I wish that every American who cast a ballot had read this first:
"I argue that while citizens have not duty to vote, if they do vote, they must vote well—on the basis of sound moral and empirical beliefs in order to promote the common good—or otherwise they are morally obligated to abstain. Though individual votes make no significant difference to political outcomes, bad voting violates either a duty not to participate in collectively harmful activities or a duty not to participate in collective activities that impose undue risk upon innocent people.
Voters should vote for the common interest rather than for narrow self-interest. Federalism and democracy do not lead self-interested votes to promote the common good, as if by an invisible-hand of politics. Institutions and policies should be publicly justifiable. For it to be legitimate to enforce compliance with the rules of a modern democracy, everyone subject to coercion should have a stake in those rules. The rules should benefit the overwhelming majority of people without exploiting anyone. Democratic voting should be a positive sum game, and when it is, voters have an obligation to keep it that way."
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