Should Election Day be a national holiday?

[kentonio]

Forcing people to vote is a ridiculous idea. If you don't care enough to vote, we don't want your opinion.

It's not really ridiculous, Australia do it quite successfully. I'm a little torn on it personally, but I think it might well help to impress on people that politics is not some intellectual game you can just ignore, but is what drives the fabric of your country. Everyone has a stake in that whether they realize it or not.

[regexcellent]

Amazingly, governments retain a lot of daft things which are merely throwbacks to an earlier era. Like those airplane safety briefings.

[Ogie Oglethorpe]

On the other hand it gives a full day of preparation to stock up on ammo to protect against the inevitable looting and rioting.

[regexcellent]

Oh that's a good point. I'd better load my rifle, be right back.

[kentonio]

Amazingly, governments retain a lot of daft things which are merely throwbacks to an earlier era.

Yeah, but that isn't a reason to not re-examine them when they are clearly causing modern day problems.

[snoopy369]

Forcing people to vote is a ridiculous idea. If you don't care enough to vote, we don't want your opinion.It would ensure the Democrats win every election.

Fixed to the real reason it'd never happen...

[Asher]

I think people who pay over 20% income tax should vote only.

**** you, Mitt, you unpatriotic freeloader.

[MrFun]

I support having Election Day as a national holiday.

If there are a lot of people who will enjoy that day off from work, but will not vote, I can tolerate that if it means that those who do vote can do it more easily with Election Day as a national holiday.

[Main_Brain]

Only White male Landowner should be allowed to vote, just like the Founding Fathers intended.

[N35t0r]

I really don't understand why don't you vote on a Sunday. In Argentina, all elections are on Sundays, and I'm not aware of any christian complaint about it.

Also, it lets us use schools for the polling booths without interrupting classes.

[notyoueither]

Can't, it's on a tuesday. Looks like we'll just have to make it a four day weekend, right?

Nov 11 is a holiday in some places regardless of what day of the week it is.

Also, see the minor festival of Christmas.

[SlowwHand]

I think so. Just because I like having more time off from work.

Invalid poll. I would have voted "Yes". Ironic that a a thread about elections has no poll.

[Imran Siddiqui]

I really don't understand why don't you vote on a Sunday. In Argentina, all elections are on Sundays, and I'm not aware of any christian complaint about it.

Also, it lets us use schools for the polling booths without interrupting classes.

We use churches as polling booths .

[snoopy369]

We also use schools... which are in some areas given the day off. Which I would note actually makes it _harder_ for people to vote (since they don't have free daycare, ie, schools)...

[The Mad Monk]

Why not just have weekend voting?

We kinda do, with early and absentee voting.