Sally Redux

We are not Scottish , but my brother is heavily involved with socialist politics. His organisation seems to be mad keen on an independent Scotland as a socialist enclave. He is spitting nails at the moment and saying people were duped. Coincidentally, the story is also that the country needs food banks to survive and is crushed under the heel of the bedroom tax.

Hotscot

Sally Redux

robin1234

I'd be willing to bet if there was a larger turnout at the elections for the Scottish Parliament, they will no longer be in power. 50% voted in the most recent Scottish Parliamentary elections, 63% voted in the most recent (Scottish) UK Parliament elections.

dunroving

You've lost me. Looks like you simply changed my edit back to the incorrect mathematical statement in the original post. 2 can't be less than AND greater than 3.

Pulaski

There is no inequality ("=" with a "/" through it) sign on a computer keyboard, so "<>" is used as "not equal to". Anyhow, Hotscot's point was one of grammar not maths or programming.

RoadWarriorFromLP

That's a fair point, and one that I hadn't considered. Without defining what a "citizen" is, this could be quite unfair.

Still, it strikes me as an outsider with no skin in this particular game that some of these voting parameters were an attempt to skew the vote in favor of yes. The teen voting appears to me to be particularly manipulative.

And is this correct that non-citizen residents were also permitted to vote? One of the reasons to limit voting to citizens is that the non-citizens have less commitment and less to lose from a bad decision. (Yes, I realize that this isn't a black-and-white issue, but it seems odd that someone with minimal and transitory attachments to a place would be provided with the opportunity to vote.)

Giantaxe

American citizens also have to pay US taxes on their worldwide income even if they don't live in the US. So denying their expats a vote would be "taxation without representation".

Hotscot

Like non-citizen residents.

Giantaxe

Everyone has a choice not to be a non-citizen resident, something which is a privilege not a right anyway.

Hotscot

Not all visas are immigrant visas.

Steerpike

Not sure how widespread the notation is, but "<>" is the symbol I've always known for 'not equal to'. Other forms from a standard keyboard are != and possibly /=, but <> is what I've always used.

While 2 is certainly < than 3, my point was that 2 is not 3 ...

Perhaps .NE. would be another choice...

Steerpike

I never thought if it quite this way before ...

That would really sort the men from the boys, wouldn't it - if you want to have a say in the country's future, pay taxes to the country! The US system of citizens being required to pay lifetime taxes on income earned no matter where you live really does make you 'earn' your right to vote, and gives you an incentive to give up citizenship (and therefore the right to vote) if you leave a country with no intent to return.

I don't pay UK taxes, and have no expectation of being allowed to vote in any election there - why would I be allowed to (am I allowed?! - I have no clue).

Sally Redux

Maggie brought in voting for expats, to get the votes of the Tories who had decamped to Spain. I think it's only for a certain number of years (15?) and rather difficult from the US.

scot47

In UK - 10 years as an expat and then you are off the electoral register.