Thread:Comments:UK votes on voting/Yesterday was the national IQ test.../reply (4)

Here are all of the arguments I've heard against AV.


 * 1) People are stupid and unable to cope with having to order their preferences. (People may be stupid, but not that stupid, and if they are that stupid, they shouldn't be voting using any system.)
 * 2) It is "untested" (except in countries like Australia).
 * 3) Not many other countries use it (...not many other countries have an NHS, but that's not a reason to not have one. Not many other Western countries persist in having a monarchy, but I don't see the government wanting to get rid of the monarchy because other country's are republics.)
 * 4) It isn't "British" (seriously, that's an argument David Cameron used).
 * 5) It will cost lots of money which we could spend on hospitals or something (it won't).
 * 6) It will mean the Tories lose seats (which is bad if you are a Tory).
 * 7) It will mean the LibDems gain seats (which is bad if you don't like the LibDems).
 * 8) Winston Churchill didn't like it.
 * 9) It's not "real".
 * 10) It'll lead to more extremist politicians including the  (which is why they are against it).
 * 11) It'll lead to more moderate, middle-of-the-road politicians (rather contradicts the previous argument).
 * 12) Under AV, your vote gets counted twice (not true: in some situations, your lower preference votes get counted but only once your first preferences have been set aside).
 * 13) It'll lead to larger majorities in landslide elections such as the 1997, where Labour would have had a much bigger majority. (But that's because in 1997, Labour had majority support of the country!)
 * 14) It'll lead to smaller majorities and more hung parliaments and thus more coalitions. (Urgh, that's the opposite of the previous argument, right?)
 * 15) Rupert Murdoch doesn't like it.