Comments on: electioneering

By: Karrie Pettit

Karrie Pettit — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 21:05:58 +0000

I think if the United States were to adopt more ideas from how Canada conducts governmental business (especially in the legislative branch), then we would get more accomplished. I mean they have a multitude of parties to pick from (not 2 like in the states). There is also that situation that they are in the midst of where they literally shut down the government because they brought forth a bill that didn’t get passed: From the Majority party! That never happens in government, but it did this year! Just goes to show how efficient it is compared to how it happens south of the great north’s border.

By: Local Gyms

Local Gyms — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 20:26:24 +0000

First of all joging is a very good exercise and it is good for health too.Second thing election is a very hard thing to do and understand it it is to tricky. lolwut

By: Ali

Ali — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 15:42:53 +0000

You know, it’s interesting reading other people’s tales of going to the gym. Me personally? I get so frustrated when they put Bill O’Reilly’s show on. Why can’t they show just basic music videos, I wonder?

By: george wesley

george wesley — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 15:22:33 +0000

Good for going to the gym!

By: Adam Gurno

Adam Gurno — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 13:45:38 +0000

A succinct summary of American politics, my friend.

While I vote every election year, I can see the American two-party system neatly polarizing it’s members – us vs. them. For the entire campaign it’s demonize, demonize, demonize. and then afterwards there’s an insincere stab at healing.

I don’t have any fixes for it though.

By: Michael

Michael — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 10:20:55 +0000

I hear you!
I’ve decided to stop watching the news altogether until these elections are over, because they dominate the broadcasting to such an extent. It’s so easy to take this political system for granted, and assume that it is simply how it has to be. But whenever I try to think about it objectively, the insanity really hits me. Why is the issue of governance forced into this strange narrative of “winning”? The American system is particularly illustrative of the problem of party politics, I think, because the country is so evenly divided in its support for the two parties at almost every election. The bitterness and, frankly, hatred between the two camps reaches a fever pitch as the election nears, so that by the time the new guy is sworn into office he has half the country at his back, and the other half opposed to him. This translates to a government whose opposition/minority party does everything it can to impede the agenda of the ruling party. I think it might have been Lincoln who said that “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” Well it might be able to stand for a while, but it certainly can’t get anything useful done.

Humanity is ill served by a system that puts “winning the election” so far ahead of actually governing the country. Hec, the politicians, many of whom I feel genuinely sorry for, are ill served by a system that forces them to become vicious attack dogs and put the party line ahead of their constituents’ concerns or their own conscience. How hard to remain honest in such a system! So hard, in fact, that now we have come to accept that our democratic governments WILL lie to us, and we only get mad when they do it badly so we have to find out.

Every election makes me feel the urgency of developing our Baha’i communities, so that the Administrative Order of Baha’u'llah can likewise grow and develop towards becoming a viable alternative to the current political system. At the moment, the institutions are still in their infancy in many ways, I believe; but the sooner they are ready to take a leading and highly visible role in the public life of our communities at large, the better. Then the contrast will be like night and day.