4 ms·

> Sign up after your eighteenth birthday to vote. Offer may differ for some communities, certain may experience having to sign up two counties over, in the bas

by Y-bar 3y ago

> Sign up after your eighteenth birthday to vote. Offer may differ for some communities, certain may experience having to sign up two counties over, in the basement, on the second Wednesday every odd month, behind a locked door with a sign "Beware of the leopard". Better if everyone just gets enrolled by default.

saveferris 3y ago
There is a lot of things wrong with this but I have said that in order to get your tax refund you have to show proof you registered to vote. I'd like to say proof that you voted but that may be a step too far... Agree, it should be easier not harder to register and to vote
- datavirtue 3y ago
  Tax refunds? What are those?
  - lockhouse 3y ago
    Not sure if you’re being facetious, but some of us have too much of our pay deducted from payroll throughout the year compared to our tax burden, so the IRS returns the extra money to us.
    - JohnFen 3y ago
      Why not adjust your withholdings to avoid that?
      - lockhouse 3y ago
        Sometimes you can’t because of the way deductions work.
- slipheen 3y ago
  Did you happen to know that not everyone is required to file a federal income tax statement? The IRS does not require you to pay income tax, or file taxes, unless you make over $19,400 (as of 2022) https://www.irs.gov/publications/p501 https://www.irs.gov/publications/p501 It's really difficult to tell what percentage of people that applies to, but just for one example I got from Google, The Tax Policy Center estimates that 70 Million Americans do not need to pay income tax. https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/taxvox/tpc-number-those-who-dont-pay-federal-income-tax-drops-pre-pandemic-levels https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/taxvox/tpc-number-those-who-...
  - saveferris 3y ago
    I am only half serious about that....should have pointed that out. Interesting links though. Correct that not everyone with income is required to file, though they should. I did not know the income level was that high though, would have guessed half that. Just a guess but I think that overlap is probably pretty large. I would think the majority of people who don't owe taxes are due to lower incomes who would not be required to file and that is offset with deductions....purely a guess though.
  - JohnFen 3y ago
    Also, not everyone gets a refund. I haven't had a tax refund in about 30 years, because I arrange any withholdings to match my expected tax bill.
splintercell 3y ago
> Better if everyone just gets enrolled by default. But the whole point is that non-citizens are voting or multiple voting or non-resident voting is occurring. The question is, how do you know that the person who is in the line to vote is the person who he says he is. Sure the name John Doe is on the list, but is the person standing in front of you is John Doe or not, how do you establish that?
- fmobus 3y ago
  It's so comical watching a country that claims to be first world struggling with this. My shit country has solved this _ages_ ago: Every citizen has an id. The IDs are issued by each state, but they are all functionally the same. You will have no trouble voting with an out-of-state ID. That ID is free and relatively easy to get. Every citizen has an assigned place (building, room and ballot box) to vote, and it's usually close to their residence (you are expected to update when you move, it's also very easy). Each ballot holds no more than 600 votes, average is around 300. Lines are uncommon, it usually took me like 5 minutes to vote. Voting takes place on a Sunday, and most cities make public transit free of charge.
  - lockhouse 3y ago
    Despite the claims of a certain political party, state photo ID cards are easy to get here as well. They are needed for most benefits programs, banking, driving cars, air travel, purchasing items that are age restricted, and many other routine parts of adulthood. It is extremely unlikely that potential lawful voters would be disenfranchised by requiring a photo ID to vote. However, I fully support making a government issued photo ID freely available for those who don’t already have one.
lockhouse 3y ago
What if national voter IDs were available at your local post office or military recruiting station? The availability and hours would be much better than most DMVs or welfare offices.

by Y-bar 3y ago

saveferris 3y ago

There is a lot of things wrong with this but I have said that in order to get your tax refund you have to show proof you registered to vote. I'd like to say proof that you voted but that may be a step too far... Agree, it should be easier not harder to register and to vote

datavirtue 3y ago
Tax refunds? What are those?
- lockhouse 3y ago
  Not sure if you’re being facetious, but some of us have too much of our pay deducted from payroll throughout the year compared to our tax burden, so the IRS returns the extra money to us.
  - JohnFen 3y ago
    Why not adjust your withholdings to avoid that?
    - lockhouse 3y ago
      Sometimes you can’t because of the way deductions work.
slipheen 3y ago
Did you happen to know that not everyone is required to file a federal income tax statement? The IRS does not require you to pay income tax, or file taxes, unless you make over $19,400 (as of 2022) https://www.irs.gov/publications/p501 https://www.irs.gov/publications/p501 It's really difficult to tell what percentage of people that applies to, but just for one example I got from Google, The Tax Policy Center estimates that 70 Million Americans do not need to pay income tax. https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/taxvox/tpc-number-those-who-dont-pay-federal-income-tax-drops-pre-pandemic-levels https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/taxvox/tpc-number-those-who-...
- saveferris 3y ago
  I am only half serious about that....should have pointed that out. Interesting links though. Correct that not everyone with income is required to file, though they should. I did not know the income level was that high though, would have guessed half that. Just a guess but I think that overlap is probably pretty large. I would think the majority of people who don't owe taxes are due to lower incomes who would not be required to file and that is offset with deductions....purely a guess though.
- JohnFen 3y ago
  Also, not everyone gets a refund. I haven't had a tax refund in about 30 years, because I arrange any withholdings to match my expected tax bill.

splintercell 3y ago

> Better if everyone just gets enrolled by default. But the whole point is that non-citizens are voting or multiple voting or non-resident voting is occurring. The question is, how do you know that the person who is in the line to vote is the person who he says he is. Sure the name John Doe is on the list, but is the person standing in front of you is John Doe or not, how do you establish that?

fmobus 3y ago
It's so comical watching a country that claims to be first world struggling with this. My shit country has solved this _ages_ ago: Every citizen has an id. The IDs are issued by each state, but they are all functionally the same. You will have no trouble voting with an out-of-state ID. That ID is free and relatively easy to get. Every citizen has an assigned place (building, room and ballot box) to vote, and it's usually close to their residence (you are expected to update when you move, it's also very easy). Each ballot holds no more than 600 votes, average is around 300. Lines are uncommon, it usually took me like 5 minutes to vote. Voting takes place on a Sunday, and most cities make public transit free of charge.
- lockhouse 3y ago
  Despite the claims of a certain political party, state photo ID cards are easy to get here as well. They are needed for most benefits programs, banking, driving cars, air travel, purchasing items that are age restricted, and many other routine parts of adulthood. It is extremely unlikely that potential lawful voters would be disenfranchised by requiring a photo ID to vote. However, I fully support making a government issued photo ID freely available for those who don’t already have one.

lockhouse 3y ago

What if national voter IDs were available at your local post office or military recruiting station? The availability and hours would be much better than most DMVs or welfare offices.