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The key here is that the executive branch of the US government doesn't get to do these things in a vacuum - both Congress and the Supreme Court temper its power

The key here is that the executive branch of the US government doesn't get to do these things in a vacuum - both Congress and the Supreme Court temper its power, and though elections in the US are far from perfect they are still free.

orthecreedence 7y ago
Elections are free, but the influence money has on our government after elections is where the problem lies. And even the "free elections" portion is being eroded since Citizens United. I'm not saying China is better, but the fraction of control the average US citizen can exercise over the government in the defined political process is much, much smaller than `1 / 330,000,000`...
- whatitdobooboo 7y ago
  Federal elections are not the only things that matter - state and local decisions have an impact. Obviously not perfect - even with the money affecting government we have the ABILITY to change that over some time period, and lobbying in some places can help. I am unsure about what exactly you are complaining about.
  - orthecreedence 7y ago
    https://www.latimes.com/business/hiltzik/la-fi-hiltzik-cable-municipal-broadband-20160812-snap-story.html https://www.latimes.com/business/hiltzik/la-fi-hiltzik-cable... > I am unsure about what exactly you are complaining about. I wasn't. I was refuting common propaganda about the wonders of the United States. How can we fix any of our problems if we don't admit to ourselves that they exist?
    - whatitdobooboo 7y ago
      Fair enough - perhaps I should've simply said that in my opinion, reducing American ability to affect government down to % of population each individual represents isn't the best way to approach our problems
minikites 7y ago
>though elections in the US are far from perfect they are still free https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/10/29/voter-suppression-tactics-in-the-age-of-trump https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/10/29/voter-suppress... https://www.brennancenter.org/blog/worst-voter-suppression-weve-seen-modern-era https://www.brennancenter.org/blog/worst-voter-suppression-w...
arcticbull 7y ago
I'm sure your assertion of checks and balances is very helpful for the folks living out their lives in Gitmo with the force feedings and the indefinite detention without due process thanks to a technicality in regards to jurisdiction, as was the parent posts' assertion. With that in mind, on the balance of it, America is overwhelmingly a rule of law jurisdiction, and the PRC is not. There's definitely magnitudes here. My point is neither side is all good or all bad, and looking at it that way is harmful to the discourse.

orthecreedence 7y ago

Elections are free, but the influence money has on our government after elections is where the problem lies. And even the "free elections" portion is being eroded since Citizens United. I'm not saying China is better, but the fraction of control the average US citizen can exercise over the government in the defined political process is much, much smaller than `1 / 330,000,000`...

whatitdobooboo 7y ago
Federal elections are not the only things that matter - state and local decisions have an impact. Obviously not perfect - even with the money affecting government we have the ABILITY to change that over some time period, and lobbying in some places can help. I am unsure about what exactly you are complaining about.
- orthecreedence 7y ago
  https://www.latimes.com/business/hiltzik/la-fi-hiltzik-cable-municipal-broadband-20160812-snap-story.html https://www.latimes.com/business/hiltzik/la-fi-hiltzik-cable... > I am unsure about what exactly you are complaining about. I wasn't. I was refuting common propaganda about the wonders of the United States. How can we fix any of our problems if we don't admit to ourselves that they exist?
  - whatitdobooboo 7y ago
    Fair enough - perhaps I should've simply said that in my opinion, reducing American ability to affect government down to % of population each individual represents isn't the best way to approach our problems

minikites 7y ago

>though elections in the US are far from perfect they are still free https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/10/29/voter-suppression-tactics-in-the-age-of-trump https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/10/29/voter-suppress... https://www.brennancenter.org/blog/worst-voter-suppression-weve-seen-modern-era https://www.brennancenter.org/blog/worst-voter-suppression-w...

arcticbull 7y ago

I'm sure your assertion of checks and balances is very helpful for the folks living out their lives in Gitmo with the force feedings and the indefinite detention without due process thanks to a technicality in regards to jurisdiction, as was the parent posts' assertion. With that in mind, on the balance of it, America is overwhelmingly a rule of law jurisdiction, and the PRC is not. There's definitely magnitudes here. My point is neither side is all good or all bad, and looking at it that way is harmful to the discourse.