College graduates only please?

Yes.. that was the original idea behind democracies..

No. There are people such as myself with a high level of academic education, but i live in a small, liberal ghetto rather protected from the vagaries of real life. There are other people out there who can actually do practical things well like dig up roads, build houses and do the plumbing, who have a closer connection to what is really happening socially in the world and who have not overthought everything. If i was washed up on a desert island, my two degrees in Philosophy and other qualifications in herbalism and psychology might give me some limited help in surviving, but other people would be able to build a hut, provide themselves with food by going fishing and a whole host of other practical things. Those people should most definitely have the vote, and if anything are more entitled to it than i, in my ivory tower, am, because they have a grasp on reality, work hard and are more exposed to the practical results of a fluctuating economy and the like.

(Visual: I am bowing to your highness, and requesting permission to speak, your grace...)

Well look what liberal colleges are turning out now. Oligarchy by intellectual genocide. Well at least you come right out with it. And you are no hypocrite ... you not only are repulsed by uneducated voters, you don't want answers on a silly internet site that aren't from college graduates either. And I would bet that you further have disdain for conservative speech, including religion - in particular. You would not only like to limit liberty to college educated, but eventually - only the voices of liberals will be acknowledged in your perfect world.

You don't like the freedom of 'fundies and atheys' do you? Our opinion is a fly in your ointment, is it? We should know our place, and our place is behind you. Isn't this right?

Liberalism is a mental disorder. You are symptomatic of every ethical deficit a person can have. Your very high opinion of yourself is Hitlerisque. You are a supremacist with fantasies of genocide by oppression and elitism. Very very sick puppy.

Full disclosure: I have no college degree, no STD, no addictions and a very very worn bible. You hate that, dont ya.

No. The point of free elections is for the majority to determine national policy and leaders. A qualifying test would result in a form of social repression. What would the qualifiers be? Intelligence? Intelligence does not determine opinion, as there are plenty of people whose IQ's are in the same range as mine that I do not agree with on political issues. Opinions then? Then we have the same problems as the former Soviet Union, with people who carry the wrong opinions being stripped of social freedoms.

If freedom is conditional it isn't freedom.

As much as I would like to see there be some kind of competency test in order to weed out the mindless drones who vote based on popularity or what the media tells them, instead of critically looking at a candidates platform and past record, it just leaves the door open for abuse and bigotry. So no, there should be no intelligence qualifications to vote. Dumb people need representation too.

Why only college grads?

I feel your pain but historically speaking, tests were used to prevent African-Americans from their right to vote after being freed from slavery. Part of democracy is the assumption that there are more intelligent people than ignorant ones and that the best outcome will resolve from an election when everyone participates and gives their input. Sorry - no tests.

That was outlawed in the 1965 Voting Acts, I currently in college and I knew that. You can't require a test to qualify to vote, it goes against the 15th Amendment.

That's been tried already..and thankfully it is not going on any more..during the civil rights movements there was a test that people were required to take in order to be able to vote..of course it was written to give white people an advantage of passing and blacks a serious disadvantage..no I don't think for any reason we should limit a citizens civil liberties

I think people should pass a test before being allowed to do a lot of things (having children being a prime example), yet I don't see such action ever being put into law. That being said, what would you test for? Knowledge of the government? Political history? General IQ?

In my honest opinion, the people are too stupid to govern themselves. Based on that, an intelligence requirement for voting would be a great idea. Unfortunately, that only works on paper. In actual practice it very well could be much worse for the country than the current system is.

I remember watching a video asking people who had just voted for Obama what they thought about his stances on various topics (presenting, of course, McCain's stances under Obama's name) and they were all overjoyed at what he stood for. The same person conducting the interview then asked these people what they thought about his running mate Sarah Palin. "Oh she is a great and wonderful candidate, and I can't wait to see our first woman vice president!"

Point being, people were voting without even knowing the politician's stances or running mates. They saw a face they liked, and voted for it. Just like with Kennedy (who, thankfully, did a GREAT job in my opinion).

People are too stupid to be in charge of the government.

We should do a better job preparing citizens to take their place in our society through the public schools as Jefferson envisioned.