How to fix American government

[Tigeria]

How would you fix America's government, because let's be honest here, it is the center of corruption in America.

The government is the centre of corruption in every country. For that matter, large institutions by their very nature are the centre of corruption in every country. That's not something you can inherently "fix".

The real problem is governments aren't humble, I believe our government can be fixed

[AiliailiA]

You Warsers are just jealous of Star Trek. The prototype space shuttle was named Enterprise after NC-1701

What did you get? Not even a single-use rocket named after any of your crappy space gunships.

Your pseudoscience is weak, so all you're left with from your canon is "let's blow shit up!"

[Wallenburg]

Nominate Stephen Colbert for president 2016.

[Diopolis]

Either go full oligarchy or proportional representation with actual campaign finance restrictions. The half-n-half we have now is problematic.

[Constaniana]

I have four very simple, very serious steps to fix the U.S Government.

Step 1: Travel back in time and fix King Arthur and Guinevere's marriage so they produce plenty of heirs and she doesn't cheat with Lancelot; also stop that Lannister malarkey between Arthur and Morgan Le Fae.
Step 2: Glorious line of Pendragon kings and queens rules Britannia (and Iceland, Norway and Gaul, thus already making the world a better place since France never comes into existence) forever.
Step 3: No revolution occurs because George Washington is a Knight of the Round Table.
Step 4: America has a glorious functional government, Britannia rules the waves, and the French can't be snobbish to anyone. Everybody wins.

[AiliailiA]

Allow computers to run the government.

What kind of values are these computers going to have?

I think noughts and ones are still the fashion in computer thinking.

Break the binary gridlock! Vote Floating Point 2040.8506375!

[New Werpland]

The biggest flaw with the American Government is it's checks and balances, very few countries have more than 3 veto abilities present in the system, and the ones that do tend to be really small and united(Switzerland). The U.S on the other hand isn't very united at all, and checks and balances are only a weight on the government's ability to do things efficiently. And it's much too difficult for any president to reduce veto power, because the opposition would shout "FASCIST!!!" and the majority of the population would chime in.

[Conscentia]

The biggest flaw with the American Government is it's checks and balances, very few countries have more than 3 veto abilities present in the system, and the ones that do tend to be really small and united(Switzerland). The U.S on the other hand isn't very united at all, and checks and balances are only a weight on the government's ability to do things efficiently. And it's much too difficult for any president to reduce veto power, because the opposition would shout "FASCIST!!!" and the majority of the population would chime in.

So you're saying that to fix the government, America should abolish the American people?

[New Werpland]

The biggest flaw with the American Government is it's checks and balances, very few countries have more than 3 veto abilities present in the system, and the ones that do tend to be really small and united(Switzerland). The U.S on the other hand isn't very united at all, and checks and balances are only a weight on the government's ability to do things efficiently. And it's much too difficult for any president to reduce veto power, because the opposition would shout "FASCIST!!!" and the majority of the population would chime in.

So you're saying that to fix the government, America should abolish the American people?

No that we should cut down on checks and balances.

[Finland SSR]

So you're saying that to fix the government, America should abolish the American people?

No that we should cut down on checks and balances.

Looks like "checks and balances" need some freedom then

[HMS Vanguard]

It's not very obvious that the American government, or anything else about America, is broken. America is a fabulously rich country. The income gap between America and even the European Union is as large as the income gap between the EU and places like Russia, Turkey, or Malaysia. It's also, and aside from any unfavourable comparisons to countries without large urban ghettos, a peaceful country, a liberal country, and an externally secure country. It is the origin of most developments in science, technology, and mathematics. Despite claims to be a cultural desert, the US is far more diverse, and produces far more new material of value in literature, music, and film, than the rest of the world combined.

Small and gradual changes are the nature of things and can't be stopped, but radical changes to such a country are far more likely to damage than improve it.

[AiliailiA]

The biggest flaw with the American Government is it's checks and balances

I've been reading your posts for a few weeks now, and never really agreed or disagreed particularly. But here you have hit the nail on the head.

In their fervour to restrain government from doing anything wrong, the drafters of the US Constitution created a system which makes it very difficult for government to stop doing something wrong if that was put in place by legislation without an expiry date.

, very few countries have more than 3 veto abilities present in the system, and the ones that do tend to be really small and united(Switzerland). The U.S on the other hand isn't very united at all, and checks and balances are only a weight on the government's ability to do things efficiently. And it's much too difficult for any president to reduce veto power, because the opposition would shout "FASCIST!!!" and the majority of the population would chime in.

You mentioned "more than 3 veto abilities". Well that fourth one, the judiciary and specifically the Supreme Court, is what would stop the President from reducing the power of either chamber of Congress. President and Congress jostle a bit, trying to exercise powers over each other (eg the 1973 War Powers Resolution passed over President Nixon's veto) but ultimately it is the Supreme Court that keeps them each to their own side of the line.

[Finland SSR]

I. The income gap between America and even the European Union is as large as the income gap between the EU and places like Russia, Turkey, or Malaysia.

No, not really, though. USA is not that far behind the EU in income.

[HMS Vanguard]

I. The income gap between America and even the European Union is as large as the income gap between the EU and places like Russia, Turkey, or Malaysia.

No, not really, though. USA is not that far behind the EU in income.

Assuming you meant EU is not that far behind US -

Anyone who has seen my other posts knows I do not make quantitative claims lightly.

Let's take a look at these countries. In the most recent year the EU was 35.3/53.8 = 66% as rich as the US. Russia was 24.3/35.3 = 69% as rich as the EU. Turkey was 18.6/35.3 = 53% as rich as the EU. Thailand probably is out of the range, at 13.3/35.3 = 38% as rich as the EU, though if we want a truly non-European comparison, let's substitute Malaysia on 22.5/35.3 = 64% of EU level.

[AiliailiA]

It's not very obvious that the American government, or anything else about America, is broken. America is a fabulously rich country. The income gap between America and even the European Union is as large as the income gap between the EU and places like Russia, Turkey, or Malaysia. It's also, and aside from any unfavourable comparisons to countries without large urban ghettos, a peaceful country, a liberal country, and an externally secure country. It is the origin of most developments in science, technology, and mathematics. Despite claims to be a cultural desert, the US is far more diverse, and produces far more new material of value in literature, music, and film, than the rest of the world combined.

Small and gradual changes are the nature of things and can't be stopped, but radical changes to such a country are far more likely to damage than improve it.

Small and gradual changes to system of government are a luxury afforded to countries without a strict constitution, or without a high barrier to changing that constitution.

Not to deny your comments about United States as a country ... I wouldn't go as far as you did, but it is a rather awesome country and a lot of good comes from it ... but the thread subject is American government. I think that does need some fixing.

[AiliailiA]

No, not really, though. USA is not that far behind the EU in income.

Assuming you meant EU is not that far behind US -

Anyone who has seen my other posts knows I do not make quantitative claims lightly.

Let's take a look at these countries. In the most recent year the EU was 35.3/53.8 = 66% as rich as the US. Russia was 24.3/35.3 = 69% as rich as the EU. Turkey was 18.6/35.3 = 53% as rich as the EU. Thailand probably is out of the range, at 13.3/35.3 = 38% as rich as the EU, though if we want a truly non-European comparison, let's substitute Malaysia on 22.5/35.3 = 64% of EU level.

EU is not a country. I can see why you left out Scandinavian countries (they are small in population) but why not compare the US with large countries like the UK, France or Germany?

[HMS Vanguard]

It's not very obvious that the American government, or anything else about America, is broken. America is a fabulously rich country. The income gap between America and even the European Union is as large as the income gap between the EU and places like Russia, Turkey, or Malaysia. It's also, and aside from any unfavourable comparisons to countries without large urban ghettos, a peaceful country, a liberal country, and an externally secure country. It is the origin of most developments in science, technology, and mathematics. Despite claims to be a cultural desert, the US is far more diverse, and produces far more new material of value in literature, music, and film, than the rest of the world combined.

Small and gradual changes are the nature of things and can't be stopped, but radical changes to such a country are far more likely to damage than improve it.

Small and gradual changes to system of government are a luxury afforded to countries without a strict constitution, or without a high barrier to changing that constitution.

I think it is the opposite. Constitutions tend to restrict the actions of the government. Large and sudden changes, such as those that occurred in the UK in the 1940s and 1950s, are only possible in countries without constitutions, with weak constitutions, or constitutions that are weakly enforced. FDR tried to do something very similar in the US in the 1930s but many of those changes were reversed; even after he threatened to pack the court and essentially rewrite the constitution by decree, he was not able to reinstate the programme he had originally planned.

Personally I think that the US has been such a successful country for the same reason its government appears to be a dysfunctional mess: government is essentially toxic ooze that attempts to fill all crevices in society, and the US constitution is a fine grating placed over the pipe spewing that ooze. The grating may have splattered the ooze into all sorts of frightening patterns, but the total throughput is far lower than otherwise.

Not to deny your comments about United States as a country ... I wouldn't go as far as you did, but it is a rather awesome country and a lot of good comes from it ... but the thread subject is American government. I think that does need some fixing.

Either the government is responsible in large part for the society, at least in as far as it declines to exercise its powers, in which case the government is in most ways awesome, and should be changed with care, or the government is not responsible in large part for society, in which case changing it is unimportant.

[Finland SSR]

No, not really, though. USA is not that far behind the EU in income.

Assuming you meant EU is not that far behind US -

Anyone who has seen my other posts knows I do not make quantitative claims lightly.

Let's take a look at these countries. In the most recent year the EU was 35.3/53.8 = 66% as rich as the US. Russia was 24.3/35.3 = 69% as rich as the EU. Turkey was 18.6/35.3 = 53% as rich as the EU. Thailand probably is out of the range, at 13.3/35.3 = 38% as rich as the EU, though if we want a truly non-European comparison, let's substitute Malaysia on 22.5/35.3 = 64% of EU level.

It's not an accurate statement, because you take the entire European Union into account.

I've lived in both the rich and poor parts of the union, and the income difference is massive. The US has no 10 countries or so pushing it down.

[HMS Vanguard]

Assuming you meant EU is not that far behind US -

Anyone who has seen my other posts knows I do not make quantitative claims lightly.

Let's take a look at these countries. In the most recent year the EU was 35.3/53.8 = 66% as rich as the US. Russia was 24.3/35.3 = 69% as rich as the EU. Turkey was 18.6/35.3 = 53% as rich as the EU. Thailand probably is out of the range, at 13.3/35.3 = 38% as rich as the EU, though if we want a truly non-European comparison, let's substitute Malaysia on 22.5/35.3 = 64% of EU level.

EU is not a country. I can see why you left out Scandinavian countries (they are small in population) but why not compare the US with large countries like the UK, France or Germany?

Why not compare the EU with Alaska, California, or NYC?

[Finland SSR]

EU is not a country. I can see why you left out Scandinavian countries (they are small in population) but why not compare the US with large countries like the UK, France or Germany?

Why not compare the EU with Alaska, California, or NYC?

Because although both the EU and the USA are, in a way, composed of many independent or semi-independent units, the income amplitude is far greater in the former than in the latter.

You want a more accurate comparison? Take the entire American continent and compare it to the EU then. Or compare USA to just Western Europe.

[The Serbian Empire]

Scrap it and start anew with proportional representation.

[New Werpland]

The biggest flaw with the American Government is it's checks and balances

I've been reading your posts for a few weeks now, and never really agreed or disagreed particularly. But here you have hit the nail on the head.

In their fervour to restrain government from doing anything wrong, the drafters of the US Constitution created a system which makes it very difficult for government to stop doing something wrong if that was put in place by legislation without an expiry date.

, very few countries have more than 3 veto abilities present in the system, and the ones that do tend to be really small and united(Switzerland). The U.S on the other hand isn't very united at all, and checks and balances are only a weight on the government's ability to do things efficiently. And it's much too difficult for any president to reduce veto power, because the opposition would shout "FASCIST!!!" and the majority of the population would chime in.

You mentioned "more than 3 veto abilities". Well that fourth one, the judiciary and specifically the Supreme Court, is what would stop the President from reducing the power of either chamber of Congress. President and Congress jostle a bit, trying to exercise powers over each other (eg the 1973 War Powers Resolution passed over President Nixon's veto) but ultimately it is the Supreme Court that keeps them each to their own side of the line.

The United States is the only country to have 4 veto players, I don't see how this has helped the system in any way, especially as it was devised by a bunch of people who were deliberately trying to make the state weak.

[Ifreann]

Require any broadcast of a politician's voice to be autotuned a la T-Pain.

[The United States of North Amerigo]

Okay... How about we lock this thread?

[Romalae]

Okay... How about we lock this thread?

I don't think that will fix the American government. Although, I could be wrong.