The political comparisons between the U.S. and the Classical World, are not limited to Republican Rome. Many look to the birthplace of democracy for molds in which to try to shove 21st century American politics.

A Michigan college newspaper repeats a common theme, that the US should be more like ancient Greece in the way we handle our democracy, and to do so, we must require every citizen to vote:

"In ancient Greece, the inventors of democracy set up a law that required every person to vote, regardless of who they voted for. If anyone was found not voting, the person would be publicly marked and labeled an idiot, someone who thought their own personal needs trumped those of the society around them, and over time, the word "idiot" has evolved into today's usage."

"While I wouldn't publicly mark them, I think idiots and their idiocy shouldn't be fostered or ignored by society. Instead, we should make voting as mandatory as taxes. If you don't at least vote for a given issue, you should be fined and/or ticketed for being an idiot."
Isaac DeVille, English major and columnist

It just isn't true that all Greeks or even all Athenians were required to vote, and it's not true on many levels. Only male citizens could vote, and even this was limited to those who weren't restricted because of a personal or inherited mark against them. It was expected that male Athenian citizens would participate in the democracy, but this isn't the same as voting. The Athenian assembly, which held 6000 citizens, decided most of the issues, with proponents making speeches to persuade the others to vote their way. The voting was often by a show of hands, as is seen Aristophanes' comedy Ecclesiazousai, where Praxagora describes the voting in the Assembly:

It's difficult; yet it must be done, and the arm shown naked to the shoulder in order to vote.

Read more: Greek Idiots - Democracy and Voting