heinleinblog

An Australian libertarian blogger wants to borrow from Heinlein when it comes to suffrage:

“The idea wasn’t ours, of course. It was Robert Heinlein’s in Starship Troopers. If you serve your society, you get to vote. You’re not required to serve. But if you don’t, you don’t vote. Heinlein figured that those who choose to defend the political society they come from – a free one – have a pretty good understanding of the value of freedom, having defended it against real enemies.

“Plus, Heinlein figured there were certain virtues you’d learn in military service that might make you a better voter. You’d learn that the welfare of your unit (or the polity) means not always gratifying your own desires and instincts. It’s an interesting idea, that voting requires some virtue. “

It’s just as bad here. In the United States, the government does its best to make sure that the anyone too stupid to find their way to get register on their gets signed up anyway. And then we make sure that it’s as as easy as possible for individuals who have no right to vote actually do so. Because, as you know, the number of people involved in making a decision improved the quality of the decision making. That’s why corporations get their board of directors by grabbing people randomly off the street, making sure they grab a couple of unemployed homeless losers because that makes it more diverse.