I'm a little dubious about Question 2, because I'd like to see the third parties have more of a shot than this measure would give them, and it strikes me as a patchwork and insufficient solution...
I think this is leaning towards "making perfect the enemy of better". Failing to be ideal is not a reason to avoid making a step in the proper direction. It isn't as if you'll get your ideal in one fell swoop, given the minimal visibility they get now, right? Wouldn't an interim, patchwork solution that moves towards increased power and visibilty be useful to you end desire?
and one that would make certain other solutions more difficult to understand / implement. (Certain alternative voting schemes that would really enhance third-party presence wouldn't work so well - or might function, but would be confusing - in concert with listing the same person on the ballot more than once.)
If Massachusetts were to move to alternate voting schemes, the entire process and mechanism would have to get reconsiderd and rewritten anyway, so I don't see this as a problem. The machines will need to be replaced, the ballots entirely redesigned, and the public re-educated anyway.
As a really rough RPG analogy - if you hope to switch from D&D to WoD in the future, you don't worry about adding a D&D houserule right now as a major block. :)
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Date: 2006-11-03 08:01 pm (UTC)I think this is leaning towards "making perfect the enemy of better". Failing to be ideal is not a reason to avoid making a step in the proper direction. It isn't as if you'll get your ideal in one fell swoop, given the minimal visibility they get now, right? Wouldn't an interim, patchwork solution that moves towards increased power and visibilty be useful to you end desire?
and one that would make certain other solutions more difficult to understand / implement. (Certain alternative voting schemes that would really enhance third-party presence wouldn't work so well - or might function, but would be confusing - in concert with listing the same person on the ballot more than once.)
If Massachusetts were to move to alternate voting schemes, the entire process and mechanism would have to get reconsiderd and rewritten anyway, so I don't see this as a problem. The machines will need to be replaced, the ballots entirely redesigned, and the public re-educated anyway.
As a really rough RPG analogy - if you hope to switch from D&D to WoD in the future, you don't worry about adding a D&D houserule right now as a major block. :)