Voting is Violence

[Wokko]

An interesting philosophical view point I've come across recently is that voting is in itself an act of violence, legitimizing the government and the State itself. In effect every act committed by a Government is also committed by those who gave them the power to act in their name. Here's two essays on the subject I find pretty compelling, but you have to be able to set aside a lifetime of being told that voting is an obligation and part of the social contract, even in the rest of the civilized world where voting is voluntary it's rarely seen as an act of rebellion to not vote.

http://www.simpleliberty.org/tootoa/voting.htm

http://forejustice.org/vote/voting_is_an_act_of_violence.htm

[think positive]

So who would be in government if no one voted!
I read some of Both links
Yeah morons

[neil]

What is the alternative? Anarchy? a few years of that and we will have war lords running the place.

I would like to put those imbecile writers into some third world shithole where no-one votes. They can explain these brilliant ideas to those who get tortured, shot, have tanks run over them and raped for suggesting voting/elections/democratic governments are a good idea.

[Wokko]

If you genuinely want to know and aren't engaging in hyperbole there are a few books written on the subject.

https://mises.org/library/society-without-government

That article points to a couple of them. I really need to do a lot more reading into it myself so I can give more of an informed reply, but rather than arguing from ignorance I'll point you towards people who seem to know what they're talking about.

[think positive]

[David]

This argument depends wholly on the libertarian/anarchistic premise that the state is inherently violent. I don't agree with that at all, and frankly see the idea of it being an act of violence to, say, vote for which local councillor will more effectively collect your recycling to be absurd. So, as a general rule, no, I can't agree.

Of course, elected governments can be responsible for violent acts. I'll use an example you'll fundamentally disagree with, but one with which we're all familiar: Australia's illegal detention of asylum seekers. If we can at least hypothetically consider this an act of violence, does that make the act of voting Liberal at this election an act of violence? I don't think so: those voters are simply operating within the allowed parameters given by the electoral commission. They may be endorsing violence, unwittingly or otherwise, but their act is not violent in of itself.

An interesting alternative might be a dystopian reality show where the losing contestant each week actually gets murdered. Is the act of texting in the name of who you want to see voted out an act of violence? Why or why not?

[neil]

Simple to understand
Someone sends two thugs with iron bars around to your place
I think you will rapidly grasp the difference between violence and voting

[Jezza]

You don't have to vote in Australia technically speaking.

You just have to have your name marked off the electoral roll and after that it's up to you on what you do with your ballot paper but I can see the libertarian argument that Wokko is posing however.

[think positive]

[ronrat]