Is Voting a Right?

Posted by khalling 11 years, 9 months ago to Philosophy
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There are natural rights and then there are procedural rules designed to protect those rights. Voting is not a natural right.
If your natural rights are being protected/respected, then how is NOT being able to vote an infringement on one's freedoms?
In our country's founding, there were lots of restrictions on who could vote.
As a matter of fact, over two century's we have voted away most of the freedoms enumerated in the Constitution.
On a different front: Often I find myself reminding people who are younger than myself that many freedoms I have lost over my lifetime and the lifetime of my parents, are acutely felt because you had them and took them for granted or the opposite cherished them and they have been taken away. IF you are raised without them, you have no idea what has been lost.


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  • Posted by CircuitGuy 11 years, 9 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Are you saying holding the right to vote up as sacrosanct is indirectly (or maybe directly) related to erosion of freedoms?
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  • Posted by CircuitGuy 11 years, 9 months ago
    Are you making a connection between loss of enumerated freedoms and the right to vote?
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  • Posted by 11 years, 9 months ago in reply to this comment.
    voting is not a natural right. To the extent we (in the US) have adopted the attitude that we are a democracy, NOT a Constitutional Republic, our freedoms have eroded.
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  • Posted by freedomforall 11 years, 9 months ago in reply to this comment.
    As far as organizations, associations, privately run web sites, just don't give the participants the vote and then take it away without any notice, or you may have resistance even on a privately run web site.

    The biggest advantage that leviathan has is the short memory (and lifespan) of the people. The government has learned they must slowly raise the temperature to boil the live frogs.
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  • Posted by richrobinson 11 years, 9 months ago
    Well said Kh. I often blame the educational system for what has happened. The left took over education and patiently waited until they had enough idiots to help implement their agenda. We have an uphill battle ahead of us.
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  • Posted by $ rockymountainpirate 11 years, 9 months ago
    Good post kh. I think that depends on what the voting is associated with, but in general, no I don't think it's a right.

    A recent post here showing the low information voters is a prime example that not everyone should be voting at the government level by their choice of not being informed on the issues, people running for the office.

    As far as organizations, associations, privately run web sites, there can and should be a pay to play factor and that is determined by the board of the organization or owner etc.
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