Is not voting a valid way to express your political position?

[Dan74]

A large amount of disparity is requisite for incentive. We aren't going to have a prosperous society that does away with the rich entirely.

You could, actually, but if prosperity is your main goal then you have already lost.

The rich don't improve society because they are rich. They do because they tend to be productive and intelligent people.

[Yarn]

12% on the wrong things can be a pretty big deal. Looking at that list, some of what they call "broken promises" I couldn't care about less (special consideration for government contracts for the handicapped?). Others are hugely important like NDAA (which I didn't notice on the list, but I didn't exhaustively search).

Unless there is some systematic bias, it means for the most part that it is as accurate for small things as it is for important things.

Aside from that, "88%" is only those that he has blatantly broken. Compromise can destroy the soul of an issue, and stalling could end up either way.

Effort, and not effort for everything at the same time, is the best you can expect. You're not electing a dictator after all. The remainder of the power is for the other elections to distribute.

[iolo]

You could, actually, but if prosperity is your main goal then you have already lost.

The rich don't improve society because they are rich. They do because they tend to be productive and intelligent people.

They tend to make money out of the rest of us because they are smart and dishonest. They contribute to society about as much as do fleas.

[Darklordabc]

They contribute to society about as much as do fleas.

I dare say even one of those 'fleas' you are talking about probably contribute more to society then all of us voloconites combined. For example, Bill Gates.

[iolo]

I dare say even one of those 'fleas' you are talking about probably contribute more to society then all of us voloconites combined. For example, Bill Gates.

I don't see why any flea should bother to contribute one of those, indeed I don't. He certainly contributed a big gap in the shared wealth. So?

[Dan74]

I dare say even one of those 'fleas' you are talking about probably contribute more to society then all of us voloconites combined. For example, Bill Gates.

Yeah, so what? It doesn't change the fact that they are exploiters.

[JimmyNic]

I wonder why it is really so impossible to have a direct democracy. With public libraries and internet connections it seems feasible that at least "big" issues could fall to the people themselves.

I'd say in developed countries it is certainly doable. Whether it is wise is another thing entirely. If you did it on a federal level in the US it could easily lead to states governed by religious stupidity.

[Darklordabc]

Yeah, so what? It doesn't change the fact that they are exploiters.

Well if 'exploiters' are making society prosperous and creating ipods, windows, spaceships and other technologies, then lets have more 'exploiters'. In other words, the amount of 'exploiting' somebody does is not the measure of their value, but rather their net contribution to society is the measure.

[Dan74]

Well if 'exploiters' are making society prosperous and creating ipods, windows, spaceships and other technologies, then lets have more 'exploiters'. In other words, the amount of 'exploiting' somebody does is not the measure of their value, but rather their net contribution to society is the measure.

Why would you want anyone to be exploited for their labor? If anything, I'd say a system free of exploitation would be more productive.

[Darklordabc]

Why would you want anyone to be exploited for their labor? If anything, I'd say a system free of exploitation would be more productive.

Oh oh, my communism sense are tingling... I was just making a simple utilitarianism point. If what other these rich people are doing is creating a larger positive for society then us regular joes, then by that measure alone, we are more of the freeloaders (or 'exploiters') then they are.

[Dan74]

Oh oh, my communism sense are tingling... I was just making a simple utilitarianism point. If what other these rich people are doing is creating a larger positive for society then us regular joes, then by that measure alone, we are more of the freeloaders (or 'exploiters') then they are.

We work, they don't. Take a CEO out of a corporation. What happens, exactly? Oh right, nothing. Take all the janitors out. What happens? Oh right, the place turns into a disgusting mess and no one wants to go there, thus it goes out of business. Capitalism is hilarious.

[Darklordabc]

We work, they don't. Take a CEO out of a corporation. What happens, exactly? Oh right

That's a very rudimentary understanding of the CEO's role in a company. CEO's are actually hugely important, why else would business' pay millions and millions of dollars for them, are they just idiots? CEO's are a rare breed of aggressive and innovative people, they are 1 in a million, janitors are a dime a dozen and can easily be replaced.

Capitalism is hilarious.

Its the worst system out...besides from all the other ones.