Everyone "pays" taxes.
Taxes on corporations/owners of capital are passed on to everyone else, rich and poor alike.

When the gov't borrows money and devalues the currency, everyone is taxed.
Those who don't own property which can appreciate are taxed the most in this case.

The problem isn't taxing, it's spending.

A new poll tax? :eek:

One might wanna read the 24th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States...and also review the history of the 14th, 15th, 19th, 23rd, and 26th Amendments.

So - based on the criteria being posited - what of:

• A non-Working and non-property owning spouse?
• Farmers who get various farm subsidies or may not own any of the property they farm?
• College students over 18 but not employed or property owners?
• Anybody who gets a tax credit for children?
• Renters?
• Not everyone in the military is a citizen - so non-citizens should vote but citizens should not.
• usw.

I think there are major issues with the idea(s) of tying enfranchisement to property ownership, taxation, and military service.

And so it goes...

Richard's $.02 :munchin

I don't
 

I don't - get back with me in about 20 years.

I believe the above is correct...... It was also true for me 40 years ago when I was a Staff Sgt. ........;)

If the American left could hire Odysseus the great tactician, I augur that this proposal would be the Trojan horse he'd build to defeat its supporters.

Just my $0.02.

Question
 

That sounds awful good, but just being an American is enough as long as you can pass a common sense test and not a sense test by Marx

Kill a Commie for Mommie

The Full Quote!
 

"The America of my time line is a laboratory example of what can happen to democracies, what has eventually happened to all perfect democracies throughout all histories. A perfect democracy, a ‘warm body’ democracy in which every adult may vote and all votes count equally, has no internal feedback for self-correction. It depends solely on the wisdom and self-restraint of citizens… which is opposed by the folly and lack of self-restraint of other citizens. What is supposed to happen in a democracy is that each sovereign citizen will always vote in the public interest for the safety and welfare of all. But what does happen is that he votes his own self-interest as he sees it… which for the majority translates as ‘Bread and Circuses.’

‘Bread and Circuses’ is the cancer of democracy, the fatal disease for which there is no cure. Democracy often works beautifully at first. But once a state extends the franchise to every warm body, be he producer or parasite, that day marks the beginning of the end of the state. For when the plebs discover that they can vote themselves bread and circuses without limit and that the productive members of the body politic cannot stop them, they will do so, until the state bleeds to death, or in its weakened condition the state succumbs to an invader—the barbarians enter Rome."
— Robert A. Heinlein

So YES - Only taxpayers should be allowed to vote and only veterans should be allowed to hold office. YMMV :munchin

maybe I could stir the pot a little more with this thought:

Perhaps with modern advances in intercommunication it is now time for a direct democracy rather than a representative.

Part of the thinking behind a representative democracy was that the general public is not educated enough and/or it was hard to communicate accross a nation. We now have a more educated populous than ever before (speaking strictly on the amount of schooling given, not necessarily indicitave of intelligence). Certainly, it is clear we have the communication technology.

Just a thought. ;):munchin


edit: Just throwing something into the pot, I don't think this could really work either especially without some sort of restrictions on who could vote.

I disagree.

Strongly disagree.
Too much democracy is the problem.
Tyranny of the 51%.


This whole thread asks how we should allocate power from the citizenry to the federal gov't.
This supposes that the federal gov't should have the power.

Gov't isn't the solution, gov't is the problem.
A first step to fixing the problem would be a repeal of the 17th amendment.

I am with Heinlein.

Too many voters who have no concept of responsibility and who live for immediate gratification.

But that it just my .02. Not going to happen in this iteration of the Republic.

Maybe someone will have the balls to implement it next time around.

TR

Void the direct election of Senators? :confused:

Richard

I definately agree with you about 51% causing problems. There is nothing that is stoping us from setting the majority level higher than that though.

As far as too much government. I think the idea of this style of democracy is what I thought most people wanted; a direct impacting role into the governing of ones own life. Under this view the "Federal" government would be the people themselves rather than the essentially independent entity we currently have. This might also mean that there are less new laws being formed and less goverment regulation because national votes could perhaps only be held on major issues. My thinking on that point because so many people must vote that then there would be less incentive to bring about laws and spending that perhaps are not really necessary.

I also concede that it would be very hard to get away from some oversight, so perhaps a blend is needed?

I think there is a name for that type but I can't remember it right now. :confused:

Exactly.
The State governments lack sufficient influence.