Comments like that aren't helping. I'm trying to read and understand the posts here in order to make an informed decision. I don't think that's deserving of mockery.

I've been right here trying to help, too, Elena. Just having a sense of humor about our on and on. Sorry if it bothered you.

Soooo..... Unless anyone has objections, I'll post to press at midnight with the text of the ballot question and the link the the voting page....

Implying that people need to be brainless to participate in this thread isn't particularly funny to me. So, yes, your comment did bother me. Thank you for your apology.

I've read this thread, and I still don't understand the implications of the vote.

I think I'll go to bed.

Well. It's been a fair while since I posted here. I don't have much to say, and I hope what I do have won't make anything worse.

So, look, reason I stepped out was because I was, like many people, feeling pretty upset. I felt (right or wrong) that the fact the discussion turned unpleasant was being blamed solely on the people in favour of preferential voting. I found this doubly upsetting because the main reason I was arguing for it was because I believe it to be the fairest practical method, the one closest to our previous consensus model and the one most likely to help forestall such unpleasantness in the future. Instead, I felt like I was being accused (not personally, as part of the pro-pref group) of pretty much courting or at least being insensitive to such unpleasantness. (And of being a Vulcan. I minded that less before Enterprise.)

Nothing like real life to provide some new perspective on things. So I felt I needed to give voice to the above rather than let it fester; but I also want to say that I know no one else intended any offence, and the discussion caused hurt and frayed tempers all over. I would also like to apologise for any part I played in making anyone else feel upset, uncomfortable or alienated.

Signed,

billytea (Not a Vulcan.)

Hey, billytea. I don't feel blameful towards anybody for the out-of-handness. I think our nature is to scrutinize and discuss. Inevitably perhaps, when we turned that million watt attention at our own collective navel things went kerblooey. There was a weird feedback loop, a mobius strip of some kind.

Anyway, I valued everybody who contributed in good faith - which means everybody. Because I don't think anybody came in here intent on derailing things at all. I think everybody was trying and everybody cared. Unfortunately, that seems to have made matters worse. But now this vote is up and I hope it clears matters. I hope.

Hey, billytea. I don't feel blameful towards anybody for the out-of-handness. I think our nature is to scrutinize and discuss. Inevitably perhaps, when we turned that million watt attention at our own collective navel things went kerblooey. There was a weird feedback loop, a mobius strip of some kind.

Anyway, I valued everybody who contributed in good faith - which means everybody. Because I don't think anybody came in here intent on derailing things at all. I think everybody was trying and everybody cared. Unfortunately, that seems to have made matters worse. But now this vote is up and I hope it clears matters. I hope.

Yeah. I agree.

Hell, while I'm at it:

Is it me, or did anyone immeadiately wonder how many Buffistas it takes to change a light bulb?

That's in the FAQ.

t laughing like a drain

Is that the answer in the FAQ? ("How many Buffistas...?" "Check the FAQ.") Because if not, we really should consider it.

t timid

Uh. Yeah. I have a question about the ballot.

Say there was the hypothetical lizard, who is embarrassed for two reasons, and one's that she hasn't been reading this thread faithfully for the past few days, because it's making her crazy; and the second's that she, like other people, didn't have the same definition of "simple majority" in mind that, like, John H did.

So this entirely-hypothetical lizard voted "no, I don't want a simple majority", because she doesn't want this

Choice 2 means that a choice could win even though it received only a fraction of the total votes cast. For example, if there are five choices that receive 22%, 21%, 20%, 19%, 18%, the choice that received 22% would win with no further balloting.

to be true. And she thought her no-side had lost; but, it then turned out her no-side was really the yes-side, so maybe she DID win. But whatever. She needs to vote again.

And it seems to her (but maybe she's just being an idiot) that what you're asking is how to interpret the results of the last vote. Not polling for a new vote. (You say "future votes"...? But you don't say what's going to be done to decide this specific problem of what-majority-means. So that's how this hypothetical lizard is reading it.)

So what should this lizard do? She had voted "no", before, but the "yes"es won. Ought she say Choice 1, to have her vote count for the most? Because, I mean, it kind of seems this is sort of a meta-poll. Unless our lizard is confused. As she probably is...?

Think of it as a new vote, Liz. Vote for whichever makes the most sense to you regardless of your last vote.