What an heavily unjust, unfair, totally unbalanced voting system preferential voting is here - Australia, the only country which wallows around in this murk of unfairness and final voting results gross innjstices.
The Federal Senate vote too - totally out of whack! e.g. Ricky Muir - got about 1% of the vote - yet he, allegedly totally inept and useless - wins a Senate Seat - and a HUGE salary - and lifetime perks - for keeping a seat warm, in cushy Sentate luxury - Jaquie Lambie, too - allegedly the same lack of talent - these people drift in to attempt hugely responsible jobs, on huge salaries - what for - no company would ever have employed them - but they score this immense and unjust personal advantage - on a miniscule handful of votes.. AND others, too. Yet they now delight in "Lording" it over very highly regarded and seasoned politicians - who wom their seats the hard way - intent on (just and only) causing uproar, dissension, and, allegedly, setting out deliberately, in their combined efforts in blackmailing the PM, stopping, blocking, working in (allegedly) with Shorten, and the Greens (who are just more FAR Leftist Labor in disguise, anyway) - yes, I contend, a Greens an unofficial arm of the Labor Party. Greens should be made to formally declare themselves so - form a Coalition! (Should we ever forget the spectre of the farce of the so-called Gillard/Brown "marriage?")
Take the Victorian State election, Seat of Prahran, just now announced as very narrowly won by one Sam Hibbins, Greens, AFTER second preference distributions - by ONLY 277 votes. He then ousts an extremely popular Liberal candidate in Clem Newton-Brown - out of the seat. People are flabbergasted!
BUT:- here is what actually happened -
First Preference (first pas the post) result:
Liberal Clem Newton-Brown 16,582 votes = 44.8%
Greens Sam Hibbins 9,160 votes = 24.80%
After second preferences result - Hibbins wins?????????? IS this fair - just?
Greens 18,640 votes ???? (Huh??)
Liberal 18,363 votes ???? (Huh????????)
Greens then decladred winners - by 277 votes???????????????????????? Huh???????????????????????????????????????????)
Huge uproar in Melbourne about this totally skewed result. (Where Greens helped Labor - and Labor helped Greens - via second preferences.)
There were, I assessed, just after election day, around 14 seats were won well by Liberals on first past the post basis went to Labor in the Victorian State election ONLY after second preference distributions - by virtue of this stupid second preference system.
These 14 seats, (final result may have cut back this number slightly) if they'd gone to the Liberals (as they would have elsewhere in the world - all first past the post systems - good enough for them) - would have totally changed the final outcome, and then the Liberal/National Coalition Government would still be in power in Victoria.
This stupid, unfair (and outdated crazy system, first dreampt up and brought in here in Australia in around 1918 - is surely in need of urgent re-vamping. Some States, I believe, at least offer non-mandatory first preference voting in their lower house seats. Where one "I" against one name will suffice. This system, at least, should be brought in nationally, ASAP. As someone said this am on radio - why should we be forced to give ANY vote, at all - (even last on list) to some candidate we either don't know, or whom we loathe or detest - and would never vote for, conscience wise - unless forced to do so - as we are now, if our vote is to be deemed valid!
Only an Act of Parliament could change this crazy unfair system. And of course, WHO will vehemently oppose it! One guess! Why, the Labor/Greens fraternity - that's who - as they win elections, now - unjustly - with less first preference votes - knowing that via the present scheme in place - they can gallop up - jockeys helping each other stymie the lead rider - be only SECOND past the post, yet end up being declared the winner of the race. How is THIS tolerable - let alone just?
Why don't the "race stewards" call this race result null and void? Penalise the colluding jockeys. (Colluding - because they will never agree to change this cosy and beneficial status quo).
For this is the exact same as fixing any horse race. Liberals get very few second preferences. Ever. SO we see this injustice - time and time again. Over the decades. Big high blue columns on assessing computers - election night - next time we look - big blue winning columns suddenly overtaken, and beaten, by red ones. WHY??
Shorten and Milne would never agree to change this farce/tragedy. ABsolutely NO way. Nor would totally undeserving Senators - who can't believe their luck - now enjoying huge salary largesse - being treated like royalty - on a handful of votes? Somethin's dratstically wrong. How can they claim they are representing ANYONE?
With any credibility. Ricky Muir for instance - what =- a handful of car enthusiasts - then dictating to an elected Government as to run this country. A Government to whom the voting public handed a giant madate to fix things! Then these people have the gall to stop and block - thereby helping destroy this country - and any prospects we hope for - that of the LNP we voted in convincingly attaining any hope of effecting meaningful fiscal recovery from six years of Labor recklessness, self-promotion, and gross out of control over-borrowing and mismanagement?
Do Ricky Muir, Jacquie Lambie and various others there on a few votes and mountainous incomes they don't earn, let alone deserve - have ANY personal conscience at ALL?
Know what they are actually doing - to all of US out here? How can they sleep at night.
And we, the punters, are the ones suffering, and being taken for fools, as a result.
We're all victims, then, of some ancient and now outdated outmoded "new" law whim - via some official early past century "fuddy duddys" - pontificating - and bringing this in - to suit whatever the issues were, then, which, now, are not relevant - all this decided for us - back in 1918?
Changes are usually necessary, and wrought, for the better, with the passage of time, and changed circumstance. This is 2014 - NOT 1918! Why do we have to stick with, and endure - this archaic electoral injustice? What - lefties say - keep it? Yes, of course they would - just to keep Labor and the Greens gaining power - on lesser votes?
Repeat - all other Western Voting Systems are held on first past the post basis. Except US!
Wake up Australia. WHY the hell are Aussies SO nonchalant? They say we get the governments we deserve. Well, no, we would get the REAL winners - if this electoral system was fair. And is not. Totally is not. (Lefties will never agree - because it gets them back "in"!.
How about this isssue being a referendum item - at the next Federal election. "Out with Preferential Voting!" At least give the people the right to decide - and NOT politicians!
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