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

[Rob Lanphier]

Donald,

You are an idiot.

Love,
Rob

On Mon, 19 Feb 2001, I Like Irving wrote:

> Date: Mon, 19 Feb 2001 07:16:38 -0500
> From: I Like Irving <donald at mich.com>
> Reply-To: election-methods-list at eskimo.com
> To: "[EM]" <election-methods-list at eskimo.com>
> Subject: [EM] Mike-O to be on `America's Funniest Home Videos'
> Resent-Date: Mon, 19 Feb 2001 04:16:45 -0800
> Resent-From: election-methods-list at eskimo.com
> 
> - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 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
> 
>