Author Topic: Paying for votes is illegal but sharing prizes with people who vote is not.  (Read 2252 times)

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Offline luckybit

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Lol.  How about we give 1bitusd to each voter?

Would be wiser to give a gift of variable ratio. The voter wouldn't know the size of the gift which wold make each vote like a lottery ticket.
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Offline Troglodactyl

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What they're really buying is a façade of legitimacy.  Paid voters are obviously not otherwise motivated and informed voters.

You could make the argument that all votes are bought with policy results which benefit the voters.

Indeed I could, and indeed I do.

Offline bytemaster

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Offline oldman

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Non-voters should be taxed at a higher rate.

Alternatively, voting could be a prequisite for accessing essential services - fire, police, medical etc.

If folks want the privileges of democratic society they should participate.

Offline luckybit

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What they're really buying is a façade of legitimacy.  Paid voters are obviously not otherwise motivated and informed voters.

You could make the argument that all votes are bought with policy results which benefit the voters.
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Offline Troglodactyl

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What they're really buying is a façade of legitimacy.  Paid voters are obviously not otherwise motivated and informed voters.

Offline luckybit

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Alarmed that fewer than one-fourth of voters are showing up for municipal elections, the Los Angeles Ethics Commission voted Thursday to recommend that the City Council look at using cash prizes to lure a greater number of people to the polls.

On a 3-0 vote, the panel said it wanted City Council President Herb Wesson's Rules, Elections and Intergovernmental Relations Committee to seriously consider the use of financial incentives and a random drawing during its elections, possibly as soon as next year.

Depending on the source of city funds, the idea could require a ballot measure. Commissioners said they were unsure how big the prizes should be or how many should be offered, saying a pilot program should first be used to test the concept.

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2014/08/paying_people_to_vote_proposed_in_lo_angeles.html

It does not tell people who to vote for. It does not politically influence voters. It offers an incentive to get voters to cast a vote.

Is this legal? Is it ethical?

Every such incentive filters the vote. 
If I want more sports enthusiasts to vote, I'll give away game tickets.
If I want more youth vote, I'll give away iTunes, er, PeerTracks.
If I want more counter-culture votes I'll give away, ...

You get the idea.  No it is not ethical to use taxpayer funds to skew the voting demographics.

Interesting. So what if the incentive is just a cash reward? Everyone needs cash?
But I suppose rich people wouldn't vote so it could skew the results.
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Offline tonyk

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Alarmed that fewer than one-fourth of voters are showing up for municipal elections, the Los Angeles Ethics Commission voted Thursday to recommend that the City Council look at using cash prizes to lure a greater number of people to the polls.

On a 3-0 vote, the panel said it wanted City Council President Herb Wesson's Rules, Elections and Intergovernmental Relations Committee to seriously consider the use of financial incentives and a random drawing during its elections, possibly as soon as next year.

Depending on the source of city funds, the idea could require a ballot measure. Commissioners said they were unsure how big the prizes should be or how many should be offered, saying a pilot program should first be used to test the concept.

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2014/08/paying_people_to_vote_proposed_in_lo_angeles.html

It does not tell people who to vote for. It does not politically influence voters. It offers an incentive to get voters to cast a vote.

Is this legal? Is it ethical?

Every such incentive filters the vote. 
If I want more sports enthusiasts to vote, I'll give away game tickets.
If I want more youth vote, I'll give away iTunes, er, PeerTracks.
If I want more counter-culture votes I'll give away, ...

You get the idea.  No it is not ethical to use taxpayer funds to skew the voting demographics.

Sure, only paying by providing future benefits is the only legal and ethical think to do.  :)

[edit]
Ohh I see now...it was a way to drop PeerTracks in the conversation  :)
Lack of arbitrage is the problem, isn't it. And this 'should' solves it.

Offline Stan

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Alarmed that fewer than one-fourth of voters are showing up for municipal elections, the Los Angeles Ethics Commission voted Thursday to recommend that the City Council look at using cash prizes to lure a greater number of people to the polls.

On a 3-0 vote, the panel said it wanted City Council President Herb Wesson's Rules, Elections and Intergovernmental Relations Committee to seriously consider the use of financial incentives and a random drawing during its elections, possibly as soon as next year.

Depending on the source of city funds, the idea could require a ballot measure. Commissioners said they were unsure how big the prizes should be or how many should be offered, saying a pilot program should first be used to test the concept.

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2014/08/paying_people_to_vote_proposed_in_lo_angeles.html

It does not tell people who to vote for. It does not politically influence voters. It offers an incentive to get voters to cast a vote.

Is this legal? Is it ethical?

Every such incentive filters the vote. 
If I want more sports enthusiasts to vote, I'll give away game tickets.
If I want more youth vote, I'll give away iTunes, er, PeerTracks.
If I want more counter-culture votes I'll give away, ...

You get the idea.  No it is not ethical to use taxpayer funds to skew the voting demographics.

Anything said on these forums does not constitute an intent to create a legal obligation or contract of any kind.   These are merely my opinions which I reserve the right to change at any time.

Offline tonyk

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It seems you have missed one of the most deeply philosophical threads ever on this forum.

https://bitsharestalk.org/index.php?topic=10057.0
Lack of arbitrage is the problem, isn't it. And this 'should' solves it.

Offline luckybit

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Alarmed that fewer than one-fourth of voters are showing up for municipal elections, the Los Angeles Ethics Commission voted Thursday to recommend that the City Council look at using cash prizes to lure a greater number of people to the polls.

On a 3-0 vote, the panel said it wanted City Council President Herb Wesson's Rules, Elections and Intergovernmental Relations Committee to seriously consider the use of financial incentives and a random drawing during its elections, possibly as soon as next year.

Depending on the source of city funds, the idea could require a ballot measure. Commissioners said they were unsure how big the prizes should be or how many should be offered, saying a pilot program should first be used to test the concept.

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2014/08/paying_people_to_vote_proposed_in_lo_angeles.html

It does not tell people who to vote for. It does not politically influence voters. It offers an incentive to get voters to cast a vote.

Is this legal? Is it ethical?
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