Can you feel the democracy?

[wanamingo]

A lot of you seem very politically charged I was wondering if you voted, and if you feel comfortable for whom. This is mostly for us Americans, if you're an American't I would still like some input on how awesome our political process is.

~40% of the population did not vote in 2008.

 

[Onus]

Term limits wouldn't be needed if the looted wealth they can confiscate were sharply limited instead. Elected office would pay a servant's wages, but no more. Anything else would have to have come from a successful private sector career.

 

[buwish]

Ugh...we just had a local election here yesterday and we had a turnout of 21% in a town of 5K. Man, I can feel the democracy (read apathy)! Of course, that is the norm when it comes to elections in the US, i.e. voter turnout increases from local to state to federal elections. Still though, the 40% number mentioned above isn't good by any means. It shows one of two things in my opinion: 1. People don't care (apathetic) or 2. They do not like their choices. It's probably a combo of both most likely.

I voted, but I can see myself turning off in the future if things continue as is. My main problem with the whole process is the fund raising. I think it needs to be capped at $250K or something so anyone who wants to run has a chance to run. This billion dollar stuff we'll see next year is ridiculous.

 

[badge]

buwish's commentary was OK, but I wanted to polish it up a little.

President Obama's re-election campaign kicked off in Chicago Monday with a stated goal of raising one billion dollars this year. He's trying to scare off any Democratic primary opponent who might inspire more confidence. Jimmy Carter still has one term left.

 

[4745454b]

You do realize we DON'T live in a democracy right?

I vote, but to often for the lessor of two evils. It doesn't matter who is in office, your going to get F'd no matter what.

 

[Wrecks]

I'd vote for a government that's not going to shut down when the going gets tough.

 

[wanamingo]

The government would save 200Million a day if shutdown. Someone should verify that number though. So we pull the plug every Sunday and boom ive just cut 10,400,000,000 out of the budget every year.

Wait, what?!? it cost us 750 million each day to operate 3 wars. Man we are going to have to cut a lot of funding so we can keep fighting on the triple front going.

 

[buwish]

To me it all boils down to party politics. Without the two major parties or even other lesser parties, I suspect that things would be a bit more wide open. Remember, James Madison was firmly against "factions," i.e. parties as he wrote numerous times in The Federalist Papers. His warnings are starting to come to fruition. Almost 50% of the country isn't exactly thrilled with both the GOP and Democratic Party, i.e. disapprove.

Trouble is, because the party system is so firmly ingrained upon our political and electoral systems, I'm not sure how the system would function without them. That's why I think we need to go after campaign finance and cap it. If we have to have a few more run off elections due to more candidates being able to get in on things, so be it.

 

[buwish]

I agree. The system is corrupt/broken, etc... beyond belief at this point. If there were ever a time to scrap the whole works and start over again, now would be the time. It won't happen, but we can dream.

LOL, yes I found that story out of WI to be hilarious! Apparently, they are living in 1930's Chicago there.

 

[Reynod]

You should be able to vote at your local ATM ... easy.

Plus you can get some cash and buy a chocolate at the deli on the way home ... right after you get that uber cooler and some thermal paste, cable wrap ... maybe a couple of extra HDD's too.

 

[4745454b]

I do see a point in which you can vote via your gov issued email address or something similar. You'll simply reply or enter your vote at some terminal and it will get electrically counted. Perhaps once technology gets that far (and we trust it) we could change our government to a democracy. I'm not sure people really want to vote that often however.

 

[buwish]

I'd say technology has gotten that far, it is just a matter of getting the government to go for it and organize it. If they did, I suspect that voting numbers would go through the roof, at least in comparison to the past.

 

[johnny_2bags]

The whole bunch of hoo haa that's been going on here in Wisconsin is painful enough to watch, let alone live in the state where it's happening. Good god.

I am a fan of scrapping the party system myself. Everyone would have to run on their own merits, and not just use the party lines and party arguments. It's so corrupt! Unfortunately #1. There's too much money being doled out to EVER hope for this to happen and #2. Not only are the politicians too lazy to actually come up with a good argument for themselves, too many people are too lazy to actually check out each individual politician. The party system is too much about this vs. that. Republicans think one thing, so obviously Democrats think another. If they agreed on anything, they wouldn't have a reason to make those stupid political ads bashing each other over the head with the party stuff. Can you imagine a political ad that actually used facts relating to the particular candidates? You might actually vote for someone who's worth a damn, instead of the party guy whose time has come to run (Bob Dole 1996, GW Bush 1988, Dukakis 1988, Gore 2000). It's nice to dream, but it would take millions and millions of people absolutely locking up cities and the economy before any real change could come about. And there aren't enough of the willing to ever accomplish that.

 

[Reynod]

Jonny if we can cheer you up can you stay?

You could always do a donkey vote?

Which donkey though?

 

[buwish]

The whole bunch of hoo haa that's been going on here in Wisconsin is painful enough to watch, let alone live in the state where it's happening. Good god.

I am a fan of scrapping the party system myself. Everyone would have to run on their own merits, and not just use the party lines and party arguments. It's so corrupt! Unfortunately #1. There's too much money being doled out to EVER hope for this to happen and #2. Not only are the politicians too lazy to actually come up with a good argument for themselves, too many people are too lazy to actually check out each individual politician. The party system is too much about this vs. that. Republicans think one thing, so obviously Democrats think another. If they agreed on anything, they wouldn't have a reason to make those stupid political ads bashing each other over the head with the party stuff. Can you imagine a political ad that actually used facts relating to the particular candidates? You might actually vote for someone who's worth a damn, instead of the party guy whose time has come to run (Bob Dole 1996, GW Bush 1988, Dukakis 1988, Gore 2000). It's nice to dream, but it would take millions and millions of people absolutely locking up cities and the economy before any real change could come about. And there aren't enough of the willing to ever accomplish that.

Kind of makes you yearn for the days of yonder when presidential candidates and others didn't campaign. They just gave speeches from their back porches or didn't say anything at all.

 

[BeelzebubTerror]

I feel democracy, it's clawing at my head starved for brains.

 

[dogman_1234]

I fell the democracy you elder generations have has been corrupted and now my generation has no more of it.

Thanks for f%^&ing up my future guys.

 

[Reynod]

This topic has been closed by Reynod