People should be thinking,
ttbn,
The unions would challenge any Department that encourages that, particularly education !

Dear Ttbn,

«No voting should be compulsory. The preferential system is a protection racket for the major parties. While people should vote for their own sakes, compulsory voting is simply undemocratic.»

I agree 200%.

Now what I mentioned is, that short of that and besides that, at least one should be able to mark only as many boxes as they want on their ballot paper, leaving the rest of the boxes blank and still have their vote valid. This way one is not forced into the moral dilemma of effectively having to choose, support and vote in one of the evil major parties.

«It is Australian politicians who are all the same: incompetent, self-serving and totally useless; full of wind and slogans.»

Indeed, not only the Australian.

compulsory voting is simply undemocratic.
ttbn & Yuyutsu,
In that case, those non-voters would then be excluded from participating in the benefits of a voting society ? Sounds fair !

Dear Indyvidual,

There are those who are not interested in being represented.
There are those who do not want to put in the effort to study who is who in politics and what policies they propose.
At present, their compulsory and most often random vote dilutes the votes of those for whom representation really matters.

On the other hand, there are those for whom election results really matter because they determine the laws under which they will have to live, for whom it could even be a matter of life and death: without compulsory voting, their votes will be relatively more effective.

Anyone with no big issues that could be life-changing for them, who is happy-go-lucky and could live with either party, ought to voluntarily sacrifice their vote in favour of those for whom it really matters!

There are those who are not interested in being represented.
Yuyutsu,
Yes but they expect the rest of us to be interested in representing them when the wheels go wobbly !
As I keep stating , we need symbiosis not parasitism. What you believe the rights of Democracy to be includes the right to show responsibility !

Dear Indyvidual,

What I omitted in my previous post is that whether or not we are interested in being represented, the Australian electoral system prevents it, making representation a mere joke. Some still enjoy the illusion of being represented while others do not wish to waste their time on illusions.

Given that we are not actually represented, that our views and aspirations do not matter anyway (at the political level), what "responsibility" remains?