American Voter Registration

[Admiral Yi]

Again. I am not suggesting a federal list. I'm suggesting that any interaction with the government at any level will get you registered. Apply to your local council for a building permit for a new garage? Get registered to vote. Apply for a job at the FBI? Get registered to vote.

My interactions with the government are pretty much limited to filing a tax return and renewing my drivers' license every 10 years.

[Grinning_Colossus]

Gerrymandering would be if they made a district just for poor people without state IDs and college students who forgot to re-register when they moved out of the dorms. This is just voter suppression.

[garbon]

I don't understand these poor people without State IDs of some sort. How do they acquire alcohol?

[Viking]

I don't understand these poor people without State IDs of some sort. How do they acquire alcohol?

2nd amendment remedies. An armed society is a polite society and a polite society doesn't need to ask for proof of age when selling alcohol.

[Razgovory]

It may be worth pointing out that elections are basically state and local, with federal elections piggybacking those. For example, there is no federal right to vote for president, it is just that each of the 50 states decided that letting people vote is a good idea. Within constitutional limits, states have discretion on who can vote and what evidence voters need to provide to establish they are eligibile. So a federal system of registration isn't so feasible.

Again. I am not suggesting a federal list. I'm suggesting that any interaction with the government at any level will get you registered. Apply to your local council for a building permit for a new garage? Get registered to vote. Apply for a job at the FBI? Get registered to vote.

Why would applying for the FBI do anything?  That's a federal agency.  In fact, the first letter in FBI stands for "Federal".   So it would only go on a federal list.  What if you are applying to build multiple garages all over the country?  You can pay income tax and property tax in more then one state you know.  You seem to be suggesting that every interaction with the government should get you registered to vote, but that is needlessly complicated.  I may pay property tax in Missouri pay an Income tax for Illinois and pay a speedy ticket in Indiana all in one year. 

A system that works in Iceland or Norway may not work in the US, Viking.  Since the US is much bigger and has a larger population then either of those countries.

[Grinning_Colossus]

  How did you get your booze before you were 21?

[grumbler]

Here they use information like that to figure out how to set budgets for hospitals, schools, location of booze monopolies, roads and other infrastructure projects.

We have a census for that.  The census is held to be more reliable, because it accounts for people who don't register to vote/file change of address forms.

[garbon]

How did you get your booze before you were 21?

I had friends buy it for me?

[Viking]

It may be worth pointing out that elections are basically state and local, with federal elections piggybacking those. For example, there is no federal right to vote for president, it is just that each of the 50 states decided that letting people vote is a good idea. Within constitutional limits, states have discretion on who can vote and what evidence voters need to provide to establish they are eligibile. So a federal system of registration isn't so feasible.

Again. I am not suggesting a federal list. I'm suggesting that any interaction with the government at any level will get you registered. Apply to your local council for a building permit for a new garage? Get registered to vote. Apply for a job at the FBI? Get registered to vote.

Why would applying for the FBI do anything?  That's a federal agency.  In fact, the first letter in FBI stands for "Federal".   So it would only go on a federal list.  What if you are applying to build multiple garages all over the country?  You can pay income tax and property tax in more then one state you know.  You seem to be suggesting that every interaction with the government should get you registered to vote, but that is needlessly complicated.  I may pay property tax in Missouri pay an Income tax for Illinois and pay a speedy ticket in Indiana all in one year. 

A system that works in Iceland or Norway may not work in the US, Viking.  Since the US is much bigger and has a larger population then either of those countries.

You still don't understand what I am saying. I'm saying registration should be automatic and all information at all levels gained by the government should be used to register people who could have registered. The system in Norway is one where there is a central database of all legal residents in the country. This database is shared by all government departments. In Iceland it is actually (much to my horror) shared with private companies. The US does not have such a system and I supposed there would be substantial resistance since americans are obviously unwilling to trust the government with their place of residence while they are happy to trust the government with their hard earned tax dollars. I'd just suggest that rather than establishing a database for registration making every interaction defaulting to including registration. Motor Voter for all government departments at all levels of government.

[Razgovory]

I'm understanding what you are saying, but I'm saying it won't work here.  You are going to get conflicting information about a person's location.  I don't think people are "happy" to have the government spend their tax money.

A central database will have to be a federal list, who else would run it?  The US isn't a centralized state in the way Norway or France is.  What you are suggesting won't work.

[Admiral Yi]

Most importantly Viking, I think you are vastly overestimating the effort required to register.

If we followed your advice we would spend billions on a database so that three extra people vote.

[Viking]

I'm understanding what you are saying, but I'm saying it won't work here.  You are going to get conflicting information about a person's location.  I don't think people are "happy" to have the government spend their tax money.

A central database will have to be a federal list, who else would run it?  The US isn't a centralized state in the way Norway or France is.  What you are suggesting won't work.

Sometimes I wonder if you do anything more than skimread me. Norway has a centralized database, I did not suggest the US get one. I also said that

The US does not have such a system and I supposed there would be substantial resistance

I suggested that any interaction with local, state or federal agencies includes a registration to vote. Add checkboxes for "Are you a US citizen" and "Check this box if you do not want to be registered to vote" and there you go. If you tick the right boxes applying for a license to handle explosives gets you registered to vote if you aren't already.

[Razgovory]

Most importantly Viking, I think you are vastly overestimating the effort required to register.

If we followed your advice we would spend billions on a database so that three extra people vote.

I'd be annoyed if the database got me confused with someone else and I found that my polling place was somewhere in Idaho.  Best Buy once thought I was a return customer because someone in Watertown Wisconsin had the same first and last name as me and their database screwed it up.  Much easier to go down to the courthouse, or city hall or where ever and register to vote.

[Razgovory]

I'm understanding what you are saying, but I'm saying it won't work here.  You are going to get conflicting information about a person's location.  I don't think people are "happy" to have the government spend their tax money.

A central database will have to be a federal list, who else would run it?  The US isn't a centralized state in the way Norway or France is.  What you are suggesting won't work.

Sometimes I wonder if you do anything more than skimread me. Norway has a centralized database, I did not suggest the US get one. I also said that

The US does not have such a system and I supposed there would be substantial resistance

I suggested that any interaction with local, state or federal agencies includes a registration to vote. Add checkboxes for "Are you a US citizen" and "Check this box if you do not want to be registered to vote" and there you go. If you tick the right boxes applying for a license to handle explosives gets you registered to vote if you aren't already.

The problem is deeper then simply not having a database.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unitary_state
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federation

Your system requires a national database since I may get a license to handle explosives in Indiana and live in Ohio.  I would be able to vote in two places unless there was a national database.

[Viking]

Your system requires a national database since I may get a license to handle explosives in Indiana and live in Ohio.  I would be able to vote in two places unless there was a national database.

Any problem my system might have is one the present one has as well as you might wish to register in two places. I suggest that the "Place of Residence:" bit on the application to blow shit up in Indiana would preclude precisely that problem, unless in case of fraud, which the present system is equally good at resolving.