Sneak in acts

Just watched the daily show. Apparently in America it is possible to sneak in addendums to an act unbenknownest to the people voting on the act for them to pass in secret? I know the president has to sign off on whatever passes congress, but still, wtf, this is banan republic stuff. Maybe its time America updates more than just its power grid?

a reply to: Merinda

I think it's done by attaching different acts to certain bills in the hope the whole thing gets passed.



Just means you have to read the small print first...
But surely that's what Politicians are being payed by people's taxes for.

a reply to: Merinda

Its how both side of the isle get a semblance of what they want. And hide it from the public.

Long time politicians have learned to cheat.

"Clean House".

PS: John Stewart lays it like it is… sometimes. One of the few mainstream shows that does. Although Comedy Channel can't rightly be called Main Stream.

a reply to: Merinda

They're called legislative riders, or legislative rats. Happens all the time. Bill is going to the floor and in all likelihood will pass easily, let's stick some extra stuff on there, hope nobody notices, and yay win for this guy! It's crap, but what do you expect when you have bills that are hundreds of pages long, or thousands of pages? Part of me thinks legislators write bills that way intentionally, just so they have an easy excuse to not actually read them.

Connecticut passed a bill (this year I think) that had a rider attached to it banning chocolate milk in schools. Fortunately the governor heard about it and vetoed that item. But yea....hilarity ensued

a reply to: Merinda

yea happens quite often, that's why you'll find a amendments to a bills that have nothing to do with the bill.
like this fine jewel that believe it or not harry reid burried in the bill.

Gun Advocates Celebrate 'Secret' Obamacare Provision Forbidding Exec Order To Regulate Guns And Ammo
Forbes

ETA: that might be a poor example, but many of our elected officials add pork that bennifits their state and has nothing to do with the bill itself.

It is a joke you're right!

Amazingly it was predicted by one of the best economists the world has ever known, Karl Marx. The reality is that the profit motive will corrupt almost everything in a democratic system. Eventually that system is so corrupted that it fails to perform the will of the people, at which time revolution ensues.

We're still to see if the rest of the predictions come about, but there is no doubt the democratic system is corrupted to some degree.

originally posted by: hounddoghowlie
a reply to: Merinda

yea happens quite often, that's why you'll find a amendments to a bills that have nothing to do with the bill.
like this fine jewel that believe it or not harry reid burried in the bill.

Gun Advocates Celebrate 'Secret' Obamacare Provision Forbidding Exec Order To Regulate Guns And Ammo
Forbes

ETA: that might be a poor example, but many of our elected officials add pork that bennifits their state and has nothing to do with the bill itself.

Or this one!

WASHINGTON -- The Republican-controlled North Carolina House pushed through anti-abortion legislation on Thursday, using as their vehicle a motorcycle safety bill that lawmakers had stealthily turned into a measure on abortion.
www.huffingtonpost.com...

What's motorcycle safety got to do with abortion?

a reply to: Merinda

It's not the bananas.

It's the lemons.

originally posted by: noeltrotsky
It is a joke you're right!

Amazingly it was predicted by one of the best economists the world has ever known, Karl Marx. The reality is that the profit motive will corrupt almost everything in a democratic system. Eventually that system is so corrupted that it fails to perform the will of the people, at which time revolution ensues.

We're still to see if the rest of the predictions come about, but there is no doubt the democratic system is corrupted to some degree.

However, I think that it was that when the system becomes so corrupted that a window of opportunity for a socialist revolution will open but whether or not that revolution takes place will depend upon the people. Again however, should that revolution not come forth, should capitalism continue as the driving force, that democracy will fade and society would revert to a much more feudalistic form.

I think that it may be the case is that this "window" has past us by. What we have available to us now is not revolution but should the people rise up, it would be nothing more than violence and chaos from which ruins would emerge the remaining populace, gratefully accepting a quiet little corner in the feudal system.

a reply to: Shamrock6

That`s exactly why they do it.

whenever I have to deal with any government agency I send them a ton of papers and copies of things, the more paperwork the better, and then I attach a summary to the top of the pile. obviously the summary is my interpretation of what is in the stack of papers and supports my position.

Given the choice of reading all those papers in the stack or just reading a 5 page summary most government employees will just read the summary and make a decision based on that.

a reply to: Tardacus

Oh I know exactly why it's done at "my level." Attorneys do that crap all the time.

I think politicians do it for two reasons: the one you mentioned, and to give themselves something to do when it's their turn to write a bill.

Yes, this is possible, and it is absolutely ridiculous in my opinion. I saw the same episode last night, and I remember thinking how much easier it is for people to stomach these harsh realities when they are presented in the form of comedy. Therefore shows such as the Daily Show and the Colbert Report are essential for educating the public. At least they are essential now, considering they are making people aware of the problems within our government. And the Daily Show is not partisan, despite what some people say, considering the the man calls it like it is, democrat or republican. He even said how Citigroup wrote the portion that pertains to them and the banking industry. That illustrates what is wrong right down to the core. Many congressional members did not even know about these last minute inclusions, and that seems wrong because it is. The people need to do something to end what is blatant corruption of this nature. A few democratic congress people actually denounced such practices, but most of congress is not going to act based on the best interest of the majority. I adamantly believe that the republicans are to blame for these and similar measures of the past, and there is likely to be another huge financial crisis akin to the massive bank bailout. The measures they've passed are putting us right back in the same place. I thought the right was against "handouts," but apparently that is only the case when it comes to actually helping everyday people...helping out the banks, who dug their own graves, is apparently different.