A lot of polls on GS are public polls, where other people can see who voted which way. I think that discourages participation and is antithetical to democracy, because one cannot vote freely if one is concerned that other’s may make use of this information.
Of course, I realize that most of us are not using our real names, but still, it seems to me that the only reason to make public the identities of voters is to start dividing people up for a fight.
Re: Why make so many polls public?
Depends on the nature of the poll.
Re: Why make so many polls public?
Every thing has two way to see and think. Its not and people here need to divide and rule. People anywhere, either forum or in your area can only survive and progress if they remain unite and help each other.
All the polls of GS are not showing results to public. Many of them are kept hidden, maybe you came to know only those polls that were having the voters list displayed to public. There can be another complain or a remark of unfairness even if the voters names kept hidden. Many of users on GS may say that people are voting with a 2nd or 3rd ID and many will come up saying that polls here are not a fair voting but just a favoritism to any group, person or any thing the poll is created for.
Further more many polls are created what users on GS ask for or they feel interest in and if they want to they can also request to hide the voters name. Although it depends upon the validity and the way the poll should be held, which a concerned administration person of the regarding section do know better.