3 ms·

Well said. The question you responded to, "What kind of person still hasn't made up their mind the day before an election?", is absurd, and that absurdity stem

by maw 16y ago

Well said. The question you responded to, "What kind of person still hasn't made up their mind the day before an election?", is absurd, and that absurdity stems from unclear thinking. It's as though people think of politics as a one dimensional thing, where we could even assign numbers to different viewpoints. 0 for the hard left, 100 for the hard right; major party A is 38 and major party B is 64, and if I'm a 42 kind of guy, well, 38 is closer, so I'll vote for party A. Ridiculous, I know, but it's the only way I've managed to explain to myself why people think and say some of the things they do.

SandB0x 16y ago
It's not absurd. Of course there's a continuum of views, I didn't suggest otherwise, but the parties each publish a manifesto outlining their policies well in advance and it seems bizarre to only make up your mind at the last minute. People keep "waiting to hear" what the leaders have to say on crime or the economy or whatever. It's in their manifestoes and it's fairly consistent with what they've been saying for the last few years. Policies are not decided on the fly during debates or news shows.
- maw 16y ago
  If we pretend that there are two parties, equal in all respects, except that party A eats baby boys and party B eats baby girls, that would be a tough choice to make. I can't decide which is worse. I'd be wrestling with the choice up to the very moment of voting. Afterward, too. That's a contrived example, of course. But for many people, no party will be satisfying, and the choices to be made will not be obvious. If your opinions happen to align almost entirely, or even mostly, with a party, good for you, but for the rest of us, the choices are difficult and vexing, even if you have a long time to think them over. And, indeed, even after several elections (I've seen them while living in three countries), I'm still not sure whom I would have preferred to see win, and not for a lack of paying attention, but because each of the choices, realistic and un-, came with a complex set of tradeoffs.

by maw 16y ago

SandB0x 16y ago

It's not absurd. Of course there's a continuum of views, I didn't suggest otherwise, but the parties each publish a manifesto outlining their policies well in advance and it seems bizarre to only make up your mind at the last minute. People keep "waiting to hear" what the leaders have to say on crime or the economy or whatever. It's in their manifestoes and it's fairly consistent with what they've been saying for the last few years. Policies are not decided on the fly during debates or news shows.

maw 16y ago
If we pretend that there are two parties, equal in all respects, except that party A eats baby boys and party B eats baby girls, that would be a tough choice to make. I can't decide which is worse. I'd be wrestling with the choice up to the very moment of voting. Afterward, too. That's a contrived example, of course. But for many people, no party will be satisfying, and the choices to be made will not be obvious. If your opinions happen to align almost entirely, or even mostly, with a party, good for you, but for the rest of us, the choices are difficult and vexing, even if you have a long time to think them over. And, indeed, even after several elections (I've seen them while living in three countries), I'm still not sure whom I would have preferred to see win, and not for a lack of paying attention, but because each of the choices, realistic and un-, came with a complex set of tradeoffs.