4 ms·

What makes it weird? Why is it barely functioning?

wutbrodo 4y ago
I think you're just seeing an example of the raging inferiority complex that many members of the rest of the West exhibit towards the US. There's a noticeable cultural difference along certain axes, with both significant downsides and significant upsides for both sides of the cultural divide. But there are many out there who aren't cognitively capable of processing the breathtaking nuance of global cultural differences, and unsurprisingly they end up with a reductive view of the culture they don't understand (same as it ever was). My personal experience of backpacking around the world was replete with lectures from 25-year-old European women about the US's issues. They were of such poor quality that I mostly just smiled and shrugged it off, knowing that it'd be a waste of my vacation to try and explain to them the nuances of cultural difference. But I had the delightful catharsis of schooling a particularly-obnoxious British girl on her country's role as the primary contender for history's greatest supervillain (unsurprisingly, her grasp of history and politics was.... poor).
- ziftface 4y ago
  Okay but our democracy is actually barely functional. It's not relevant to the above conversation but it is a true statement.
tstrimple 4y ago
See the dozens of voting restrictions which were passed in various states over the last two years. See the 200 year old compromise with slave holder states which is still in effect to this day. See the consistent disenfranchisement efforts over the last decade led by a particular major political party. See any and all voter rights laws being stymied by that same party. https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/voting-laws-roundup-may-2022 https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/voti...
bawolff 4y ago
Well to start, right now there is 24/7 news coverage about how an ex-president took state documents with him on his way out. Seperation of office from officeholder is a pretty key part of a functioning democracy (hell even the british monarchy can do that one). Or how about how everyone knows the political affiliations of supreme court judges? In a normal country judges are apolitical.
sofixa 4y ago
First past the post is inherently undemocratic. Combine with the facts that Senate representation is based on lines on a map and not population, and House of Representatives representation is based on population numbers from a century ago, there's blatant gerrymandering to abuse the first past the post. Did you also miss the former president attempting a coup, getting away with multiple crimes while in office due to political affiliation? Or how about the fact that your supreme court wields enormous power and is blatantly political, with life appointments. There's a bunch of reasons why the US is considered a flawed democracy, with the score going down every year, in the Democracy Index.

I think you're just seeing an example of the raging inferiority complex that many members of the rest of the West exhibit towards the US. There's a noticeable cultural difference along certain axes, with both significant downsides and significant upsides for both sides of the cultural divide. But there are many out there who aren't cognitively capable of processing the breathtaking nuance of global cultural differences, and unsurprisingly they end up with a reductive view of the culture they don't understand (same as it ever was). My personal experience of backpacking around the world was replete with lectures from 25-year-old European women about the US's issues. They were of such poor quality that I mostly just smiled and shrugged it off, knowing that it'd be a waste of my vacation to try and explain to them the nuances of cultural difference. But I had the delightful catharsis of schooling a particularly-obnoxious British girl on her country's role as the primary contender for history's greatest supervillain (unsurprisingly, her grasp of history and politics was.... poor).

ziftface 4y ago
Okay but our democracy is actually barely functional. It's not relevant to the above conversation but it is a true statement.

tstrimple 4y ago

See the dozens of voting restrictions which were passed in various states over the last two years. See the 200 year old compromise with slave holder states which is still in effect to this day. See the consistent disenfranchisement efforts over the last decade led by a particular major political party. See any and all voter rights laws being stymied by that same party. https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/voting-laws-roundup-may-2022 https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/voti...

bawolff 4y ago

Well to start, right now there is 24/7 news coverage about how an ex-president took state documents with him on his way out. Seperation of office from officeholder is a pretty key part of a functioning democracy (hell even the british monarchy can do that one). Or how about how everyone knows the political affiliations of supreme court judges? In a normal country judges are apolitical.

sofixa 4y ago

First past the post is inherently undemocratic. Combine with the facts that Senate representation is based on lines on a map and not population, and House of Representatives representation is based on population numbers from a century ago, there's blatant gerrymandering to abuse the first past the post. Did you also miss the former president attempting a coup, getting away with multiple crimes while in office due to political affiliation? Or how about the fact that your supreme court wields enormous power and is blatantly political, with life appointments. There's a bunch of reasons why the US is considered a flawed democracy, with the score going down every year, in the Democracy Index.