No Matter Who You Are Tell Me When You Think Our Current Form of Government Became Dysfunctional?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:And yet, the choice to not join the union is not always there, right?

Depends on the state. If the state is Right to Wprk, like VA, you have the choice. Other states you do not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thanks for the read. So you feel that senators should support their constituents before their interests? How wonderful it must be when the two are the same.

Supporting D or R before the interests of residents of the state is a bad thing. If you're R, you're going to support and concentrate on the R platform and same with D if you're D.

You're disconnected from the will of the people of your state and more interested in party politics. Got it now?

Got it now. What's your stand on abortion?

What does that have to do with the 17th amendment?

It has to do with whether or not you feel that it is a decision best left up to the individual or best left up to the state.

[Anonymous]

The Civil War was the first indicator that the Founding Fathers had not devised a perfect form of government.

We've been lucky that the glue holding us together hasn't come undone more frequently.

Early on, we benefited from having a wide-open frontier in the west to maintain economic expansion.

And in the years after WW2, we benefited from being the last-man-standing, so the world market was wide-open for us.

But when economic growth falters, the fault lines re-emerge, the people become restless and discontent, and the gears of the government grind under the strain.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And yet, the choice to not join the union is not always there, right?

Depends on the state. If the state is Right to Wprk, like VA, you have the choice. Other states you do not.

Yes, you must accede to an authority with no constitutional power to confiscate part of your property (your earned pay) so that you may earn a living. Effff that.


Also unconstitutional under the first amendment, freedom of association. Freedom of association also includes the freedom not to, except when union leadership decides otherwise. Tyrannical in every way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When Reagan did away with the Fairness Doctrine. This gave birth to Fox, a right wing propaganda network. The people are misinformed and tricked on Fox and don't know fact from fiction.

Are you telling me there was a doctrine that hindered freedom of the press until Reagan did away with it? Bravo to Ronald Reagan.

LOL. Are you really that undereducated?! The Fairness Doctrine insisted on proven facts only and if any opinion was given, it had to be identified as an opinion and a counter argument provided immediately. Newscasters wouldn't say "It was a hot day today" they would say, "It was 100 degrees Fahrenheit.


How can the facts without opinion possibly be bad? Are you incapable of thinking for yourself?

So you like the thought police to control the airwaves based on their set of "facts"? F**k no.

That's where you go wrong. There's no "their set of facts."

Facts are facts. It's a fact that the earth wasn't created 6,000 years ago. It's a fact that CO2 is a greenhouse gas. It's a fact that human activity has put more CO2 into the atmosphere than all natural sources combined. It's a fact that modern species evolved from ancient species. These are all provable.

When you start talking about "their set of facts" you are no longer talking about facts, you are talking about opinion. There's a significant difference between fact and opinion.

[Anonymous]

"It's a fact that CO2 is a greenhouse gas." - Perfect example!

No, it's a declaration by the Supreme Court. It's not a fact. It's a religion for some.

[Anonymous]

Guess what, SCOTUS issues "opinions".

See how I stun you with my brilliance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And yet, the choice to not join the union is not always there, right?

Depends on the state. If the state is Right to Wprk, like VA, you have the choice. Other states you do not.

Yes, you must accede to an authority with no constitutional power to confiscate part of your property (your earned pay) so that you may earn a living. Effff that.


Also unconstitutional under the first amendment, freedom of association. Freedom of association also includes the freedom not to, except when union leadership decides otherwise. Tyrannical in every way.

Actually, you never have to join a union. People who work at jobs that are covered by a collective bargaining agreement can opt to pay agency fees, instead. Or, alternatively, you could GET A DIFFERENT JOB. Nobody is forcing you to take those great wages and benefits that have been negotiated on your behalf by your union. Go see what it's like at a job without one.

[Anonymous]

It isn't one thing. The military indiustrial complex that Ike warned us about was already happening by 1960, obviously, and that had repercussions as to how decisions were made. I think the assassination of JFK destabilized the nation more than people realized at the time. Reagan ending the Fairness Doctrine was absolutely one of the most toxic things to happen to our nation - let's not forget that his party hid his Alzheimers. The 1994 Republican congress. Grover Norquist. The ridiculous non-election of 2000. Republicans just refusing to work with anyone for any reason.

And now the GOP - working with Russia, not minding that our vote was hacked.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tipping point? I think after the 2010 Midterms when any semblance of trying to enact policy went out the window in Congress. Since then, US government has been in complete dysfunction mode.

Key Contributing factors?
- Post-Reconstruction Era backlash and enactment of Jim Crow
- McCarthyism
- Southern Strategy
- Grover Norquist anti-tax extremism
- Contract with America and rise of Congressional Republican brinksmanship
- Iraq vote as litmus test for Democrats
- Citizens United and rise of TEA Party (esp. post Obamacare Town Hall demonstrations)

Ultimately, though, I think every single thing boils down to the lingering unresolved issues from slavery. Not the lingering racism which is rampant in most Western democracies, but many unresolved issues post slavery. While I think most Americans are unconflicted about the moral benefits of ending slavery, we have never fully grappled with the philosophical meaning of Federalism from a social or economic standpoint. Racism is part of the legacy, but so is fighting over the welfare state, corporatism, wealth inequality, etc.

Agree with much of this and was going to bring up Grover Norquist specifically. But I think it started in 1994, and turned worse in 2010. Gingrich becoming Speaker and the crowd that was elected that year was the beginning of the end of bipartisan cooperation in Congress.

Bingo!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"It's a fact that CO2 is a greenhouse gas." - Perfect example!

No, it's a declaration by the Supreme Court. It's not a fact. It's a religion for some.

You're kidding, right? The fact that CO2 is a greenhouse gas has been known since the second half of the 1800s, so 150 years give or take. It is a property of the molecule itself. The Supreme Court doesn't really get to weigh in on this. Or I suppose they can, but it won't change the physics.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The Civil War was the first indicator that the Founding Fathers had not devised a perfect form of government.

We've been lucky that the glue holding us together hasn't come undone more frequently.

Early on, we benefited from having a wide-open frontier in the west to maintain economic expansion.

And in the years after WW2, we benefited from being the last-man-standing, so the world market was wide-open for us.

But when economic growth falters, the fault lines re-emerge, the people become restless and discontent, and the gears of the government grind under the strain.

Surprised there was not a revolution during the Great Depression

[Anonymous]

1. Electoral College - When education became widespread, population and cultural centers developed more along the coasts, and thus the Electoral College became antiquated and unnecessary.

Direct votes starting now!!!

2. Basic social benefits such as maternity and paternity leave and subsidized daycares should be the law of the land, as in every developed country. Universal health care is a human right.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tipping point? I think after the 2010 Midterms when any semblance of trying to enact policy went out the window in Congress. Since then, US government has been in complete dysfunction mode.

Key Contributing factors?
- Post-Reconstruction Era backlash and enactment of Jim Crow
- McCarthyism
- Southern Strategy
- Grover Norquist anti-tax extremism
- Contract with America and rise of Congressional Republican brinksmanship
- Iraq vote as litmus test for Democrats
- Citizens United and rise of TEA Party (esp. post Obamacare Town Hall demonstrations)

Ultimately, though, I think every single thing boils down to the lingering unresolved issues from slavery. Not the lingering racism which is rampant in most Western democracies, but many unresolved issues post slavery. While I think most Americans are unconflicted about the moral benefits of ending slavery, we have never fully grappled with the philosophical meaning of Federalism from a social or economic standpoint. Racism is part of the legacy, but so is fighting over the welfare state, corporatism, wealth inequality, etc.

Agree with much of this and was going to bring up Grover Norquist specifically. But I think it started in 1994, and turned worse in 2010. Gingrich becoming Speaker and the crowd that was elected that year was the beginning of the end of bipartisan cooperation in Congress.

I saw a quote that Gingrich was to politics what napalm was to warfare. Apt.

[Anonymous]

Reagan. Free trade. Then citizens united.