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>that's an issue with the system of government Well, what do you propose for solving that issue? Because those who believe public spending and taxation should

>that's an issue with the system of government Well, what do you propose for solving that issue? Because those who believe public spending and taxation should be more limited also believe that there's no simple fix for the accountability issues that stem from monopolized state control over certain industries.

jpetso 10y ago
Not the OP, but I think that accountability issues need to be solved mainly by more transparency. Open data for all government activities. Let them provide source data, calculations, meeting minutes, donor lists, office visits, everything that factors into how decisions are made. Let them feel 100x the scrutiny that Peter Thiel is getting. Publish it all proactively, digitally, bot-indexably, instead of relying on Freedom of Information requests. As long as there is free speech, a right to vote and enough information to hold decision makers accountable, people can change the system both by getting into positions of power and by voting them in or out of power. There's no simple fix, there will never be a simple fix, significant changes will likely take decades. That said, governments have a mandate and a goal to improve society. When positions of power are held by people that have neither the mandate nor the accountability to do that job - as is generally the case with businesses and wealthy influencers - then a change in power is much harder to accomplish and you easily end up on the way to centralized control and censorship. Screw the revolution. Screw the every-man-for-himself mindset. Just give me lots of data so we can do the accounting ourselves. Oh yeah, and enough education for everyone to figure out how to analyze those bits. Then, when those who believe public spending and taxation should be more limited get to try, let them give us the same detailed data and make it better.

jpetso 10y ago

Not the OP, but I think that accountability issues need to be solved mainly by more transparency. Open data for all government activities. Let them provide source data, calculations, meeting minutes, donor lists, office visits, everything that factors into how decisions are made. Let them feel 100x the scrutiny that Peter Thiel is getting. Publish it all proactively, digitally, bot-indexably, instead of relying on Freedom of Information requests. As long as there is free speech, a right to vote and enough information to hold decision makers accountable, people can change the system both by getting into positions of power and by voting them in or out of power. There's no simple fix, there will never be a simple fix, significant changes will likely take decades. That said, governments have a mandate and a goal to improve society. When positions of power are held by people that have neither the mandate nor the accountability to do that job - as is generally the case with businesses and wealthy influencers - then a change in power is much harder to accomplish and you easily end up on the way to centralized control and censorship. Screw the revolution. Screw the every-man-for-himself mindset. Just give me lots of data so we can do the accounting ourselves. Oh yeah, and enough education for everyone to figure out how to analyze those bits. Then, when those who believe public spending and taxation should be more limited get to try, let them give us the same detailed data and make it better.