Forum Post: We can all agree: Voting reform is the solution!
Posted 13 years ago on Oct. 10, 2011, 3:28 p.m. EST by jolsson
(18)
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Why are no politicians representing your views? Why is America controlled by corporations? Because of the voting system!
In a dictatorship voters have one choice. In America voters have only two. In a real democracy voters have a choice between multiple parties and platforms, and elections are not determined by donations to politicians.
We need proportional representation, which creates a multi-party system where every viewpoint gets represented. Every vote counts and donations to greedy individual politicians don't exist. Proportional representation is the choice of all truly democratic countries such as Holland, Sweden and Denmark.
Proportional representation is the answer!
Join the cause at: http://www.usparliament.blogspot.com/
When the first congress sat there were 64 house representatives and 26 senators for a population of roughly 4 million, which equaled about 50,000 citizens per represenative (not to mention that women, blacks and men that didnt own property couldnt vote). Today there are 435 in the house and 100 senators for a population of roughly 300 million, which equals 500,000 citizens per represenative. The number of represenatives in congress has not increased since 1913 and there arent any prospects of this chaning anytime soon. More representatives mean more proporational representation, less accumulated unjustified authority, more diverse party lines/ more parties and least but not least more direct contact and accountability from your representative. Congressmen/women have more staffers, being paid with tax dollars, who are not elected and have an extreme amount of influence in Washington, than in any other time in our history. More representation is more democratic...
I totally agree and have voicing the same argument here. You should put this post under the main forum and in the ideas forum. I did, but if more people do it, whoever is collecting the ideas might take it seriously.
How do I get to the main forum?
Go to the forum and hit post on the right side of the screen. There is also and ideas post somewhere
I understand...I have already done that. It's under the headline 'More representation'. Thanks bro!
"List of Demands" is post I was talking about
I saw it on Yahoo too. Well stated!
Yes. In today's system, almost half of the votes are wasted. Republicans in Manhattan have no representation, and many Democrats in Texas have no representation. Is that right?
I think that if the Republicans get 18% of the votes in Manhattan, they should get 18% of the seats from that district.
Stiglitz and Krugman know the way
Why do I need someone to REPRESENT my voice? I can read, form opinions, & make decisions. Let's govern ourselves through true democracy.
This financial reform movement has been a dream of mine since 2008, after hearing the Congressional Hearing on Energy Reform and on how Financial Deregulations hurts the hard working Americans, and turns undeserved brokers/executives into overnight Millionaires!
So I feel (and many others) that only way we can get back on safe financial footing again is to close the Enron Loophole, created for energy/oil speculators, and bring back The Glass-Steagall Act of 1933, which prevented the current banking and insurance scams/loopholes. After all, it worked great until late 90's, until when Congress threw it out. Since then, like prior to 1933, we are experiencing what our country went though then, total Wall Street Greed with no Penalties, its all legal Gambling now...thanks to the architects of our new system in 1999, President Clinton and Rep Senator Phil Gramm. Think about where we are now, it all started in 1999 with the subprime loans Gramm was peaching on Senate floor. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gKQOxr2wBZQ&feature=related
And for the Free Trade Movement, bringing back the Glass-Steagall Act will not hurt our financial markets or hinder Free Trade, as the GOP rhetoric claims, instead with this back in PLACE bankers can still make millions a day, but not the trillions as they do now on the accounts of hard working Americans.
Bankers need more regulation, not less. Don't let the Bankers new Game to charge for debit cards as the results of the Dodd/Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act surprise you. Right after it passed, we have the banking lobby on national TV saying that "we" will pay for it, after we bailed them out, What nerve! So this is their response to having it their way since 1999: We have have to find a way to give out Executives their way out of line bonuses: Bingo, charge for debit cards! This is them throwing their influence over our Election officials, that are suppose to work for us, after all we voted for them to do the right thing, which doesn't include the banking lobbyist agenda....
Cheers to all that are involved. Let's get focused and bring back Glass-Steagall Act of 1933, they got it right 1933, we don't need to reinvent the wheel because bringing this Act back will create an even playing field once again....and let's also tell Congress to finally Close the Enron Loophole, which allowed Enron to charge what they wanted for energy; they went to jail for this; but no one closed the loophole, why? Re-election Monies from the banks and oil companies! The writing is on the wall.
Why we need Glass-Steagall to be reinstated:
http://www.investopedia.com/articles/03/071603.asp#axzz1aPEc3wXj http://www.counterpunch.org/2008/09/19/shattering-the-glass-steagall-act/
Why are oil prices high?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbdtTGYQBMU&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNp0y0SjOkY&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-kExdTgNZA&feature=channel
Rolling Stones Reporter: Truth about Goldman Sachs--they have cornered the markets, why? Enron Loophole and repeal of Glass-Steagall Act in 1999. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=waL5UxScgUw
Excellent goals, but you need a comprehensive strategy that implements all of them at the same time, and although I'm all in favor of taking down today's ineffective and inefficient Top 10% Management Group of Business & Government, there's only one way to do it – by fighting bankers as bankers ourselves. Consequently, I have posted a 1-page Summary of the Strategic Legal Policies, Organizational Operating Structures, and Tactical Investment Procedures necessary to do this at:
http://getsatisfaction.com/americanselect/topics/on_strategic_legal_policy_organizational_operational_structures_tactical_investment_procedures
Join
http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/StrategicInternationalSystems/
if you want to be 1 of 100,000 people needed to support a Presidential Candidate – myself – at AmericansElect.org in support of the above bank-focused platform.
http://FairVote.org
If nothing else this movement OWS has to be making a lot of people in Washington very nervous!! Just a note, statistics show that people under 30 vote the least. Lets at least get everyone registered to vote. Also when is the last day to put a person on the ballot for the Presidency for 2012?
Wrong, campaign donations and cronyism within politics is the whole issue. If our elected officials voted with their hearts and not their pocket books in mind we would not be having this conversation. This can be accomplished different ways. Term limits of no more then two terms is one way to help but not fix the problem, look at Obama and the Stimulus money, it almost all went to companies owned by people who contributed to him or unions that contributed to him. And Pelosi, look at all the healthcare wavers that her supporters got making them exempt from the law they passed.
There has to be a way to stop lobbyist funds from going to political parties or politicians. If you take away the money from the politicians it leaves them with no choice other then to do the right thing, it's just to tempting to pass laws that help all your donors, family, and pad your bank account.
That is the heart of the problem, money always corrupts.
How can voting reform ne the solution when few people turn out to vote? Most local elections only come within 100 votes. This is not much given the population. Voting has become a ritual, whch always exposes the power of a 2 party system. We have no choices, nor do we care to. Corporations give us what we want......a robot like existance.
I will represent myself, I have no need see the stupid polital discussion between the moronic candidates they throw at us.
We need people reform, forget about the voting, becsaue stupid people vote for atupid candidates. Its been happening since the start.
www.inspiringcreativeawareness.com
The first step is to get money out of our politics, stop lobbies writing our laws.
Yes, stop the bribary of our elected officials.
You all are great! I feel the only way we can get back on safe financial footing again is to close the Enron Loophole for oil speculators and bring back The Glass-Steagall Act of 1933, which prevented the current banking and insurance scams/loopholes. After all, it worked great until late 90's when Congress threw it out. Since then, like prior to 1933, we are experiencing what our country went though then, total Wall Street greed with no penalties, its all legal now...Thanks to the architects of our new system in 1999, President Clinton and Senator Gramm. Cheers to all that are involved! Jim
Why we need Glass-Steagall to be reinstated:
http://www.investopedia.com/articles/03/071603.asp#axzz1aPEc3wXj http://www.counterpunch.org/2008/09/19/shattering-the-glass-steagall-act/
Why are oil prices high?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbdtTGYQBMU&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNp0y0SjOkY&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-kExdTgNZA&feature=channel
I would favor PR for sure!
The last revolution was fought for taxation without representation. I'll fight the next one because of representation without taxation. If you don't have skin in the game you shouldn't be able to have a say in how it's run.
another call for the food producers rule
Interesting. We might as well turn Congress into a place where people buy legislation in an open market. We're not far from there today anyway...
I think getting the 50% of the population that doesn't vote to do so might be a better first move. There are about 15 republican presidential candidates out there right now (wait! I thought I only got 2 choices?!), learn something about them and vote for the one you think is best. Also, Sweden has a Pirate Party. I don't think I want my country run by pirates. :)
and you do know what this "Pirate Party" is about don't you? It's a one issue party which is concerned with internet freedom. Not something I would vote for, but it says a lot about the system when internet freedom can get you elected, and not corporate donations.
Of course getting the voting percentage up is a good thing. In Sweden, about 85% of voters usually vote.
There are only 2 choices because there are only 2 parties that are able to participate in the political process. 15 individuals does not equal 15 choices.
sweden does not have a Pirate Party in the national legislature, only a couple of people in the EU Parliament, which does absolutely nothing.
The answer is to elect a bold President who will enact the changes America needs regardless of our "Corporate Congress", as I like to call them.
Well, it didn't work out so well with Obama... I assume you don't include him here, though...
We need some kind of Dirty Harry Clint Eastwood character to come in to the Washington and clean up the town...
lol, but 4real
I agree that the US needs a deep reform in its electoral (voting) system.
Starting by direct vote. It's not a democracy when Al Gore receives the majority of the votes, and George W. Bush wins the election. The president should be elected by direct vote.
And I agree with the end of voting by district. The representatives of each state in the national Congress should be elected in a state level, not district level. That would favour the development of a multi-party system. The district system favours the two-party system.
If the state has the right to 50 representatives in the Congress, the election should be state-level, with the 50 most voted candidates being elected. That would ease the "lesser of two evils" mentality, and help the development of a multi-party system.
Montana has 6 million people, California has 36 million. They still have the same power in the Senate.
States should have the right to decide many, many things for themselves, but what gives the small states such an enormous right to control the bigger ones?
Good point. END THE SENATE! Lets fight for unicameralism.
Private money needs to be banned from elections and term limits must be imposed. It's really the only way to have a government of ideals rather than dollar bills.
Yes. In many European countries, elections are financed with tax money, so that no party is able to win because of heavy advertizing
True, but the newspapers definetly support their candidate of choice ie Rupurt Murdoch...I agree that is a much fairer process and not subjected to corporate donations.
True, but the newspapers definetly support their candidate of choice ie Rupurt Murdoch...I agree that is a much fairer process and not subjected to corporate donations.
Yes, that's true. The press in Europe is very political, but at least you know what you're dealing with. In the US it seems like the voluntary censorship steers the entire media establishment away from asking systemic questions
Indeed. Unfortunately, this is a Western epidemic and has no vaccination is sight...
In proportional representation a platform represented by a party is what you vote for. A single representative, elected by some miracle, is almost powerless.
In other words, there is no way that a Green Party or something similar can get 10% of the seats in the U.S., whereas that happens all the time in countries that have PR.
you can vote for someone other than who is represented by the 'two' parties.