RateItAll: The Opinion Network

Be very careful who you trust with this.Standardized sounds good,but electronic Touch Screen voting machines are all too easily hacked into and manipulated unless there is a PAPER TRAIL. If I can get a reciept at 7-11 for a cup of coffee,I should sure as hell get one for my vote!!!

The severe problem that exists with voting in this country is not the manner in which votes are tabulated but the fashion in which they are weighed. Specifically, each person in the U.S. currently gets one vote that counts equally in comparison to other votes. In my opinion, this is a flawed system because it presupposes (erroneously) that each individual's views/opinions are of equal value and that all persons are equally invested in society. Quite plainly, no one can reasonably argue that they are. Is a high school drop out who works as a fry cook likely to be as informed as a middle school teacher with a Masters degree and certificate in Special Education? Does a woman who owns five income generating office buildings and pays 6 figures in taxes have the same vested interest in tax code changes as a single man who works at Starbucks and is spending his spare time pursuing a modeling career? Of course not. I propose a scaled or weighted voting system along the following lines: Every citizen's vote is worth 5 points. A voter over the age of 35 gets an extra point. A voter who owns real estate gets an extra point. A voter who has a bachelors degree from a nationally accredited four-year college or university gets an extra point. Consequently, depending upon your age, real estate holdings and education, your vote will count anywhere from 5 to 8 points. My proposed system is superior to the one currently used because it gives a stronger voice to individuals who are more likely to have accumulated wisdom and critical thinking skills, and to those who have a vested personal financial interest in the economic policies implemented by the government. Consider this: Under my proposal, neither Bill Clinton nor George W. Bush would have ever been elected to the presidency. Bush would have lost because college educated voters mostly voted for his opponents in '00 and '04 and Clinton would have been similarly rejected because white males (who disproportionately own land in the US) voted against him (in both elections combined) at a rate near 70%.