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Old 01-29-2018, 07:06 AM   #17
Irish Wolf
 
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Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: Earth, mostly
Default Re: Exotic Governmental/Legal Systems

Quote:
Originally Posted by fwcain View Post
Taking a page from Robert Heinlein, this world allows the vote only to those persons who have received an Honorable Discharge from active duty of no less than [x] years (for whatever value of [x] you want). Similarly, all public offices (including the right and obligation to serve on a jury) are likewise restricted to this class of citizenship. All persons (legal residents, that is) enjoy full protection under the law, and are otherwise treated equally.

Franklin
Note that in Heinlein, "federal service" =/= "military service", and in fact it's pointed out that most people who sign up for Federal Service wind up processing paperwork in some back room or something equally unglamorous for their two-year term. The idea is simply that in order to earn full citizenship, you have to prove that you're willing to put the state's interests ahead of your own on occasion. (And most people living in the Terran Federation decline, not seeing the point in putting themselves out for such "fripperies" as voting or holding elective office.)

Continuing in theme:

- Elective constitutional monarchy: The royal family is elected. Any children are brought up to take the reins if necessary; however, when the current monarch dies, there is an election for the new royal family. The incumbent, who holds the throne while the election is organized and held, has an edge in the election, of course, as with any electoral system.

- Direct democracy. Issues are discussed in a nation- (or, one could suppose, planet-)wide information network, similar to our Internet; when decisions are made, all citizens are expected to vote on them, with strong social pressure to do so and to effectively ostracize those who feel it's too much to bother with.

Oh, and speaking of Heinlein:

- A bicameral elected legislature. One house passes laws, with a 2/3 majority needed for any decision; meanwhile, the other house is only permitted to consider removing laws, with a 1/3 minority needed. (The idea being that if you can't get 2/3 of the legislature behind an idea, it's probably a bad one, and if a law bothers a full third of the people, maybe it needs to go.)
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