[EM] Mike-O to be on `America's Funniest Home Videos'

[I Like Irving]

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 02/19/01
Dear Mike Ossipoff, you wrote:

"In Approval, people will vote only for their favorite if they think
they don't need their 2nd choice,..."

Don: This is correct Mike, you are starting to see the light.

Mike: "...because their favorite has a win."

Don: That is one reason, but even the voters of the first runner-up do not
need to make a second choice.

Mike: "Actually many who now voted only for Nader, because that was the
only way to express support for him, would vote for Nader & Gore in
Approval."

Don: Correct again, but only because Nader is far behind the two leading
candidates, Bush and Gore. If Nader was a front runner, his supporters
would only vote for him, why should they help Gore to defeat their
favorite?

Mike: "So fewer, not more, people would vote only for their favorite."

Don: Correct, if you are comparing to Plurality.

Mike: "IRVies always claim that everyone will suddenly start voting
       only for their favorite. Regrettably, that won't happen."

Don: Oh Mike, you were doing so good at being correct, and now you have
fallen down. You are in error on this one, Mike.  With Irving, you will be
able to vote your favorite as your first choice, but not everyone will vote
only for their favorite. The voters of the lower candidates will be making
additional choices. This will also be true if the method is Approval or
Condorcet.
     Why do you say `regrettably'?  If everyone does only vote for their
favorite, that means the method, any method, reduces down to Plurality.
Regrettably is the wrong word, `fortunately' is a better word to use.

Mike: "The irony is that IRV is the method that only gives you one vote,.."

Don: That is the policy of a democratic election, one person - one vote.
Where have you been?

Mike: "..and if it isn't on your compromise when s/he needs it, then your
last choice wins."

Don: If your compromise is the lowest candidate, then of course he is
eliminated. And, if your last choice happens to become the winner, then of
course your last choice wins. You seem to have a lack of understanding on
how these election methods work.

Mike: "Approval is the method with which no one ever has any incentive to
dump their favorite by voting someone else over him."

Don: This remark of yours shows that you do not have an understanding of
how these election methods work. In Approval Voting it makes no difference
which candidate you vote over some other candidate. All choices get assign
one vote each and the tallyman will count them all equally and at the same
time.

Mike: "IRVies say you can safely rank your favorite 1st. They forget to
mention that that's only true if your favorite is a sure loser."

Don: You are wrong again Mike. You seem to fall down alot, maybe you should
consider buying a `Walker". Your problem is that you are always picking
sure losers as your favorite. You have a negative viewpoint. Look at the
election from the position of all the voters whose favorite is a sure
winner, or at least a possible winner. Those people can safely rank their
favorite as their first choice, so what you are saying is not true. The
truth is, anyone can safely rank their favorite as their first choice. You
are merely putting misinformation (shit) into the discussions.

Mike: "Approval is like a simple, reliable, solid hand-tool, such as a
paintbrush. IRV is like a cheap automatic paint-sprayer, which, every so
often, will empty half of its paint-tank into your face, on your clothes,
and the drapes, ceiling & carpet, when it starts spraying paint in every
direction."

Don: Sounds like you are writing from personal experience. That must have
been a sight to see. You, Mike-O, fighting with your Cheap-O paint-spraying
equiptment, and you losing.
     If you ever get your nerve up to try painting again, please set up a
video camera first, but not too close to the action.  And, this time use a
new paint with a bit more color than your tenement tan, after all your
fight match is going to be on TV, so, show the people some color, some
class. You might try wearing some colorful clothing.
    Send the video tape to `America's Funniest Home Videos' or Real TV.
    For the clean-up, you can use your beloved Approval Voting to vacuum up
the excess paint. Yes, that's true, I read that on this list. David said
Approval Voting `Sucks'.

     Anything that you say about any election method must be taken with a
grain of salt. You have an agenda, and this agenda is to promote any method
that will elect some loser like Nader. Approval Voting is the best method
for your agenda, for if the people foolishly mark Nader after marking their
favorite, Nader could possibily end up with the most votes, and that is the
light that you see at the end of your dark and dirty tunnel. Your hope is
that if the people have more than one choice in their hot hands that most
of them will carelessly give a supposed lower choice to Nader, which will
result in giving Nader more votes than any other candidate - when using
Approval.
     The election of Nader depends on the stupidity of the voters. This is
what I regard as being elected thru the back door. These voters would not
elect Nader otherwise. Most of the Nader voters will be thinking that Nader
is their second or lower choice, but you and I know that any lower choice
for Nader is as good as a first choice for Nader, you're a con man Mike.
You want your loser candidate to win even if it takes dishonesty to make it
happen.
    All the people need to know that anything is suspect that you say about
any election method.

     Have fun painting, and I'll be looking to see you on `America's
Funniest Home Videos' or Real TV.  That'll be the only way you are going to
get your fifteen minutes of fame.

Don