TO THE EDITOR:
Where I think Australia and the United States differ on the issue of voting is that in Australia, voting is characterized not just as a right, but as a responsibility.
The compulsory nature of voting in all levels of election - local, state and federal - emphasizes the value of participation and the danger of apathy.
The criticism of this system in one of Tuesday's Point/Counterpoint editorials was based on the idea that compulsory voting takes away the importance of a constituent's choice to vote and undermines the very concept of democracy.
I would argue that a system that allows a national government to be elected by such a tiny proportion of the population is a system that lacks the legitimacy of a true mandate from the people - which allows apathy and political ignorance to flourish and creates a situation where what happened in Florida in 2000 can occur.
The Australian election process allows people to cast a blank ballot - but statistically, this is fairly uncommon.
Compulsory voting creates a social climate in which people take it for granted that they must become politically informed, and the importance of our democracy is premised on the involvement of every citizen over the age of 18.
Then, when we are faced with a government that makes decisions we dislike, society must collectively take responsibility for its election, rather than merely stating what I hear often in relation to Bush's election in 2000:
"I didn't even vote."
