FPTP vs MMP

[Christopher Browne]

On 10/6/07, Chris Aitken <chris-n/jUll39koHNgV/OU4+dkA at public.gmane.org> wrote:
> So, how're you guys voting? FPTP or MMP?
>
> I live in Timmins and it seems that MMP sucks, not because we get to
> vote for the local guy and the party separately (which I like) but
> because we will lose ridings and because about 45% (!) of the seats will
> be 'list' and up to the discretion of the parties. I wonder if the South
> (what we call you up here) have set up things so that MMP will be more
> unattractive than it need be, so that the status quo (which put
> unpopular premiers like Mike Harris in power) will remain. I guess the
> gamble is that we're stupid enough to accept, "If you don't like FPTP
> then why didn't you vote MMP?" Apples and oranges - only the apple is
> organic (but run over by a car) and the orange is genetically modified
> and pesticide laden. I don't love to see my half-baked ideas in print -
> I'm trying to get some more mature perspective if there's any on this list.

Well, if you're inclined to be at all scared of any of the fringes,
then that's a disqualifying factor for MMP, whether the fear is of the
Green Party or of the Communist part or the Family Coalition or
Libertarian parties.

I'd tend to expect MMP to give fringe parties appalling amounts of
power/control, as majority governments would be replaced by a need to
build coalitions where the last little bits to head in would get power
out of proportion to their representation.  That's the sort of thing
that has happened in places like Italy and Israel...
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