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to move legislation and break up partisan gridlock?
Or should they stand firm on their (your if you share them) beliefs no matter what?
Compromise on what is the real question, and the reason I can't answer this poll. Bill Clinton should have never compromised with Republicans selling him on deregulation gone amok. He regrets that decision now but nary an apology from R's still trying to sell the same crap to this very day. The entire GOP has become Amway MLM salesmen for a think tank, none of whom are responsible for a damned thing now or ever.
So lets talk for real here- just exactly where should people's loyalty (and their representation) lie? It belongs in the best interest of their nation. People all too often hold allegiance to special interests that comes at the expense of the country. Tea says one thing but they're doing another. Being overly permissive with corporations harms entire industries, and ancillary industries, and the entire nation.
Partisan gridlock--- how about we just be adults and register our concerns? How about politicians being judged for their reasoning for or against a given piece of legislature? How about opposing or minority views get to work offering alternative solutions?
Obstructionism is grounds for dismissal on any other job I've had my whole life. Ask any citizen they'll answer similarly. Filibuster shenanigans and out skunking each other should cost them dearly not in election year but in the moment the conduct is happening. Negotiate in good faith or leave. There's a standard of conduct in a court room and there needs to be a higher standard of conduct in congress and senate than traffic court for criminy sake. Any beef I've had for years (chronic low approval rating of mine) can be directly attributed not to a particular party in office, but the sheer degree of SLIME covering DC. Until the rules change in DC every politician you elect becomes the lesser of 2 evils trying to master a dysfunctional system -or worse- contributing to the slime.
If we the people of the United States of America take back our government, by making our selves heard. Through the meeting hall, pen, phone, blog, email, forum, and any other rational manner of making our voice heard. If we take back the responsibility of telling our representatives what we want. Grid lock will be avoided and as in the late 1770's when 39 men agreed to the Constitution the country would be in the hands of the people where it belongs
If we the people of the United States of America take back our government, by making our selves heard. Through the meeting hall, pen, phone, blog, email, forum, and any other rational manner of making our voice heard. If we take back the responsibility of telling our representatives what we want. Grid lock will be avoided and as in the late 1770's when 39 men agreed to the Constitution the country would be in the hands of the people where it belongs
If you're serious about taking back your government you've got to do better than making yourself heard. They hear you plenty, but if you're not making any sense because you haven't defined the problem properly there's nothing to listen to. Citizens have to start by taking responsibility for their citizenship first. This means having a clear understanding about what America is, what our civic duties are and what the duties of governance are about. Looking at your government for a free toaster oven in exchange for your vote debases your citizenship (and mine) horribly.
If we take back the responsibility of telling our representatives what we want... I want perfect health forever. I want fluffy white clouds and blue skies forever. See the problem? Some things can't be delivered by anyone and it's not a practical request. The things we need to be talking about are the things that affect us all as individuals and become a group decision. Some things have no business being a group decision. I want nothing to do with telling you who to love, I do not care to pay/ be blamed for the consequences for your life unless I also get your lifetime paychecks. I do not feel it correct to be imposing myself on you no matter my personal views until you cross the line mistreating others (negating your own rights by infringing on others). The only grounds for grievance is shared spaces, and by virtue of 'shared', it means a degree of compromise for all. Most things in life really don't merit a call to your congressman. People wanting smaller government should find out how economical gratitude truly is because if you quit whining it's amazing how the workload gets manageable.
Along your lines of taking responsibility I have a suggestion that would apply to all equally. Instead of this back and forth liberal and conservative stuff, why aren't americans taking a political 'solution' test themselves? Forget political purity, which is just a gun to someones head telling them what religion to believe. What if a given issue is raised and the possible answers (5 or 6) were framed in terms of appropriate solutions? How would the majority answer? Now remember our checks and balances-- tyranny of the majority is something to be tempered. Where freedom is impinged needlessly we (as citizens supporting citizenry, and as govt supporting citizens) are compelled to defer to individual rights.
Something I'd like to see in governance-- congress and senate levels at least--- I think representatives should be allowed to petition their constituency digitally on a 2 way street. If they're torn on an issue and mean to properly represent, wouldn't it be nice to see the 6 o'clock news report congresswoman so and so has requested you visit her website and do an unofficial vote on a given issue? Perhaps that representative could post both sides of the argument, or perhaps the news would <gasp> REPORT the controversy/ potential conflicts instead of sniffing around for scandal. Lets say we loosely base it on the security of registered voter id #'s. It's not a formal vote, but a weighing in of conscience. I think our relationship with representation has great potential in digital age if it's used properly. I don't blame average voters feeling like their government is a monolith they can't comprehend but it's an illusion. These folks put one sock on at a time just like the rest of us. They aren't Jesus, they're mere mortals. The US government is not infinite power & might. We have limits, and as individuals, as a nation, we need to articulate those limits more clearly.
At this point in the game, I would be lucky to just having my representative actually read the legislation on his desk, and to "Not Vote" on anything he hasn't read.
What an interesting result. perfectly inverse with Libs and Conservatives. Liberals are flexible and conservs are rigid... wow what a surprise
I see conservatives animated in a way that they're convinced they have to protect something. Atlas shrugged is something of a mockery of that sense of duty in men (as if they cold hold up the sky). It may have made a good point here and there but... that sense of duty in men deserves respect.
My disagreement with conservatives--- while fending off a bogus boogeyman, the real terrorist is instructing them to stomp on their kids. Both sides have equal time at being misguided. Liberals have their own versions of missionary jobs gone foul. Present tense, conservatives can't meaningfully contribute to a debate if they can't admit to ever being wrong. Too attached to image they're defending all the wrong things (at the expense of the greater good).
At this point in the game, I would be lucky to just having my representative actually read the legislation on his desk, and to "Not Vote" on anything he hasn't read.
Good grief have you ever seen those war and peace encyclopedias they're writing? Might take most people a whole year to read, and 30yrs to comprehend written in that foreign language that's undercut our spoken language-- legal language. Most would agree things do get out of hand and would prefer a better way to go about things but... this is the system we have. Accept it & work with what we've got or build another one.
of the 9 conservatives, only 1 wants to compromise
of the 9 liberals, 6 want to compromise
I think I know why the country is in such a fix - if this poll is any indication, conservatives are more closed minded. I think this affirms my position of the more rational of the two
If you're serious about taking back your government you've got to do better than making yourself heard. They hear you plenty, but if you're not making any sense because you haven't defined the problem properly there's nothing to listen to. Citizens have to start by taking responsibility for their citizenship first. This means having a clear understanding about what America is, what our civic duties are and what the duties of governance are about. Looking at your government for a free toaster oven in exchange for your vote debases your citizenship (and mine) horribly.
You're right on this point, but it's going to be difficult to do. Why? Because for a couple of generations now, the focus of education in our school systems, both public and private, has been to create good workers, not good citizens. Preparing students to be responsible adults who know how their government works and their role in it has taken a back seat to preparing them to function in the world economy.
The result is that we have millions of adult voters who really have never studied, or been taught, civics. They know little of the Constitution, do not appreciate the value of the law or fully understand the principles of the separation of powers and checks and balances.
You can see the evidence of that right here on these boards, at Tea Party gatherings, at political conventions and among the Beckbots and ideologues on both sides of the aisle. There is much angst, much anger, many ideas of how to correct what's wrong with this country, but not a clue how those ideas are translated into real action. Far too many times, the proposals supported are un-Constitutional, illegal, un-necessary, counter to the spirit of the Declaration of Independence or contrary to the Will of The People, yet nobody sees that or understands how or why. They really don't know. The lack of civic knowledge in this country is appalling and, I think, is directly related to how we got to this impass.
So, how do you teach basic civics to adults who are unfamiliar even with the term? How do you break through the conditioning they received at school and at the hands of the schools corporate sponsors and Department of Education administrators at state and federa level? How do you retrain their thinking from worker to citizen?
Unless you accomplish that first, nothing will change.
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