Here's a good youtube channel which does a good job explaining the quirks of democracy.

Learn about different voting schemes, the infuriating behavior of the electoral college, and the headache inducing gerrymander move.

Lots of good political stuff on this page. Not as in, "I love political party A!" but, "here's how elections work."


http://www.youtube.com/user/CGPGrey?feature=watch

bump!

Language is a funny thing. It's employed to transfer ideas from one mind to another through voice. Translation, translation... the evolution of meaning.... all very complicated matters. It's why some books can't retain the force they once had and others acquire new meaning. Strange.

Democracy... I read a lot about ancient history and what democracy used to mean. What we have. What we espouse to bring to other nations through war/force... we don't even have an idea of what democracy means. We don't implement anything necessary to see democracy achieved. What a hypocritical and disillusioned society we recreate daily.

An elected official, a member of one of two parties, who is autonomous when elected? However they may be elected... even using the most democratic methods, the end is still not democracy.

To gather a large sample of the population and force them to pass legislation... that is democracy. To get one person, unaccountable to anyone, to create their own laws for everyone else is closer to tyranny than democracy.

What is your solution for "failed" democracy?

Proportional representation within a Westminster style parliamentary system, with a right of recall, would seem to be about the closest we can come. But only a handful of countries utilize this.

here's an exerpt from a "guardian" piece on the infamous wmds that justified an invasion.

Butler says of the use of intelligence: "There were ways in which people were misled or misled themselves at all stages."

When it was suggested to him that the body that probably felt most misled of all was the British public, Butler replied: "Yes, I think they're, they're, they got every reason think that."

from: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/ma ... wmd-claims

democracy is one thing and a bunch of liars is another and yet the two are connected by virtue of existing in the same "world".

it looks to me more deceptocracy and stupidocracy rather than democracy.

heres one

The Florida election recount of 2000 was a period of vote re-counting that occurred following the unclear results of the 2000 United States presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore, specifically the Florida results. The election was ultimately settled in favor of George W. Bush when the U.S. Supreme Court, with its final ruling on Bush v. Gore, stopped a recount that had been proposed by the all Democrat Florida Supreme Court, which had the effect of awarding Bush a majority of votes in the Electoral College.[1]

another older one.

The term "lobbying" also appeared in print as early as 1820:[3]

Other letters from Washington affirm, that members of the Senate, when the compromise question was to be taken in the House, were not only "lobbying about the Representatives' Chamber" but also active in endeavoring to intimidate certain weak representatives by insulting threats to dissolve the Union.

—April 1, 1820

That's a curious question. A solution for failed Democracy.... I really don't know how to approach such a question as this sentence could mean any number of things. If it's regarding the United States then the question to me reads like, "What is your solution for making the red colored, blue crayon a blue crayon?" It makes me tilt my head and lift an eye brow. The red crayon is a red crayon, the blue crayon is a blue crayon. You cannot have a red crayon and make it blue and still have a red crayon. You shouldn't refer to the red crayon as a blue one because it is red. You can't have a failed democracy if it isn't a democracy to begin with.

kleptocracy!

enjoyed Hedrick Smith's recent work in "Heist - Who stole the american dream"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4J5WReyQlT0

Hedrick starts around 6:00 mins in and you would probably want to spare yourself the introduction.

This is what democracy looks like.

I would love to have been here in North Carolina to feel the passion and energy generated by these amazing people!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4uEQgGeuoi8