3 ms·

I want elected officials to wear body cameras too

dcsommer 3y ago
"Transparency" in Congress has lead to grandstanding and posturing to cameras, at the expense of the necessary compromises and deals that could otherwise happen.
- lotsofpulp 3y ago
  Transparency would be transcripts of every communication the politician has. At the golf courses, at the bar, on vacation, etc. See Clarence Thomas for example. Internet/bandwidth creating cost free video channels for politicians to advertise themselves is not transparency.
- Eumenes 3y ago
  Sounds like something a Corporation would say. You can have compromise and transparency, it doesn't have to be one or the other.
  - deleted 3y ago
    [deleted]
- master-lincoln 3y ago
  If that is true, the issue is in the egos of people making deals
  - coldtea 3y ago
    The don't grandstand because of "egos" but because they have things to win from that (like press coverage, voter sympathies, money and deals from opponents of the issues they grandstand against, and so on).
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
- manicennui 3y ago
  You are either being disingenuous or incredibly oblivious. People want to know what our elected officials are saying in private with lobbyists and campaign contributors.
- dragonwriter 3y ago
  > "Transparency" in Congress has lead to grandstanding and posturing to cameras, at the expense of the necessary compromises and deals that could otherwise happen. What transparency in Congress? Congress lacks even the transparency requirements many state legislatures have and is essentially completely opaque, with virtually everything substantive happening out of the public eye. The absence of compromise has to do with certain factions preferring to scheme for achieving total government control and preferring to making things worse in the short term if it can be leveraged to help advance that cause, not to transparency.
paxys 3y ago
How many hours of C-Span have you watched in your life? Detailed minutes of Congress proceedings from like 1800 are available for you to peruse if you'd like. Transparency isn't the problem – everything is happening fully out in the open.
- lotsofpulp 3y ago
  There are literally closed door legislative sessions that are not transparent. Plus the adage “business is done on the golf course”.
  - paxys 3y ago
    So you want all elected officials to wear a camera 24x7? Because hey, they could be doing business while taking a shit? Better keep it on at night as well, because we want to see the face of whoever they're screwing. Here's a better idea – elect people who can be trusted.
    - danaris 3y ago
      No matter how trustworthy someone is when they get elected, there is always a chance for them to become corrupt once in office. After all, before they've actually held public office, there's little to no incentive or opportunity to be corrupt—and the higher the office, the higher both become. We need effective rules of ethics (with teeth) and oversight procedures. I don't think that forcing every politician to wear a camera 24/7 is really the best solution, but it's hopelessly naïve to think that some of them aren't literally going to bed with the people who are trying to get favorable legislation passed. A society like the US is just too diverse—not so much in heritage, but in cultural values (or at least subcultural values) to be able to "just elect people who can be trusted."
      - maxwell 3y ago
        How about we just go back to expanding the House based on population instead of keeping it static at 435 forever? We're approaching a million constituents per representative. Corruption seems a mathematical certainty.
docdeek 3y ago
That was a plot point in ‘The Circle’ by Dave Eggers. Elected officials were encouraged and then shamed/forced into wearing cameras and livestreaming all their activities. The idea was they they wouldn’t take bribes or submit to lobbyist demands if they were being watched online 24/7. The end result of this sort of transparency, though, was rather dystopian, a lot of unintended consequences.
indymike 3y ago
I don't want to see that footage. Ever.
njharman 3y ago
I wanted to wear a body camera in the form on Mediated Reality glasses but the public shamed/cancelled the early adaptors and manufacturers so much so that the product/concept was withdrawn from market place. Everyone should be a glasshole

"Transparency" in Congress has lead to grandstanding and posturing to cameras, at the expense of the necessary compromises and deals that could otherwise happen.

lotsofpulp 3y ago
Transparency would be transcripts of every communication the politician has. At the golf courses, at the bar, on vacation, etc. See Clarence Thomas for example. Internet/bandwidth creating cost free video channels for politicians to advertise themselves is not transparency.
Eumenes 3y ago
Sounds like something a Corporation would say. You can have compromise and transparency, it doesn't have to be one or the other.
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
master-lincoln 3y ago
If that is true, the issue is in the egos of people making deals
- coldtea 3y ago
  The don't grandstand because of "egos" but because they have things to win from that (like press coverage, voter sympathies, money and deals from opponents of the issues they grandstand against, and so on).
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
manicennui 3y ago
You are either being disingenuous or incredibly oblivious. People want to know what our elected officials are saying in private with lobbyists and campaign contributors.
dragonwriter 3y ago
> "Transparency" in Congress has lead to grandstanding and posturing to cameras, at the expense of the necessary compromises and deals that could otherwise happen. What transparency in Congress? Congress lacks even the transparency requirements many state legislatures have and is essentially completely opaque, with virtually everything substantive happening out of the public eye. The absence of compromise has to do with certain factions preferring to scheme for achieving total government control and preferring to making things worse in the short term if it can be leveraged to help advance that cause, not to transparency.

paxys 3y ago

How many hours of C-Span have you watched in your life? Detailed minutes of Congress proceedings from like 1800 are available for you to peruse if you'd like. Transparency isn't the problem – everything is happening fully out in the open.

lotsofpulp 3y ago
There are literally closed door legislative sessions that are not transparent. Plus the adage “business is done on the golf course”.
- paxys 3y ago
  So you want all elected officials to wear a camera 24x7? Because hey, they could be doing business while taking a shit? Better keep it on at night as well, because we want to see the face of whoever they're screwing. Here's a better idea – elect people who can be trusted.
  - danaris 3y ago
    No matter how trustworthy someone is when they get elected, there is always a chance for them to become corrupt once in office. After all, before they've actually held public office, there's little to no incentive or opportunity to be corrupt—and the higher the office, the higher both become. We need effective rules of ethics (with teeth) and oversight procedures. I don't think that forcing every politician to wear a camera 24/7 is really the best solution, but it's hopelessly naïve to think that some of them aren't literally going to bed with the people who are trying to get favorable legislation passed. A society like the US is just too diverse—not so much in heritage, but in cultural values (or at least subcultural values) to be able to "just elect people who can be trusted."
    - maxwell 3y ago
      How about we just go back to expanding the House based on population instead of keeping it static at 435 forever? We're approaching a million constituents per representative. Corruption seems a mathematical certainty.

docdeek 3y ago

That was a plot point in ‘The Circle’ by Dave Eggers. Elected officials were encouraged and then shamed/forced into wearing cameras and livestreaming all their activities. The idea was they they wouldn’t take bribes or submit to lobbyist demands if they were being watched online 24/7. The end result of this sort of transparency, though, was rather dystopian, a lot of unintended consequences.

indymike 3y ago

I don't want to see that footage. Ever.

njharman 3y ago

I wanted to wear a body camera in the form on Mediated Reality glasses but the public shamed/cancelled the early adaptors and manufacturers so much so that the product/concept was withdrawn from market place. Everyone should be a glasshole