Path: utzoo!dciem!kevin
From: kevin@dciem.dciem.dnd.ca (Wallace B. Wallace)
Newsgroups: ont.general
Subject: Re: Highway Driving Rules
Message-ID: <1709@dciem.dciem.dnd.ca>
Date: 8 May 89 13:06:40 GMT
References: <1673@dciem.dciem.dnd.ca> <2477@gandalf.UUCP>
Reply-To: kevin@dretor.dciem.dnd.ca (Wallace B. Wallace)
Distribution: ont
Organization: D.C.I.E.M., Toronto, Canada
Lines: 33

In article <2477@gandalf.UUCP> alayne@gandalf.UUCP (Alayne McGregor) writes:
>
>To me, instant voting is synonymous with instant thinking -- in other words,
>
You've got me on this one.  The big problem is how to get people to vote
*responsibly*.  If I were asked for an instant decision knowing all of the
facts in the situation I feel quite confident that the decision would be
correct due to the workings of the subconscious mind.  If, however, I
were asked for a decision on an issue I knew nothing about I might as well
pull out a coin for just as accurate a reply.  Some people do not even
realize this!  (The old ego trips in when a pollster asks a question which
you know nothing about.  Can't let him know you don't know everything.)

>Certainly, people should be involved if they're interested in an issue.
>But an uninterested person produces a worthless (to me) vote. Why bother?
>
>Alayne McGregor

This is really what I am advocating too.  But, there are many issues that I
would be interested in if I *knew* about them.  On reflection, instant
*voting* would be a disaster, but having a list of issues available on
which one could express an opinion is a more sane solution.  Lines of
communication to find out these things exist, but only if (1) You know
exactly how to use them and (2) You have the time to monitor them for
issues of interest to you.  (1) is not difficult, but (2) is almost
insurmountable.  If a list of issues were made available in an easily
monitored source (such as a newspaper, or "your own personal information
centre") then (2) could be eliminated.

To put this in your situation, how many more cyclists do you think are out
there who would support your issues if they only knew about it?

--- Kevin Picott       NTT Systems Inc.