Originally Posted by nako
Speaking purely for myself, I don't think that the avatars themselves are inherently bad, just as I don't think that the "I Voted" sticker is a bad idea. Putting the avatar as a default for everyone who voted is tatamount to the pollworker forcing every voter to put that sticker on. In that respect, I stand by my opinion that the system as it stands, however well intentioned it is, was implemented poorly.
In my opinion, a better solution would be a statement at the end of voting that says, "Here's a way to encourage your fellow FTers to vote also" and gives a link and directions to changing your avatar to one of the "I Voted" designs. This way, voters are given the choice of whether they want to display the avatar, and are not automatically defaulted to something that they may not wish to display without being given any notification, and without being given any knowledge on how to remove it if they really don't want it.
At the very least, if you want to keep defaulting the avatar for members after they vote, please tell people how they can remove it up front.
Mike
I think the fuss about this system is much ado about nothing. This is more akin to people having ink placed on their finger or thumb as part of the voting process than being forced to wear a sticker. Just like with the ink on the finger -- where those at the poll stations normally just say it will wash off after a few days -- people who wish to can go through a few extra steps and the ink will come off faster than it otherwise already will.