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I've asked a few people this question now, and I was surprised to find each one saying "No". Those I've asked would not be willing to give up their right to vote, even if it meant they would never have to pay taxes again. I'm interested to hear from others on how they would approach this question, and perhaps change the parameters to see where people would draw the line, and ultimately what is their vote worth to them.

The common complaint I hear is that people feel like their vote doesn't matter, so it would be interesting if those same people would not be willing to give up this thing that does not matter, in exchange for a potentially large amount of money that they get to keep each year. What I also find interesting about this idea, is that it would be the first steps towards an anarchist society; people opting out of the system by keeping the money that would go into it, but at the same time they no longer have a say about how the system would operate.

What prompted me to ask this question was the argument that people make about women's right to vote, and how not having that right was once justified because women could also not be drafted into the military. So if it is implied that having the right to vote comes with its costs, should we grant people the right to opt out of voting and save on whatever cost comes with it? Especially if people don't feel like their vote means much?

Me personally, I would not give up my right to vote only because of the precedence that would be set if this was offered to everyone. The more people who opt out, the more valuable my vote suddenly becomes, and so I would stay in because of that. But if it was offered to only me, I would absolutely make that trade, happily never vote again and put that would-be tax money to much better use.

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