Approval Voting vs Instant Runoff Voting

[Bart Ingles]

>From Merriam-Webster's:
  http://www.britannica.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?va=majority
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Main Entry: ma·jor·i·ty
 Pronunciation: m&-'jor-&-tE, -'jär-
 Function: noun
 Inflected Form(s): plural -ties
 Date: 1552
 1 obsolete : the quality or state of being greater
 2 a : the age at which full civil rights are accorded
   b : the status of one who has attained this age
 3 a : a number greater than half of a total
   b : the excess of a majority over the remainder of the total : MARGIN
   c : the preponderant quantity or share
 4 : the group or political party whose votes preponderate
 5 : the military office, rank, or commission of a major
 - majority adjective 
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[Bart:] We commonly use definition 3a, but check out 3c above.

Also, the phrase 'majority rule' seems fairly recent.  Interesting that
the authors felt that the term 'usually' was necessary:

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 Main Entry: majority rule
 Function: noun
 Date: 1893
 : a political principle providing that a majority usually constituted
by fifty percent plus one of an organized group will have the power to
make decisions binding upon the whole 
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DEMOREP1 at aol.com wrote:
> 
> Bart wrote-
> 
> Incidentally, it appears that even the definition of the word 'majority' is
> not entirely clear-cut.
> ---
> D-
> Is this the new age of math ???
> 
> 2 is a majority of 3,
> 3 is a majority of 5,
> 4 is a majority of 7,
> 5 is a majority of 9 (as in Bush v. Gore in the U.S.A. Supreme Court),
> etc.