Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > General Forums > Politics and Other Controversies
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 08-09-2011, 04:26 PM
 
Location: Wasilla, Alaska
17,823 posts, read 23,379,420 times
Reputation: 6541

Advertisements

Quote:
Originally Posted by cremebrulee View Post
I have voted for the entire length of my life, and I'm sick of people saying that, voting doesn't work...you vote and you get nothing...I've watched this happen my entire life..."you need to vote" sheesh, how ridiculous..
and I'm not trying to be offensive, or insult you, but I've heard that all my life...it doesn't hold water any longer...
I have seen precisely the opposite. For example, there was a Democrat incumbent running unopposed for the State House, and she lost to a write-in candidate. We have elections all the time where the candidate wins by a mere handful of votes. Every time that happens, it reinforces my point of view that every vote matters.

If that is insufficient to get you motivated to vote, then consider that voting is the civic duty of every citizen that wants to live under a participatory government.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 08-10-2011, 05:10 AM
 
Location: Kentucky Bluegrass
28,888 posts, read 30,142,652 times
Reputation: 19062
Quote:
Originally Posted by Glitch View Post
I have seen precisely the opposite. For example, there was a Democrat incumbent running unopposed for the State House, and she lost to a write-in candidate. We have elections all the time where the candidate wins by a mere handful of votes. Every time that happens, it reinforces my point of view that every vote matters.

If that is insufficient to get you motivated to vote, then consider that voting is the civic duty of every citizen that wants to live under a participatory government.
Glitch, your missing my point...I know what you speak of, however, who got in...doesn't matter that it was by a mere handful....you have a huge problem going on in America, people are way to dedicated to they're parties...so much so, that they can't admit to themselves or anyone else that both parties are corrupt and have done nothing but run us into the ground, catering to each and every special interest group who supports them...or the corporations who supports them. So, each and every election during the course of my life, it's a battle won by either dems or rebubs. I've gotten so sick of it I've registered independent. No matter who gets in, they throw us to the wolves...and it gets worse and worse, they want us to conserve, go green etc...however, look at them? Look at how utterly greedy all the CEO's in this country are...and they are the ones who pick and choose, not us...to me, voting is no longer a civic duty, it's a joke...and after what happened in Florida, I feel that way....our government is corrupt, they spend, spend, spend...my son worked for a sub contractor and you have no idea how they wasted our money over seas....supposidly fighting the war on terror....sheeesh, what a joke...and Bush started it...he lied to us about Weapons of Mass destruction to get us in there...our companies are moving over seas there are no jobs, how is Obama going to create jobs...our systems are broken...people running them are less then inefficent...you saw that happen with Katrina...they continue to allow illegals in this country, and they don't have to pay any taxes, we have to carry them....our boarder control is inefficent, they don't even know who is here who is not...our child welfare is inefficent....yet, we continue to dish out money to them, at the expense of our school systems and education...we're loosing police protection and our fire fighting facilities b/c of it. We pay our police nothing for the jobs they do...they put they're lives on the line, and deal with the scum of society every day. It's always "well give them some money" quick fixes, and yet, no one gets to the root of the problem and fixes this. For instance, our prisions, they should be terrible places to go...they're criminals and a menace to society, instead of allowing a murderer to go free after four years, because our prisons are full, build more prisons, and get them out of society. Do you realize, how much money we waste re-arresting all these people...they don't want to work, they don't want to contribute to society....our systems are so deterioated, it's a mess...but hey, hand them more money, and don't oversee how it's spent...that's all we do...we don't fix the problems, we don't even care...our senetors, send out letters and emails about how they've done they're jobs, by allocating thousands/millions of dollars to these systems, yet, no one, knows how this money is spent????? I've seen this, years ago, when I worked for the state, and they were allocated money. Our entire sytem, and it's people are corrupt...it's an entitlement culture...people are no longer aware of how they're decissions/actions effect everyone else....do you realize, how bad our infostructure is here in the U.S., including roads, bridges, it's a joke...and 25 years ago, I was told that by an inspecter whom I worked with....back then, they put a small tax on gasoline, which was supposed to be allocated for infostructure...it wasn't...why? Because everytime someone new gets in, they use the money somewhere else....our seneters have how many aides each to do they're jobs for them...they don't know what's going on, b/c they don't care, they don't look at budgets, they don't care, as long as they are getting they're medical coverage and paychecks. Look at what Verizon is doing to they're people, they're cutting they're benefits....but those who run the company continue to get there's. People don't care how they ruin lives any longer, it's all about me....period...to heck with my neighbor, so what if he lost his job and has a family to feed....as long as I have my job....If your leaders are corrupt, so will your people be.

I want to see change as much as anyone else in this country, but it ain't going to happen until the people wake up and realize, they've been throwing us under the bus for years and years...it isn't like it was when the constitution was first written...and it never will be again until we the people wake the heck up...and stop blaming the dems or the rebubs...it's both parties...they are working us like lawyers do....they want us at each others throats...do you realize, how the intellectual level of American's has declined? There is no awareness....most people don't care, they live in they're protective plastic bubbles they're created for themselves and sit there and constantly blame the other party...education is a joke, we're still sending our kids to college, what jobs are there for them when they're out...and what jobs are there for our men when they come home from the middle east, why do you think we're still over there? Why are we in fact there? Why do we always get involved in the lives of so many others in other countries, when our own country is in dire straits...? Fix your house first, get it running smoothly and then go out and tell other countries how they should be living they're lives, what hypocrites we are?

Even the churches, in this country do not care...we have so many children molested everyday, and yet, they ignore the fact, they do nothing about it, and yet, the Christians are a huge part of elections and getting folks voted in...they're contributions to poltitics are large, yet, they to, turn they're heads...

Yet, you and so many others in this country live by the saying, you've got to vote, it's your duty.... what a joke...
I'm with the other poster, in this day and age, they can't get the voting machine to work properly.... are you kidding me...seriously...do you actually believe that? If they're not working then instead of giving so much money to experiement on goats, get new ones...this entire country is dishonest....and it's all about money, not caring for each other as neighbors, the U.S. is a community and there is no reason on God's green earth why we should be in this situation...cut backs to pay this and that, and to heck with the people...? Well, we are the people, we pay them to do a job that they are not doing properly...enough with the quick fixes, I and a lot of other American's want to see them do they're jobs right...cut the frivolus spending...heck, we don't even own this country any longer, there are so many companies, docks and businesses owned by people from other countries who are not even citizens of the U.S. Think they care, they want us to go down, they want this land, and they're going to get it...

I'm sorry, but we've got to start waking up instead of deluding ourselves, we are no longer that Country our young men are loosing they're lives for....and have been since the beginning of the U.S. Even the civil war was more political then it was about freeing the slaves....I mean, they make heros out of bad leaders, and our history books have lied to us...yet, we still believe that there is goodness and grace and we're God fearing people, who care...yes, this is still the best country in the world to live in, we're free, however, our judicial system is so screwed up, it's a joke...so much of our money is wasted on law suits that should be thrown out of court...that to me is a crime, yet, thousands of people use anything they can to get rich quick...and they feel it's they're right???? They don't care how they are costing us money....and the free rides have got to stop...for instance, welfare....welfare, breeds welfare, and if someone's parents live on that all they're lives, chances are the kids will, and they're paid more to have more children. We reward bad behavior instead of educating them...that is the key to success, is education, instead of allowing people to believe it's ok to grow up selling drugs on street corners....if this keeps up, there will be no more jobs to be had...
and we'll all be selling drugs to feed our families...

there are no jobs out there...you show me where items are made in America...why? because we all got greedy, we all wanted the big screen TV's and the great big money guzzling cars, and a 3 - 5000 or more square foot home...for two?????? With elevators in it...spending money we don't have....

I mean look around you, look at your crime rates, talk to police officers, you've got flash mobs and all kinds of crime going on every day, that you don't hear about...crime is the result of a lack of education...kids growing up believing it's ok, to rob, murder and steal to make money, that is what they consider, they're jobs.

I mean, read this, this is not a joke, and it's happening...all over our country...
Christians Openly Advocate Killing Athiests on FOX News Facebook Page

If you live in America, I have no problem with you practicing your religion, however, this is still America, governed by our Constitution, and no one should tell another, what they should believe in, and, you need to be a working citizen of the U.S. going by our constitution...becomeing a citizen...of the U.S. and contributing to the community...if this stuff continues...well, it only gets worse and worse...

sorry to be so long winded Glitch, but I've seen in my lifetime awful things happening...it all started by opening a very small can of worms....people don't like rules and rules may not always be fair, but they are there for a reason, to contribute to law and order, when you break those rules just a little bit, it only opens a new can of worms...and we just don't seem to get it...?

I mean people go from one extreme to the other...extremists are what we've become, at the cost of everyone else around us. We no longer even know our neighbors...or care to....and it all starts at home....it starts with each one of us, doing our jobs, raising our own children, it is our job to educate them and teach them awareness, how to be polite, how to open a door and help older people, my gosh, if you see an older person carrying groceries into they're home, stop and go over and help them, be aware of your surroundings, be aware of others and how noise might effect they're personal lives...it's the small good things that grow into big huge things...a trickle effect of how we raise and educate our kids...entitlement is corrupt and hugely selfish...but hey, no one wants to hear this, it's ok if my kid is in some resturant, yelling and screaming and the person next to me, is out trying to have a quiet anniversary dinner. It's ok, my kid is running around Walmart, screaming and knocking over products in the isles...and god forbid if I repromand them, or spank them, someone is going to call me a child abuser? Yanno what, this is how all this stuff started, and all it takes is one little tiny can of worms....if my kids that bad, you bet I'm gonna spank him...it's about time, parents start parenting again...and that's the beginning of everything.

and yes, there is a two party system, and it's been controlling us for years...and it isn't working, is it?
How is it going to work when people vote for someone b/c that candidate is a woman? They don't care what kind of experience is there, they don't even know...or b/c someone is black, or b/c someone is a certain religion...we don't know what kind of experience these people have? Bush got in b/c everyone was tired of Clinton, however, I will say, that Clinton did a great job with our finances, or should I say, his people that were in there....so Bush gets in, and he does this country worse, and everytime someone is elected, the old is replace by the new in our finance department...they have no idea, what or where the money was going before...and they dont' really care...

Yanno, years ago, when we kept things on paper, we had a much better system and better control.
Now, a company puts a new software system in, and it's worse then the old one, why, b/c the people who invented that new software, do not use it on a day to day basis, so they don't have a clue what the needs are. They don't even bother talking to the users, companies make decissions without talking to it's employees, who better to learn from what works and what doesn't but heck, they don't care about production, they purchase the cheapest system so they can save money...so they're portfolio looks good....and the big shots, the CEO's, they don't care if the system works, all they see is the money saved...and give the guy a pat on the back, and yet, that guy, never once spoke with the employees to find out if the system works...today, it's all about the investors...who cares if the company is functioning badly otherwise, long as it looks good on paper...and these same companies, spend millions to contractors, telling them how to do they're jobs?????? Yet, they get paid huge salaries for they're experience????? No one knows what they're doing any more....why, b/c we lost touch with each other, nothing is functioning as it should and nobody cares...we are loosing sight of objectives and don't care.

Last edited by cremebrulee; 08-10-2011 at 05:59 AM..
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-10-2011, 07:46 AM
 
42,732 posts, read 29,772,490 times
Reputation: 14345
Quote:
Originally Posted by Glitch View Post
There are no laws on any books that help maintain the dominance of any political party. That is pure fiction. There are laws that specify the requirements for any political party to be recognized by the State. No preferential treatment is given by the State. As a result, there are multiple political parties at the State level, and dozens of third parties at the federal level.


There are laws that help maintain the dominance of the two political parties.
Laws that restrict who can get on a state's ballot, for instance. There is currently a case in Arkansas that clearly outlines such laws.

GREEN PARTY OF ARKANSAS v. MARTIN*-*Submitted: May 10, 2011.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-10-2011, 08:00 AM
 
Location: Vermont
11,754 posts, read 14,595,381 times
Reputation: 18502
Quote:
Originally Posted by DC at the Ridge View Post
There are laws that help maintain the dominance of the two political parties.
Laws that restrict who can get on a state's ballot, for instance. There is currently a case in Arkansas that clearly outlines such laws.

GREEN PARTY OF ARKANSAS v. MARTIN*-*Submitted: May 10, 2011.
Do you really think that a political party that can't get 1000 or 10,000 signatures to get on the ballot can compete on a statewide or nationwide basis?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-10-2011, 08:22 AM
 
42,732 posts, read 29,772,490 times
Reputation: 14345
Quote:
Originally Posted by jackmccullough View Post
Do you really think that a political party that can't get 1000 or 10,000 signatures to get on the ballot can compete on a statewide or nationwide basis?
I think 10,000 signatures in 90 days in a rural state is a daunting task. And getting on the ballot is a hurdle that has to be overcome if a political party is ever going to compete at all.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-10-2011, 08:52 AM
 
Location: Wasilla, Alaska
17,823 posts, read 23,379,420 times
Reputation: 6541
Quote:
Originally Posted by cremebrulee View Post
Glitch, your missing my point...I know what you speak of, however, who got in...doesn't matter that it was by a mere handful....you have a huge problem going on in America, people are way to dedicated to they're parties...so much so, that they can't admit to themselves or anyone else that both parties are corrupt and have done nothing but run us into the ground, catering to each and every special interest group who supports them...or the corporations who supports them. So, each and every election during the course of my life, it's a battle won by either dems or rebubs. I've gotten so sick of it I've registered independent. No matter who gets in, they throw us to the wolves...and it gets worse and worse, they want us to conserve, go green etc...however, look at them? Look at how utterly greedy all the CEO's in this country are...and they are the ones who pick and choose, not us...to me, voting is no longer a civic duty, it's a joke...and after what happened in Florida, I feel that way....our government is corrupt, they spend, spend, spend...my son worked for a sub contractor and you have no idea how they wasted our money over seas....supposidly fighting the war on terror....sheeesh, what a joke...and Bush started it...he lied to us about Weapons of Mass destruction to get us in there...our companies are moving over seas there are no jobs, how is Obama going to create jobs...our systems are broken...people running them are less then inefficent...you saw that happen with Katrina...they continue to allow illegals in this country, and they don't have to pay any taxes, we have to carry them....our boarder control is inefficent, they don't even know who is here who is not...our child welfare is inefficent....yet, we continue to dish out money to them, at the expense of our school systems and education...we're loosing police protection and our fire fighting facilities b/c of it. We pay our police nothing for the jobs they do...they put they're lives on the line, and deal with the scum of society every day. It's always "well give them some money" quick fixes, and yet, no one gets to the root of the problem and fixes this. For instance, our prisions, they should be terrible places to go...they're criminals and a menace to society, instead of allowing a murderer to go free after four years, because our prisons are full, build more prisons, and get them out of society. Do you realize, how much money we waste re-arresting all these people...they don't want to work, they don't want to contribute to society....our systems are so deterioated, it's a mess...but hey, hand them more money, and don't oversee how it's spent...that's all we do...we don't fix the problems, we don't even care...our senetors, send out letters and emails about how they've done they're jobs, by allocating thousands/millions of dollars to these systems, yet, no one, knows how this money is spent????? I've seen this, years ago, when I worked for the state, and they were allocated money. Our entire sytem, and it's people are corrupt...it's an entitlement culture...people are no longer aware of how they're decissions/actions effect everyone else....do you realize, how bad our infostructure is here in the U.S., including roads, bridges, it's a joke...and 25 years ago, I was told that by an inspecter whom I worked with....back then, they put a small tax on gasoline, which was supposed to be allocated for infostructure...it wasn't...why? Because everytime someone new gets in, they use the money somewhere else....our seneters have how many aides each to do they're jobs for them...they don't know what's going on, b/c they don't care, they don't look at budgets, they don't care, as long as they are getting they're medical coverage and paychecks. Look at what Verizon is doing to they're people, they're cutting they're benefits....but those who run the company continue to get there's. People don't care how they ruin lives any longer, it's all about me....period...to heck with my neighbor, so what if he lost his job and has a family to feed....as long as I have my job....If your leaders are corrupt, so will your people be.

I want to see change as much as anyone else in this country, but it ain't going to happen until the people wake up and realize, they've been throwing us under the bus for years and years...it isn't like it was when the constitution was first written...and it never will be again until we the people wake the heck up...and stop blaming the dems or the rebubs...it's both parties...they are working us like lawyers do....they want us at each others throats...do you realize, how the intellectual level of American's has declined? There is no awareness....most people don't care, they live in they're protective plastic bubbles they're created for themselves and sit there and constantly blame the other party...education is a joke, we're still sending our kids to college, what jobs are there for them when they're out...and what jobs are there for our men when they come home from the middle east, why do you think we're still over there? Why are we in fact there? Why do we always get involved in the lives of so many others in other countries, when our own country is in dire straits...? Fix your house first, get it running smoothly and then go out and tell other countries how they should be living they're lives, what hypocrites we are?

Even the churches, in this country do not care...we have so many children molested everyday, and yet, they ignore the fact, they do nothing about it, and yet, the Christians are a huge part of elections and getting folks voted in...they're contributions to poltitics are large, yet, they to, turn they're heads...

Yet, you and so many others in this country live by the saying, you've got to vote, it's your duty.... what a joke...
I'm with the other poster, in this day and age, they can't get the voting machine to work properly.... are you kidding me...seriously...do you actually believe that? If they're not working then instead of giving so much money to experiement on goats, get new ones...this entire country is dishonest....and it's all about money, not caring for each other as neighbors, the U.S. is a community and there is no reason on God's green earth why we should be in this situation...cut backs to pay this and that, and to heck with the people...? Well, we are the people, we pay them to do a job that they are not doing properly...enough with the quick fixes, I and a lot of other American's want to see them do they're jobs right...cut the frivolus spending...heck, we don't even own this country any longer, there are so many companies, docks and businesses owned by people from other countries who are not even citizens of the U.S. Think they care, they want us to go down, they want this land, and they're going to get it...

I'm sorry, but we've got to start waking up instead of deluding ourselves, we are no longer that Country our young men are loosing they're lives for....and have been since the beginning of the U.S. Even the civil war was more political then it was about freeing the slaves....I mean, they make heros out of bad leaders, and our history books have lied to us...yet, we still believe that there is goodness and grace and we're God fearing people, who care...yes, this is still the best country in the world to live in, we're free, however, our judicial system is so screwed up, it's a joke...so much of our money is wasted on law suits that should be thrown out of court...that to me is a crime, yet, thousands of people use anything they can to get rich quick...and they feel it's they're right???? They don't care how they are costing us money....and the free rides have got to stop...for instance, welfare....welfare, breeds welfare, and if someone's parents live on that all they're lives, chances are the kids will, and they're paid more to have more children. We reward bad behavior instead of educating them...that is the key to success, is education, instead of allowing people to believe it's ok to grow up selling drugs on street corners....if this keeps up, there will be no more jobs to be had...
and we'll all be selling drugs to feed our families...

there are no jobs out there...you show me where items are made in America...why? because we all got greedy, we all wanted the big screen TV's and the great big money guzzling cars, and a 3 - 5000 or more square foot home...for two?????? With elevators in it...spending money we don't have....

I mean look around you, look at your crime rates, talk to police officers, you've got flash mobs and all kinds of crime going on every day, that you don't hear about...crime is the result of a lack of education...kids growing up believing it's ok, to rob, murder and steal to make money, that is what they consider, they're jobs.

I mean, read this, this is not a joke, and it's happening...all over our country...
Christians Openly Advocate Killing Athiests on FOX News Facebook Page

If you live in America, I have no problem with you practicing your religion, however, this is still America, governed by our Constitution, and no one should tell another, what they should believe in, and, you need to be a working citizen of the U.S. going by our constitution...becomeing a citizen...of the U.S. and contributing to the community...if this stuff continues...well, it only gets worse and worse...

sorry to be so long winded Glitch, but I've seen in my lifetime awful things happening...it all started by opening a very small can of worms....people don't like rules and rules may not always be fair, but they are there for a reason, to contribute to law and order, when you break those rules just a little bit, it only opens a new can of worms...and we just don't seem to get it...?

I mean people go from one extreme to the other...extremists are what we've become, at the cost of everyone else around us. We no longer even know our neighbors...or care to....and it all starts at home....it starts with each one of us, doing our jobs, raising our own children, it is our job to educate them and teach them awareness, how to be polite, how to open a door and help older people, my gosh, if you see an older person carrying groceries into they're home, stop and go over and help them, be aware of your surroundings, be aware of others and how noise might effect they're personal lives...it's the small good things that grow into big huge things...a trickle effect of how we raise and educate our kids...entitlement is corrupt and hugely selfish...but hey, no one wants to hear this, it's ok if my kid is in some resturant, yelling and screaming and the person next to me, is out trying to have a quiet anniversary dinner. It's ok, my kid is running around Walmart, screaming and knocking over products in the isles...and god forbid if I repromand them, or spank them, someone is going to call me a child abuser? Yanno what, this is how all this stuff started, and all it takes is one little tiny can of worms....if my kids that bad, you bet I'm gonna spank him...it's about time, parents start parenting again...and that's the beginning of everything.

and yes, there is a two party system, and it's been controlling us for years...and it isn't working, is it?
How is it going to work when people vote for someone b/c that candidate is a woman? They don't care what kind of experience is there, they don't even know...or b/c someone is black, or b/c someone is a certain religion...we don't know what kind of experience these people have? Bush got in b/c everyone was tired of Clinton, however, I will say, that Clinton did a great job with our finances, or should I say, his people that were in there....so Bush gets in, and he does this country worse, and everytime someone is elected, the old is replace by the new in our finance department...they have no idea, what or where the money was going before...and they dont' really care...

Yanno, years ago, when we kept things on paper, we had a much better system and better control.
Now, a company puts a new software system in, and it's worse then the old one, why, b/c the people who invented that new software, do not use it on a day to day basis, so they don't have a clue what the needs are. They don't even bother talking to the users, companies make decissions without talking to it's employees, who better to learn from what works and what doesn't but heck, they don't care about production, they purchase the cheapest system so they can save money...so they're portfolio looks good....and the big shots, the CEO's, they don't care if the system works, all they see is the money saved...and give the guy a pat on the back, and yet, that guy, never once spoke with the employees to find out if the system works...today, it's all about the investors...who cares if the company is functioning badly otherwise, long as it looks good on paper...and these same companies, spend millions to contractors, telling them how to do they're jobs?????? Yet, they get paid huge salaries for they're experience????? No one knows what they're doing any more....why, b/c we lost touch with each other, nothing is functioning as it should and nobody cares...we are loosing sight of objectives and don't care.
Wow! That was quite a response. Let me summarize it for you: You are a cynic. Politics will often make cynics of us, if we allow it. Often it is when we lose perspective that we become cynical. You probably just need to step back and get some perspective. Consider what matters most to you, and I will wager it is not politics. Try not to focus too much on the things that do not matter.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-10-2011, 08:58 AM
 
Location: Dallas, TX
31,767 posts, read 28,747,069 times
Reputation: 12341
Quote:
Originally Posted by DC at the Ridge View Post
Political parties originally were formed to make it easier for voters to select candidates.
"A political party" (Federalists) was formed not to make it easier for the people but to have a better control of matters, including the people. The opposition had to unite to balance it out (the Anti-Federalists, later... democratic-republican party).

Quote:
Here's the thing, you cannot Constitutionally dissolve political parties. People are protected in being able to form associations to advance their political agendas, and that is all that a political party is essentially.
Clearly, the US Constitution left a lot to be desired. And as your last post suggests, laws have basically been created for dominance of two parties. As is the case in many states, one can't participate as an independent in the primaries but must tie an alliance to one of the existing parties.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-10-2011, 09:02 AM
 
42,732 posts, read 29,772,490 times
Reputation: 14345
Quote:
Originally Posted by EinsteinsGhost View Post
"A political party" (Federalists) was formed not to make it easier for the people but to have a better control of matters, including the people. The opposition had to unite to balance it out (the Anti-Federalists, later... democratic-republican party).


Clearly, the US Constitution left a lot to be desired.
I disagree with you, on both points, but most significantly about the US Constitution.

The US Constitution may not be perfect, but it didn't leave "a lot to be desired." It's an amazing document, beautifully thought-out, laying a foundation for a balanced, responsive government that represents the majority while also protecting the minority.

State laws are completely separate from the Constitution, so your edited-in comments are irrelevant to an evaluation of the Constitution.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-10-2011, 09:05 AM
 
Location: Dallas, TX
31,767 posts, read 28,747,069 times
Reputation: 12341
Quote:
Originally Posted by DC at the Ridge View Post
I disagree with you, on both points, but most significantly about the US Constitution.

The US Constitution may not be perfect, but it didn't leave "a lot to be desired." It's an amazing document, beautifully thought-out, laying a foundation for a balanced, responsive government that represents the majority while also protecting the minority.
Well, then you at least partially agreed with me. Was the point of the US Constitution to concentrate the power of political system in the hands of two parties for them to be able to dominate?

Quote:
Originally Posted by DC at the Ridge View Post
State laws are completely separate from the Constitution, so your edited-in comments are irrelevant to an evaluation of the Constitution.
Do they not affect people's rights and freedoms to participate in federal elections?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-10-2011, 09:05 AM
 
Location: Wasilla, Alaska
17,823 posts, read 23,379,420 times
Reputation: 6541
Quote:
Originally Posted by DC at the Ridge View Post
There are laws that help maintain the dominance of the two political parties.
Laws that restrict who can get on a state's ballot, for instance. There is currently a case in Arkansas that clearly outlines such laws.

GREEN PARTY OF ARKANSAS v. MARTIN*-*Submitted: May 10, 2011.
There is nothing in the Arkansas law, or any State law for that matter, that gives preferential treatment to either of the two major political parties. Arkansas requires 10,000 signatures within 90 days AND at least 3% of the popular vote to be officially recognized as a political party.

Alaska has an identical law to Arkansas - to be officially recognized they must obtain at least 3% of the popular vote. Alaska has four officially recognized political parties: Alaska Republican, Alaska Democrat, Alaska Libertarian, and Alaska Independence Party.

Source: http://www.elections.alaska.gov/pi_rp.php

The Green Party also struggled for a few years in Alaska during the 1990s and could never get more than 1% of the popular vote. Therefore, the Green Party is not recognized in Alaska either.

Requiring a candidate for Governor to get at least 3% of the popular vote is not that big of a requirement. Nor does it demonstrate any preferential treatment of one political party over another. All political parties must meet the same minimum standard to be officially recognized and placed on the ballot.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:

Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > General Forums > Politics and Other Controversies
Similar Threads

All times are GMT -6. The time now is 01:49 AM.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top