To think you should have to demonstrate a basic understanding of the facts before being allowed to vote

[Bearbehind]

Ok, I appreciate this is purely hypothetical is it could never be enforced but, it does astound me when a proportion of the electorate, albeit hopefully small, are so clueless they come out with comments like I've seen this morning which included:-

-Looking forward to doing some online shopping for items from the USA as they'd be cheaper now the pound has dropped

-Being surprised that the markets have fallen following the vote to leave and not realising their vote would have that effect

-Thinking this decision might pave the way for Norway to hold a referendum to leave the EU too

It's bad enough we all have to filter through the outright lies, like the money saved on the EU which would go straight to the NHS, and the scarcity of facts but people making decisions when their basic understanding is so poor is downright scary.

mummymeister I dont think it's too much to expect people to demonstrate a basic understanding of the facts of the situation of the facts they are voting on

To whom should they demonstrate this Bearbehind? You? A panel?

And what is your definition of Truly did not have a clue?

Honestly I just cannot engage with someone who is so stunningly ignorant about the risks that such a policy would pose.

YABVU

YANBU. You wouldn't be able to consent to a medical procedure that you didn't understand so why are politicians allowed to lie and manipulate people into voting for them? I reckon an independent summary of the arguments plus some comprehension questions should do it. And sanctions for politicians who tell outright lies. People would then actually do proper research before voting. I don't believe for a second that the majority of the country want Boris as PM, Scotland to leave us and the resultant years of Tory rule. And that's what's now going to happen because a lot of people didn't understand the full implications of their vote.

So if someone proves they have an excellent understanding of the situation, but their stance is still different to yours, they should not be allowed to vote, because their understanding isn't as good as all that, otherwise they'd disagree with you. Yes?

Not at all. I was unsure how to vote and made a decision based on what I knew about the situation and what was important to me. I respect others that did the same even if they voted the opposite way.

For God sake GET OVER IT how many more threads on this

I did say I knew it was hypothetical but the principle still intrigues me.

I think you might need to go back to the Victorian times.

Bad bad attitude

Bearbehind - you have absolutely no respect for people that didn't vote the way you did otherwise you wouldn't have started a thread like this.

So if someone proves they have an excellent understanding of the situation, but their stance is still different to yours, they should not be allowed to vote, because their understanding isn't as good as all that, otherwise they'd disagree with you

I would have respect for anyone who had voted based on facts and understanding. I would accept defeat, no problem.

However, it is awful to witness how people actually voted, and how on the BBC referendum results last night, so many reporters kept repeating that the lead voters simply wanted to 'kick the establishment'.

Is hating Cameron a reason to exit? Is wanting to kick the 'elite' a great reason?

I think that's what the OP meant. That you should really know why you're voting, not just to get your own back at Cameron.

Haha YANBU. The amount of people that have no concept of what their vote meant is pretty astounding. I don't care which way anyone voted as long as they truly thought about the reasons why and didn't just churn out a load of racist rubbish.

People vote because of the situations they are in, because of what they see and how their lives are. It shapes their point of view

My point of view is not the same as yours, it doesn't make either right.

leave not lead!

Perhaps if both the leave and remain camps didn't start up a stupid slanging match and scaremongering things would be different. All I wanted was some cold hard facts. I wanted to know what would happen. Not what could happen. I tried hard to engage in conversation and research before yesterday. The problem with asking someone why should we stay or go is that they are also going to have their own opinion so you'll always end up getting an biased explanation or interpretation of the "facts". We needed someone impartial to lay it all out. How can anyone make an informed decision when nobody could have truly 100% predicted what would happen either way. We still don't know what's going to happen.

Bloody hell, makes my blood run cold. What next, stop the less intelligent having kids? Keep them away from the more intelligent in society just in case the mutts breed with the pedigrees?

Yanbu - vote how you like, but make sure you know the facts and implications first - shame it can never be implemented

I don't know why anyone would want to vote on something so huge without understanding it, it's crazy. But I think it was too easy for people to get caught up in the whirlwind created by politicians rather than choose based on careful consideration.

It is up to individuals to take responsibility for their own understanding but I really feel that politicians and the media could have handled this better. Instead of presenting real facts and setting the issues out clearly and in a calm manner so people could have real understanding, it became a typical political battle. Lies, scaremongering and pure guesswork took over. It just became this messy, dramatic situation with people believing things they now know to be untrue. Of course you can't stop politicians being politicians but somebody should have grabbed control of this and risen above it.

There was not enough accurate and balanced discussion widely available and it wasn't that easy to find factual information amongst the madness.

I agree that all voters should be made to pass a basic comprehension test before being allowed to vote on any issue. The number of local elections in my life where I've just turned up and vaguely voted for whoever was the right party is embarrassing.

This vote was more important than most, so the onus to do research beforehand was amplified IMO.

I don't think any of us were really educated when it came to this referendum.

Yanbu.

Wah wah wah all these stupid uneducated people ruining it for the bright few, for fucks sake, get over yourself.

you don't get to decide who is intelligent enough to count - in a democracy, everyone counts.

Good grief OP admitted right at the outset that of course there is no way this could be implemented. S/he is (rightly so) upset at many of the reasons given by voters. Many of which demonstrate a complete lack of understanding of the EU, the British government and the voting process.

Of course there couldn't and shouldn't be a test of any sort, but as voters we should be far more informed. Politics should form part of the curriculum and many people should stop priding themselves on knowing nothing.

You've got it back to front. Everyone should have an equal vote...

But, you should be a politician because you have principles and passion and are able to answer direct questions with evidence based answers which you can communicate clearly to the whole electorate.

The whole thing has been smoke/mirrors/lies/bluster. Really pisses me off.

There is a difference between being educated and being informed on one point in particular. I, for example, have been through higher education and out the other side. I still had to go and seek out info on the referendum though, and I am absolutely confident that there are people out there with fewer qualifications than I have who are far, far, FAR more informed than me on the political minutiae. It's not right that their vote has the same influence as my less-informed one, IMO. This is only exacerbated when you compare a thoughtful, carefully considered vote with a 'THIS will show that other party!' knee-jerk vote.

The system sucks but it's the best one we have until they allow a brief quiz at the Polling station door to ensure you've done the reading

I've said, it's nothing to do with intelligence, it's simply to do with understanding what you are voting on- is that really more than we should expect?

I agree it has been very difficult to get facts and information about this referendum though but i can't get my head around the assertion that it is ok to vote on something you have no understanding on at all and base your decision solely on getting your own back for Eurovision or maintaining access to cheap fags and booze or something equally spurious or misinformed.