Changes

==Rules of order==

==Rules of order==

Parliaments have "rules of order" which govern who may speak, and how votes are taken and counted. These can be very complicated.  

Parliaments and other governing bodies have "rules of order" which govern who may speak, and how votes are taken and counted. These can be very complicated.  

To see why these rules are needed, consider this possibility. Suppose a vote is taken in the U. S. House of Representatives when only 300 of its 435 members are there. Suppose 200 people vote for the motion and 100 people vote against it. Should the motion pass? A majority ''of those who were present'' voted for it, but the 200 people who voted for it are less than half of the entire membership. There's no way to tell how the 135 absent members would have voted; if all of them had voted against the motion, it would have been defeated.

To see why these rules are needed, consider this possibility. Suppose a vote is taken in the U. S. House of Representatives when only 300 of its 435 members are there. Suppose 200 people vote for the motion and 100 people vote against it. Should the motion pass? A majority ''of those who were present'' voted for it, but the 200 people who voted for it are less than half of the entire membership. There's no way to tell how the 135 absent members would have voted; if all of them had voted against the motion, it would have been defeated.