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> Although state governments have the right to set their own path and policies, the public should decide whether life expectancy should be part of the experimen

> Although state governments have the right to set their own path and policies, the public should decide whether life expectancy should be part of the experiment. Do not state governments represent "the public"? And how is devolution of power to the states (and then counties, and then cities) an "experiment"?

reasonabl_human 5y ago
Yeah this is comical. State’s rights have eroded so much since the inception of the country that it’s considered strange or experimental when a state governs with autonomy as designed.
- fuzzylightbulb 5y ago
  Calling the uniquely American system of government an "experiment" is neither pejorative or new. Here's an article from 1860 [1]. If that isn't convincing, here is George Washington, January 9, 1790: "The establishment of our new Government seemed to be the last great experiment for promoting human happiness." [1] https://www.historians.org/teaching-and-learning/teaching-resources-for-historians/sixteen-months-to-sumter/newspaper-index/new-york-daily-tribune/the-american-experiment https://www.historians.org/teaching-and-learning/teaching-re...
fuzzylightbulb 5y ago
> Do not state governments represent "the public"? Increasingly, no. Using Florida as an example, compare the popular vote spread (52%-47%) to the house seats (60%-40%). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2020_United_States_House_of_Representatives_elections_in_Florida https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2020_United_States_House_of_Re... This is just one example of how election winners in the US - both local and national - are trending over time to be less representative of the people they, well, represent. >And how is devolution of power to the states (and then counties, and then cities) an "experiment"? "experiment" in your quoted text refers to the first sentence in the paragraph you quoted. No need to try and twist the meaning of words by taking them out of context. The whole thing is itself a very common reference to the writings of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis in New State Ice Co. v. Liebmann to describe how "a single courageous State may, if its citizens choose, serve as a laboratory; and try novel social and economic experiments without risk to the rest of the country." https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/285/262/ https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/285/262/

reasonabl_human 5y ago

Yeah this is comical. State’s rights have eroded so much since the inception of the country that it’s considered strange or experimental when a state governs with autonomy as designed.

fuzzylightbulb 5y ago
Calling the uniquely American system of government an "experiment" is neither pejorative or new. Here's an article from 1860 [1]. If that isn't convincing, here is George Washington, January 9, 1790: "The establishment of our new Government seemed to be the last great experiment for promoting human happiness." [1] https://www.historians.org/teaching-and-learning/teaching-resources-for-historians/sixteen-months-to-sumter/newspaper-index/new-york-daily-tribune/the-american-experiment https://www.historians.org/teaching-and-learning/teaching-re...

fuzzylightbulb 5y ago

> Do not state governments represent "the public"? Increasingly, no. Using Florida as an example, compare the popular vote spread (52%-47%) to the house seats (60%-40%). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2020_United_States_House_of_Representatives_elections_in_Florida https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2020_United_States_House_of_Re... This is just one example of how election winners in the US - both local and national - are trending over time to be less representative of the people they, well, represent. >And how is devolution of power to the states (and then counties, and then cities) an "experiment"? "experiment" in your quoted text refers to the first sentence in the paragraph you quoted. No need to try and twist the meaning of words by taking them out of context. The whole thing is itself a very common reference to the writings of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis in New State Ice Co. v. Liebmann to describe how "a single courageous State may, if its citizens choose, serve as a laboratory; and try novel social and economic experiments without risk to the rest of the country." https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/285/262/ https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/285/262/