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I'm sure this'll be taken down from HN in a matter of minutes, but I'd just like to add that it really bothers me how so many politicians and lawmakers have suc

by colmvp 10y ago

I'm sure this'll be taken down from HN in a matter of minutes, but I'd just like to add that it really bothers me how so many politicians and lawmakers have such narrow mindsets. It doesn't take a genius to see how the internet has a profound impact on the education and day-to-day life of Americans.

ohyes 10y ago
Hope it's not taken down, seems relevant to hackers and other people who create beautiful things on the web for fun and profit. Saying that nobody really needs the thing that is essentially my life and livelihood informs me about the type of people who are getting elected in the USA. In fact I can't think of a topic more relevant to hacker news. The benefactor of this site was made rich by an open and free internet.
alphonsegaston 10y ago
We shouldn't engage with their rhetoric at face level. What the congressman is really saying is "I'm a member of a party/system so obviously corrupt and entrenched that this question isn't worthy of a dignified response." The sooner Americans start engaging with the actions of their politicians, rather than their stated rhetoric, the better off we'd all be.
- monk_e_boy 10y ago
  What's the darkest path America could take? Gazing across the Atlantic from Europe, the USA is walking a dark path. I have to remind myself that as well as Trump, they created Seinfeld, for every bomb dropped the civil rights movement has saved another person... it's a crazy country. I hope it swings left next time.
  - alphonsegaston 10y ago
    I'd say something like Russia, although probably more overtly brutal and violent. We don't have anyone nearly as capable as Surkov to "manage" our democracy, and would probably devolve into another civil war if the same level of authoritarianism took hold. But fundamentally, you're right, America is a crazy country. That the citizens of the world's military super power are this irrational is a frightening turn in history.
monk_e_boy 10y ago
There is a real disconnect between normal people and people who can become politicians. The things the do and the things they say are mind-boggling, have they learned nothing from history?
- deleted 10y ago
  [deleted]

by colmvp 10y ago

ohyes 10y ago

Hope it's not taken down, seems relevant to hackers and other people who create beautiful things on the web for fun and profit. Saying that nobody really needs the thing that is essentially my life and livelihood informs me about the type of people who are getting elected in the USA. In fact I can't think of a topic more relevant to hacker news. The benefactor of this site was made rich by an open and free internet.

alphonsegaston 10y ago

We shouldn't engage with their rhetoric at face level. What the congressman is really saying is "I'm a member of a party/system so obviously corrupt and entrenched that this question isn't worthy of a dignified response." The sooner Americans start engaging with the actions of their politicians, rather than their stated rhetoric, the better off we'd all be.

monk_e_boy 10y ago
What's the darkest path America could take? Gazing across the Atlantic from Europe, the USA is walking a dark path. I have to remind myself that as well as Trump, they created Seinfeld, for every bomb dropped the civil rights movement has saved another person... it's a crazy country. I hope it swings left next time.
- alphonsegaston 10y ago
  I'd say something like Russia, although probably more overtly brutal and violent. We don't have anyone nearly as capable as Surkov to "manage" our democracy, and would probably devolve into another civil war if the same level of authoritarianism took hold. But fundamentally, you're right, America is a crazy country. That the citizens of the world's military super power are this irrational is a frightening turn in history.

monk_e_boy 10y ago

There is a real disconnect between normal people and people who can become politicians. The things the do and the things they say are mind-boggling, have they learned nothing from history?

deleted 10y ago
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