Is the United States Political System Broken Beyond Repair?

Misplaced.

a reply to: KellyPrettyBear

I've heard of theories on psychopaths being a certain percentage too, and musings on patriarchal family power lineages that might have interbred themselves unconsciously (or not) to maintain power much like the encouragement of certain traits in dog breeding. All good fun to consider but to your point:

In my life I would say I was often a "follower" from the get-go. I have been more apt to start projects if I have help without really looking into how feasible a solo take on the project could be. I have a 3 month old now and I'm working on moving out to some property to establish self-sufficiency, and I can tell you that self-reliance is starting to show it's addictive properties. I think everyone with access to the right information and the right motivation can get off the "ride" totally or at least to a large degree. And I believe the tools to usher this in are vetted and available. So I am optimistic for the change you mentioned.

Thank you also for the Crete example, I will check it out.

a reply to: SlickMcFavorite

In my opinion, the rancid nature of modern culture and politics
cannot be understood in proper historical context without
reading this, my #1 favorite book of all time:

"The Fall: The Insanity of the Ego in Human History and the Dawning of A New Era"

I've learned more valuable insight from that one book, than the other 500 on my
book shelf.

Good luck! and Friend me!

Kev

a reply to: KellyPrettyBear

I believe my mom was reading that, if it places the beginning of the fall near the fertile crescent and the resulting shift that occurred when climatic forces/unsustainable agriculture made it the not-so-fertile crescent we know and bleed on today. I will ask her about it and check it out either way. Thank you and...friended!

a reply to: amazing

He didn't say a Bush, he said a CONSERVATIVE president....

Bush was NOT a conservative president.

Jaden

originally posted by: Masterjaden
a reply to: amazing

He didn't say a Bush, he said a CONSERVATIVE president....

Bush was NOT a conservative president.

Jaden

Who's a conservative president then? Hopefully not a Christian, because I'm not a Christian and don't want to live in a theocracy.

a reply to: sirlancelot

You don't build a building of the occupants, for the occupants and BY the occupants... You build it FOR the occupants by competents, and OF building materials.

When you have a govt of politicians, by politicians, you get it FOR corporations, or FOR politicians manipulating incompetents...

No, we need a government of the people, by the people and for the people. This means no politicians, we need the PEOPLE running it, not life long politicians. This means we need to implement term limits and eradicate life long pensions and political exemptions...

Jaden

a reply to: amazing

Every person assisting in running government should allow their religion, be it traditional religions or scientific religions to influence their decisions, no person assisting in running government should attempt to implement legislation that limits or restricts anyone from practicing their religion. There is no freedom from religion in this country, only freedom OF religion.

Government has no business preaching ANY religion, that doesn't mean they can't implement policies that are influenced by religion.

Jaden

originally posted by: Masterjaden
a reply to: amazing

Every person assisting in running government should allow their religion, be it traditional religions or scientific religions to influence their decisions, no person assisting in running government should attempt to implement legislation that limits or restricts anyone from practicing their religion. There is no freedom from religion in this country, only freedom OF religion.

Government has no business preaching ANY religion, that doesn't mean they can't implement policies that are influenced by religion.

Jaden

Agreed, but as long as it's not putting the 10 commandments in courthouses and mandating prayer in public schools or implenting policy that puts a man above a woman or is discriminitory against homosexuals. That's when it get's dangerous.

originally posted by: Masterjaden
a reply to: amazing

He didn't say a Bush, he said a CONSERVATIVE president....

Bush was NOT a conservative president.

Jaden

How about Reagan? Reagan was about a 3, 3 on the political compass. Obama is 3.5, 3 which places him further to the right than Reagan.

Conservative now does not mean what conservative meant the last time we had a conservative president.

When Obama is gone it will get better.Guy is an arrogant president.However the amount of debt is so bad and terrible they know it is all going to collapse eventually.

originally posted by: Logarock

originally posted by: AgentShillington

originally posted by: Logarock
a reply to: AgentShillington

How can you say its the party with zero yes votes in the house? We didn't here any republicans promising that you could keep your old plan or old Dr or that we could read the bill later.

This thing isn't going anywhere but right back to the door of the White House.

Lets Talk Gruber/Obama

Dude, I am -not- about to distill the worth of a party to a single vote. Neither should you. That is stupid.

Well I will do it on this one issue. The Dems ran this through and now they want to reach back and drag the republicans into it.....now that its no longer the product of the democratic supper Utopia. Nope. They were only concerned about using the republicans as a shield now that they are getting the hell beat out of them.

You see how you [we] all are? We've turned this into a left vs. right debate. And our elected officials seem to think that is why we elected them - to play 'political football' with our lives. No longer one nation 'of the people, for the people, by the people' but rather one nation of political game players, for political game player, and set up to maintain the game. Their missing a big money making opportunity in Vegas by not allowing betting on the outcomes of elections.

Maybe I should have asked instead of "Is the United States Political System Broken Beyond Repair?", I should have asked
'Where is the United States Political System?' - O that post would have ended real fast; Someone would have said it's all a game and ended the debate. So what we should be asking is besides the hype behind why these politicians support bills
is it not more impotant for them to just win the game? Do people really understand or vote for candidates because of what they represent and do they understand what they represent? You know I think our political sytem has been reduced to a game of whoever can spend the most money to say over and over and over again vote for me, I'm honest my opponenst is a bum, wins the election

a reply to: buster2010

One party is lying with complete incompetance the other is EXPERT at it.
They want to get paid,screw you,give them your stuff.

I don't see a pleasant outlook but then again I usually am not surprised in a pleasant way.

originally posted by: Jobeycool
When Obama is gone it will get better.Guy is an arrogant president.However the amount of debt is so bad and terrible they know it is all going to collapse eventually.

Yep. As soon as Obama's gone we'll be right back to the golden age of.. Senseless war, prison overpopulation, corporate run society.. Ya know the good ol' days before he came along.

Where have you been, Fox news?

Anyways.. Of course our system is broken. It's broken because our government doesnt answer to the people, hell they rarely acknowledge us unless it's about some issue of little importance (Abortion, gay marriage). They answer to the corporations and their shareholders, a lot of whom happen to be our elected officials. They're all playing a money making game in which they get to make the rules, and it's far from fair. Conflict of interest or corruption neither one go far enough when attempting to explain it.

a reply to: AlienView

Yep, the political system is broken beyond repair in the US, in Canada, in England, damn near everywhere I would guess. It's because they all use the the same game plan, divide and conquer. They fraction societies into neat little groups that will never reach consensus and gain a majority vote, but even if the people did, they have to deal with the multiple political party false dichotomy. Unfortunately, when all political "parties" are controlled by the same "masters" you get identical outcomes and because people are divided on these fraudulent or imaginary party lines, consensus is out the window. Put a democrat, a republican and a libertarian in the same room to plan a revolution, they'll kill each other before they even get to a plan outline and they will do the governments job for them.

Only solution I see, is the NO PARTY solution. You vote in PEOPLE not Parties, based on their individual ideologies, passion, intelligence, credibility, honesty, integrity, etc. and you give them term limits. Presidents/leaders should be based on a popular vote and again, a person, not a party. They should try this in the Great White North as well, I would like to see our assclown politicians hung out to dry with retroactive term limits. I'd also like to see them skydive out of planes with their "golden parachutes," as long as the parachutes were 3 feet in diameter and made out of real gold.

Cheers - Dave

a reply to: AlienView

I have no answers. Does anyone here have any? Can anyone see light at the end of the dark political tunnel the US is now in?


Yes , a Libertarian President for a start in 2016 , along with a House and Senate Controlled by a Republican Majority . That takes away the Political Power of the " Nanny State " Liberals and opens the door for Amending All the Harm they have done these last 6 years with Business and Job Killing Regulations . As much as some people Dislike the Republican Party , they IMO are the Only Hope Middle Class Americans have in preventing their own Economic Extinction . The Lesser of Two Evils at the moment I would think .

originally posted by: Zanti Misfit
a reply to: AlienView

I have no answers. Does anyone here have any? Can anyone see light at the end of the dark political tunnel the US is now in?


Yes , a Libertarian President for a start in 2016 , along with a House and Senate Controlled by a Republican Majority . That takes away the Political Power of the " Nanny State " Liberals and opens the door for Amending All the Harm they have done these last 6 years with Business and Job Killing Regulations . As much as some people Dislike the Republican Party , they IMO are the Only Hope Middle Class Americans have in preventing their own Economic Extinction . The Lesser of Two Evils at the moment I would think .

I don't agree with you. I mean the big thing I hate about the Democratic party is that they seem to have no problem taxing us to death. But Republicans never seem to want to lift that burden.

You heard it after these elections. First two priorities.. three really...Stop Obama, kill Obama Care, Build the pipeline.

It should have been create better healthcare legislation, reduce taxes, and reinvest the money they're about to pour into big oil companies to something that helps us all in the long run. Not just the Koch Brothers.

Yeah?

Look, I have management, business, small business, education and government experience. and more. I can tell you this, when all you ever do is focus on something negative, like stop him, stop that, kill that, take that appart etc, you don't accomplish anything. You have to have some measurable goal and strive to achieve it.

a reply to: AlienView

Seems that the way the structure is the president should mandatorly be an independent.

originally posted by: bobs_uruncle

Only solution I see, is the NO PARTY solution. You vote in PEOPLE not Parties, based on their individual ideologies, passion, intelligence, credibility, honesty, integrity, etc. and you give them term limits. Presidents/leaders should be based on a popular vote and again, a person, not a party. They should try this in the Great White North as well, I would like to see our assclown politicians hung out to dry with retroactive term limits. I'd also like to see them skydive out of planes with their "golden parachutes," as long as the parachutes were 3 feet in diameter and made out of real gold.

Cheers - Dave

This is a politically unworkable solution. In politics coalitions form and groups will work together for common interest. These groups eventually consolidate and work towards general goals (even if any individual only agrees with say 70% of them) because it's a good way to get things accomplished and everyone ends up 70% happy when they get their way. This is how parties form.

No party is great in theory but is completely unworkable in practice. What we need is more political parties that are each more narrowly focused. A handful of big tent parties is our downfall. It's quite similar to the private sector actually. The worst situation possible is no one being able to own and run a business. The next worst situation is a handful of large companies dominating the market. The best situation is having a bunch of small businesses competing against each other.

The system as designed by the constitution is not broken, but there are cracks in the structure that are being exploited.

One of the biggest structural cracks is that the federal government can commit crimes and get away with it, because the attorney general will never prosecute and given people like holder its likely they need to be prosecuted and how can they prosecute them self, its just not reasonable to expect someone holding office to prosecute himself . We've seen this over and over. Its a huge crack that requires a structural fix. The constitution should be amended to permit Congress or any state to investigate, charge and prosecute any federal official, member of Congress, or member of the executive office, including the president. This would go a long way in deterring the decay and detritus that we see in DC.

Another fix is a constitutionally mandated truth and reconciliation court that is convened at the end of every presidential term to investigate wrong doing. One huge check on an abuse of power would be an investigation by the incoming administration, but this is never done. The incoming administration doesn't want to waste political capital investigating the previous administration and they don't want to have the next administration investigating them, so they don't do it. So the fix would be to mandate a constitutional court to convene and investigate criminal activity and violations of the constitution. The reason that this is a good idea is that there is a real problem with the people gathered around these administrations and they know that they can literally get away with murder, torture, larceny and mayhem. And these people cycle through and come back around over and over and over. There needs to be a system to clear out these bad apples And the rule of law requires that there be consequences for illegal activity.

A third idea would be a limit on presidential pardons. no prospective pardons allowed and no pardons for any crime committed during the current term of the president. Meaning that a president could never pardon anyone in his own administration. The real problem for the office of the president is that if crimes are committed and the president pardons someone who committed a crime to further his administration, then the president pardon is evidence that the president has just made an admission by action that there was a conspiracy to commit that crime or has added and abetted after the fact. I don't think people would be so willing to sacrifice them self if the president couldn't cast out a net to save them from jail.

Those are three ideas but I think that putting these in place would go a long way in deterring wrongdoers. there are other cracks between the branches of government that are exploited and the best possible way to get the roaches out of the cracks is to shine some light on them.