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I'm not sure why people are upvoting your comment. Actually, I do know why. It's a depressing disenchantment with government. They don't understand that gover

I'm not sure why people are upvoting your comment. Actually, I do know why. It's a depressing disenchantment with government. They don't understand that government is not going anywhere, and that government can be as good as it can be bad. The quote zmblum posted is brilliant, and it is an example of what Good Government is capable of. It is not just for your 5th grade civics class. It's for RIGHT NOW. Read the quote, understand and respect it and its authors, and take action. The government is not just them, it's also you, and sitting on the sidelines being cynical is supporting them.

carussell 16y ago
Tongue-in-cheek.
CamperBob 16y ago
They don't understand that government is not going anywhere, and that government can be as good as it can be bad. No way in hell. Where, in either the future or the history books, is the saintly leader who will counterbalance a Stalin or a Mao?
- mrgordon 16y ago
  Gandhi?
- pyre 16y ago
  I think the point is government that is not necessarily led by a single person. Though the president of the US is the 'leader,' he does share power with the Supreme Court and Congress. Just because everyone likes to point to the president when things go wrong doesn't mean there aren't others that share in the blame... The current problem with the system is that: 1) the Federal government has grown too large, and 2) the US is ruled by only two political parties that are both (at their core) about the status quo and not all that different from each other.
  - intended 16y ago
    May I suggest that the current US political debate is virulently polarizing and unproductive? Perhaps the issue Good Governance vs Bad Governance would be effective/useful? (as opposed to the current axis of big vs small) As was said by Deng Xiapong "it doesn't matter if the cat is white or black.."
    - randallsquared 16y ago
      Joe's Good Governance is Bob's Bad Governance. People fundamentally differ on what the government should do; there's no "right answer" that everyone could agree on if only they'd sit down and discuss it reasonably.
      - intended 16y ago
        True for debates on Governance, but it can't be completely true for specifics and tactical matters. Matter of fact its pretty much the only way you can bring intelligence, experience, vision and ability to bear. True, some things are not clear cut, at which point you can debate. Besides, even what you said is a sensible start, yet most of America seems far from having a sensible debate about Governance. From outside, every thing that happens is twisted into some sort of attack vector for ... I don't know what.
    - davidhollander 16y ago
      >As was said by Deng Xiapong "it doesn't matter if the cat is white or black.." ..because "Parkinson's Law works everywhere." - Mikhail Gorbachev
      - intended 16y ago
        I hadn't read that quote though, thanks for pointing it out - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parkinsons_Law http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parkinsons_Law the irony is that Quote 1 - China Quote 2 - USSR
    - pyre 16y ago
mcantelon 16y ago
>The government is not just them, it's also you, and sitting on the sidelines being cynical is supporting them. One can be cynical without being resigned. Cynicism is recognition of the depth and breadth of corruption and not necessarily equivalent to apathy. But you're right that the corruption we see in the government is a reflection of our own corruption. The mess we now find ourselves in wouldn't be possible without generations of self-deception, apathy, and twisted values. We let ourselves be conned into building the world that the founding fathers warned us against. We'll likely only wake up when survival itself is at stake.

carussell 16y ago

Tongue-in-cheek.

CamperBob 16y ago

They don't understand that government is not going anywhere, and that government can be as good as it can be bad. No way in hell. Where, in either the future or the history books, is the saintly leader who will counterbalance a Stalin or a Mao?

mrgordon 16y ago
Gandhi?
pyre 16y ago
I think the point is government that is not necessarily led by a single person. Though the president of the US is the 'leader,' he does share power with the Supreme Court and Congress. Just because everyone likes to point to the president when things go wrong doesn't mean there aren't others that share in the blame... The current problem with the system is that: 1) the Federal government has grown too large, and 2) the US is ruled by only two political parties that are both (at their core) about the status quo and not all that different from each other.
- intended 16y ago
  May I suggest that the current US political debate is virulently polarizing and unproductive? Perhaps the issue Good Governance vs Bad Governance would be effective/useful? (as opposed to the current axis of big vs small) As was said by Deng Xiapong "it doesn't matter if the cat is white or black.."
  - randallsquared 16y ago
    Joe's Good Governance is Bob's Bad Governance. People fundamentally differ on what the government should do; there's no "right answer" that everyone could agree on if only they'd sit down and discuss it reasonably.
    - intended 16y ago
      True for debates on Governance, but it can't be completely true for specifics and tactical matters. Matter of fact its pretty much the only way you can bring intelligence, experience, vision and ability to bear. True, some things are not clear cut, at which point you can debate. Besides, even what you said is a sensible start, yet most of America seems far from having a sensible debate about Governance. From outside, every thing that happens is twisted into some sort of attack vector for ... I don't know what.
  - davidhollander 16y ago
    >As was said by Deng Xiapong "it doesn't matter if the cat is white or black.." ..because "Parkinson's Law works everywhere." - Mikhail Gorbachev
    - intended 16y ago
      I hadn't read that quote though, thanks for pointing it out - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parkinsons_Law http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parkinsons_Law the irony is that Quote 1 - China Quote 2 - USSR
  - pyre 16y ago

mcantelon 16y ago

>The government is not just them, it's also you, and sitting on the sidelines being cynical is supporting them. One can be cynical without being resigned. Cynicism is recognition of the depth and breadth of corruption and not necessarily equivalent to apathy. But you're right that the corruption we see in the government is a reflection of our own corruption. The mess we now find ourselves in wouldn't be possible without generations of self-deception, apathy, and twisted values. We let ourselves be conned into building the world that the founding fathers warned us against. We'll likely only wake up when survival itself is at stake.