#approval voting

[radiotheradio]

Ranked Choice Voting allows you to vote your conscience AND damage control at the same time (!!!), so please vote yes to either ranked choice or approval (does the same thing but a little worse imo) if it’s on your ballot in any way this year! While voting damage control is the wisest choice this year, we do not have to do it forever! We have the means to ACTUALLY get third party candidates elected. Please vote wisely, hold out hope a little longer, and advocate for RCV, yeah?

[magess]

Test out 4 different voting systems!

First Past the Post (current)

RCV

Approval

STAR Voting

Basically this is a demonstration of how each voting system works and what results it produces based on your ballots.

It's very neat! If you've ever thought to yourself that you wanted to be able to vote third party, this also shows which voting system makes those choices more likely to win (assuming that each voter is truthful throughout).

Candidates

Kamala Harris (Democrat)

Donald Trump (Republican)

Jill Stein (Green Party)

Chase Oliver (Libertarian Party)

Robert F Kennedy Jr (Independent)

Cornell West (Independent)

Claudia de la Cruz (Party for Socialism and Liberation)

Randall Terry (Constitution Party)

[essaressellwye]

I like IRV

I like approval voting

I like a system of my own devising which is range voting on a range of -1 to 1

However

There's only one President. No voting system will change that. We're always going to have to compromise, we're always going to have to make choices, we're always going to have to deal with the fact that every candidate is flawed in some way. Breaking out of the two-party system is an improvement, but not a panacea

[tvthetv]

I fucking hate Biden… but if I don’t vote for him we’re ALL fucked.

Anyway, please advocate for and vote yes for ranked choice style voting (or approval voting). And please vote. Please.

[jadenameless-blog]

Instant Runoff Voting is actually really bad. For an explanation of why it's worse than other popular vote reform schemes, see here: https://rangevoting.org/rangeVirv.html For a nice interactive explanation of why it's sometimes even worse than First Past the Post, along with an explanation of how we can do better, see here: https://ncase.me/ballot/ for evidence that it's failed in the real world in a way that's put people off of vote reform, see here https://legislature.vermont.gov/Documents/2024/WorkGroups/Senate%20Government%20Operations/Bills/S.32/Witness%20Documents/S.32~Robert%20Bristow-Johnson~Paper%20on%20The%20Failure%20of%20Instant%20Runoff%20Voting~2-7-2023.pdf in conclusion, please don't vote to make your voting systems even worse.

So, a comparatively high amount of states are voting on the fate of ranked choice voting this year. Missouri is voting on whether or not to kill it, Alaska is voting on whether or not to keep it, and most importantly, Nevada, Oregon and Idaho are voting on whether or not to adopt ranked choice voting, with maybe Colorado to follow.

And if you live in these states, even if you don't want to vote at the top of the ticket, I urge you to get out there and vote in favor of ranked choice voting on all of them.

Like, the two-party monopoly is a big part of the reason why politics in this country is so shit, and a big part of that is our "first past the post" system making it basically mathematically impossible for candidates outside of them to win anything beyond a local or state level.

So, if you want to try and break the cycle of voting for the lesser evil, of bipartisan cruelty towards the Global South and the country's own citizens alike, we need to change this and we need to vote on it where we can.

[tubbytarchia]

hi guys please vote GemPearl 🥺

Based on this edit

[navree]

Incorrect, the fact that Biden has dropped out and a candidate with history of supporting medicare for all and being more receptive to a ceasefire in the I/P conflict has made me go from "I cannot morally support the Democratic nominee" to "I am voting for the Democratic nominee despite the fact she isn't perfect in every respect." I'm really happy this played out. The Dems for the most part abandoned the old Obama platform and it feels like its possible an actual progressive agenda could come to pass in my lifetime.

Kamala 2024!

If you weren't going to vote Democratic in this election before Biden dropped out you're a dorkass loser who does not care about any of the issues you're yammering about here and also a fundamentally bad person, and I hope you get run over by a bus.

But you got one thing right in all of this gibberish, Kamala 2024.

[toriel-2]

"in a hitler vs mussolini election you should vote mussolini" is an absolutely insane thing to say because they were both equally abhorrent individuals, the only difference being scale. how do you in good consience not just blurt out "wow this is terrible this whole system should be dismantled"

[afewproblems]

98 for Robin?

98. "Hold me back!"

Ahhh thank you very much for this! I'm sorry it was so late nonny!

This is taking place in the same universe as this piece which you can also read on AO3

***

"I swear to God" Robin moans as she smacks her head onto the counter, "I will walk into traffic if I have to explain the plot of Labyrinth one more time". 

Steve puts the money from the recent rental into the till and shrugs, "I dunno Birdy, I liked your take on it this time". 

She snorts, finally cracking a grin, "you just liked the look on her face when I talked about how half the movie is Bowie's package and the other half is Muppets". 

"Potato, Tomato," Steve hums, closing the till with a soft snick.

For a Saturday opening shift it had been strangely slow. 

They had their usual guests during the day, screaming children with parents who were clearly at the end of their tether. Irritating teens who stole as many snacks as their thieving little backpacks could handle. Movie nerds who asked for as many titles as they could think of before settling on something so obscure there was no way they carried it -or on the off chance Family Video did have it in their inventory, it was already checked out. 

However, with half an hour until Keith was set to arrive for the closing shift, the front door bell jingled harshly to announce a new presence in the store and in an instant Robin’s stomach falls into her shoes. 

Because Tommy Hagan and Carol Perkins have just walked in. 

Robin has dealt with assholes from highschool before, she had to wear a sailor outfit with shorts for her last job for fucks sake, but she’s also never gotten into a physical fight with any schmucks from her forth period algebra class. 

Steve on the other hand…

He’s on the other side of the counter all of a sudden, standing in between her and Tommy.

His expression seems neutral, but Robin can read the line of tension in his shoulders as Carol whispers something into Tommy’s ear.

"Welcome to Family Video," Robin says, her voice clipped and stony, "it's two for one Saturday and all the sections are labeled so you should be able to get in and get out". 

"Come on, we just got here," Tommy scoffs, he's glaring openly at Steve while Carol seems to be scanning Robin, watching her carefully.

"Boy, you really do have a type huh Stevie," Carol sneers from Tommy's side, "at least this one plays an instrument, she's just as stuck up as Wheeler though from what I remember".

"If you guys don't want to rent anything, then leave," Steve says slowly, deliberately with wary hostility.

"You're suddenly so fucking tough huh?" Tommy scoffs, stepping closer towards Steve.

Carol moves with him but her eyes widen slightly in surprise, she grabs at his arm and pulls just slightly, "Tommy--"

"I'm not going to fight you man," Steve sighs, running a hand over his face and into his hair, Robin watches as his shoulders droop ever so slightly.

She knows Steve has complicated feelings about his former friends, they'd known one another for such a long time and those old feelings don't just disappear.

He'd been hurt to see Tommy and Carol gravitate towards Billy so easily. To egg him on as he bullied Steve their senior year, the tables turned so suddenly it was like whiplash.

Well, Steve may feel conflicted about his old shithead friends, but Robin has no such compunction.

"He won't but I will," Robin blurts out, the words run away from her faster than she can even catch up to them.

Steve closes his eyes, his expression pained while Tommy and Carol both turn to her with equal looks of surprise. 

Huh, it's the first time in her life she's ever seen Carol Perkins speechless and it's glorious. 

Robin lets the thrill of it carry her forward until she's stepped around the counter to stand beside Steve.

“Yeah, Steve's gonna have to hold me back,” Robin snarls as she grabs Steve’s hand and places it on her own shoulder. 

Steve gives her a withering look as he mimes pulling a zipper over his own mouth.

"You let your bitch off her leash huh Harrington?" Tommy says with a lecherous grin as he stares at them both.

He lets out two barks and laughs again as he swings an arm around Carol's shoulder, her tinkling laugh joins his own and Robin can't believe this is even happening. Did she hit her head getting out of Steve's car this morning?

Fuck this.

"Funny stuff Hagan," Robin bites out, "your ass must be pretty jealous of your mouth for all the nasty shit it gets to spew in public".

"What did you just say to me?" Tommy snarls as he stomps closer, his ears have turned a ruddy pink that matches the flush crawling up his neck.

Carol tries to reach for his arm, whispering, "just drop it Tommy, let's go," but he wrenches away from her and continues forward, only stopping as a flat palm catches him in the chest.

Steve stands his ground in front of Tommy, looking down his nose with cold eyes. 

Steve told her about the last time he and Tommy had squared off. It was just before Robin spotted Steve outside the corner store while she waited for her mother to pay for their things, the aftermath that she hadn't thought much of at the time, but now…

Steve walks forward, using his height to his advantage to tower imposingly over Tommy, his face twisted into a vicious snarl that Robin has only seen one other time, underneath Starcourt.

"Get out, I don't want to tell you again Tommy," Steve says lowly under his breath, just loud enough that Robin has to strain to hear him. 

Tommy's eyes narrow as his mouth pulls into a sneer, "and what are you gonna do about it, you're not scary Harrington," he grins despite taking a step back as Steve continues forward, pushing them towards the front door. 

"I don't have to be scary, but I do have an in with your drug dealer and I can make it impossible for you to score for as long as you live in this godforsaken shithole". 

"You're bluffing".

"Try me," Steve whispers just as the bell dings again at the front of the store. Tommy doesn't look away from Steve even as Carol exclaims a small, 'oh', beside him.

Robin smirks and leans back against the counter, raising her hand in an enthusiastic wave towards the entrance, "hey Eddie!"

Tommy curses under his breath and wrenches himself away from Steve, just in time to see the murderous expression on Eddie's face. 

Carol takes the opportunity to grab at the sleeve of Tommy's shirt and drag him the last few steps away towards the door, they give Eddie a wide berth as they pass. 

Tommy glares at Steve and Robin the entire way, muttering curses under his breath as Robin blows them a kiss with her middle finger.

The bell jingles again as the door swings open and falls gently closed, leaving them in an uneasy silence. 

"You guys okay?" Eddie says quietly after a beat, he steps towards Steve, his brow pinched with concern.

Steve nods silently before turning towards Robin. She expects a lecture from the frown on his face but blinks in surprise as Steve pulls her into a tight hug.

"Don't do that again," he mumbles into her hair, she opens her mouth to speak, to insist that she doesn't need a babysitter like his gaggle of children.

"I know it's just Tommy," Steve breathes out as though reading her mind, "but I don't think I could handle it if something happened to you Robin, I mean it". 

And all at once the fight drains out of her as Robin wonders just how she wound up with someone like Steve Harrington in her corner. 

"I wasn't going to let them talk shit," she huffs, despite pressing even closer, she feels his head shake against her own.

"I can take a hit and I'm not going to let some asshole have a chance to go after you too," he says sharply. 

Robin rolls her eyes and steps back just enough to look him in the eyes, "remember what your annoying child friend said, if you die, I die".

She shrugs at the incredulous expression on his face, "what? Smartest thing that kid has ever said". 

"You're ridiculous," Steve whispers and there's so much warm affection in his voice as he squeezes her once more, that Robin has to bury her face in his shoulder to hide the sudden shine in her eyes.

Eddie seems to take this as his cue to move forward and let his hand rest on Steve's lower back, the pinched look fading slightly as he smiles at Robin. 

"Well, my original plan was to take Stevie here, out after his shift, buuut I'm thinking the three of us are in need of a night on the town, what do you say Buckaroo?" Eddie asks with a waggles of his eyebrows and a wide grin. 

"I'll come if you never call me that again," Robin says with as much of a straight face as she can muster.

Steve barks out a laugh as he leans into Eddie's side, "oh you've done it now Buckaroo". 

Robin squawks and flaps her hands at Steve until he ducks away behind Eddie who immediately shields his face with his hands. 

"You think way too highly of me if you think that's where I'm aiming," Robin says dryly, snorting as Eddie gasps and lifts a leg for further protection, prompting them both to collapse into a fit of giggles while Steve watches fondly.

They all eventually relax, falling into an easy conversation as Steve and Robin finish up the last of the morning duties. The tension from earlier fading away as Eddie sits on the counter top, with his eyes on the door, watching out, just in case.

[tomatette]

Vote for General Ginger - Millie commands it!

[daniel-r-h]

One of the (may) reasons I dislike instant runoff is it is not compatible with National Popular Vote. You cannot aggregate state results into national the way NPV needs if you do IRV. (The other reasons I don’t like it are it not being predictable and it not having all the advantages it claims to. It is better than the current method, but it makes other improvements harder.)

We should change from plurality, but to range or approval voting, not IRV. That is easier to understand, behaves better with third parties, and can be added together in the way required by National Popular Vote.

So there's something I want to say re: intentionally withholding your vote, and I want to do it without coming across as condescending or dismissive.

I've worked as a field organizer in two campaigns, 2010 and 2012, and my job was to help turnout the vote for Democratic candidates up and down the ticket. Technology may have changed, but people are still knocking on doors for specific voters the way they were 12 years ago.

If you say you're not voting/voting 3rd party, the campaign volunteer is supposed to mark that and move on. Their job, in the final month of the election, is to make sure the campaign's supporters have all the information and resources they need to cast a vote.

They aren't collecting data on why you're withholding your vote. They aren't submitting opinion polling results to the campaign. Something like 155 million people voted in the 2020 election, and if you say you're not voting, the campaign is not going to waste a volunteer's time and morale begging you to vote when there are literally millions of other voters to turn out.

Let me repeat that: The campaign does not track why you're not voting. They simply note your vote is not a priority for turnout and move on.

I say this because I see a lot of promotion of non-voting like that's a boycott, when the function is not the same. A boycott is a coordinated mass refusal to engage with an institution—which sounds similar if you see a vote as a good or service to withhold. Unfortunately, it's not.

A vote is a choice you're making as part of a community hiring committee. Your abstention doesn't prevent someone from being hired. It just lowers the threshold for the worst candidate to succeed.

All this to say: In my direct experience as an organizer, abstaining from the vote sends a message. That message is not "You need to try harder to win my vote." It's "Don't waste time on me."

[sorryiwasasleep]

[ya-boi-haru]

Kaleidoscope made it to the finale, so here's my propaganda speech...

Kaleidoscope (or M&M) has never canonically interacted, nor is it possible for them to do so.

But that's what's so great about it, the fandom has taken one look at these two blorbos and went, "Yeah, they could be a thing" and made these beautiful headcannons and fanon things for them to be together.

Kaleidoscope lives purely off of non-canon ideas and stretched/ignored canon and in the end, isn't that what "non-canon" shipping is really about? Finding two little guys that could never be together and saying, yes they could?

What makes Kaleidoscope more impressive is that, unlike the other ships, we have no idea of their dynamics and interactions. With canon ships you can see how they interact and build off of that, Kaleidoscope is - once again - built off of the fans ideas, theories and headcannons.

Their story/trope dynamic is also hella cute. An artist who can create anything they want × A "demi-god" who can't control the colours/structures they create.

A person who is from a dull one coloured town × A God who can use any colour anywhere

Sarcastic & sassy × Kind & modest

Some fanon things that are also hella cute for them:

Communicating through colours and textures, Malitae not being mad about the Wack - and even growing to appreciate it, artist buddies, Malitae sort-of knowing Midas (post-finale) as they would remember Quixis (Mixis,), Showing each other things from their worlds...

Also their ship name is super cute!? And explosion of shapes and colours, it's literally them! And they even have a second ship name, (M&M) they're little colourful, chocolate lollies! What's not to love!?

They are super cute and deserve to be happy together

Vote Kaleidoscope!

[aspookydemon-blog]

I believe that's called approval voting, or at least that's what its been called in the videos I've seen it mentioned.

I'm surprised more people aren't mentioning it as it seems like it would be the easiest for the USA to change to from their current voting system. Ballot counting would be simpler as ballots no longer need to be rejected if multiple spots are marked. Heck, people could still vote like it's first-past-the-post if they want to. (Of course "easy & simple" solutions are rarely easy & simple to implement...)

Quick video by CGP Grey explaining it with a practical example.

If you haven't already, try to use it with your friends when deciding things.

What nobody understands about American politics is that creating a third party big enough to compete with the top two is a project that would take at least ten to twenty years, meaning it would still not be viable for decades worth of elections. It would have to be built up slowly and steadily first for all that time. Currently there are none who can get even 1% of the vote. They're jokes. Addiction parties exist only as a kind of nice gesture and tradition right now, barely getting news coverage other than novel curiosities.

In some other countries you can vote for your "preferred" choice and if they lose, your vote goes to your backup choices. Not in America. You get one vote for one guy and if they lose your vote evaporates.

Also, the electorates get the majority voting power and even if everyone in a district voted for a third party, every electorate is dedicated to voting either Republican or Democrat and will still do so.

[krakhatoa]

the mfers too stupid to use their goddamn brains and are instead blaming third party voters when Harris would NOT have won even if every single third party voter in the swing states went to her just shows how stupid you bitches be and refuse to ACKNOWLEDGE THAT A PARTY DELIBERATELY ALLOWING A FOREIGN COUNTRY TO CONTROL THEM IS THE FUCKING ISSUE THAT LEAD TO THIS LOSS

do some goddamn math with the data IN FRONT OF YOU TO SEE ITS NOT THE THIRD PARTY VOTERS BUT THE LIBS AND DEMS ALIENATION OF PPL CARING FOR HUMAN RIGHTS THAT LEAD TO THIS LOSS