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43 sats \ 3 replies \ @kr 8 Nov 2023 \ parent \ on: I didn't vote yesterday. meta
i never would have guessed voter turnout was on the rise, i thought for sure people were voting less than ever before
You've got to factor in that historically most people didn't have the right to vote. Women only got the vote in the 1920s, mandatory (and often discriminatory) literacy tests for voting rights only abolished in 60s, big disenfranchisement in the post reconstruction era etc.
You can also map the suppression of unions (which gave working people direct means to improve their working conditions), with the shift towards the idea that "only your vote matters".
It was a deliberate narrative shift to persuade people they shouldn't take direct power, but hand it to federal representatives on their behalf.
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The founding fathers of America probably intended for voting to be an activity for "right bell curve" citizens. Over the centuries, voting has been opened to more and more "middle and left bell curve" populace.
Now, voting doesn't matter and the game is all about lobbying, which is a "right bell curve" game. But with less transparency than a ballot box.
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Agree, lobbying is to the right on intelligence, to the left on ethics and totally behind the scenes
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