The voter's responsibility: Philosophy Forums

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The voter's responsibility

PS
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Posted 03/14/04 - 04:33 AM:	#1
To what extent is the voter responsible for 1) the deeds performed by the party he voted for, when it has become (part of the) Government; 2) the deeds of the Government, when he has not voted for the Government party/parties, or not for the leading party (please--include discussion of coalition goverments. There is more to politics than the Anglo-American system). Personally I am very unwilling to vote at all, from considerations of idealism. If I agree with all plans of a certain party except for X, then I feel I cannot vote for the party because I will be guilty of the policy of X. Example: If I sympathise with a Green party, but I disagree with its abortion & euthanasia policies, I cannot vote for them because I will be guilty of the practice of both. I normally vote null; I voted regularly last year only because I saw the competition party as a major threat. Note that the above is only an example; let's not get into abortion issues please, this is not ethics. Edit: actually, this is ethics as well as political philosophy. I'll leave it up to the moderators whether they believe this thread ought to be moved.

Libertarian
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Posted 03/14/04 - 05:05 AM:	#2
Here is just fine. It's okay to discuss the ethics of politics. In fact, there is a particular political philosophy that is derived entirely from the ethic of noncoercion. In my view, the voter is responsible for nothing. And the system is designed to insure that is the case. Laws are made to protect government, not citizens. So whoever is put into power will be above the law. For the voter, it's mostly a matter of picking which petty tyrannies are easiest to endure.
"Entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatum." — William of Ockahm

pan
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Posted 03/14/04 - 09:57 AM:	#3
PS:"To what extent is the voter responsible for 1) the deeds performed by the party he voted for, when it has become (part of the) Government; 2) the deeds of the Government, when he has not voted for the Government party/parties, or not for the leading party (please--include discussion of coalition goverments. There is more to politics than the Anglo-American system)." WP:I think along the same lines as libertarian,though probably not to the same degree of disenchantment with government. I've never voted and am not sure why.Laziness comes to forefront of possible reasons,but there may well be a deeper reason which is veiled by the laziness. To answer both of your questions,from my pov, if any responsibility lies at the feet of specific voters,it is proportionate only to the degree of which they support or oppose the specific policy in question. PS:"Personally I am very unwilling to vote at all, from considerations of idealism. If I agree with all plans of a certain party except for X, then I feel I cannot vote for the party because I will be guilty of the policy of X. Example: If I sympathise with a Green party, but I disagree with its abortion & euthanasia policies, I cannot vote for them because I will be guilty of the practice of both. I normally vote null; I voted regularly last year only because I saw the competition party as a major threat." WP:The lesser relative evil argument.This seems to me a valid reason for choosing one over the other.However,for me personally,I must feel as though all issues can be given due consideration prior to making a choice. Since this is probably not possible in the context of any kind of government,democratic or otherwise, I must retire to my easy chair and let powerful big business continue to pay off politicians to write and pass laws which favor their respective interests. --And shake my head in shame at my own lack of effort to do anything about it.
One ocean; many waves...

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