If I were President...
POSTED BY: Wishimay
UPDATED: Sunday, November 17, 2013 04:20
VIEWED: 5552
PAGE 2 of 2
Hubbs always says we should put all elected officials on one day trials after their terms are over and reward or punish accordingly, and I tend to agree...
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We already have that -- it's called Election Day. More often than not, the incumbents are rewarded.
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Yeah, but...don't seem to be a whole lotta thought going on on that day in particular.
We could have the people to be punished fight Greco-Roman style? C'mon this could be fun AND educational 
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I respectfully disagree about a lack of thought going on on Election Day. There are multiple factors in play. One is that our system is not supposed to change easily, so there are a ton of checks and balanced to keep things "neutral."
Another issue is that many local voting lines have been gerrymandered into ridiculousless, subverting the will of the people. For example, in the 2012 House elections, Democrats got more votes (approximately 49% to 48% -- but remember, on the national stage, a 1% swing IS decisive), yet Republicans still hold a 54% to 46% advantage in terms of seats.
Does that seem right to you?
Fact is, we live in an unprecedented era of ungentlemanly lack of compromise. (You already know this to be true if you are liberal/Dem and have hit "reply" to support me, or if you are conservative/Rep and hit "reply" to tell me how wrong I am).
People tend to forget that Obama spent the better part of his first year or two in office trying to reach across the aisle, only to have his hand slapped away repeatedly by Congressmen with a STATED top priority of making sure that he would't be reelected. Although politicians (on both sides) are generally egotistical and of questional ethics, in my lifetime I've never seen it instititionalized and accepted on such a horrifying scale.
In days gone by, we would not have seen this ridiculous crusade to bring down The Affordable Care Act, because, guess what? If polled on what it accomplishes, a majority of Americans support it. A majority of self-reported REPUBLICANS support it. Something of this scale takes fine-tuning to get right (and anyone with any ounce of common sense knew it wasn't going to come out of the game perfect), yet rather than try to fix it, one party is dedicated to destroying it... simply because the other party created it.
Don't get me wrong: if it were BushCare or National RomneyCare, I suspect the Dems would be just as self-destructive right now, but that's not the way the numbers laid out.
The question, "If I were President," is a deceptive one, because there are really not a lot of great answers... and many of them are incredibly ingnorant and uneducated.
When I was in college, one of my friends said that if she were President, the first thing she would do is abolish Congress.
The second thing would be to send the Army to arrest and imprision her high school nemesis.
Two moves, and already a psychotic despot.
If I were President...
I'd quit.
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Quote:
Originally posted by GWEK:
One is that our system is not supposed to change easily, so there are a ton of checks and balanced to keep things "neutral."
Fact is, we live in an unprecedented era of ungentlemanly lack of compromise.
Although politicians (on both sides) are generally egotistical and of questional ethics, in my lifetime I've never seen it instititionalized and accepted on such a horrifying scale.
Don't get me wrong: if it were BushCare or National RomneyCare, I suspect the Dems would be just as self-destructive right now, but that's not the way the numbers laid out.
If I were President...
I'd quit.
That's my point, a system of checks and balances no longer works in an unbalanced society. The psychos are running the asylum... Literally. You are more likely to have psychopathic traits if you want to lead or rule, but who wants to be ruled be psychos??? We know what our candidates stand for but we don't KNOW them or what skeletons they hide, whereas in the past with smaller societies EVERYONE knew EVERYONE. The crazies never would have made it as far as they do today...
So many things lately always lead me back to the "War Games" solution...."The only winning move is... not to play"
Until we get a grip on mental disfunctions, we are just going to remain a poo-flinging primitive culture I think...
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"The only winning move is not to play" is a cop-out that allows the system to get worse.
Democracy is based on collective responsibility. It works when the participants are engaged and educated. Even if you feel you're voting for "the lesser of two evils," you're taking a stand and saying that you understand that there IS a greater of the two evils. Dropping out of the system sends the message that you don't care. And that's how bad stuff happens.
I'm just saying I don't want to be the poor joker who gets blamed for the whole thing...
EDIT:
And don't kid yourself -- "psychos" were no less successfully in the past. Heck, in days gone by, the media would often bury secrets to avoid sullying reputations. Now, with the Internet, a few hundred bucks, and a few days time, you can find out anything about anyone. The question is, does anyone CARE? Is anyone paying attention?
Again, the antidote is great -- NOT LESSER -- engagement... a person at a time, if need be.
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To believe the system isn't going to get worse is naive at best...
Two words for ya- Miley Cyrus. 50 years ago she would have never made it to the STAGE let alone...You'd have to be a kid to believe that was about liberation and not debasement. Wanna guess what will be on the stage 50 years from now?? You ever TRIED to fight a psycho? I have and lemme tell you it's about as no-win a scenario as ever there was...This new era of toleration mean tolerating waaay more on the crap scale then we will ever see from the intelligent side.
Look, for me it's a personal thing...I just can't deal with people. It...damages my calm in a way that's just not worth it for me. If I were living with Vulcans or with people that were capable of reason, it would be different. I could exist and interact in a way that makes sense, but NOTHING here does to me and I cannot change that. Ever tried to play a game when there's no rules?? It's pointless... Might as well make your own game and stay away from the reavers on the other side of the board 
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