for the sake of voting, and the next time someone tells you otherwise, do me a favor - ask them who they’re voting for. Then tell them you’re voting for their opponent. Then, see if they’ll give you a ride to the polls. https://www.facebook.com/TheRealMikeRowe/posts/1254500967893377 https://www.facebook.com/TheRealMikeRowe/posts/1254500967893...
- deleted 10y ago
  [deleted]
- fouadmatin 10y ago
  We think it's really important that everyone votes and expresses the direction in which they want the country to go. So yes, we hope all companies share our tools with their users. Our goal, as a non-profit, is to help as many people vote as possible - regardless of who/what they support.
  - dexterdog 10y ago
    If that is true then you are rare in the get out the vote world.
gaur 10y ago
I tried an Oregon address, and voteplz told me that "Oregon does not allow early voting", which is not true. The entire election process is conducted by mail starting several weeks before the election.
- fouadmatin 10y ago
  Hey gaur! Sorry for the confusion, the early voting tool is for voting early in-person (which is what the phrase "early voting" generally refers to). I just made a github issue to account for voting-by-mail only states too. Thanks for pointing out!
oolongCat 10y ago
This is just asking people to spam their users. If someone lives in a truly democratic nation then they have the right to choose not vote, yes it surely would be nice to have everyone make a valid vote. Sometimes you just do not want to vote because you have to choose between two horrible choices and it doesn't matter at the end of the day because you seriously do not agree with either of the two choices. Southpark did an amazing episode on this exact issue once. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douche_and_Turd https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douche_and_Turd )
- labster 10y ago
  I just don't agree. In a democracy, you have the right to hold any opinion, but not to stop participating. Everyone should vote. If all of the choices are terrible, turn in an empty ballot. It's really that simple. If people did that, at least we'd get some metrics about how dissatisfied people are. But even if you think all of the candidates for all of the offices are too terrible to vote for, that doesn't excuse you from voting on the dozens of initiatives on the ballot.
  - tomjen3 10y ago
    It is not democracy if it doesn't have a none of the above option.
    - jacalata 10y ago
      That's what writing in is.
- jacalata 10y ago
  The right to choose not to vote is not really hurt by people reminding you to vote.
- unclenoriega 10y ago
  I don't think it's a defining feature of a democracy that people can choose not to vote. That aside, there's more than one election on a ballot. Many of them have more than two people, or no people at all, just Yes or No.
teilo 10y ago
Not my job. There is an implicit contract between an online business and its users. That contract implies that the purpose of the relationship is to provide a specific service. It does not include preaching to them and telling them how to run their lives. If I choose to do the latter, I am breaking that contract.
jacalata 10y ago
Or, you know, spend your time and money on making it easier for people to vote (like advocating for vote by mail in shitty states that don't make it universally available now) and stop wasting your time telling people like me, who aren't eligible to vote, about what self-righteous wankers you are.
GuiA 10y ago
Voting, particularly for presidential elections, is the ultimate exercise in pointlessness. Not only is it statistically completely insignificant at your individual level, but in fact the US voting system is designed to not always reflect the opinion of the majority! Not to mention the uncountable cases of fraud. Things you can do to make your political voice heard: - call/write to your local representatives - go out and join a protest (better, start a protest!) - donate money to a cause you care about - volunteer (i.e. donate time) for a cause you care about - write a blog, start a podcast, distribute flyers, etc. etc. etc. But voting is certainly not in there. And not only is voting a completely insignificant act - its utmost importance is forced through the minds of children and adults all across the country as if it were the most important thing a citizen could do, and not voting is socially less acceptable than clubbing baby seals. Of course, those in power know that, but voting is convenient for them - it lets them give a semblance of control to the people, all the while the things that really matter can be controlled behind closed doors, where the average citizen has no leverage. A population that just goes out to vote when they're supposed to (with their votes easily manipulated by the media establishment) and forgets about the political machine the rest of the time is an easily controlled population. A good essay: http://reason.com/archives/2012/10/03/your-vote-doesnt-count http://reason.com/archives/2012/10/03/your-vote-doesnt-count
- unclenoriega 10y ago
  I don't understand this argument. They do count the votes. How many people have to stop voting before your vote is important enough? I agree that those other things you listed are important, but most of them are important because they ultimately connect to votes. Next time you call or write your representative, be sure to add that you don't vote, and neither do the people you can persuade. I doubt your opinion will count for much. Moreover, the presidential election isn't the only thing on the ballot. I'll grant you that many statewide races are a foregone conclusion on election day. (This may mean the primary is important though.) But a local race on my ballot in 2014 was decided by 561 votes. Now, I may not have been the deciding vote, but there's a decent chance somebody I know was. The logical conclusion of this argument is that no one should vote, which of course would invalidate the argument if it happened.

29 points by sama 10y ago

If you send me a push notification unrelated to your app, I will immediately uninstall your app, and you will deserve it for being a spamming sack of shit. I strongly suspect I'm not alone in this.

chasenlehara 10y ago

Ugh, no. Not all tech companies should do this. If your service actually helps me vote (provides information, gives me a ride to my polling place, etc.) then sure, it’s part of the value you offer. But if your app has nothing to do with voting, it’s spam to send me an email or push notification about voting.

cpursley 10y ago

Bias test: If you had a way to know with 100% certainty that a user would be empowered by this to go vote for a candidate which you vehemently oppose, would you still show them this banner? Also see Mike Rowe's (of Dirty Jobs) thoughts on this: > Remember - there’s nothing virtuous or patriotic about voting just for the sake of voting, and the next time someone tells you otherwise, do me a favor - ask them who they’re voting for. Then tell them you’re voting for their opponent. Then, see if they’ll give you a ride to the polls. https://www.facebook.com/TheRealMikeRowe/posts/1254500967893377 https://www.facebook.com/TheRealMikeRowe/posts/1254500967893...

deleted 10y ago
[deleted]
fouadmatin 10y ago
We think it's really important that everyone votes and expresses the direction in which they want the country to go. So yes, we hope all companies share our tools with their users. Our goal, as a non-profit, is to help as many people vote as possible - regardless of who/what they support.
- dexterdog 10y ago
  If that is true then you are rare in the get out the vote world.

gaur 10y ago

I tried an Oregon address, and voteplz told me that "Oregon does not allow early voting", which is not true. The entire election process is conducted by mail starting several weeks before the election.

fouadmatin 10y ago
Hey gaur! Sorry for the confusion, the early voting tool is for voting early in-person (which is what the phrase "early voting" generally refers to). I just made a github issue to account for voting-by-mail only states too. Thanks for pointing out!

oolongCat 10y ago

This is just asking people to spam their users. If someone lives in a truly democratic nation then they have the right to choose not vote, yes it surely would be nice to have everyone make a valid vote. Sometimes you just do not want to vote because you have to choose between two horrible choices and it doesn't matter at the end of the day because you seriously do not agree with either of the two choices. Southpark did an amazing episode on this exact issue once. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douche_and_Turd https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douche_and_Turd )

labster 10y ago
I just don't agree. In a democracy, you have the right to hold any opinion, but not to stop participating. Everyone should vote. If all of the choices are terrible, turn in an empty ballot. It's really that simple. If people did that, at least we'd get some metrics about how dissatisfied people are. But even if you think all of the candidates for all of the offices are too terrible to vote for, that doesn't excuse you from voting on the dozens of initiatives on the ballot.
- tomjen3 10y ago
  It is not democracy if it doesn't have a none of the above option.
  - jacalata 10y ago
    That's what writing in is.
jacalata 10y ago
The right to choose not to vote is not really hurt by people reminding you to vote.
unclenoriega 10y ago
I don't think it's a defining feature of a democracy that people can choose not to vote. That aside, there's more than one election on a ballot. Many of them have more than two people, or no people at all, just Yes or No.

teilo 10y ago

Not my job. There is an implicit contract between an online business and its users. That contract implies that the purpose of the relationship is to provide a specific service. It does not include preaching to them and telling them how to run their lives. If I choose to do the latter, I am breaking that contract.

jacalata 10y ago

Or, you know, spend your time and money on making it easier for people to vote (like advocating for vote by mail in shitty states that don't make it universally available now) and stop wasting your time telling people like me, who aren't eligible to vote, about what self-righteous wankers you are.

GuiA 10y ago

Voting, particularly for presidential elections, is the ultimate exercise in pointlessness. Not only is it statistically completely insignificant at your individual level, but in fact the US voting system is designed to not always reflect the opinion of the majority! Not to mention the uncountable cases of fraud. Things you can do to make your political voice heard: - call/write to your local representatives - go out and join a protest (better, start a protest!) - donate money to a cause you care about - volunteer (i.e. donate time) for a cause you care about - write a blog, start a podcast, distribute flyers, etc. etc. etc. But voting is certainly not in there. And not only is voting a completely insignificant act - its utmost importance is forced through the minds of children and adults all across the country as if it were the most important thing a citizen could do, and not voting is socially less acceptable than clubbing baby seals. Of course, those in power know that, but voting is convenient for them - it lets them give a semblance of control to the people, all the while the things that really matter can be controlled behind closed doors, where the average citizen has no leverage. A population that just goes out to vote when they're supposed to (with their votes easily manipulated by the media establishment) and forgets about the political machine the rest of the time is an easily controlled population. A good essay: http://reason.com/archives/2012/10/03/your-vote-doesnt-count http://reason.com/archives/2012/10/03/your-vote-doesnt-count

unclenoriega 10y ago
I don't understand this argument. They do count the votes. How many people have to stop voting before your vote is important enough? I agree that those other things you listed are important, but most of them are important because they ultimately connect to votes. Next time you call or write your representative, be sure to add that you don't vote, and neither do the people you can persuade. I doubt your opinion will count for much. Moreover, the presidential election isn't the only thing on the ballot. I'll grant you that many statewide races are a foregone conclusion on election day. (This may mean the primary is important though.) But a local race on my ballot in 2014 was decided by 561 votes. Now, I may not have been the deciding vote, but there's a decent chance somebody I know was. The logical conclusion of this argument is that no one should vote, which of course would invalidate the argument if it happened.