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The US is an oligarchy, study concludes[W:192]

Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

The quote says nothing about said consequences.

Reducing government to bare minimum is the only way to change the oligarchy and restore a true republic.

That's the consequence inherent in libertarian beliefs. A better place.

Or remove power from Washington and return it to the States, where the local electorate can keep an eyes on it..
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

And they can be removed at any time by the people. A real oligarchy cant, like China.

Technically yes, they can be removed at any time by the people, but it won't happen because they have, mostly illegally in my perspective, bought the loyalty of the people or made the people so dependent on government that they don't dare rock the boat. More than 50% of Americans now receive some sort of government benefit and, even when that is small, most are reluctant to give it up once they are getting it. And those doing business know full well that the government can make their lives a living hell and likely will if they make any waves at all. So the same people are re-elected again and again and again while they use our money to increase their power, prestige, influence, and personal wealth.
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

Or remove power from Washington and return it to the States, where the local electorate can keep an eyes on it..

Close to the same thing.
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

And yet Obama and the Democrats claim over and over and over to be entirely the opposite of an oligarchy.

At least conservatives preach that you have to pull up your bootstraps and do it yourself. That's far more truthful than what the Dems offer.

What the actual **** are you talking about.
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

Technically yes, they can be removed at any time by the people, but it won't happen because they have, mostly illegally in my perspective, bought the loyalty of the people or made the people so dependent on government that they don't dare rock the boat. More than 50% of Americans now receive some sort of government benefit and, even when that is small, most are reluctant to give it up once they are getting it. And those doing business know full well that the government can make their lives a living hell and likely will if they make any waves at all. So the same people are re-elected again and again and again while they use our money to increase their power, prestige, influence, and personal wealth.

And all those things are by the CHOICE of the voters. No one is forcing them, unlike in a actual oligarchy.
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

I do not need to argue for such a government because no such government exists nor can it. Except of course an oligarchy which only pretects the property of vested interests.

The police , courts, prisons and law cannot protect you , me or anyone else they can only punish law breakers. Even the surpeme court has given more than one verdict on cases which clearly indicate it isnot the duty or job or responsibility of the police etc to protect anyone. They serve society at large ( in theory in reality they serve the government ).

So why bother with them at all. No mater how many laws you pass or how big the government gets your protection and protection of your property is still your responsibility alone.

We need some very limited laws and government to punish those who violate the rights of others. Not to protect anything.

Just to make sure I understand, you are saying that government should not protect private property rights. Correct?
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

Or remove power from Washington and return it to the States, where the local electorate can keep an eyes on it..

LOL that would never work. If anything on local State level it is far far far far worse than in Washington and moving more power to the states would only make it even worse. No what is needed is a comprehensive across the board election law revamp with universal rules and practices and barriers on how much people and companies are allowed to spend on politics.
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

LOL that would never work. If anything on local State level it is far far far far worse than in Washington and moving more power to the states would only make it even worse. No what is needed is a comprehensive across the board election law revamp with universal rules and practices and barriers on how much people and companies are allowed to spend on politics.

Interesting comments from a foreigner who has no intricate knowledge of how the United Sates operates.

Further compounded by his hatred of the US.
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

Interesting comments from a foreigner who has no intricate knowledge of how the United Sates operates.

Further compounded by his hatred of the US.

Oh, okay tell me this.. would a US congressman ever put forward legislation banning books or curbing religious freedom? Of course not, but that is exactly what they are doing on state level. The fact that on state level that the electoral districts are so gerrymandered (both sides do it) that certain states will never leave the power of one party only shows the states CAN NOT BE TRUSTED!

There is a freaking reason you have the Civil Rights act.. because certain racist states wanted segregation and still DO, since they have been slow as hell to remove legislation from the books that promoted it. When one state held a referendum wanting to remove racist segregation wording from its constitution, it barely passed! So dont come here and tell me or anyone else that it is "better" when the state legislature runs things.... because it aint, far from it.
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

Oh, okay tell me this.. would a US congressman ever put forward legislation banning books or curbing religious freedom? Of course not, but that is exactly what they are doing on state level. The fact that on state level that the electoral districts are so gerrymandered (both sides do it) that certain states will never leave the power of one party only shows the states CAN NOT BE TRUSTED!

There is a freaking reason you have the Civil Rights act.. because certain racist states wanted segregation and still DO, since they have been slow as hell to remove legislation from the books that promoted it. When one state held a referendum wanting to remove racist segregation wording from its constitution, it barely passed! So dont come here and tell me or anyone else that it is "better" when the state legislature runs things.... because it aint, far from it.

Like I said, you have no knowledge of the US.

I enjoy it when ignorance overshadows actual knowledge.
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

And all those things are by the CHOICE of the voters. No one is forcing them, unlike in a actual oligarchy.

Merge bribery, coercion, threats, and fear along with a liberal dose of deliberate misinformation, mischaracterizations, and downright lies into the decision making process, and 'choice' becomes a very nebulous if not predictable commodity. The electorate is so dumbed down and so manipulated at this point, choice has almost become a myth.
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

Merge bribery, coercion, threats, and fear along with a liberal dose of deliberate misinformation, mischaracterizations, and downright lies into the decision making process, and 'choice' becomes a very nebulous if not predictable commodity. The electorate is so dumbed down and so manipulated at this point, choice has almost become a myth.

Very well said! :thumbs:

Greetings, AlbuOwl. :2wave:
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

Merge bribery, coercion, threats, and fear along with a liberal dose of deliberate misinformation, mischaracterizations, and downright lies into the decision making process, and 'choice' becomes a very nebulous if not predictable commodity. The electorate is so dumbed down and so manipulated at this point, choice has almost become a myth.

Not true at all - they all have to choose which lobbyist's money they will take, who gets preferential legislative treatment, and who they are going to screw.
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

Not true at all - they all have to choose which lobbyist's money they will take, who gets preferential legislative treatment, and who they are going to screw.

Very few in the electorate deal with lobbyists in any form and most don't CARE who gets preferential treatment if they feel they are in a preferred group. All the permanent political class has to do is put them in a 'preferred' group and their loyalty is pretty well assured. More than 50% of the electorate is now in at least one 'preferred' group. So all a candidate has to do is spread a few lies and instill some contempt re everybody else, instill a wee bit of fear that somebody's 'preferred status' could be compromised if they vote for the 'other guy', and promise a few freebies, and he is pretty well guaranteed to remain among the permanent political class. A permanent political class that exists purely to increase its own power, prestige, influence, and personal wealth.
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

LOL that would never work. If anything on local State level it is far far far far worse than in Washington and moving more power to the states would only make it even worse. No what is needed is a comprehensive across the board election law revamp with universal rules and practices and barriers on how much people and companies are allowed to spend on politics.
You give no explanation for this opinion, only that it would somehow be 'far far far worse'. When a state screws up people can move elsewhere but when the feds screw up, as they are doing now, everyone in the country suffers. States will compete to attract the best people, just as forward thinking countries and companies do, and as many are doing now.

Yes, all the country needs is more politicians telling the public how much money they can spend on politicians.
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

Four minutes Googling does not an expert make.

PeteEU doesn't seem to realize that the Feds can pass all these laws and that it would effect the entire country if they did so.
 
The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

PeteEU doesn't seem to realize that the Feds can pass all these laws and that it would effect the entire country if they did so.

Pete's logic is based on guesses and personal opinion.


The logic is quite simple - parents make better decisions regarding their children because they know them well.

Grandparents do not know the children as well, being removed from the immediate proximity, and are not as well-equipped to decide what is best for the kids.

Pete also does not recognize that countries in the EU, while they share some commonality, passionately retain their individual identity.

This is why Pete is so wrong.

Well, that and the fact that he hates the United States, and pisses on everything that we do and what we stand for.

I have travelled the world quite a lot over my years, and studied other cultures.

Even with our faults, I'll take the US any day over any other country. Period.
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

Very few in the electorate deal with lobbyists in any form and most don't CARE who gets preferential treatment if they feel they are in a preferred group. All the permanent political class has to do is put them in a 'preferred' group and their loyalty is pretty well assured. More than 50% of the electorate is now in at least one 'preferred' group. So all a candidate has to do is spread a few lies and instill some contempt re everybody else, instill a wee bit of fear that somebody's 'preferred status' could be compromised if they vote for the 'other guy', and promise a few freebies, and he is pretty well guaranteed to remain among the permanent political class. A permanent political class that exists purely to increase its own power, prestige, influence, and personal wealth.

Thanks for a bleaker picture!! 😀
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

Thanks for a bleaker picture!! ��

LOL, sorry about about that. But that comes from pure conviction. Like you, I love my country and would rather live here than any place on Earth. But I am afraid we may be the last generation who can say that with conviction. I am probably older than most, maybe all, of you and, because I was an active member of the press beginning in my teens, and since then for reasons too complicated to go into here, I have studied this stuff my whole life. I have seen us go from a government of the people, by the people, for the people to a government owned and totally controlled by a permanent political class that have nobody's interest at heart that is more important to them than increasing their own power, influence, prestige, and personal wealth.

And I am convinced this is the last generation that will have any power at all to turn that around. It may already be too late.
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

The rich will get richer and the poor will get food stamps, but these are the policies the electorate appeared to want.
That is an electorate that has been brainwashed by billions of $ of propaganda from the Koch brothers, Roger Ailes and the oligarchs who persuaded working people to vote against their own interests.

And of course the middle class will shrink as government grows, so all of this was quite predictable. As the people complain about this 'oligarchy' they will demand that the government should do something about it!

Government is shrinking along with the middle class, while the filthy rich become still richer. We are in a new gilded age not because of government, but because government has failed to do its job. Financial deregulation, corporate lobbyists and dismantling of campaign finance laws is what got in the mess we are in now. We are not going to fix the problem unless we are able to get control of government back from the corporations.
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

Interesting comments from a foreigner who has no intricate knowledge of how the United Sates operates.

It is a real shame that many foreigners are much better informed about US history and politics than most Americans. Case in point.
 
Re: The US is an oligarchy, study concludes

My day would have sucked without knowing this breaking news. Thank you, thank you.

In other news, rich people have more money than poor people.
 
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