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You've hit on a really important point here. Namely, you must identify your weaknesses and put into place methods, to resolve/identify when they are getting the better of you and your trading.
And for those who think they dont have any weaknesses - yes you do and the market will find them. | r/tradingeducation | comment | r/TradingEducation | 2015-06-03 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyTVc1d1hCZlVXNm94U2VTUmJFZ1VON1Byc25WWS02RmJkSUpIWHo2Qkhpdk1vWXAyQTFCSFQ4RXFDbHBXV1Q5NDdORnZvU3QxWU1ObHhfT0VDSmwyeHc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5VGI4emc3M0RqejdQX0ZoX2NFaThqZUx2UTlBaGdkcHUtZGt3WUlJbzJrQlhIWXhxNTJ2R2hmTXZOTzFHNUt5Z1VwY2hHaUlkNEcybnlqX04zTXdWR1AxVFBON0MyMDZDaDdER0pCZ0tzNEdfc3RGMXducU9sRHJQdnh4aEFxdng2NnpVTDVrOUFBZzBDbW5uTkVGVWpNNE03SWxvNnBaaHZfQjB6aXczS0wzdHAtLTJveWF6SllwTVZadERkRUp4R3dsMjZqSFN1Z0hlZjh5Q1hqRnNHdz09 |
I hope not. maydaypac is about going legally after each state till it can force the federal government to act against the citizens united ruling, so it should not matter who sits in the white house, so endorsing anyone is more likely to be counter productive. maydaypac should focus on the long road to a legal prize, not get carried away with it's own ego in thinking anyone really gives a crap who they endorse. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-03 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyQUdEM2FTYXZQcVNuaVBSQmd1dnphVjVQSFI0c04yVFB0ZjU5TWo0eFNaTUl0dGlGUEU2MV9mYm5ub283X3dLN3Ixbk9NWmJ5RVlrWnVUd3V1T3ZfdFE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5X0ZCTVRDa1Vtdkh6VEdsbkk3dERuZ1RwOXNjWXA1N0d1TnY3NGZmZVRQdG9MbTRDVGVrVzlINE9rZy1WR3VlejlsNG9jdVFEQ19oWVRHOTh4YVVOWnZqWHpiT3BLajNFVlZBRUEySExOSWVWLVRLYWdGazJieUlUS3hjNXV4dEhvYnlZU29ZeGFZWEI5d1VjVDV2RzN0MHRuZ3ZkZVBnMzUtUWxrVEE5dm95V1RUWXY3NFV4TWFfSUtWczZtU2FlaGZiZmlKM1BXdVFMMGlEMmlVOHBZQT09 |
Hello & welcome to /r/Fangirls' first official fandom discussion post!
---
**Selected fandom: Agents of Shield (Marvel).**
Source material summary (stolen from Wikipedia):
>Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., or simply Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., is an American television series created for ABC by Joss Whedon, Jed Whedon, and Maurissa Tancharoen, based on the Marvel Comics organization S.H.I.E.L.D. (Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division), a fictional peacekeeping and spy agency in a world populated with superheroes and numerous supernatural phenomena. It is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), sharing continuity with the films of the franchise. The series is produced by ABC Studios, Marvel Television, and Mutant Enemy Productions, with Jed Whedon, Tancharoen, and Jeffrey Bell serving as showrunners.
>The series revolves around the character of Phil Coulson, with Clark Gregg reprising his role from the film series, and his team of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, who must deal with various unusual cases and enemies, including Hydra and the Inhumans. Joss Whedon began developing a S.H.I.E.L.D. pilot following the success of his film Marvel's The Avengers, and Gregg was confirmed to reprise his role in October 2012. The series was officially picked up by ABC in May 2013, and also stars Ming-Na Wen, Brett Dalton, Chloe Bennet, Iain De Caestecker, and Elizabeth Henstridge, with Nick Blood and Adrianne Palicki joining during the second season. Several episodes directly crossover with films or other television series set in the MCU, while other characters from MCU films and Marvel One-Shots also appear throughout the series.
---
**Questions for Discussion:**
* Do you consider yourself a fan of this series and/or part of this fandom? Why or why not?
* Are there any elements to the series that you really adore or abhor? Share your thoughts!
* Are there any elements to the *fandom* that you really adore or abhor? Share your thoughts!
* Do you have an unpopular opinion on any aspect of this series or its fandom? What are they?
* Do you have any personal life experiences that you feel either attracted you or repelled you from becoming a fan of this series and/or part of its fandom? Feel free to share : fans & even non-fans who still love to participate in discussions like these come from all walks of life & it's so rewarding to read about them!
That's it for now - I'm *really* looking forward to hearing everybody's thoughts!
Cheers! | r/fangirls | post | r/Fangirls | 2015-06-03 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyTkpiVmJ5TGMzNFhIWUNXZEdQTXM3dkpTbG9vanhNcm1qUFV4T1lzQnRKNi1HZTdYcTdlQkF3TDBybE03YnNmTnJ1cHVyVnVsUU1iNjR2TXM3UjhTMWc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5VmdCQi15cld3OHZiMDBrQjFKZU9vTWtSZV9WVlBpWG85em1xckdDT01wd0xudGpuMkpNM3c3amk0RFZUcVVHakhTUXlXS0Z0V0ZzTVZoQmpCeUZ4R05vcjdrLTZfVzVCTmxhNmhpb0J5MkNzaTdkNmtaN0pnc1MzNGoyV0F6UElmWDRpaTBBNmIzWlRNWTVxU3JuNTdKeGwtdDZodU9NSmxRci1jSU4tU3ZqcWZFc3M4WktqNkdaZ3JYbUxIQUR5 |
Wow, stunning. Just flat out brazen corruption.
This looks like a front where businesses spoon-feed legislation to state representatives who then take it back to their house and pass it as a bill, essentially word for word.
So in essence, businesses are writing their own laws that specifically protect their interests. If that isn't the very definition of an Oligarchy, then nothing is.
Outrageous.
As a 501c organization, ALEC postures themselves as an "educational charity". Who are they educating? Congressmen! And apparently they're giving legislators "scholarships" on the order of $5-10k per meeting at resort hotels.
On their website they describe themselves as a nonpartisan "think tank". It's a pretty nice looking website ... just short of a few rainbows and ponies. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-03 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyam1GNFp5WlFSbGJmdzc5WUprdEpwMzRMMHVFX203R2lFOFdHc2xmU3dURjh2aGRpTG5sWldWZkpzNmcxXy1jeFdabUJsQXZTUVBQMjZpUWdwb2hfQ0E9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5cHc0bjhWVGRhelpOc1g4RU1WSkNoclhwcUJqN2VlQXE4cktjUVBXSVZZcGFrTG5IZEkyNUVMX0NtNHZsYy1XU1NSM3otNFBHaTBTODlVTjE3X1FHTUUwWTZ1dmlmd2lCZU9WVlZ4aE9pUlYxbkhxbDc5dzRHM3A2U2FFRDhIajkteTZLX0EyeVdvRngxelZVUHdyNldfLU1VeXp5cGlUR0VnYzdrZGVLNEVvdXpVUTkySXFzamF2dEVaNExXMXhvSTllTXluX2RhdV9aWm9td2ZjYkFYQT09 |
Hello!
We have a banner! What do you think? Did it make you laugh? because that was what I was going for.
Also - I mentioned it in the Fandom o' the Week thread but *check out the new additions to our flair!* I've added Sherlock, Star Wars, Disney, My Little Pony, Pokemon, Twilight, Batman, & the X-Files!
Any/all feedback, suggestions, advice, etc. would be absolutely marvelous!
Edit: EVEN MORE FLAIRS & a NEW banner with all of them inside. New fandoms are (drum roll):
Arrested Development, The Beatles, Blue Oyster Cult (lol idk), Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Dragon Ball, Divergent, The Fault in Our Stars, Halo, Homestuck, The Last Airbender, Legend of Zelda, Mass Effect, Mortal Instruments, Naruto, One Direction, Percy Jackson, The Rolling Stones, Teen Wolf, The Tick & Wonder Woman.
PS - yes, I'll totally add more if you let me know what fandom you want :) | r/fangirls | post | r/Fangirls | 2015-06-03 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoycVpLeTdRVERrLTkzQm9NRVRXOUt6cjZ1UlBUNU5XdXExT2lJWUJGMWcycy1NSDZpWmVLTElUVjFOS0xmcTVfT3hGZm5CYXJiSFd4UUdvZVhzb0w1NXc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5T2k0djBPTmNSOWIzSnRQNVhEdE1FQWZidWc4ZlBaUEpvLURaU01JNk9mSVlRUEZuaXIwVFpnT0tLcmdfa20yalR3LVJYVEUyUXM0Nl9ZU3FwSDhtaV9Qa3BhZGNkcEVYYjdDeFcxeHIxYi1vZENsTnhDc3dhUWM0amRtcHVEVW1oUGNTV2xYVHRhNjZrT3NydnBKZUlnPT0= |
Geez everyone needs to watch this.
Essentially, corporations are writing their own laws. It's that blunt. Word for word.
Who is running our country now? Those that we elect as "lawmakers" are really just middlemen?
Somehow I think this is not the vision that the framers of our Constitution had in mind when they founded our nation. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-03 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyTVVPTUF6YzlLX2FhdkUzbUI4UGQ5Tmtvb0lfcFMxS192dUQ3bEw5SWVYQmhYZ2xyVC1jRG5uczY5R01XSnROOFFpdGRHeHpMSkI3cllKeGdEaExGMUE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5OEl2X1hIclQ1M3l4YW44bzZuR21FOWxRcXpUQUlDbWpWT0kxRzNYbzZNcG5yVFh6c2hLaVd3UGFTYURIUnN0QS1NVTFLTFJPdFVfRXVBY1o5S2tzNlg5SkU5WlJTRDNaMkN5VVpxRTlKaG5zUVdZbEFid3M5YUlmNEU5bFRUYmxjSnlZTkV1cGlPZm5sSnZRM19zWWVTVk9tNVU0Q2N6NTNXWjVnY3JPZmxQOXZoQy13eFU3UTBZWndiZEszbDloNHFXM1ktTXZpQXFCZ0FDdy1ZX3RLdz09 |
Thanks for sharing this. It was nice to learn a little something more about Ms. Teachout, her political endeavors, and her perspectives on the issue of corruption in government. She strikes me as real genuine and open and sound, and a clear communicator. I wish her well in her aspirations as a public servant. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-04 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoydUdpOVc1OWZRaDRaR0VHenluVVY2Vld4akVlbnlFRk5JZTJBc2s2X0pTZFltUmZfNWxodGZSQmItUVdvSTR6cjBCWU9IbVFodXFMQ0c1cUU2aTBYa0E9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5cHBGVEZ4NUNteFJEdHpXT3FkVVRVQ1BhZzN4eWt0cWo4dFVuYW9MZFd2dEd0QWY3RVNDMVREZ1ZsM2FGQS1CVW1MeXpTSW0tUzNNeWgxVkpsYWhVQzMyc0twRlRKZW90clBpY3NRTFRDUUJwel93V2NlU3BBSUJvdGduV3VRR185T0piWDZvOWFJY3plVWI1cUQwRmc2TUVGM2dSWUFBNktLUXI2Z0lQY3VkM3ZSLWtTYlpaTXJoTDYwYTRqZUZQc1JfRk02cVFSWDRtaWNFaVJlbU1TZz09 |
I like what he has to say. It's great to see conservatives getting on top of this corruption issue.
> John Pudner is president of Take Back Our Republic Action Fund, a group advocating conservative solutions to campaign finance reform.
This is definitely an opinion piece. I'm not really familiar with the Daily Beast. I prefer to avoid overtly partisan "news" sites and something in my memory is vaguely tingling my spidey senses on this one.... Are they notorious for being biased either way on the political spectrum?
I did a quick google on this question and one post on Answers.com went strongly in both directions on this one. Not exactly helpful. But it did increase my wariness. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-04 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyNW9kb2hWZFl3a0hmNF9iZmRpUmZlaGxjU3B5YVJMSmxhcHZPV2lETUFiMlZaenJtVFBULTItSko2SkVKTTJsOVhGZ05wNXk0Z0hjQWFEMkFJODFjQmc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5RWg5ZGJ2ZWlpUFlUekVTU1pEb1Bqc2U4M0NmYzRGQU5vVDl4eEQzZG1rSUxQXzlvV1Rfa0ItUnZzcFVvenU0VVBKMzVTNFE3RFZicE9BbDM2NUh3OTk3Z3BlZTFiYmotMlNydHQ4TWpVYkRiZnFJYWR3OG1FTnludVdFal85VkpCV2QwWXVYSUF2cEpaY19fRGYtX25RSl9zVExMdm5TMEx5RFhKOUtiOWhNSHJaX3hra3ZLUjhYQ0pITzhlTm9LUGJfX3ZvRWVxNy1JYTE1UEpDS1RGUT09 |
Right on, /u/scottsilvey.
Many years ago I started dating a guitarist and said that I wanted to learn to play bass. He asked why I hadn't. I told him I was too busy. He asked how I was so busy that I couldn't spare 10–15 minutes a day. I said it was too expensive. He said he'd buy me a bass and practice amp. (I told him not to, but he did anyway.) I had no excuses left, so I taught myself bass in just a few minutes a day and later joined a rock band.
Anyway, the point of this story is that most busy people still have a bit of time here or there. Those folks who are exhausted from multiple jobs and/or busy young children we can cut some slack, but that leaves millions more Americans who absolutely can spare some time on a regular basis to help make a difference. How can we make it easy and fun to help? | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-04 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyQWpSYWR3d2ZlemRQZ3g5eTl1MmRZWVRJenlXcjllS3Q1dGUycTZBNjlkS1R2NUNPUTB0LVdGYmlFZkZuMUlvTXpfRmdkU2lGc01YOXpYMWQzQjNaQnhDMFF3OFJoSzBPbF8xaVFUZzhENjg9 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5UmxXdzNCZ21JWDhMR1c1Q2dFTUNfbzFnOGZyN2prWFJpeElDUVBIVVBBWTE3eFktRGRiWUdqZUlab1dEQ2JIZEdTdlNkS2FHMFVaZzBKdE5HNmJpWkc1UjBoSExMLW5GTVFMd2d4Sk9CZUNUaGljMWowVURWeTRXZ0htcGx3bVZENEJBMzVDQnpEZVhUeEJMZFUtX0pRZHJrd1JYX3h2VEVKenB1LUd0S0RrTkYwdkZJMVlRWEU5YjN4QkloUVEtWDBSUG9vMEd0Sm8wak0tTUxNOXNPdz09 |
It sounds like you could be confused about the Mayday PAC strategy versus the Wolf PAC strategy. Mayday is working to create a US Congress committed to fundamental reform that would not require SCOTUS overturning Citizens United nor a constitutional amendment. Wolf PAC, on the other hand, is working to have the states call for an Article V Convention, the purpose of which would be to propose a constitutional amendment allowing the government to limit political spending. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-04 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyaGRmRnZ2ZTlzLUVWeWdwRE9PRV9MSGFDWTdHLUVKeFdQSEpKTHYyVUhmNkNuS3htc0U5TXJLZWQxSVVQT3hoTERkdnRBRjg0bndubVRJNUFTV005MThzT1BxVk8tVmVlanQwTi0wMXExVVU9 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5YVhReW5UeWszWHRCeXRpa0RqTWx2czBPeUh4ZF9pN2hzVWNZc2dxQXBIVE1zSmEyYm9xSmV1Sjl4Ulp1YmxFQXN4c3pTMWk5ZW9sYUktY042cnVfUEt4dnVNb2lvOTN0UnNSNXFxTGZ6N1lWSkhhcnRTZU4wX3MyRHdXR3FIUURhdXlGZ1YwcGZobXZ4WEJZWU1nNEpVdmpzQjA5dmxrdnhjdVhWYTlNSTN4RlhIaE01VXBzRklBRDJPVU1yZ2tfQTVtOVA3eXAtUExDSjhmQy0ybmwyUT09 |
you are correct,
i was supporting wolfpac and mixed you up.
thank you for posting.
let's hope you are both ultimately effective. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-04 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyeFpXanA3MDJtcm04c0Nhd0ltX1lOTi1kdVZnWmJURVlRbUN6TW82dlRpQVB1UVYtMmZuaUJ1SUM1TmU2RXVKUktlQW9qYTdtZWsxVmlfVWhjY3BkUVE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5TjBtV09XdjlTTmpsWk1VeXIzV0thTDRwZU5IXzB2Y0FMUUtRblJ4eU1nVlFfWE0tbHd3OXNkcWdZREJXeG9ZUUVQWnlXUEpjczc0T0dWNnZLSU9vWncwQlJGZzBfdXNYS1BGWXhuSUlHeFJDd1V0cEFvaGpVSnBiUktRbHNBN3NVZ1c4MEx1X3ZRdkVsNV84VkRVTGJEcUNZNTcxYjZyX3JwTlhIT3hGWDVRS3huOHlnQWZXWU5XN0FqLVBxaFF6VzByenRiNV9jWDVFbXJJSWFQWVJHdz09 |
https://www.mturk.com/mturk/preview?groupId=3FJ5S6GNM7JFFWL7IGEXXOP2E1U7EQ
So it's a pretty simple task and could potentially be HWTF... but there's about 100 images per hit. And if you get to the bottom and missed an image or two that contains beef (what's the point of the HIT if they already know which ones contain beef?) then it says you missed some, try harder, and won't let you submit the HIT. Huge waste of time. | r/hnotwtf | post | r/hNOTwtf | 2015-06-04 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyUHdMZE9VbW1LeVdMSnppLWhqaWFtaF9UUzdrNVZGVEt6MHJMRFJRQmNCWkZGV283RnlaVkhzbHJvLXVmRE93bHdPODBWU3hnLWphclgzd3lzLWZhdkE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5cm5SdEZvMjY1OFFqUWN6S2RJc2k3MHhUd3JVazdabzJSY3VNbnJmVTJoWXBUcW1yVWdoTGNfTEoteC1mZUgyd2V5Wm1QR21zWVVKMHhhMEtRdXpuek01N2FsQ2ZaZXVvWDZBOHhDMy1wQXZrbUl2WjA5Umt1d0I3ampuN0h4Tmx3R1pyczVUdnRmbkFWamtnR1ltRlpSWjcwYk5remJnRV9WS2pOd3U4ZHBiOGFTNGdoUEd3TTVpYUpfRnZCUXBqNnM2WkxiZUM4ZElrZ19fQ20wWXRyZz09 |
Thanks! For the record, I have volunteered for Mayday AND Wolf PAC. And Rootstrikers. And NH Rebellion. And Represent.Us. And a few others. The main thing is to take action! | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-06 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyQUhOd2lqektPSzVRd1RBdTZGS0x5OU1TbkNndVJZSS1pODNRa0lEV2M4VkpLTTlaUUZTajM3THhOZkphMU9RdW0tekt2WjI5M2tMcGtldXZkdzhrNW1BMmt2aWFPVU5VR2tsWlo4NVNXVzA9 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5QjBqSEJCSTVZMmNqRHIzamVqSmNrZWR5cUREVlk4dVdVZ0lKUjdGVXpTZmxKVllIVVFWS3dFOHFtWlNORHpMSG9aakJyZ1lDT3M0Z1pMaHA1Tk1OakpuTklsUm9TaFV3LW4zcmtzVVZTeS0tX19xeU00Vk95Vzk2YlIxVThTZ3l0N3AwaUladS1TZWxaV2FwbVBkV2JNWTNmdXJtZ01LQnRDMXNLRjg2dmFTZnRvYV9rczFXT21nSTU3TTctTUdWT3RtVFJucVh2VHlQeEJ3M1lSTTJjZz09 |
I'd like to start a group of dedicated Chicago gamers who play Civ V by email. The mechanism for playing by email is delivered via http://multiplayerrobot.com/.
Ideally we'd have 5-6 players and would get a quick Brave New World game going.
Is anyone interested? | r/chicagogaming | post | r/ChicagoGaming | 2015-06-06 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoybTFLOEVCZTQydVFmZHl6eEZpcHRWLXl3M09DX002VHZpczJSaEJaT2pzcDYyVWJvVkplcWlvOVVmdEtQNUJTX0s3cDFoNWFjNTFlS3N1ZGtXelZnQXc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5NEVNdmZvODIxM09DZ01aOVA2Vlp2NzhpNHVPWFFaMFZZYTd6RHZMeWdNRHhVY1I2Ymp6NHMwWmJlZVFvRF9IRDJ0RVZMYi1OYzRqS1I4emQ4bUtaSHp0MmFBWlZJSFpwRmI1aW1kZjN3RnNOSVdpQ2lnZzVZcDFZMmJ6VEJXTU1Idnl1NWhjWE13SWRfMVM1cXUzOVFyZmFiOGRpNDlqenRoekJvVXg0dUx0eTN6VEN4QkJtc2NKYTZCbnlxM2U5 |
... but I need to finish dinner first :P | r/fangirls | post | r/Fangirls | 2015-06-07 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyVVJ1anZDNUFicHk3aWF3WDYzanY2VkR4NVA1R3o0eXFPY3ZDazNsWmJOZ2J4SDVHSl9CUGhGT0EyXzRUcVp2VDc0OHlxVENydzNmdHkxM055d1k4Q3c9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5TEF6QkZtemx5N0dCZ1dQeHUzWmZacFdRXzZjZ192a25QeENFZGJaRnY4X3llcmFRbktjMzJkem9mRWZrQ3pBOXhzYjF2bFpEd2lHSHFTTjRManQtMEZKbXRrQ19kVXI1SnVkQmJjRWxLSTA2TktpeWZOYmM5NDYxQmFIVTY1bXNaWldXVjhfNTktQ1hhcG1LXzF0RVYtMlNwUWRFMEZtbzNwQkY3OWNZczJuRHF2bjg1OVJKOEZQc28zYXY4akgzRjJLT050MzRNWk92eDRuTTFsMUFSQT09 |
Cool project!
I've been thinking for a couple years of setting up a site designed to help people understand what their Congressfolks were doing.
Funding sources and how they vote on bills would be a huge part of it.
But so few bills go through Congress these days that there'd hardly be anything to talk about in terms of real data.
So I thought of coming up with an "Do Nothing" metric. Congressmen who don't show up when their house is in session earn a point, for example. Congressmen who skip votes earn 10 points. If they vote on a bill then they lose points off their DoNothingness score. Every day a responsible committe chair fails to allow a confirmation vote on an executive appointment earns that chair a point. Maybe come up with a cool baseball like acronym for the metric, like "*DNR*" = "**Do Nothing Ratio**".
I would also like to use the Do Nothing score to compare various sessions of congress to see just how obstructionist each given Congress is compared to their predecessors.
Then I thought of a **Partisan** score. Whenever a Congressman votes the party line, their **Partisan** score grows. If they cross party lines and collaborate with the "enemy" then they take a big hit to their P-score.
Another metric I thought of was something that tracks how each Congressperson votes relative to their funding sources. Each bill is analyzed in terms of how much it may be favored by various special interest groups. Then if the Congressman votes for something that they had special interest donations for, their **Monetary Incentive** score rises. Likewise they gain "**Favor**" points with each special interest group that likes the bill in question and lose Favor points for each SIG that opposes the bill. Over time you get a grid of which Congressmen are supporting and not supporting which issues and special interest groups. This can be correlated with funding sources.
Politifact data and similar fact checkers could be used to develop an **Honesty** metric.
So I envisioned a little baseball card like popup for each Congressperson that shows all their "stats" over various "seasons" and then you could drill down from there to see their specific activities like voting records, funding, attendance, etc.
Finally, the **Waffle** score would grade Congressmen on how often their voting record contradicts their public statements. If a Congressman makes a statement that big banks should be held accountable for risky investments but then vote against regulatory measures, they would earn Waffle points. :)
Something that tracks voting records against voter opinion polling data might be an interesting report too. Maybe I'd call that their **Voter Alignment** score.
Basically, I imagined a resource that voters could check that "outs" Congressmen for questionable behaviors. I figured if the funding influence could be demonstrated in data, that could help embarrass Congress into paying more genuine attention to their constituents or their constituents could just punt them.
| r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-08 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoySnltXzJYeFlhR250WVlkSHRZZ0VLOU1PZE54UGd0NEdvcmRGR1RETms0WHdKUjhFNm9kc2JSV0d4U3pGNWI3bTI4bUlHd3hTNVM5OVpydEJGOHN3eGc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5MXZxWkUwWjMzckpzR3c3Vk9xQ3pZcFJDeTBxVjQ2YTFzem1Ob00yWERCYXp5ZmtvdnU0bjdkVnIwdkJRRnR1ZHpGMUMyUDlTQ0lhc1ZNVmNBLTVpb3VVME5PTnRXZlZmbTVvQ3FqZDJuT2I2ZU55Y1l3a19HSWxDMF8xdVNTZGNzTWl2b2hQaE1BOUk4THdTaE5jV3pwRnVOckJiZFJBcXFPY1hzUzBzV1VkTkl6MWhIc1M4VE1lTkRJQm0xS3Y0X0lBSTdqckNwWXhSeFRJaWV5aC1CZz09 |
Let's study John Singer Sargent this week!
[Here are some examples of his work.](https://www.google.com/search?q=john+singer+sargent&espv=2&biw=1164&bih=679&site=webhp&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=K0Z1VbiCMIq2ogTGmICIDw&ved=0CAYQ_AUoAQ) | r/weeklystudy | post | r/weeklystudy | 2015-06-08 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoycVA2TFoxNjRxMVRKMldCaWtNOXY0MHJkR1E2YnQyTG1Hd0d2RVptMUlGbXRpb2t4enY3aU1oOE56MkwzblFaY2pudWh4MWlpbDh6c2RTSnJQXzlzT3c9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5WmZyYVhvY1p2WnJOLUZyTXRJYlBGV0FPT05FUHdrZkc0dFBPNDNaOFQ0TURiTTVrek9sd0RqMnFpZHM0eDQ4Y0lreTNxOHl6T2FtYnk2NDJyRHdyU01acHdUNHZXcWpXV2FFWUt4bDhUbHo4ejhfMW5BeDdhNWtraERORFhteG04cks2NGtFcUY3TGYydjJISXRxc3dDRWg4dlI2MTRBWWcxRmxjcFNFNXhVVUFtbzAzWlhRa0RCZm5vZ0gyZTg0 |
Need new content! We miss Steve. | r/stevethechicken | comment | r/stevethechicken | 2015-06-08 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyZUlXRzE1UWZ5NWZHYndYVV9ZclNaSThfODV4UDA2OTRiS0lsQkI5NTNsQ0J4Z1RIUHZFaS1pNkQ1bThHX2k3MnNnNUd2TEMwMk12aDJKSExlNlh4d2c9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5WV9JUV8xMDNZMExkQU5qUFI0YzJMSDcwVE5tT0pBUjhEZzI4OXdWZ2JhamNDWE5YWmgtSXJYanhVMk9uWG1LSnF0eUZhZ2EwTkpDVXhhV3FEc2p6UEU0cU11SmZTek8yZ0RYR0FraERzbnlCbHljWG1OWE1VZjlaUllMa1ZteXAtSlU3OHhqcC1NeUFyOTBORVRhUzNDSkhOMnY0YUZydktGOXNvQ0oxbHUtc1FtdGZ5MERlR0VPV0N5STRNQ04zc2FTdHNtQ0VrVjFDcE5HX1dTVm94dz09 |
Hey :), I'm still away from home atm, as soon as I get home I'll be able to do a tonne more steve stuff, sorry about the wait, but I really didn't have enough good content to post until I get back, I want to make sure everything I post is up to standard... | r/stevethechicken | comment | r/stevethechicken | 2015-06-09 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyTm1rNE9NUkJvWHR5OWtQRnJZNTJBdEZ1ZkpaYXlVMVJoU0U5clZiWGhLTlRXbEphUUhaWTFPLVpTbTZRd0UxbnUzUG1ORXhUbTVFSUN4VTNoNUkyZ0E9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5Y1d6ZXVYbUd5TmpZUmxGT0xDbGJkV3F5LXRZLWpzM0NaSTJsbHE2SkJzY3lyeDFlMHR5Sk9HSmlEbmhlR3RmdFp1RHB0Z1ViTF9mXzhVcW5VMTM2VmcwTGVkZEJrMTJ3RjdiaXp5V0FKWF9QdXhyNmRxek1QWHB1Q0pwZVFic1hXN2xHdGZxNFU1aTZVLVlnNC1oR2dmMk1hREpSc0dwOWZGd3o5VzNqM3g5aDd6MkdicUdJUjR1UnlROWdHRVFZQmVaUzllSWRVYnhEUDR2MXh6N2g2dz09 |
Such dedication! Thanks friend! :) | r/stevethechicken | comment | r/stevethechicken | 2015-06-09 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyUEJEQUY2LXBGaF9XX0JiV0Rrd05BV2ljUHR2M0tLMkRFT0hhaVhQaDE1YTVZZVpza0loQmdZZHU4LW5ER1ljcHlMZ1dhWU5VeGhrRVRmSlBNV2JRRXc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5Y2FHWkQxUlUxQ0lGaldYQVBENE9oR3ZaazkxTUpWcl9ycjFPY3c5V3BxdWhsbURvY2NKamsxOUhWOV9LbXJCN0RHRnpodzFycUxrQjBpbnBWdGxpbDFRbS1TeWpwQ2dYNUswc28xcHcxQjhkUldvZEttRjBVVllFaTdxZ2VNdks2N1d4WkEtbVMtVFRNS2FkNkZPY180d0FQRlNhcTdCZEJMbjZoUE1fWVFkeEplcVQ4TENNRkdUT0Nyek9PNkhlV3Ixcng0LU81enpCZ0g1SURVY3o1UT09 |
https://www.mturk.com/mturk/preview?groupId=33U5EW3SVQKT3CBZVIYPJ3JR9AY8ZN | r/hnotwtf | post | r/hNOTwtf | 2015-06-10 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoySkZWeGJSTU9qQnFUTW5wQ1h1NHBoYS1RMjVFUG1vY09zLTNmQ0x6T1FldVZDZ2xrZ3hVWjM0WEpfZ0I4OVpUWkFYY2tObVlyS2hyY0FDU2t0NUNTaWc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5cDRJT280WHFFdXVOT1ZTblYzTG5ZTFZ5dWRLdU45WHI1cHpEOXJIQUhzd25TVW83TmY4SkVGcVAwbWJDWUxMVUZNaF9TVGM5SkRqa3lfNTIyUU11SlVZMHdKUTFvdEY5N0xEOHJjM3FLV2hpYnhLWGZiNGF3ZGt1cWI4OG1IRUJfWUpFeGlZYUFXdHcwMDRsSUtqOUxjcUlmdFY0Q004LU1iQXl1RnoxSlZtOWZldVRjTHhqOHBFZ19aUmFhSk1WeXNkTVFQc296a0kyTzVqc1pvQ25odz09 |
Well thought out post!
I think there's an interesting debate in there about what rationality means/should mean. Is it meant to be used practically (having meaning in your life promotes good mental health, therefore one should have meaning in one's life) or epistemologically (there is no evidence to support the hypothesis that life has inherent meaning, therefore one should accept that life is meaningless)? Probably a false dichotomy, but a starting point at least. | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-10 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyN3JYSEhTUXFjZ2ZLYlY0QW1LMVBXQ0RHMGM3by1mRF9hYjlaNm5IcTNEd2p2NFJORnZuNzJ3emxJZ3d1c2wzbF8yRUJzQ1U0VTRGS1pFYXNCbFNjVHc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5ZUtkbE5Mam1FSFJMeHFwS2s0ek8ydUVyVkNPUGRGeHNkQm05S1RUUUhVNTVCYV85bjVPTGxMQS1tcG1BTWtPU3BBOFp4WnJsdTlnNXcwdzZGQl9sYWYzMExvdnVzNGtvWklhUUNWdHYwTm8tSVo3NmEteUEwOWdxeEJIWlE1OXprU1FMX2YtUGZvNjlXQXI0TzdrWTktdnpwVWh3VTc3bDdnYjU5N3R4MHZkaWZJYm5raF9tWHY2OW5aMUdFWUZJN2FINU5VQTZFdE94ZFZydWVpX0hOQT09 |
How could the evidence possibly suggest that god does not exist? | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-10 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyOFc1c3pqY3NYYTgwaF9ySkYtQldfc2dhOUwycHk0TW1vd281WWd2MnUyay1oSU1Ob2Q0NzlnNWxBLWZuWDVnbXQ5WGVoV3lqTFZkeDBOajFTTlZ0bmc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5V0h2TVFla2RMczk0ZkdBVEdPYVEzRW5nalpNbmJnVTBsTVFEWG5lbHdTSjQwYU0zVEN0cDBNVXpvVHRpUThuWVZLTVdVbWhVaXpxdXFCOVJRamlWYXM3WEo2TGVxMnctLTdHaGRwWldJcmc5ejZjanZpV0Q3ejFJY0tQNS1IQ21GU0toYWhobnN6QTR6UDB0akdIXzZlMzlVaUhFZXZuNlBaRHFhb0ZKV2s4VEpwZmdFUlBhRlpUcnJUUXJvVmFfS0dpaVREbnh5N3VHcFR6RnpCbFZwZz09 |
Sean Carroll can explain this better than I can. [Here's](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ew_cNONhhKI) a good lecture where he explains the problem with god as a theory. | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-10 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyY0NsSUZTQmlrdVdKZ1RnZjNUVVhmTW9wN1VqSjJGMFQwcjRkbWFlY0ZkblJkWlpxQVJrWkZydWIxLU15YnplaEROTkM3bWdlNEdLX29sMmg0QThyY0E9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5N1V3Ym1GWkE3V0g0MEJ4YjFuRnRSdVdOODlqYlYxbXNGMkc0aFNDbnVIOU1tU2dRb0Y0bDBTeEppbEpHYlVLN291WkdtYTJKYjRYR1UxX2EzVkZiN0x4R0kwSHNmekJHdk1vaVk1MmhyZE12YWJsU3VJd24wNklsZmJRSjNzS2V3aVQyaVNlWS04T01FeG1pZ0oySmRPLWkzME85N2s4QTNMT29VT3ZMdWl2NVcycllQYjdtRmhKelR0WllaNWxrX3dlbXpwc3FrNm9oWENEcVlJMlVaUT09 |
No offense, but I see no reason to spend time listening to this. The concept is beyond ridiculous. To me, what he initially proposes is as ridiculous as the Easter bunny or Santa Claus or Bill Clinton's definition of sexual relations. | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-10 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyUEFqVE40cVVfeFEwT3NMbjF5b1RVLU1zdDd4RzhoVWFNNUpqQzJ5RjRtWDRvZm1sTUxmX196aHpjQzJRam1Yb2toTnFLUTJlSXFaU0FtQ2VNUE9nUlE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5VFNyYk9TOVdNUERXOTFYai1scms4NGdkcGdNOFlLYzNVZWd5UGtXa1dLdkc0VllaR012emFjenhFbTY5UzlaX29pRm9WM0RRXzYwX0hUSmpXMzlodGZaN0taN3NMSm9nYTQ3WjJhY1hmY3haZWU1dmxDblk0NklyS0o0cXRWY1cwWEhkS0c0RWQ4aE5DT1kyY0U2RFlva2RicmVLelZYWXcwaWd3dVFObEk3c2lDcExYd3k1cVZaS2MxQmo4eUVXMzVzUmxUR3k2NWdQOFVtdkJTR1RTZz09 |
And in your view, god is not nearly so ridiculous? Why not? | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-10 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyanE4bllxWFlmY0pnMXUyYnoxcWhwMzlXSXB4emNKcjdleDBiTThtaFFYNUxRTU5hMUtLZE9OS3BKamduNGxwdlhPN0tuMlFnd2lhWUh0QktUbS1lYVE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5RlBVMkNqR2F4OWwxMDN1MEpZQjk4WkQ4c1NjRDhVaGRrNHNhZGY5U043bjBzZ0U1eVNHRVVsZ2hkZkw3LXdWb2VQNkJLNzI0b2Fwc25vVmc0aDdPZU9zNzk0VUVFU0lzSXhKNnFrdDg5OU1aSWp4aFdTS1dFRW1xWXc4LXVVSERxc2VBTjZkb0oyekpqdHV6dzlZWmw4VzU1VC1Ka29Zd1kweEdHd2FuQ25oeGNON2xPcmlYeVpqRS0zOVUwU1d1WEZrMjlFb2lkOEZsOWgwX0pCQnV4UT09 |
The possibility of god isn't ridiculous because we don't even know where or what we are. We are so ridiculously primitive and clueless anything is possible. But this is also because we may not even be able to conceive what god could be. | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-10 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyeTVqT1l5Mm5SM2tTM0U2RFNCQnZFV3BKUHFldnJwYlJudGFRYXRwZGpITmhIUGJfUFRSZkRRZ2FwOTNBRG1sRWF2bEVVbFJJWmp0SUpJRHZiUW1iclE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5UnRSSmMwWmUwWnQ4a2dHRjcwS0NORWhRVXVhMEhHOF8zUUNITE82R2VvVmUzaWN1ZXMxNVREdlRwUHdFbHMzR2V5YWtCWEFhaU9iQW42OFVzSE9NTzlYN0dGVGswNXVVb1B5a3BQSkVaSXNoM1dHb0ZLanQ3cXROSVdtZlRNZ3NaTlQtdkVVT0l0b1NDQ0pydmlpSlJBVWFfeGdyNWxKeVdqTXVqX0FfYWc3U3pkTnBmcmhmWXBGWFdlTnJEZ2lfVFdidm5PYWRNYkhwb2R5WWRiZ0d4UT09 |
To test whether a theory fits the data we have, you make predictions about what we assume would be the case if the theory (god exists) was true and then compare those predictions to the actual evidence we have. That's exactly how you show that Santa Claus isn't a good theory for why presents are under your Christmas tree and why gravity *is* a good theory for understanding falling objects. If god cannot be subject to this form of scrutiny, then it is not a useful theory. If the data conflict with what we would assume to be the case if god exists, then it is not a good theory. If the assumptions match the data better than any competing theory, then god would be a good theory through which to understand the world.
>We are so ridiculously primitive and clueless anything is possible
If you believe this to be the case, then you should withhold judgment on everything. [Here](https://www.youtube.com/user/carneadesofcyrene) is a great skeptic channel that challenges proofs of god, the reliability of science, the cogito argument, etc.
> this is also because we may not even be able to conceive what god could be.
This too would make god a poor theory for understanding the world. If god is too beyond our abilities to comprehend, then believing in god would get us nowhere. How could we know that god cares about us or about how we behave? How could we know what the objective right and wrong are? How could we know that there is an afterlife? If we cannot know anything about god, the concept becomes meaningless. In this case, belief in god would be no more or less useful or meaningful than belief in 'ffyrtwe'. | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-10 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyYWxUZUw4YW1SblVmQkRzcm9uQ18zTk95V2pFTW14ZkxCU1BpNGV2eFByQWQ0VHN3ZDhZd1ZOX3Qzc3VLV0o4MG1XY0pPNTlFLXVqY1dQS05SaC1lMmc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5YWhhOWdLdGxEV2RXNzAwMWcwdTJLZEJvRmtpaFZRb29QaHNJX1ZTVnRjYzRBbk0xMW1jSWxhZmVhbmRwN3doR19GWVh2VVNNdjlTZmVOZjhrZE55Z3VwbmU1YW9Rd2NrOTJiNENKX2drb1BORmRSNFVLVE81aXdIbWdfVWlqel9RS29WSG1fNWNRV0xRUU1OSGh4VkpoQ3AwOHdVdVJ5X1htSFd0aGpXTnVGQWE3RzdWdXg3VkU3LUczSzZvZTBSdE1BMUptTHpwRVVKUFBoVXhHSWhDQT09 |
But see.. your point was lost right out of the gate.. because you had to narrow the parameters of your "logic" down so ridiculously to justify ignoring the possibility of a god. This was exactly the point I was making about Clinton's definition of "sexual relations." It's a tortured logic or justification.
>If you believe this to be the case, then you should withhold judgment on everything.
This is precisely my point. We absolutely should be open to change everything we think we believe at the ridiculously primitive level we are at now.
>This too would make god a poor theory for understanding the world. If god is too beyond our abilities to comprehend, then believing in god would get us nowhere.
This is a strawman argument... because I never said we should believe in god. We should simply be open to the possibility of some kind of god/creator. There may be many many creators stretching all through eternity or just one or none. | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-10 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyNEN6dEF1UmtqUDZ2UnlScm40WWlNMk9yWDF0Sy0xd0R2UUFtRTVncEJJeV9SSmVWNHZKbng4SVpVYUZlMTQyS2dZMzltcHZVZE8tQmlNVTFtVnZaSWc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5blR3M3B2a2p2akRoM1BER1JmdzctZ0NESTZva3JKWU9PT1FwNzI0dEdPQjRNeE93UTlJV3VGdEdnSnVoTUtBZTNZSHEySHVuRnNVOEVxWHpsejFwMUNNbDVLeS12ejN5REpWaWRLX2FPUnBDTlFrYkZ3anViblVuSWlWQy0zZ2hlQ1hYc0NlWElmRVRzem5MbEl1YVFaMzhJSFd0dU93RTBQdFZDaVZ2ZmVnQTUwMXBuT05wMTBmcjFaRjJuUFByVjVnUHgzaVBYczNweXNwakl5VGZpQT09 |
Okay, well then we'll operate under your "logic" of what god is and see if we can get any farther in this discussion. Where do you see the problems in my explanation and how would you correct them? | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-10 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoycVdhMWpybVVjbl9jMGZqNklQSV9WSWZaT2tUZEZoSnk4ZDQ2TU5rS1BXN0trODlqZUVXRGltS1JnTU9fLXQ3UVVHbzdTdWpRVkV6T09VVlBkRTBFLVE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5MW9ieHFXZjB1ek13ZmdycWpBODhzMVcyc2p3cS1hcXk2WE5DLTJrMkFVcGs5VW8wSXhQTHZ4X2JGWmk5UXpUcnhKckw0czg5SjNQc1hzVFlWa2xON016cE1pMGxiTTd4ajVRaUZodXkwZEJIRVY0VzlITURLaUJOcjhxS2EzQ1daMC1xQk1sOTVzLXJRRGl3UE42R0ExbFcwTHE2NGZpUzVpYnN0MzRfVWZETDM2bF9JSkhocHhROTZlMHB5UEp3b3M5Q3U4M3MtbFdtUW1SRmo4VXQtdz09 |
Probably the only understandable possibility of god at this point would be some kind of intelligent being that produced a kind of computer simulation.. and that is what our reality is. It could even be an advanced version of ourselves.... so we could be a simulation of our future selves past. This is because some scientists currently claim our reality appears to be a hologram. | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-10 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoySkpZamkzcFhNeUZ4dDhIdEhnSEYzRUo4LVdXSVN3MEpfU2c4a0tNc1g3R0NvU2xoWWNSVUR6ZHQ0T09zeVBRekZSd1NwZjE0UF9Ya0hUc1JhZUxuZmc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5dmg4QTBibmt2Y21OWlZDdmhJYzExM0xzcHVNNWthNTFPU2hqQ0dHTG55NC1MemdwY3drczFwM1JCMmV5cURac3R6ODJoUlE2azl3YjBzMFNiZXg3NzViMUxPWUtSS3ZaMl9Odkhrc1NLTlF4amU3aVEwdlJFSGZBUVV2M0pmcmhBNmMwSW8tdFNrdS1OVVZ4QUFMMVV0VlBUQV9FZWZTZ2lLR1JTeWZ3ZWY2UHVnUER5TFlpZm55dTJqNTdPVTh2VFNKcHpuQ2JDVURJNU9mOHdZRFQzUT09 |
I think that's a really serious revision to what most people take 'god' to mean, but I agree that it's probably the most tenable definition of god. I don't see how this invalidates my point, though, because your definition is *based on the data* we have about how the world (universe) operates.
I'm speculating here, but I think that most practicing Christians, Muslims, Jews, etc. would find this definition very much lacking. It fails to provide an objective moral grounding, it does not give meaning to life, it does not suggest that 'god' cares about us at all, it basically invalidates all the teachings and instructions of their prophets and holy books, it doesn't explain where we/the universe came from,^1 it does not provide support for an afterlife, etc. It seems to me that the programmer god might be consistent with a deistic god-concept, but not a conventional theistic god-concept.
1. because the programmer is not a first cause, something must have caused him - it is not necessarily the case that everything has a cause, but still I would bet that this would be an objection | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-10 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyd3UzMG9pTnVSdzdnUWN1U3JoTFdWc0tXeldXWTNWMmpYLTdBVFBOMnIzWFFIR3pzNmt5OU11WjF4cmFIaHRFdnZwbkJucjNjTHpmUnVtaEdvdWtvSlE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5NV85clQweVpiVTlsUWF4Sm9zX2Z2dTNKZUIwS0cxWXhvcHZMTGplTm8taDdqazMwakE5VXJsVExKZGRmUWt6YllVREtORDkzN2xBRXR0QmpTRFBSN3pidVNHLTJUeDlINDE2NVRrRDNtcm96MGNtcjZKd1JVaGVoWmt5SkF3MndYbnVMT3hIdU5BM2k4OVAtbF9XVHhwY1JGbTNsNld3TmtSUFJHelZ2cHQwMlhVdlRZQ2RCNmdQbmNwX0pXUkVGR3JzUlUyRS1YX2JNMVlGcUlMeEZtQT09 |
You are torturing logic again though.. you are applying all your own made-up rules to what is justified and what isn't... adding all kinds of your own technicalities to the argument to force your conclusion. It's confirmation bias for atheism.
| r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-10 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyek0xTVRNdlQtY3I3ZzlvMVFCSHdNelN4LU5ZYmV4YThhVlhCQWFaNE1yMzh2d0NpWjBmcFRtSDhIYU1FaHU4NURQdU1sUlRHM1p1NFJWU29OVGxwYVE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5WjhiaS1fNzA0RXNORkFoR2FIUU1Hcm94UmV1U2pTQm1QY09pT1FpTS04azBoM2JDRlk2WjJCek00TmdxQ3JKVVNzMTZHSnUxN2hfOVFqT3dZMUp3ckhHY0QxY2kxQTMtTWQtRzhXTlp5d2hpUVB3al8wb0ZXY3JzaVoyX2pUZnU4d2o5akxITVZPV2ZQcFdYRDl3aHZDUXBlc3UzLXI0d05DTHpvRm51RWtlOGhDVXRhRTBWNi1GcTI2Ukk1M3ctMnpTU0dDZnhrOUpkRzlOM0hJU1hNZz09 |
No that's not what I'm doing at all. I'm saying I don't think that your definition fits with the definition of most practicing religious people and does not fulfill the purposes that god plays in their lives. I'm not saying that your conception of god is not a way to view god or that it is an incorrect way to view god. I'm simply saying that I don't think that most people think of god as a computer programmer.
I don't even understand where I'm "torturing logic" or forcing my conclusion. I'm just listing out things that I would expect practicing religious people would believe of their god and pointing out that a computer programmer does not fulfill those beliefs. If you have any evidence to show me that practicing religious people *don't* believe those things, then I will retract my statement (which was clearly labeled as speculation in the first place); if not, I don't see what it is you're saying I've "made up" and what "technicalities" I'm using. | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-11 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyWWVSaUZqaWxSQndpeTZneERJSGpmeU01Z3RVT2N0UUMyZERCVlh4Mm1IVnhmLU1HRHU3eHcwX1F6UVQ5QXhsUWJkd3lUNk1nY3N5SHdSb0Rtb2dFcGc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5TlljN2JDMEVOUWhRMTZzX01helNBMDhuLU11dExHenpPajJ5MG1ncDJTSFpVXzhUcDYtdnhKOUZzMFBtWjdfTVN6SFpybkZEY3FzWnJ6QW8wZE1IMGJhVnNHYXB5VjNDTWs3MWtRWjBPRDBSMDdIZ3BnaFdGZkt2RDJCU3JvUTk0Q0tjMGZmTGs2TjFjcW5Td0V5TkZXZUxQOUY2Qk1UN1JZZk9DUmRrdFNZUVVya2RVSEZXLS1hUU1zajVlRnpfQ1VvQ3NVTTk3RURLWG5TdEtHQnV6dz09 |
> computer programmer.
Just like Clinton with "sexual relations." It's a rationalization... You can easily translate all the religious teachings to a computer programmer scenario. Eric Von Daniken did it with alien astronauts.
| r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-11 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyRlYxdWpwVkZxZENnOXFYZmM4YkpmelZaTTM4V0NnWExxeW1NbW0yTExLOThvNzNVSkU4TEI0SkV2elNERTlnQkdVZERHY2hNNVM3OFd3d1YtQWNHLUE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5Q1B4QWlCTnRZMTBHZm5FYm9ic1ZYUHZtMlFnTjIwb3BJQ2dlOWtwbTMzc05hUHQ3ZllWeEh1Z1dVTWVfNmRoQmxxN3Z2OW00c1JNSjhISWVhdXZaRHpzWVlXWHNsandSS1FyMVk4ZDg5T3dCNzhpTGlXNjFZOFZTR2FqelRpUU5kWmdTQU1nRlVadDBIbklIOFh6aWdVRUVLM2xOeDRIcFc2cTlydjk5VjVzaF9PRDNPaXcya2tKTjIxQjRVa242N3Z3UmwwT1lhOTZJdW04VVNMZnRhUT09 |
So what you're saying is, we can have an idea that the world is a kind of simulation and that the 'being' which may or may not have created this simulation is akin to the god of Abraham or, further, may just be the god of Abraham? But then again, it might not be - it might just be a super-advanced alien or future versions of us (as in The 13th Floor). Really, your concept of god could be anything. So, with such an incredibly open-ended definition: a. the term becomes meaningless and b. there's no good reason to believe the 'being' which created the holographic universe has any specific traits.
You've brought up another example of how god is not a good theory: it cannot be falsified. Instead, when we discover something new - such as the world likely being holographic - the god theory just alters itself to fit the new data. The earth isn't the center of the universe? No big deal, that's just how god wanted it. Evolution and not creation explains how all the different species came to be on earth? Well really that was just a mechanism god invented. We don't believe slavery is morally right anymore? Those parts where god instructs people on how to be good slaves and slave-owners are... allegories. God's will is still the absolute objective moral code by which we judge actions. And the list goes on and on. A theory that cannot be falsified cannot be tested and can hardly contribute, if at all, to our understanding of the universe. | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-11 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyaVFnaTExamptejA1TkZvbDM3aEN1ZWF0b0c0OVd3eno0TXJRMGdsZUEtcmJNbHE2U3U0dGk3UE5rSWNjRzhGYUJjWE9iMmpBR3pXRWdXWGlUQUtxYUE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5ZWFCcEJQWVYzcXI5SkUtRkJfRTE3NkN3MzRWdngzTVlYWnZySkVqYUIzaUp3MUk3NUJEZVNmenVSNVo3YUJRM0l5N0YyUEF5RUhKWl9qTmhsa3lKQnNQYXJIS1B2MDZTSUVDTlh2V3BLc1ctOG9OSndQazBIcFBuLWE1Qjd1aE4xQXBDdXdaRUR4N3A1M1RtMnVaSGRhOTQxRDNQOVdGZlRXYk5ZeW9JVnlDaHhwNjhLLVFSS3JaV0poRE9RSEUzV0xud1lod3ZJVkctT0Z4LUZ1NU5RQT09 |
You are imparting your own made-up logic again.. THAT is confirmation bias... you are applying your own rules to fit your preconceived notion.
Do you not realize that biblical texts have been translated so many times that the original meaning is likely lost or misunderstood anyway?
You need to get off this idea that god must fit a certain interpretation or it doesn't fit the meaning of god. That's semantics...
The point is that there could be a programmer or future selves or something we can't even possibly imagine that is a creator that fits the biblical interpretation in some way. Maybe in a way we can't even fathom. I have seen indications of this in discoveries I have made myself.
I know you will assume this is all just batshit crazy stuff.. but again you have to look at this with a completely out of the box interpretation... yet you can still see that the underlying truth may be there.. and meet the true biblical definition of evil..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sy_pvffqchk
Also, your point about it not being a valid is meaningless.. because you use strawmen to make it. See the above answer to why that is wrong.
The reality of your statement would be better to say that there are too many variables to discount the theory of god.. that doesn't mean the theories aren't valid. And that is why it is preposterous to think you can discount it on the basis you claim.
Basically, it's like someone claiming that we will never make any new major discoveries in physics and they shouldn't be theorized. That is how close minded and delusional it seems to me. | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-11 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyMnYxYXVJNld0em1jVXNnOGl5Vmc3VGZvSXhfblFkNU1CbDA2RVNucUpvS2lQRDVicjZCaThyRzIwWi0yRHgtNnJBWHJXN0stbEI1TjFsSGRtRzFjc3c9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5WHA0aVY5TzhqZDAxT0VDaXhHNXRtYWEzekdydDY1SFhUXzJmdVR2bkRoMXhiSG9WX1JYSlFUenA3ZEFyZTZEYlRTTDhzTmotd2lUQ2M0SktkNWRfR3pxeGNDWEZKcVZpUXBaVWRoc0o2NGktMDJjWUNPd19SQi1objg2S3lhdjVGU0EtdEt0dDNwTmJyS2N5bGRpZ1o0VER4X3hEUGE5NDdiRUNwb2ZYc2s4bHN6cU8xd2NBZGxWWUJNcUQ0TkFxOUVkdS1Pb1JDa09pcGhGbWFVamlUUT09 |
Selected fandom: Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling
Source material summary (stolen from Wikipedia):
>The novels revolve around Harry Potter, an orphan who discovers at the age of 11 that he is a wizard, living within the ordinary world of non-magical people, known as Muggles. The wizarding world is secret from the Muggle world, presumably to avoid persecution of witches and wizards. His ability is inborn, and such children are invited to attend an exclusive magic school that teaches the necessary skills to succeed in the wizarding world. Harry becomes a student at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and it is here where most of the events in the series take place. As Harry develops through his adolescence, he learns to overcome the problems that face him: magical, social and emotional, including ordinary teenage challenges such as friendships, infatuation and exams, and the greater test of preparing himself for the confrontation in the real world that lies ahead. Each book chronicles one year in Harry's life, with the main narrative being set in the years 1991–98.
Questions for Discussion (other topics welcome):
• Do you consider yourself a fan of this series and/or part of this fandom? Why or why not?
• Are there any elements to the series that you really adore or abhor? Share your thoughts!
• Are there any elements to the fandom that you really adore or abhor? Share your thoughts!
• Do you have an unpopular opinion on any aspect of this series or its fandom? What are they?
• Do you have any personal life experiences that you feel either attracted you or repelled you from becoming a fan of this series and/or part of its fandom? Feel free to share: fans & even non-fans who still love to participate in discussions like these come from all walks of life & it's so rewarding to read about them!
• Do you feel Dumbledore unfairly manipulated people around him? Why or why not?
• Do you have any favorite fanfiction stories? Share them with us!
• Which House stereotypes do you think are unfair? Which House traits do you think are often overlooked?
• What are some of your headcanons?
Those are all of the discussion topics I could think of (I know it’s a lot, not all need to be covered, and if you think of any others, please speak up).
*clinks butterbeer glass* Cheers!
| r/fangirls | post | r/Fangirls | 2015-06-11 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyWjZKT2NzUFFFZkFZb0NkUGdOMnRfTkNLVl9GTFhtRm5yODNpeWgtNGllOE9RRkM2TExLZ1B3VlA4Q0R5eWFkemt2ck9rRl9YelMzeklRNFdIemNtUlE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5Y0R5WVBzbVBRc04wVEtEVlp0dDRfWkVab3pwUkFLYlB0MVp5cmI0TTFJY29QWnR4S3RYeTNxdUw5YkFMTjc5UDlnOUxLQXlfU2FhdlZhVEhoOTh1WFVMMmJITVJRd3B3ZzRZMG8zZlpNSjJ6UjgxVnZCT3BMVkd3X1JvejgwcUdxSkltZEZhandPeWNRa0dwQW52RUZxNlZJeEdET3htckkxeFRhMFBzV2o3c1lpSEJiQzJEckJsdkVzMlZnMXBR |
Thank you for the good words!
I use rationality here in an [instrumental sense](http://lesswrong.com/lw/31/what_do_we_mean_by_rationality/), and appreciate you raising the issue for clarification :-) | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-11 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyTVVLSTFTT2s4blJEOVozYVRzN3Q2Rm5wLTJYajBzaE1zUjVRamxIUTFnWllEcHliZ3BnbkhuLWxxUVdLZEptbWxLZm9oUTJiTEk0aWNRVlNILWlDQXc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5SEJLQW1xQmhnRllQelQzWkZMb2lDQnFFYndHNGFuR2tvWmtjNUliYk1fb05CSFJKUVhFMjE5MnhtS0tyS2JyOVdUMi1QbVg3RDQ3NTNjS3IzREtqRllYT2p5N0lFX2QzTzdKRFJCUGg0TUowRGNUSnpQakNFRlVQRl9OUmZSOUU0T3J4bm5QanE0T3JlUkE5LTh4N0F1ZHB0SzczYkw2TEVlS19ycmtwbWFCSk0zSGtWTlJXejUydnVrZmtGSVA0TXNEbVRhLVhtaVIzNkMxTDlxQ05GQT09 |
1. If their original meaning has been lost, the biblical texts are useless for understanding the world or the idea of god (except for the occasional historically accurate story). So then there seems to be no good reason to be a Christian, Muslim, etc. even if you do believe in god.
2. If a term does not have an agreed upon definition, then people with differing definitions will just talk past each other - that's why people agree on definitions before a debate can begin. This is not simply semantic, it's an important aspect for any discussion. Like if you thought the word 'apple' referred to an apple but I thought the word 'apple' referred to an orange.
3. If the original biblical meaning is lost, then why would it even matter whether a creator matches some interpretation of biblical texts?
4. No, my statement doesn't say the theories are 'invalid,' but rather that the theory of god should be treated as a theory and compared to competing theories in order to find out which best fits the data. From the data available now, current theories of god do not fit the data well.
5. Your physics analogy is a false comparison. Physics theories are falsifiable, so you can compare competing theories and see which explains most of the data. This is a problem for theories of god; you can't even compare the different concepts of the Christian interpretation of god and the Islamic interpretation of the same god. On the other hand, you can compare the heliocentric vs the geocentric theories of the solar system and see which fits the information we have about the solar system. You can see how the physics example allows people to actually better understand things.
'Svali' is definitely a shill. I don't see how her babbling is at all relevant to the discussion of whether god is a good theory. | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-11 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyQl9Yb2ZHcUxVVF83UkFnUDh0bjl3c010SF9GTlpsNEZhcFBMWjlUQ010Z0p0M28xaFh3MFdVZnJsZWpjV2M3ZmZVTWtNYkY4YXBIN2RyYzU2VFlZZkE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5dGJzNFg5SzJSWlhQVHIyV1ZWb1YwQTlJSkNPa0dmYXNVd2hNcXBvZWc4T2NjSnZubDh5dUFldzFxLUxVVUxSeWZ5NU9yZHhKdlBfRWUtSGdYZGRuN3NUSmYydC14TjZsQ2FSQXBteFBHdXJSNFA5VkMzeU1oc29Wa0NnSTdFa1BIYXdtOE81QXBCeWRNU1RCcDc3NFQ0elB2RmV4cEpoQmtlbHdJc0RmSUd3MkZRRXJ3M0ZNbE5FdU82NDJvX1ZaM1l3cmtVX1lKUmpjMjdySDA5Z3NHZz09 |
> 'Svali' is definitely a shill. I don't see how her babbling is at all relevant to the discussion of whether god is a good theory.
Because I have made discoveries that verify her accounts. As have these men... their discoveries also confirm my own.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wo8BPAUzIo8
>If the original biblical meaning is lost, then why would it even matter whether a creator matches some interpretation of biblical texts?
Have you lost your shoe then found it again?
That you can't figure something out as simple as this, you have to realize you are suffering from an absurd level of confirmation bias... | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-11 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyNUNydFMtRTdjd1ByVUI0dXpZM1ZZbk5HdFZkODVqUURPcnRkQ0FpR0dhOUZVT3kyZGhGVXNzNUhTM1oyV1BBQlB0YmxKNjhlTS1Qb3N0aU55QWxtM2c9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5S0JucXd1cXg3bmNORUdpSFFhUjNfbWtRaTZGZXBMaFEwWlhIb0JPNTB5ejhKdzFGQ1VxVzY1OUxuZVFOaDdRNWg0U3RtVng2OGVBbWYyVnhjNjRqMl95cUNHQWhsU18xY1ZBemVWWjR2N2l4Y2VvOFdpeHBFQmwwZ3VPbW9pU3FOWFE2RjFSQ2tUZm54ZlN6OWtCcjBPOGJ2M3E5b2IxM0gzaTJiTkREc19lXzIwQk9JRGQwcUlucnpvNms5blRYMHR4WFpWYjBDQXFLenhtX0gzNzA4Zz09 |
That you think finding the meaning in a text which, by your own statement, has little to no resemblance to the original would be anything like finding a lost show shows you don't have an adequate grasp on reality.
That you seem to want/have to believe in a particular book written over a thousand years that is rife with contradictions, inaccuracies, immoral teachings, superstition, and sometimes downright nonsense, that shows you have a bias. A bias which you maintain by claiming god could be literally anything and is probably beyond our comprehension, so therefore one should believe in god. I'm saying that's a bad theory. I'm saying it's not explanatory. That's all. It's a very simple premise.
Good luck exposing the illuminati or the free masons or whoever. Believe in whatever makes your life better - as long as your beliefs don't oppress others. | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-11 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoydllQa3pCMVRNWi1LWkt5WVBVdktFTkhZajdRR2VrOXhKN091VlhBSFduY1cybng4UXlsUzRRUk02Y1Ewc2VJOUxiTUVYNWdBSDNQWFIyaGh5RUl2Nnc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5WjhpVVE5OF9YODdlSmVpSGxORFpHWU9BWHAtSXFOaDZ5cXRidGZscHN2WDJaVGh6amt1ejBDOXNwb3B2VTlRN2gweG1RRE5SS19oWHlselVVRTRGWldZVl9qVDVZNkRTX3NMekdSN255N0tyOThsRnZoRDF6dWF1VzlUbTh6MnBXOU9va0dmRXZjVFJJZkc4TUVTZEVNa21TR2tWNUI0SWEwTEduQl9FQXM0TjFUb0JtQjJUbGNkM2V0ZzlPWFpxa01yOG5uanhBTWFJY3RWbGJ6VkJwQT09 |
You had to create another strawman.. I didn't say we should believe.. I said we should be open to the possibility. To suggest there is no possibility is completely delusional. It's the apex of confirmation bias.
| r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-11 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyQklPN3U0eVFJOHNTdndCcldkMmduamJqbVVkYUZIN1BJMHVXc3ZlcE9SaktvU1VqRjBTdDg3Ti1nb2lzNTl0T1MyNDZQYXVESngwZDZLY1hjUVE3UEE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5dkpGQ3ZOdU8yMHJWNllQMGR4YXoyWV82NW5vYUZhUnF3dnphSU9FZzI4aW9WSk1IemM5LXBPQVkzNF96bUgwaE9aT2ZMeTNvVENJcElwdkdkTTh6Tm4tZ0VCUUFDSmRwa2JVb1J1NEUwVUdZZmgxdFJGcE5femxnT3hfeFI2cWxjdHNvOFNEVHFkZjZrczhlTE1GVE9uZDZJRmc1WG40YkR1cEFROXhJLW1rMzVRRGd0UGd0UTNTWWc2ZWh3a1RZc3NzZGY5c1V1UVIta2l6YzVYVVhUUT09 |
I never said I was a gnostic atheist. I said a theistic god is a bad theory given the data. If the data change, I'll follow where they lead. Did you read anything that I wrote? I never once said 'it's impossible that god exists'. Just like you can't say it is impossible that a blue tea pot is orbiting the sun somewhere between Uranus and Neptune but you can say that it's a bad theory and gives little to our understanding of the world. Honestly, if everyone withheld judgment on whether god exists or not, we'd be better off. That way, you're equally open to both possibilities. But, like I've said, you would understand more about our world if you *use* naturalist physics to make sense of the world instead of just attributing things to god's will. Maybe physics will confirm god's imminent and transcendent presence in the universe, maybe it won't. Most of what I've seen has suggested at the very least that the evidence does not support the god hypothesis, so I choose to accept the null hypothesis. | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-11 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyQU5Na1M5Q0U3SUdCSnE3SVVkQmtVQjJSRWV0YWZodVZBd0o2dTcxSXlIMUJRYVFpM3FxVzhJRFFDYjU4MVlWeUxqUGc3Y1I1UDNJb19ieUw3dzBtR2c9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5dDU3UnZ6eDJCOWN2c01DMloxbmx0QlMwYTVNY1R6dWk5VnFfZmlsTS14UUpyZWpqNlpYWGJxUUk5dzZmVVI2UzFUbUtQaWdTUjY2UGZqeUU5SjZETjlnYlRPY1BIQ09aVmhhazQyS293TndraWZGQ3F6LVNYN19qd0lCSFpqbkxDSE1ZMGFvYlZRNzVsRnk0MDJvS0x6aWJ0YnkwdnhKWjNDaVpzbW5WVDdzSEYycFF5Qi1FNUtKbW5Ma3d6WUVzbEY5T0JZTThsT3l4TTlyUk80ZlRydz09 |
>I said a theistic god is a bad theory given the data. If the data change, I'll follow where they lead.
You are changing what you said or you ignored what I said initially.
>But, like I've said, you would understand more about our world if you use naturalist physics to make sense of the world instead of just attributing things to god's will.
Why can't you consider both things at the same time? Why does it have to be either or? That's the problem with your way of looking at things. | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-11 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoya282Wld4OW1OaV9lLXVHT2J6bnNlWVhiXzlWMEhvbzdDMTdTcHlHVHlDalV5SW1GVEluZHJFY1FWUGdrZDJVUjJjd25XTVZERGI0Q0JaMHBrOGlSaEE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5Rlkxei1kLUZYWWdoempQMTBDVk9JanhhSDE3NXhIYVdlRGdVbmlhaG5DQ2RsQnlzNTBtR3dqM1l5bHh5a3VfdTMyZnExRWZCUS1FcG51UG5LZ2wybUJMRjctbXlHX3U5bFlFelhLNmxZOWt5UXM4SkxCR0o1c1JOcmRMLUZqaTlCRWdvSHdzeGtTNEg1bWNWd0ZGVGNZYmFSSmpVWGQyM1dQMk9La3BWNTNwSUFmbTZZOVQzYURoNXoxN1ZoWWlfRmVuNldaNndhSEV1RHJKRzV0N2U5dz09 |
Nope, your initial question was how the data could suggest god exists. I linked to a lecture which you dismissed. Implied in saying that the data suggest that god does not exist is also that the data could suggest that god does exist. I am still saying exactly the same thing.
It doesn't have to be one or the other. But one either supports or doesn't support the other. With the data that we have now, naturalist physics does not appear to support the classical interpretation of an all-mighty, personal creator god. | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-11 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyZ3g5bkljX0lkNnBoOVE1MGJzRDVZcHdHQjBGbmxOdDR1MExFX2dDdEJfbjZieU4zaUVWWmI2ZGlsMDkwWFpmMDNmWncwQ0cyeGwyZFRJV0lERGxrRlE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5a0kxMzFaSlJJLXNuRy1pQXE5eTZOeEpWdjBscG9NT0dvV0FISndkLXZGeVZPcEhrdk96anZhMjNRenpJX09NRzVsN3diOWhRcF9zQm5TTG44ZldVRlhWY2RTWkZNU25aTVZZSERXcEpUdEN0LTFreEpYakR5Z2hyNjRrNm15QXdzT1BtXzBhSkJNLTJCMW5UanFvQXpzRjVWckloOEFMUTR2Si1mYmxuQjltUFRLT1hyRWVoSXNNXzBtOUZCVnJiUGVQVWV6dlNVUjgtUXdQV3UxOG14Zz09 |
>Nope, your initial question was how the data could suggest god exists.
This is dead wrong.. you said the data says god does not exist.. or someone did...
>With the data that we have now
The data overwhelmingly suggests the data we have now is absolutely nothing in the big scheme of things. In fact, a lot of it is likely disinformation.
| r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-11 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyRWxDcVRRclJKc0E2bVk3V1BMaGRiNWpING5Sd1N3WExDeWVOTW1ISWowS00ybEd1RnJJODRIbGw5WlJubmxyaDB0OF9IclE2UzJ6VU5UT1VCXzhyVmc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5dGdSZDc2ZUtka1NjR2M3Z3E0NXdROUdGQ0w2ZXVMQnVyZmNCb2dwVkZpRjhqX2F2bVQ5cmFIbDRvbVhrcjdyZEtwNGVZSXg0LWZoOUtsOEw1dmNLdDZNdkdkeVFtQWtqMzU4eEhUQ3NYTVB3WVNjNzk2MTVFbWF3U3dBczF0cVFxc0E3YTFfck9zS0k5MkRyNmxyTm5hVE5OUS1UaGZwNW5jVHhtb2ZxWG5yZ1ZnYkNxXzNKbVNTV0NhblpRQVRBVkoybHc4NUVsM013emNGa3lvOTRkUT09 |
No one said that. You must've misread the initial post, I was saying that an agnostic is not 100% sure whereas a gnostic is 100% sure. I agree that being a gnostic on either side is closed-minded.
Do you have any actual tangible evidence for this? Because without it, that kinda claim just makes me think of climate change deniers. But that may be my own bias. | r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-11 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyelRadmVndmU2dHpFZEdvdkQtWjRUbzAtYU1sLVQtS1hmdXl1M0w0NXZvSzZqYUJjLXVJYjdCWmtTN000dmwta0daZnVBeDZpVTVFVkYwWHZ5SUIwMEE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5aGdSUzdFYWJCX1NqX0RWZlV0UzlJXzBrcUNQdXRla1BDZVZQc05LeE1RUzJ4V1JGeVp0MmhCUDI2WDI4bkpONllpMmN6NkRWWDhJQ08ydEtZZGp4ekxiVmJBcDZ0V3NQdXB2ekFxYk5JNFd6eEt5Y29rZjk2bnFSY25VLWNuRzcwRWk0a1F0YXJpYVBjbmdDM2tSbVJBMnBuZnlJTV92REtfSWotTDVDOG9yeWRKaEZnaml2ZWZtcG96N3ZURHV2cjhFNkJvS05IclEtb0NNbUthWGRlUT09 |
>No one said that. You must've misread the initial post,
The first post I made -
>How could the evidence possibly suggest that god does not exist?
Yes, I do have tangible evidence. I am trying to write something to convey what I have discovered. But I am someone who is great with research but terrible at conveying things. It's taken me a long time to get going but I am about half way through.
Most of the info is out in the public but people just haven 't put it together.
| r/youngatheists | comment | r/youngatheists | 2015-06-11 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyMTVIOXhCM0V5ZG4yeUx6TWlkZEVKakx6dUF0SW5hRnJiMHlPSDdBdTVQZmZ1a0FBQTdPUDZ1akJ6RzVUYlU5S3FwcXRpdldQUGpkTU1KLXRLaW5jWlE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5Q2FFUUhZRWx5aFBEenY5STlJem83ZnhDeG1kOXNlVFE3dF80a0RSOHJTYzI0Q2h4cXAtTmpRZDBfRU5tYmgxUm9fUTJRbVJ1bXZzb05VT3dWOXpMRjlZdFV6Z0ZDWXMzSlV6allYZ1JKZTlRQXJjM0ZBWTl2NkQyZm5oSTJrRWVpVmxXR3hYMEZVYUFfc0pIOGpjRk1MdEtQdnY2WUZ5N016R1RPczVJRWpZbzhpeThiaVRFZ25VSTBUTHJOeU1DUE5xQnRSa1RmM25kcGRkdDVnTndmdz09 |
Last week I proposed a hack (of the political system) on Medium, [Frodo Baggins for President] (https://medium.com/equal-citizens/frodo-baggins-for-president-5096bdbb94d). The piece argued that what we need now is a "trustee president": a prominent, nationally known and trusted leader, who promises that if elected, she will do one thing — get Congress to pass fundamental reform — and then resign, leaving the vice president to fill out her term.
The thought behind the idea is that this would be one credible way to rally the community of reformers (i.e., 96% of America) to a plan likely to work, because if such a candidate were elected, her mandate would be as clear as it could possibly be (thus creating enormous political pressure for Congress to act) and during the campaign, members of Congress would pledge to support the plan or not (and hence, in some cases, be elected or not depending on whether they support the plan).
The Trustee President could thus govern for as little as an hour — the time it would take to sign a bill passed by Congress in advance. The VP could thus be POTUS for practically all of the 4 year term.
I tried to [respond to some of the questions] (https://medium.com/equal-citizens/on-the-trustee-president-not-either-or-but-both-and-f802d7360ef8) raised about this idea when Cenk Uygur [picked it up and remixed it] (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cenk-uygur/a-new-hope-for-2016_b_7545630.html) a bit (see the other post about the remix). The biggest confusion is about whether supporting a trustee president means not supporting another candidate for president (such as Bernie Sanders, or Hillary Clinton). As I argued in the follow-up piece, this isn't EITHER/OR, but BOTH/AND: the election would essentially be the election of two presidents in succession—the trustee, for as short as a day, and a regular president, following the trustee. (How the system records the two is a hard question—the VP is selected at the convention, not by votes in the primaries—but it wouldn't seem hard for a political party to have a confident view about the right VP, given how the campaign develops.)
Anyway, I'd be eager for the views of this community about the idea. I'll respond to comments as I can. Thanks for the help. | r/maydaypac | post | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-12 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyQXhQQ3dORjRheVFlNVhkRE5IVGtJSG9vS0hVbnQxdkhFNWtkOWxJdEtFd3dOdUdrRnhoRjJ3YWNaQTdHQjVXb2pZUExtdGpDdUtNdTIyZ0pvTnNYYkE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5YldDdzJRN0ZKUnRzTk9uX1lZUWE3Sml2X2hhMk5kckhmUnhIOXJZakw5WUd6SkFvOXlrN2JHcnBrOXNid0FEQUxiM2dBSklHTnlCOTV2dDJWa3NkMHF5dWUybkRuN01OM2p6WkpDNER1bW5jZ29HT1ZhTEpjQ0xaakpadVAwQ3FteWFkczEzX2xUWk1sSHR3WFNsa3dJMWduQTk5TzE4LVpqVDZyTVNNcWFYc2hpU19jeHlYQWhSWkN4OWJOajVDM05nMEQ4TDBhanl4QUxBdHhkWW0yQT09 |
As I [described in this post] (http://www.reddit.com/r/MaydayPAC/comments/39kkrj/could_the_idea_of_a_trustee_president_aka_frodo/), last week I proposed the idea of a "trustee president" — someone who runs for president, promising to use every power of the presidency to enact fundamental reform, and once enacted, resign.
Cenk Uygur liked the idea, but then turned it around on me, [writing] (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cenk-uygur/a-new-hope-for-2016_b_7545630.html) and then [saying] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vabPMRif88&feature=youtube_gdata_player) that I should be that candidate.
I don't fit my own description of the candidate for the plan ("a nationally known, and well-liked, figure"), but Cenk's hack of my hack deserves thought.
This is America, so this idea could only work if there were money behind it. So imagine (1) that we ran a kickstarter-like campaign (as Mayday.US did last year), to gather contingent commitments to support a fund large enough to make such a campaign serious (so those commitments are collected only if the target is met), and (2) that funding campaign succeeded.
As @aaronsw was [the one who shamed me] (http://www.ted.com/talks/lawrence_lessig_the_unstoppable_walk_to_political_reform?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed:+TEDTalks_video+(TEDTalks+Main+(SD)+-+Site)&utm_content=TED+talks&utm_term=NTechMedia) into giving up my work on IP (as in copyright) and IP (as in the Internet), it seems right to raise this question here: As insane as it feels to even ask this, is Cenk right? Assuming we raised the credibility-creating-kickstarter-like-fund, could it make sense for me to run?
If you'd like to comment on the idea separate from the idea of me, please do so [here] (http://www.reddit.com/r/MaydayPAC/comments/39kkrj/could_the_idea_of_a_trustee_president_aka_frodo/). I'd be grateful if this thread could be limited to the question of whether such a campaign by me could make sense. | r/maydaypac | post | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-12 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoySk02ajNKYS1ERFNZSlVpQ3FHMGRlM25NdFAxRkdjNzR0d3VDdFMyclNXMm8zRmZLeFRuSkZoRWx1RDFTaEs2dENwSWhhZGFjb214SURPLXJmd1dkeUE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5bHIxLThMaldqdWNYa1FmWGZYdDRlTXpNcERvNUkyeWx1TnR3S0QzUFdBQXBHVHhBcEJHeDF4aFBGZjRvN1BpSURuWGJuMndwUFBTcGttNzJiUi1NU2RPZUJ2ZWFxTDBaU3E4Yl9DclhRQjRuVzB0cTVjUEppZFh0dkFnQ0xEYmFTUTNsVjZDMGItUXNYV2RRcTlCUk9oZlUxaGc0b25TdXJWWDJjOTNEWThrPQ== |
I think you are greatly overestimating the ability of the president to pressure congress. If the majority of congress is against whatever legislation the trustee president wants to push, they will stonewall. The president can not force congress to do anything at all, even if they had huge support in the general election. Congress people only have to worry about their own constituents, they can safely ignore the opinions of the rest of the country.
They know the trustee president doesn't actually want to, and maybe isn't even capable of, fulfilling the duties of the POTUS. If they force the trustee to stay in office for too long, that person might just have to resign once they have to start actually meeting foreign dignitaries, hearing top secret security briefings, select a cabinet, etc. Also that person has to deal with their entire life being turned upside down by the Secret Service. Becoming president is a huge sacrifice of freedom, and a huge burden. The trustee will be a martyr.
A person who is elected president has to actually be willing and able to fulfill the duties of the president, even for one hour. Would you want someone who doesn't know how to drive take you on a ride to the airport even if they drive for just one minute of the ride?
If you are already willing to entertain such out of the box ideas, why not at least try one that will actually work? I know of only one non-violent method of enacting swift change. It's perhaps even easier than convincing so many people to vote. Convince people to stay home from work. A general strike. Nobody goes to work except for essential services (doctor, fire department, nuclear power plant engineer, etc.)
If you can get enough people to stay home from work to actually significantly hurt the economy, any demands these people make will be heard very quickly. Imagine nobody showing up to work at the TV station. No news on TV because everyone is home. Baseball isn't getting played because the players, ticket takers, ushers, are all on the beach. Actually they aren't on the beach because the lifeguards aren't working either. Kids are home because teachers aren't working. Can't go to the movies. Can't eat at a nice restaurant. Nobody showed up to work at Google, maybe it went down?
The market will come down and come down HARD. Those 1% people will be losing money as fast as they currently make it. That wealthy CEO will be in big trouble when none of their employees are at work day after day.
Regular old protests, like marching across New Hampshire (sorry, I love you!) have little to no effect. Congress isn't pressured by that at all. They don't care how much you yell. Your yelling affects them less than money. You have to hit them in the money, then they'll be forced to act.
Convince enough people to not go to work. Just stay home and relax. I know a lot of people willing to do this, but not willing to do it alone. If they do it alone they'll just lose their jobs and suffer. There is safety in numbers. If enough people agree to do it simultaneously, enough to make the news, there is a small chance that it could spread like wildfire. Who doesn't want to stay home from work?! It's a protest method that's fun, requires LESS work than every day life, and has tremendous power to enact swift change. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-12 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyYWh2YV83QkQ2cWVFODVQRVFGWXVoazNKaWdlMExlajdHeC1PY3VlWmQxTGRYMk9ULXIyenBEb2pDbjFXS1hkS2l3bGxLNjc5cVhJbDRwT0NMVER5Vmc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5ZTFmRmQ3M2RSZmpuUjZLS2oxeW00WEVYOUtwdEhaZDFMWDBmdTJWbGVyUGNWdVU0azc3eERkTUpDSDlJMWFRazJaMEVPYlBTMExJV1JHRHg4eWE3V3F6MkdPM2FGOGxWbWJUUEhQbnJtbVh2Wm9uMEZOVndLM3EwbUZsX3UtYnJubUR4UERKOFNzOU9GVmpvTERCQW0tUVE4Sk1FejBFdFZ2eHlpVldTWDRMNGQ1cWxfd2YtaGhKWWF6cmtsdUJGWU05UjdvY1JzeTE0aW15T25UN3hpdz09 |
should you listen to Cenk Uygur? OF COOOOURSE!!
... well about this one thing at least.
In a keynote speech, you compared the state of our elections to our child having cancer, and asked us, "what *wouldn't* you do?"
Wouldn't you consider running for president? Wouldn't you consider driving the policy debate where it belongs, to the root of the problem: our dysfunctional electoral system?
Thank you for all your tireless efforts over the years, and for considering our input. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-12 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyeUNTZktsRmt4ZnJ1b05qcDgya21CNkVfMmhoWUk5akxwcExNSjlXYjBpdVBVV2xUaEg5SkdKc2ZYQ183aHA2c3RRSzlleGhHbm5VM0lwX0tOa2dpQ3c9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5RHdXazVaOTJQbS1JWmw2cFdFRWxldFFDRTd4R0o1dVpEWE11bXZTbVVHbFVCRmdOM3R2QlRXU3dZNHRyVjNTVndFdFVpd1BBSXlCOUt3TXdrMnRhemhJWjUxVExGSjQ3VUg0UUVORUJvSlVibHRhVTc2M0pDdGxsb0NTRnJiaTdKVHFWdWtLcElUMXlUZjh6cmd3RFNib3YxS2d3VndEV04yQmJoRmotSjFVN0lVR3ctd3NzOHJaT2l1RDhoZEZseE4zV2Q0YmlqeER4Y1dlRng2eE9Gdz09 |
I like you Larry, but I already have a horse in this race who is vowing to take on campaign finance. Bernie Sanders!
Why not throw your weight behind him? He's got the establishment and fan base that you unfortunately lack at the moment and his vision would do much good in the vein of money in politics. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-12 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoycTNNM0hESFA4c1ZsaVkxYlRDSkxOa3B5UWg0eVBhWk94Q0NXcjI4V2VrcWxuQVo3MkVGLW1JMzNqSzlmT2gyc3BFT3dkVTkyNGd3UE13eE9Tc0tfdXc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5VUNjVGJPTnNRT2gyUVk3aDRaVFFmZXV4UkJwUzVQUHNvT01FU0ZjZTdMQ3RZU0hRYXlVVXl4dHZ1dVh1cHNSRDJIc3c4bG5wb2swRjdJZEVvR2pVNVJVeFVNVHpTV1l2MWZMaDVZUG0tMXJqaWtyRkF1bzlTbTczWF9KS0NzcTBiblpWOFB0cjEtU1VfS0VWemlneTk0SEc0a0x2WTcxT0lSY0dCYm5CYXR6Y1JEY3dDeFN1OGVDRnJDNnQzYjd3 |
Larry, I think you are about the only person most of us would trust do this. Even Frodo succumbed to the ring of power (**think of all the good you could do as president**). I don't doubt, however that you -more than anyone else- could craft a legally binding agreement for yourself that is strict enough to convince people you wouldn't succumb. I also think you are right in that the net is Gollum, though it would probably do a lot more than bite a finger off if you tried to go back on your word.
I think the overall idea has great potential, but there are some pretty serious obstacles to overcome, which I'll address in the other thread. The fact you are even considering this gives Cenk's suggestion real merit. You've got an incredibly powerful voice and having walked all 185+ miles with you in the first NHR, I personally do not have a single doubt about your commitment to this issue. I honestly don't know how well it would translate to the masses and if you haven't enjoyed the personal criticisms already directed at you as a leader in this movement, you will have to steel yourself against some pretty brutal attacks.
Like Cenk, I can't really see anyone else doing this right. Doing it right will be tricky, but the kickstarter approach would give you some room to try it out. So to summarize, here's one more vote for the crazy/sane idea of @Lessig for #President! | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-12 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyXzdIWk55OFZONWNfMHJrZ3hrUkZaX09LYlFwRG1HMWZrSGpHbmFYNGF0QUpFZU5odHg5ZXpmOWhTb2hsM25pOVIySVJsZmFXNzU5REFnbDFwN2tUa0E9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5NnJpdlVYQnlMX1NvajFwYzNIalpUMWdqMW42V1dfZTA4YnJiQWhNZDEtVDdDOURqeTUtTzRjclI2OTlSUmV0dkRQZlRodWFOVzd6eXF4RF9WR1BGV1dRY0FoZ3N0OUJDUy1pTVV5Vi1aYklnaFBJTEs5LU9EdFBEMmxyekFUNlZ6S3F1U2drSzRHeTlCX1RhcmlSRUYtaWpocDgxT1lTNmJjVjRXNDc3SnFyQzhGQVRLZjNVdWJxVm1hOUJNM05G |
Whether or not it is me, I tried to address this point here: https://medium.com/equal-citizens/on-the-trustee-president-not-either-or-but-both-and-f802d7360ef8 Thoughts? | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-12 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyaWVrQzJCdlNmLWhtX3dGTEM5clBxWnRMS2wyVnVYUzJaMHJMWGl0QmpzSDgtQ3BlZW1WbFZhaGdlU1o1Z1ZGWVBkZENaYklkdDlTMW9rZ2VXUi1haWc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5NUNsSzZ4UGFUcV9JamZEenJZcnpLUVM0MFJZRVZucUMyRVlKcXBtUjFTODVSTHFyV2puRldRN3d3a0k1SDRiMGxRMnJzRFNsSm5jc3Q5NTdoTTFxSll4RWJZMXZpWURmdkFBWUFQRWpuUk85REdtMG1QTFNLNWpLLXdCaDZ4bzZIalRWVEw3Y3ZraEhDYnB4TENGY1kzcmRUUFFQcFFmZktZNVIxemVWQmNwQ3h2Y2V2QndWbjg3YTBoQ1Fvd1FP |
It could make sense, but it is complicated, which is why you are already seeing some misunderstandings. My first criticism was that I didn't think you could ever convince someone to do it. Doing it yourself would address that however.
Next, you need an exceedingly clear and convincing description of an executive order that you could sign into action during your short stay in office. I do agree that pulling off such an unprecedented mandate has the potential to also get Congress in line, but there is no guarantee. Also, if Congress had already passed a bill, why wouldn't any president just sign it?
The trustee should only run on what that can actually deliver, but how much can the president really do that will both pass constitutional muster and be actually effective?
The next and perhaps biggest challenge would be avoiding the spoiler effect argument. I just don't see how you do the BOTH/AND at the primary level. I suppose that if this trustee president did actually win the nomination, then you could proxy the runner up as VP, but that doesn't strike me as legit since the actual president should be the one people are voting on. Unless you can use this to finally convince Warren, then I just don't see it as a viable route.
That leaves running as an independent in the general election. This, I personally could obviously get behind, but your fairly strong liberal base would be howling mad. The way to potentially remedy this is to do the ultimate democracy kickstarter by having people only pledge their vote, if and only if, we clearly have the numbers to win. Otherwise, they can just pick the "next best reformer" when it comes to election day.
Ultimately though, I'm for anything that has the potential to mobilize millions of voters. As much as I support Mayday and the citizen lobby, I feel that the current strategy leaves a lot of people on the sidelines. A presidential campaign is one way to bring the issue back front and center, but I'm not sure if it will be more effective at mobilizing the masses than other potential approaches. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-12 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoySldZb1U2WUUtT3IyTWxkTXUydy0tODlSQVdpZV9abFJGam51eldyMVpZdFZISDdDcnl2ZVgxTno5blRvUzRXcENlalh3bzVEXzVmSXNtVzltaERDTUE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5U21aVXZ2VmRlZmF6U1VkWXByT2Qtd09jZkNCbnhiM2dlN2EzVFc5RFdudGpiSWs3M3o0Y3pjRzQ5QjFiUnQ2TWJ2Rk1kRllVa21vY201dkk2TDBkaWFfYng5M2w2SVh4SUhDYTdFSkNEQWdSSmhCampZWWlVLVYzODgxcHRLOXZsUlBEUHU1MXd5d2RBMnBTejM3Qmd5ZGtvN0w2S2RiazFMa0prSmd3VXQxc2xiUDFNc1ltYkc0NlRVNXZMOVFwcndhbXMwZ0gtVXlfSWJkeEx2UXVjZz09 |
Wow, thank you, you've clearly already addressed this point.
Cenk is right- if there's anyone up for the job of trustee president, it is you.
But my biggest hesitancy lies in the fact that this fix is outside the system. There is no precedent for this. *I* see this as a long shot. How do we convince millions of Americans to do what they've never done before? The odds of electing a guy like Bernie seems steep enough. Your odds seem like a shot at the moon.
That said, I can't help but root for a moonshot and if you announced your candidacy for the trustee president I can assure you of my support- *to a point.* You'd have to do it in a way that did not compromise the chances of a certain other candidate I support. You seem to think that Bernie will be no different than Obama because he *can't* be different from Obama. Perhaps you're right. But I see Bernie as a profoundly better option than anyone else on the table and him losing to Hillary because Lessig split the vote would be a shame.
I admire everything that you do, keep up the good work. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-12 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyWVA3NTZIeTlEWFIxdGRrMUJHSlR2bkV3NDhKNUVtYXFZSVExcHZfS2p2bTFBZjQxTnFEZW1OajB3Q0FFdG9XTVVqNmVuZmZVa2VWRmVGQ0JyTHlVMmc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5dkhmVWt5Q0JxZXZCdkItUmkxRXRLUWZLUjJlTG9uZDFUbFlUMDhHS2g3akIxQlZiS1RLczIxY1lLT3VYYlNJajFaVjFBbERWd3R4V1N6eFZwbm9pRnJMUEZBbnE2emo2VWhTTExESXg0ZGNvQW5XekpVNnIyNmNoRk9FSWMzTnluYzNpQkR5Z21YckUxN2pCcDdrT29UVFhsYUdmUkZTaUVRcmtNX3pHVVBPTGVtQ01yRElFQ3h6Qk1GSHk3a0cw |
I really don't see the point in this. It sounds like a great way to get distracted from what you are actually trying to do. Your strength right now is in your tenaciousness in trying to establish a new consensus on this topic, and what you've proposed would gut that.
The main thing that I really wish you would get over is the idea that the president has any real power to effect change. He or she does not. That power lies in the people, in the primary elections (unfortunately) and in those who are elected to Congress. You need a competent president to do the job of the executive, but the president is virtually irrelevant when it comes to reform.
The presidency can be a great bully pulpit for pushing reform, so that aspect of it could work, but there is such a huge cost to getting the presidency that I think you'd be better off reaching people some other way.
And the energy and focus required to attain the presidency also have to come from somewhere. What we need is for people to take the job of electing their representatives seriously and behave rationally rather than emotionally in how they go about it. The rest is just noise. Don't waste your time going off on this tangent.
| r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-12 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyYjMtcndfc2FleVNDMkw0c2hiQ2U0bWlpblVzU3pEb3lsSjMzQXEzZ3ZLamExd2VEcEE5R2RzNjV1SkdlNlc1UE80b3N4RzhBbk0wV1c1YlJWbEx4ZUE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5Yk9OOWY2cENFNFg5MktHSmpTUHlLX1FvWmJhTlZkdzFlbXcxZ0RMY193T3dVekpvZ0lZWFVET1MzZlZsVVdjcmFkdlBfODhMQWZEUF9iLW9iRW5DbDR0RFdlR2M1UmpBOHpHdEZkOWE5SlY1Yk1EcTg2VGRnbVRFdWJPZWgwQ1R1Rkg0eWRacks1bDFYdGxrdFZhTnVvWTZpSTdQUHBBd21VdDJnYkZsUUtzOE9RU0I2bjFoZFpNVVAtTjVuX2xO |
Some thoughts.
I very much like the idea of a trustee president, but it would have to be approached carefully. Any election which introduces this dynamic would effectively shift the debate onto who should be VICE president. This is, of course, presuming that both parties were leading with a presidential candidate which had agreed to the trustee model.
As bskarin has said, I think it's vital that any candidate running on this sort of platform have some kind of verifiable, legal contract to which to hold themselves. Else, I don't see how to protect the promise made to the american people.
So here's what I see going down. Supporters of the idea on both sides of the isle must support a presidential candidate that BOTH parties are pretty okay with, in order to completely remove that section of the debate (insulating the trustee dynamic from the rough waters of presidential election partisanship) and effectively leave us with an election for vice president. This would make it so that the american people can have their cake and eat it, as it were.
On the topic of Lessig being the man for the job, I'm torn. Like I said, I think we would ultimately need two people to make this work, but I think Lessig has some serious legal clout and skill. He would make a good go at it, I think. My concern is that since you are the head of the Mayday movement, an attempt to run for president under this plan may make people see it, and by extension the entire movement up to this point, as a grab for power, orchestrated by a convincing charlatan.
So that's where my thoughts stand at the moment. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-12 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyalNfenExOFdFckRKVkNadDExLUdQTlBCX0pybkN0WEc5NHRJUWFKSHRhNUMzaWIzejhCUW9Jb1ZnLXAwc3pkZGtPSGdhNENQMGwtTUlQbk5iUnJqNEE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5elk0TVdIYWZNRmM4eFlHVFplX09RNmhjeEtGM0VaRzBGWWRmZ204cmRyYWJ3Q1RNSDFOSExDVzAtRlczX1EwYXdMVUJTUDViaWxWMVBfem1Iek9yOG5pWmV3SHFsNEFucFpySFd3WDVkaTF4V0cwdHJFQkJMZEZwTGFVWGlSYTliYkI0N3J1ZkdoQllTZk0tdmhNZjhwOV9lYnc2U3JUdkJISHFsRi1wam0xS2I2dkRUcWljQUJQVGcyeTdoTHpZ |
Great idea: It would make a mockery of our government! Is that what you REALLY want to do? Prof. Lessing, I have deep respect and admiration for your professional activities, but this is just another way for politics to turn off the American voters. If the putative VP in your plan agreed, how would that make them appealing to the voters? It would say, "I'm too much a coward to do this myself, so I'll sanction this perversion as a way to avoid blame." But, the blame would STILL attach, for having supported such a gimmick. That would also label whatever party you run under to the ridicule and disparagement worthy of the Tea Party. Is that the HONORABLE way to do something. I don't see it. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-12 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyNThKTHNoa25hT05WRG1LZkFUazl6NVJaTDZCajc0MTFoZnhsSGVQX214dnI0OHZiNWVfaFhnWjhkaDFvZkZRejI0RGRZWkxuVzhXZGpldmFaU052Z3c9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5SENEQllmTFdLQWpYWjBUQ2Z4SkhJb1ZSR1JHbDJNb2gySmVJY2FndElfNVlreGJzNkwyOTJ5QWVwc0pUSE5qZlV4Um9aWXdEeGNxcDZlRnd6RzRuZlRDaWgzbllQVy1RSWdtUHhRbWdlRE5yZFZQNzFYRUFKMmtZX2c0Mzd1OTd3dnA3TWlrMnhUMG9talVGdE9JRmhBbDJ2dHdkZkx5SVlNdHQ0ZEdIVjhDUGdKWGtjdUtJVUNLdjNPNWxQbXhNWmpzeTN2eVowWk1oQU80NkF2R0Z3UT09 |
Lessig, you need to stay the course on the mayday strategy for at least another election cycle. The plan was to test, learn, improve, and get results over time. I worry that if you move on to something else -- worthy as it may be -- mayday loses too much momentum. You are the face of the mayday effort. You have to keep pushing unless you believe that the mayday strategy of influencing congress is doomed. If that is the case then be honest and change tactics. Regardless, if you take on something else the signal will be that mayday is a lost cause. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-12 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyZ1ZYREVVamFhMVVTVzc4X1ZQamxKd3lJQXo3cldZUEtEVDh6TjFlMGRqSlM0NlpQRGR4NE5xZkRkV0F2OUNsRVkwWTdmVi1vdGlhTjBBajhRUHdzNFE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5a18tNWpfR3FLdHRrX0NobjlLU29MRFg5Y0tPNElqMU4za1puRVNOdF91dVAxVmJpZWpXYTRsaGFjQ3NxXzhHWGkwTUlXbzRoQlBud2xiQ0xfYXhDNmxYc21xQ25TTlY3enQ5UERvSDk2SzI0LVFpcDQ4U3ZIZzE0Q3ljelRQV1BZV0tjUklCRzZvRjZaejQ5bkxpc2VKZENMUmdSc3pvaFJ1N2Z3cW16U0RfS25scC1SZ0gyLXBJcWJNbkY0YVNT |
This is so god damn frustrating that people like you and Cenk don't recognize the root issue. Money in politics is a secondary problem. Money signals viability of candidates and the two with the most of it become the default candidates that you have to vote for if you want your vote to count.
The biggest problem is the voting system that punishes us if we support good candidates who are not corrupt. In every step of the way, we have to abandon our favorite or risk allowing the guy we hate most to win. Even in the primary, you have to support the guy most likely to beat the other guy in the general.
Plurality voting makes it extremely difficult to coordinate around good candidates. First-past-the-post masks true support candidates actually have. Take a look at this [exit poll](http://www.rangevoting.org/Maine2014Exit.html) of the 2014 Maine gubernatorial by CES. The guy who won was the least preferred of the three candidates and the independent beat both the Democrat and the Republican by wide margins in one on one competition, but only got 8% of the vote.
You have to change the voting system before you can do anything. This can be done state by state through ballot initiatives. If approval voting were used in the CA and WA top two primaries, that would be a very good system to be able to elect good non-corrupt candidates. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-12 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyWE5fNHVVMGpNcUlvRG5LV09NQmFyTlFzdzZ0bzZyeW80bG8xb3NvOUFlS1NpQkpIS3V2bF81NXBLbTBKSk5mMld0aEVIOXB3SzJVNVVjREhlVlZWY2c9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5VUNvelg3aU1TbGt0a01FTUx6ZDNnMTVncThNLW9HVlFseVl5MUNQd2YwMmdidDMtZHNKLWNJSkdRYldGSlZXWXZVeFE1djRqRHFrQjZaVDFGamdZdm5RMk9xT3RPOHYteTNkLWdVTDJwRHlzVlZQbXVvYWphaFNOZktTSFl5QTB2bzFIcjk2UlhzZHFMdVBRU0Y2c1Q0UlBEaFk2Rms3Y3F6Vms2eXZaNkR5dGhIZHdINU9WTGk2VVVWVXREaU9xcmpuUGtOYUxyX0RnRmdIVFpuem1NUT09 |
I would support you in this Lessig. When I first heard you say that you would "Never run for congress" a small piece of me died, after reading Republic Lost I couldn't imagine anyone else leading the charge. As a 'trustee president' I think you would be able to lead that charge. You know this issue in and out, your passionate about it, have a great knack for breaking it down for the average voter, and I think most importantly have no taint that would come from previously holding public office. I feel that if the nation knew you, your passion and the source of it, heard you speak on this - they would be behind you and you could begin to win over member of Congress, 1 by 1. I hope you pursue this further.
Regards,
Briles | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-12 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyS2d3YnJVQzF6WGlwdXBWUWxsWThfbmxPV0x3UTBQWmNERXhnOEN0S21seEQwSUVyRW00WG5sWGRhY09jc2xhb3MwcGtYMzUwZ3Z1S3JEaUY3ZDRuSUE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5UGlTdG1OU1N5X2pOZVhmU201ZE9iSV82MW1sOW1kS3dVMFJXVnRMM3BUem9SRElaQ1pnQzNFMlFKSFBYdmZMXzNjMVBRX0RDbmpwWXAzSTB1TGM4NkRZenlxdjVYU19ndVAxYkFjcEg5YnlDZU1nWmY3SVFEY3AybXljdjNzV1loVGYyeVdWVGNfcU04S0JEdE5DTlhqYUxlX2VYTDV3U2tVOEhMekllMFRSaHE3VnBtMFVtdG9KX0otdnBfbmJx |
I'm a bot, *bleep*, *bloop*. Someone has linked to this thread from another place on reddit:
- [/r/lessig2016] [See previous discussion of this possibility at r/MaydayPAC here](https://np.reddit.com/r/Lessig2016/comments/3gmtwf/see_previous_discussion_of_this_possibility_at/)
- [/r/rootstrikers] [Lessig is discussing whether he should run for president over at r/MaydayPAC](https://np.reddit.com/r/rootstrikers/comments/39qhtj/lessig_is_discussing_whether_he_should_run_for/)
- [/r/tytonreddit] [Larry Lessig on whether Cenk is right on him running for "Trustee President" (x-post r/maydayPAC)](https://np.reddit.com/r/tytonreddit/comments/39m0pb/larry_lessig_on_whether_cenk_is_right_on_him/)
[](#footer)*^(If you follow any of the above links, please respect the rules of reddit and don't vote in the other threads.) ^\([Info](/r/TotesMessenger) ^/ ^[Contact](/message/compose?to=/r/TotesMessenger))*
[](#bot) | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-12 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyVEJILVBSMWZzenlkMEJ5ZWYwQTQ3WDNNWThrZng0TDhNTThJaFIxZnRIZFppNWMwVWlxeGg5c25nc1dEX3RTb0Z4Ui1ITkdWVEs4bTdnQVA4MXhLUWc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5Z0EyS2Q1Wnk3YzdUcHdPdUR6RURoX2VMY2Fib0VPdU1yaFczYWtZT0RWSjBEX1VZQ2xRVlIxeVE1ejJ5MjRNTGMtNVVjU2liQnAzbjNoMk9DY3BWSGNtNkRyZkN2eUlzTWtTdURTaTVkRm54TmFyTnFXR2JhdnloUnRIT1VCeHNfOWtXZ3lDeTVCRXJFcW5GVWNFclh1c1hKX1oxUFA3c25NZktHbFc0cGQxekhHaHg2SnlJUG12NTN6TVhWUnZx |
I just like you, LL. That's all. Thank you for your commitment to our country and your endless efforts! Blessings to you (if you believe in them?) | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-12 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyemZFMFJnTm5BNVdWNjdRaEtpMDlJeXh1REpUcWJ5VF9xN3dJWUtHSFJwSHFoWHl1MU9sQVdyUlpROEZpS1R6eFZCaGdCT19NMEVMTHVtd3kwallsSWc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5OUd5VDM2OTlReVhCeGRtcnQxMEEtbWZZVFQzVnNpNUE2by1RU21MNk4wUzI0cmxxNTBzNzJXRHNBNzRmR0pzU1Z5ak50N0w4WUxWUnRYcHVDeVNHTXZmb1BGdjJ4TEswNkc1emhqT05WQldoQkRpa0Vnd3NuX1puMV9NSC1qaENYUk5JYlRGUVBFM0pXd0h1UXVHbVVmNlZvTk9BLU14SWlRemlHVWwxOU9CR3VSTkFWeEZMWmo3RmhLVFg4UU02eEdsSzFWcWlnUkI3VXlXdXh3X3BiUT09 |
I don't have the answer to your question as to whether YOU should RUN as the trustee president. I think that you certainly would do a great job as the trustee president if elected, but maybe you would do a better job of ADVISING the trustee president.
On the one hand, your slide show presentations are among the best, ranking right up there with Steve Jobs for your ability to engage. You have the ability to make an idea engaging both in your prepared speeches as well as in your written advocacy. Also, as the author of the idea of the trustee president, you have the most firm grasp of what to do to continue to move your idea forward.
On the other hand, here are some questions that I would want to ask myself if I were in your shoes. I don't know the answer to these questions. Only you can answer them.
1. Do you see yourself as a Bill Clinton or a Barack Obama or LBJ, meaning do you think that you have their kind of otherworldly ability to engage with people? Even Newt Gingrinch said of Bill Clinton that no one else had his ability to make people feel great for 30 seconds at a time. Each of these guys has the ability to get people to suspend disbelief while in his presence and buy what he is saying, but doing so might come at a cost, because doing so can seem to border on sophistry or deception at times. I see you as being a person who values an authentic, intellectual exchange with the person to whom you are speaking, and I wonder if you would feel too much cognitive dissonance while doing the kind of politicking that Obama or Clinton or LBJ excel at.
2. Would running as the trustee president distract you from your other important work, such as the MayDay PAC?
3. Would running for president limit your ability to do the very important work of being the intellectual visionary who creates these ideas. I wonder if anyone else would have been capable of writing "The Future of Ideas" or "Republic Lost" or having created the Creative Commons, and I wonder if you would have to abandon the role of visionary in order to be the trustee president.
4. Would running for the trustee presidency cost you too much time away from your family?
5. What happens if you are not able to complete the work of the trustee presidency in a short order of time? How would you feel about having to balance the work of a non-trustee presidency with those of the trustee presidency if achieving the goals of the trustee presidency drag out over months, then years, then requiring a second term? Just think of all those myriad other tasks you would have to do, such as responding to military crises, filling judicial vacancies, etc etc etc. In "Republic Lost", you said that it might take time to accomplish what you want. (See p. 300). If it takes time, do you want to still be that president, or would you be better off as the strategic thinker under those circumstances?
6. In your role as the Oracle of Reform, you are able to candidly assess how the demands of compromise affect your vision of reform. Do you think you would still have the clarity of vision if you were also needing to make the kinds of compromise that are inherent in politics? Put another way, would the Muse that is now speaking with you still be on speaking terms with you?
7. Would you be able to care for your health and that of your family if you were to run and then become the president? Would you be able to eat right, sleep well, exercise, and do all the other things that humans need?
8. Is now the right time for YOU to run? Have you done enough to influence congressional races with MayDay? Would you have a difficult time distinguishing your efforts from, say, Bernie's efforts, as his message might appear to be very similar IN THE MINDS OF VOTERS WHO WON'T READ "REPUBLIC LOST"? Do you really want to go to the 50 million donors or so whom Bernie needs to reach to get them to give the money you would need to pay for the campaign? How else are you going to pay for your campaign?
Christian Einfeldt
einfeldt at g mail dot com
| r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-12 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyVGQ3T2tqOWlPRFhjWHF2aFhLV2otZWJsS1NFVVlib1pHR3Z6ekNuWVhDRng5NTBDd1NialZCOGFPWGVteU5EZE1tb2N1elludTI5Z3ExM2FQc0tFM1E9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5NkhpMzZUeEMzNVlmMm9SVHlJYzdKQ19TNEt0em5xcjVtY3NXYXFFUE53Nk1CQnFqMm1uWGdES1YwLWVaV3dyQTB1Z2VEVjg2aXJTQnJ1SzJ4X3dlZ3RZeDBzN2Z6YktzYkJxZWdWOER5R2NtUGFMdHZVdWZENGF3SW1YWExZODdoa1d0SHBSaEZiREVLUVN2VmF5SGNXN1R4bWNDX2tHbGpRMC1xMklaQjF6eExWVkRTZ2ZOZHVpNVcxdjVraG5R |
Can anyone direct me to one or more publications providing a detailed theory of political campaigns and their effects on election outcomes?
It seems clear that wealthy corporations and individuals contribute significant amounts of funding to the campaigns of politicians whose election will benefit them, but I have a hard time constructing a complete chain of causality between campaign activity and election outcomes. Without this understanding, I find it impossible to assess the merits of policies like those supported by the Mayday PAC. | r/maydaypac | post | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-13 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyb0gySlZVd1JweXIxVzdySlRBbnRaVUwwQ1hFQUtSSFFOMndJbE01b2MyUWNleUprbjJ1cnJsa0R3UTFxcXVrbU11N0V5TDB4VFhYazF2RU5SZ05Edmc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5RldzVEZyQVZtd1lpeVlGMDMxN3dqSVM1WURtTE5NM19WM0NvbkoxMzdaZGZrLXNuM054MzJ3T0RiU1J0cHhQcGtnMGRzQ055cklMVlhVUG5PMDA3amFNS0p6MzliNDhWd1NYX2xxNWFfLU5lRjJfUFFYRnRFTGs4M2FLcFJmOGpqa0JPX3F1UkRsTGdXUjlqYWVWTndlMFctdzVteUc4RlAxUHNkVnlVZ2cwPQ== |
You are wrong. For a lot of states, you don't need to elect anyone to change the voting system. You can do this through ballot initiatives state-by-state. CA and WA got their top two plurality primary done through ballot initiatives. That version of the top two primary is very flawed, but it shows that it can be done.
In Oregon, there was a petition for an initiative that would do a top two primary with approval voting (voting for all the candidates you like instead of just one). This would have been a perfect electoral reform for the state and provide a good example for other states to follow. Unfortunately, it didn't get enough signatures in time and wasn't put on the ballot to be voted on.
Neither Cenk nor Lessig made a peep about this. If Cenk or any other progressive in the media had supported this and brought attention to it, it may have gotten enough signatures to be put on the ballot. Unfortunately, they are in "nothing else matters until else matters until we get money out of politics" mode. The problem isn't just that they don't see the voting system as the root problem; they don't see it as enough of a problem to talk about. The only solution I've ever heard from Cenk to the spoiler problem is to blame Ralph Nader for running.
Btw, getting money out of politics is a much bigger hurdle than changing the voting system. You have to pass a constitution amendment to get money out of politics and that takes getting two thirds of the states to call for one. Once that is done, you have to worry about the states not sabotaging the process by sending bad delegates and then you've got to get three fourths of the states to approve of the amendments.
Now, imagine if we had a non-partisan primary that uses approval voting to get the top two candidates for the general election. We would have very competitive elections in which voters could vote for all the candidates they like instead of just one. The May Day PAC could become an extremely powerful voting bloc in which the supporting voters agree to vote for all the candidates and only the candidates that support a constitutional amendment. Any candidate who wants to eke out a victory would have to earn the endorsement from this PAC. With this system, you could effectively bribe candidates with votes instead of with just money. Candidates would have to pay attention to the important issues to stay competitive– even if it means going against the wishes of their big donors.
On gerrymandering – this approval primary would also greatly mitigate the problems with that as well. Right now, the only primary that matters is the primary of the dominate party. The general election is just a show election and everyone but the party primary voters are shut out of the election. The winner of the election is only decided by the plurality of the majority party ( not even the majority of the majority). The approval primary would give everyone a say in the election and each candidate would have to get as much approval from as many voters as possible. He would be accountable to everyone and not just the base of his party. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-13 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyT1dlYUdON3ZLay1WMVVEYVlibF9WeG5KMmZnVFVDZzMzaVhONXZkNHdfOVdUcFZpcTliMXNLQ0JicDRlUExDU0dHbDBqUXpUY2lDTXQtMTBtX1ZLNEE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5elFwWktXR1Q1UUp6cWJhUGNLelFaeEJlaTd3SnlWUHRJMm1MdHUtOG44QmxRVVNmNlZxREV1Y05xNzE2dU43dE5JRl9UN1VwZzN6Vjl0ZFhMYkV0UXFxcGNzeHVrdm9vNV8xY3VRVGxMMy13WFYxTTRITGZWS3F4YnY0czl0UDRaZ0NVX2d4Sjk0ZkVJQ1htT21jdkFNRTJGMWh3T1FJd2xmN21tMkJveE8zMHZUYWhjWGpDY3dPd1RkVzBQZ3VpZmg3ZDU1blg2QTd2cC0zUG13dlVqUT09 |
Number 5 seems like the most important practical question to answer for me. The answer also will have a big impact on whether people would be willing to vote for you. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-13 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyM1piZHprTGdHTHZveTVrZ0RwOTYwQ1VEQnBLcklPRXJvOVBOUi01MkNTVUdFRUdlVjh5a2pzLXRkb2ZYV2hUT0hkYXpEeGtESS1RU2NXcUhoRmN3YVE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5eHVMRi1TbEtVTy1kVzFDdFhNakFFY2RPdEZxSWhVRFdtcWJsZmJyVG9SRVVKVXJzcUQ4STl5T1RTSDNKRFA0cVpmdWRUS015WjlSdm9nT1VkUEdyT2trVHdzZFlqNENGNjlENjY2dUJVOUc3bTRLUU1FdXV1cTVYYmdhenZLZGFMREZMQlpZaWxXMmVfbDVlVXlIcEtEdFFVcFRaZmtvV2V2N25LT2RvSjAtWEZwSFMyOGRwRXk1RDB3d1NENWlC |
Presidential runs can also be effective ways to bring new ideas into the mainstream, even if they have no chance of being successful. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-13 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoydTJJcGtJdHlmNWxsWmFTYmFnTkpTVjZfXzAyb2tBdlBOZ3pPX3doSGcyV3ZSRFEwRUVXcGpZNTZfeVlBd3J0YWMxOFJlVWdrWHZOaXI4emtaZjF3Mmc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5b0ZhYVQ5TjJHdHdIakJyZmhBVE95YXdYYUtGQkNGcGI4Tzc2aVBrT3hGNWJ0VWgxd3VLLUR3cUs1elZZaEF0NkNiNVc1RmJzT1Ywc0Y1N2NmdGNFWlBZWXowTnNMUjdkcWJUZkV6ei1sbkpBSTJwaDJaT0pVd1prMnRYUGdCUURZZmhRWnFhTjlkeFNXd2E4U1JrS1lLdWMwWGZET2M3d1NMZG9JemtRUXhmZmVnaEp5TzliQ1NEa1JIYzJ0aXFl |
Has Mayday already lost it's momentum? Don't want to be a downer but I think that's something important to consider. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-13 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyX0dKem9iYU5sN0FZd29rZjlyOU5SMDNvRVJoOWJrYXJQdDNISUE3bU1ralBNNXlvZ2lRSERGYXpjUkU4VGJYRDlLa0FRMV9kQnlnRGNYeV9scGo5LXc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5YTdOLThGSWFWcm9zVGZkMktTUmFNeEJfSU84T3pJVzg3ODNMMHpvRUI0MTNXSDh0U2FKTkQ2XzU5cTkyMmRQTGx2aDRfNHEwRi1KUDZwekswT2dudE82aU5pbndXSU1GcDF0UE9YVWxiazVqR0plZmtUY1BWZGNzUVJ4M2Z6M1h3MUZRSTVmQ0NKTm1hVGp5NXl4bXdicHRIcjhrOWxNLUVrOVhJNlk1Yy03VDRmUTlZc2Q3VVRZRURwdDFtZ1N4 |
My heart leapt when I saw Cenk's headline. If the trustee president idea is worthwhile pursuing at all (which I'm not sure about), you are definitely the person for the job. I really don't think anyone else would have the credibility together with the ability to persuasively present the case for fundamental reform.
Most of [your suggestions](https://medium.com/equal-citizens/frodo-baggins-for-president-5096bdbb94d) ("Colin Powell, Bill Bradley, David Walker, Bill Gates, Christine Todd Whitman, Jerry Brown, Joe Scarborough, Robert Reich") are associated with other political issues among voters and the media. Even if they were willing to try this plan, they would face a huge hurdle in getting people to trust that they will limit themselves to this one issue. Broaden the scope to people like Oprah and Ashton Kutcher and they're going to struggle to be able to handle interviews and debates. (A Bill Gates or Warren Buffett could possible work, but I just doubt they'd be willing to do this and stay on message for the amount of time it would take.) | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-13 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoybHYxSlFaSUtMRS1LQ2pMQjllQk1zWUhZQ0ZlZWdyNjRac3FRT2w2b1dPZW5LT1hWYlZGcE9DYlVBdVlNSDU3UmJ1bGJoMzJ2TlZWY01mUHpkMnJ4WUE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5ZEtVOHh2X1lWZl9GTFJmcGlicnJ1OVNHOEZXVjk2YW9hSzg2MzRsbDNMUjdnR3kyWjZfRkFFanJZX0Z4QVBhQmtLWWRDRTlROVJJZ0tPZnNpcWtXTk9wVkVGNUp5d2x2WDI3bnVNR0w2YzlWaVl4enF0bHRuZ3NfdU8xZWtTNmgtSUxzak5HYUt2XzdsNS1PN1k4SkFIa3BZWGNHUDdxOXFqNHBmNWt1MEV6NkdMd0FPZmN6NG5TaXExQmM4WXNa |
http://republic.lessig.org/ | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-13 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoySGxoN3ZiOXpGYWJqY0pOWFplWUVwX3JsTGZ1ZFFPT1plTFhTM3FhRl9JZVhQMThVVXEzM0NqNkRtSmVFVUxIVHFCOW11YWVDUnhDSjA4bEhaQWVHTnc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5YWJOdHFLX1lkOTRZREdabXc3elZnU3hzQ2VVVlRqSFBUTlJUR204bGY5NmdaWVdwRlFzekpHaWxpWWp4c0pJdnFjN0NiNl9pX1NXMmNoeGt1b2NwLWh4ckJjVFZHYVJMQ3EtZWJ1Umo1WmtrOGtqRWlRQU94UzM3OFhPQkhldFdNeE9FY20yNXBrVDVlNU5FaWs2WHp3V2kxNFBSbUJnSzZsOHZSOVFaN3N1djN4SFlXTlpJVnh5OGdfQVpfaFBB |
Nah, the VP would be clearly signalling their support for fundamental reform by participating. And they would also have a clear agenda on the spectrum of other issues. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-13 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyaFFNaFVNMGU2MW56Q1ZRV2g5ZHFQUGhMRVFrUmdlazEySVMySjFOOXJwYWFBNDJ4aUZvOGVhQklrUEFoMkYtbXBrZGtFVkpxTDVvYUl1dUExSWFsR2c9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5eVdld1M0ZDdUS0MyeVk1VkpPTi1NVzdJUmJNNDBCT3dsdGxsN1cxdDB3VFV6dW13WGhaRmUwXzZLZGpoWm93MkNXa08yRmhHTHJrOUpGeGpadXR4NkpCUmlobC1SLTBnVDZ2ekw1OFphRXFORl9CNjA3alZOdzVYdVBHWnZUMkxWeGdmdTBNb0Z4NkdTeWhFZXdXZ3BBZUtjaGp5dTdvelU2bTBqdnlXYnZKaEhsYy0yeEQ5cXdCbWNPa0N6b3oyRllMUmZkLTcyVzdBdGVYbURMNV9DUT09 |
There's no perfect voting system. Look up Arrow's Impossibility Theorem. You're engaged in magical thinking if you think changing the voting system to instant runoff or whatever is going to get your ideal candidate elected. IRV or similar might be an improvement, but it is not the core issue. (I'm intrigued by "liquid democracy," but good ideas like these have no chance unless we fix the money dependency problem first.) | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-13 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyR2pYdElIWmc3ay1YTlZsNm56X2d2UDJORy05V3k3WXZCaGw4dzZXUzMyZ2FScjNRaFFhS2czNUp4LS0ydE52c3JHMGczWlA0emRkYlVXclZqQU1XOHc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5Y0gyaU43cDg0TENmRlljeDNXczlIR2RVZHU4ZzRVQ25EblhJWENjVGl1S0d6OHAxRGxqNWZhbVJ0Z1NXX0RKOVBSakN4X0wxWS1PZWdTNTZobjJXTE5ZRzlKcHNSYVZobjJkVVFJeTlFSTF4YTZEaVFEMUNfRUwxT1dpNFU0T2V6Q1NXeEhNZVJVWnBJLTdlMVNuTGFtS0hfZG1BeUcxTFRYOXkteXE3TERMLTlESDZ1RDFFSnNfMmM1cUc2anJENWd3N2tDZ3JVanRjcUNRMG9ZTkFKZz09 |
Nah, if the trustee president actually has the popular support needed to get elected, members of Congress will be under extreme pressure from constituents to act. That's really not the point of failure in this plan. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-13 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyNFN1bGhlcVRNeGZpLWxwVkpaWGgwRV9TVjVpRkV2N2pmaTJhSTJKeldSZEtGa2dXbExVVlRxQXpVeGozbzdqWUMyYVE0cW9pVEt4TWR2UTMwTFZYZHc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5TnZaNjBFSVhEeGVPUUtXcUxIZkI3cXI0NXBkSFFMaF9iYmNjU1FTSnNYU2dmdnNYSHhTZDIzb0NURnVsQWRjUVVyNUstc21NcFBNM1BXbWZsaWFGRUl1dnA5Z2YxSm1GQVNrRWxLWEoxVDVDMkg0Q252TktJcGNVUUFsc0ZvdXZfdmxLVkNzR1psbXZ6bWtyZWtNOWt2T1Iwd21CWjVCcU1fYlZlUjFYalFQYWVnMFRNVXd4MHJ0VXNTV2tPNy14eTlOZjNJenM4WS0xM1RnNWVvenE4QT09 |
Obama got 51% of the popular vote. That's about as much as can be realistically expected from any possible candidate. It doesn't seem like congress is pressured much at all. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-13 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyX0dlejdUZU8zcVJ5Vms0elM0Zzl6YUdpRXJhRHJGQWVOaERXcTlpS0lpUmRYdUx0MzNtaERqbWk2RExtYWtMLVFjRDVxd2tncTJ0WWZrbl8tdF92cEE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5UGtzLXBkOER1TlRKbThqZzJncUd6d1JmWFpIZk1SSng1Sk5FQVVDN29QN0YwYkthMzByTFpIUGhIeHMyR2FsalpLYzB0YjljUGp5bmI3MGZjUjJSamNXbkFxVEVuZ194MlpoSDFJZXZhVHVhX0FGQk9jZTdSd1I2SFFiY0N2VlQwYXBldjUyNXFVZFVWb2pSZXFkdW5rbFh5c0ItSmtMQkpYWk1jSkthcHFhdDFLNnZQbl9QQWtURGJhTFlWN0NrSUJ2VGdHRlFsVWJCcnl6WkZZNHJ5QT09 |
I am engaging in mathematical thinking, not magical thinking. There is no perfect voting system, but there are very good voting systems that don't exacerbate the problem of money in politics like plurality does. IRV is a terrible voting system as well. The only silver lining to IRV is that it is not as bad as plurality which is the absolute worse.
What is magical thinking is believing that a “proxy president” is going to be anything other than a spoiler.
I don't want to repeat what I have already wrote about why the voting system reform is more important so I'll just link to [my reponse to FragBaitAsh](http://www.reddit.com/r/MaydayPAC/comments/39kkrj/could_the_idea_of_a_trustee_president_aka_frodo/cs5f9xw)
| r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-13 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyUjc3cEV1cEVZQkRlRENXX2p6b05fZUZISWpsLXRIUE1SeEo5TVVnX1VTNGdiS0ZTVU5EX096SjZwWEFoSV84MGZpM3RIZDFpSFRsY0hGNHpkNkNGaUE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5SUd1dkFmaGNjSVFKdmNlSDY5d0VxOG9Rc3p5RUd6ZnR5UDdkUEZPME9ReThBWlJ5U3VSNmY1WktjVkJpbDVrRWZDelB2b0F3eG12MXplREtUbS1XM2VqbUFSYWdaU0dWSGZSbmtXanpYUGV0S3phU2RXQmFPWWVlYlNyWE42eVlpbklobmdhNDQ2OFBkQVlLSjdxUllvbHpuMkk1ZnZTYmd2UTlsVVpfX3AxS1dVTDJfUEV0U1h3UHBiS29IYU1lcF9mWUl5dnNrS211T21iX2wzbTg2Zz09 |
Can you explain why resignation is important? | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-14 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyRW9OZXRQbFhiMW9aSXAzaVZZd0lhRWxEYjAzWjZucjJIbjEtdTdfcVp0Z2N4djNvNnNiTGpJLWIwRkg0eEx2LS02anJ2NVJ3RlllMTNYcVdWc3dvcEE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5ZmREM1BLMmJxVGY5YUtWLTNOVWhVbGZRX05VTjVHVU9LQVdoNFRNUzY0RGp2SGltVHc2aE5qV2NsdUx6dVNTS0c0N21SbWotcnVDVkhka3V6RHl0amJ0OTlPSzhnak8wcWJaeFZ0el90dlFDellmNEUtNW9XLU9fUkNlZEQ5eEQ0dTlaY0ZiZXppUlRjLUl6cU1RRkQzd20zM0JtZDhrZUhrWHp1VGJIQ1lfbjAwRHFxTHhjOXlIemZROTFSSWM4 |
I agree this is a valid question to ask. It took a big hit after last election defeats for sure. It seems like now or never.
EDIT: now or never for MayDay in particular. Not for reform in general. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-14 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyMkpRYUhHVXhWVl9kVFdGdi1vUnd3Ny1DMHNjSEVqd3VkWlcteTg3cUV1VVJBcnF2TkFNVXhsb2pKbmdTb2gwRVY3ZGJNc1hIb3NmZFZTbmMtWXBhTGc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5T1ktbXRKTFdySmhGRnN5OWlwWUd0Z1R4MDM5b25qaV9SSElvQ1JJSS1tc1RYbGxmRFNZaWNNWnRXTlhFekdQVXZJU2pGR0d1UlFZNVNPcHprUnFwVlFnNHlHQ01EN3VoWXhtU3FJUFk4Tm9lX2Zud3pWOTV3Qi1ueGtpOG9lSmUzRWpTRmJ2RHFSSnR5NzRnaGhTZHlESzRyczZIMXRSODFmTENzbmYxa1hMeXJBYmVfR3hjUWl4TWlBZnd3NWFU |
Do the CA or WA cases provide any evidence that changing the voting system would have the impact you envision? Can you even provide a clear theory (like an a academic paper) explaining how that is supposed to work? I was once a big advocate of the jungle primary, myself, but I just don't think it adds up. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-14 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyTTFGREVfdUFPYS05czZCR0JWVUNoYzdzQTlJS3Y1a1B6RGVMUjdnTzZkeHV4MFhfdm5sZjdDVGpsSGRMWklQTktFbzdJVUJqcGtxODJyUU9sdWE5Vmc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5QzN2MnRIYWRWcFU2OGlNejhXMEg0U3hZd2VFT2hFNnppN3FDNVh5ay15dlB3SG15Y09vcUdEaGw5UVM4LTFqSFpZWXU0cGl1RnhYbVJveU9ubDgwV1ZEalByZUc4anZmdlMtZzFBZzFIZkRBN3UwMk82S3QzRU9ma2hNNWRkNDFZVHF0T1d1Ym1GdDI0T2RFd29zSkhOT0tKckV0aEIwZnBrSmU5Wlo2QXRNNjVibEpfMG5BLUZ5b1dPV3hpU1c5aU00T040V2YwUU1TNWhOdWtuNHNDZz09 |
But he didn't campaign on a single issue. That's the difference. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-14 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyRGFBTkgzMVRBU3VFV0tsdi1wNm5nTVpCbDdkODBhaWdHWjlwMEhYY1RBN0JPclN3ckhDQVRidnMtLTJXYW91UEdST0FXNDlkcGpmR1ZBdS1KQ3JQSEE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5Ung1WTRYNDVqTldwWEVnYTFwZVQ0OTRLTWY3ZmRjNElZTXBnLWdMTXBWU0ctMWEyRXE4R0hoTFQtQjd4TENvZGlJQXU2YlVsSjVkUGF2VkgwMXNhdXRWcG5KdDBpbGN2NHBadlJZZG04N1NNeGZCaFYwQ2NwSWU0Szg0X3pMVTB1cW5TWEhudGFCd1RsWmR0ZXZ1RXhyMVFXWFdHQ19hbjg4R0dXWGlSczBHc2FTMkgxZmJDU0dHd1ZNTWlqSnVpWXNLYkpEdHpqdE1qTFBBb21Bdy1TUT09 |
Do you honestly believe a candidate campaigning on a single issue, even one that most people believe in, could actually win the presidential election? Even if they could, we would need an enormous amount of money to win the election. If we had that much money, we could donate it to the existing congresspeople directly, and have them pass the legislation we want. No need to win elections. Get the people who already won to do what we want, just like the corporations do. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-14 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyQ2puTkpnQWIzMzBmeHpvUGdtc1A1Y1o5ZDA4eDd6c2hVQ3o1RFlwdHRUQmJVVXAtWFd2eXhHelZfcmFYSDVQRGNhT2tmM2FMV2xZS2hWZVBKcHd3blE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5WW15bU9YcWdDNE9hRThCekx3NTZTTmQ3eWZuRkFtaHhoV0ZTbmVPOTJkZHFxZ0d1dGh3UFM2bXo0MEFyQm02UjIwTFdhT2ZwVGpQeXE3Z09JY3lMVlFqR1hEaVpyLTgydGVXU3VMMjYtbUFrUHRTWWtaWDF4cGFMd2lDeTRKRHZkVjRWc1ZZdjlCU1JuQlJ2Q0RlT09aQkMwQm5wcHdRaktoU0xLSVFtX0NsWHpKaXVYNnJrMlY4VTdRZXNlWHBkUEsxc3lWR1UxeUQxRzNLZmtBSFJpQT09 |
You lost me at Tea Party. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-14 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyNE9xMTcyaWcyYlFmZDBkcnNpd1dpV1pIV3N3SVV5UU5GN0VKZnA3UGd5d2dzWFdDcVl3YTllMXFwNENPY2dWQndSZFZYNkpMdkdBMFZVVmtQQ3BHSHc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5bGFTTXpXa25qNlJxQlJXaC1rUXFKYnU5V01KRzlsdUtVcDVkMlVNeVg0aDl3ZnQ0N1JLbzBQZkg2QUNBa2FoZkdGNHIwY1VMMURKQWoxS09sQjJzQUpnQUo3V05ocU8yYkRUa2lqNi1SeVFxeDZhWlFQZU5NWWV6RHpabEVEV0xGcHIwU1lrazNkTVZEOEVwb3lJUmJCNTM2RGNiSF84QS1NeGJVenJPQUs2LVFLb20yckNSbDJMNlF6V2ZHN1lVamEtUk1nVGl6NDdoVEwtMVdVa0RwQT09 |
Wish Lessig's SXSW talk was posted online, but his ever-evolving keynote presentation explains the link between election funding and policy outcomes so well (and doesn't require reading a whole book!)
Here's a video from a fairly recent talk:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lypn5aoJI6Uone
And another from his Vimeo channel:
https://vimeo.com/127071001 | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-14 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyQVBIcGdVRWdxeHl4S3RCRFRtX3FqSmJ2U19SZmVNZFlmWHZLRE85UWdGM1VhNnEzRFR3SkNrQ3hsemtrbmVnVUdZQzQwbzIybWY0NG1yTHY2Q1JMUDM2WHRULW9oSVlnaWREYU1MaEtPS009 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5SzdwZGhobGJIYjlzWDNKQnQwaUlmdzJWYUNkYnVzQTF1X292SFlIVWpNMjZQMTEtYUFSOVBWRVB1WndlUU1oTk9XNjE5c3huWXV4TjdRM1NEcGgzWXBWNm5LcjIySkZQRWdZSjhCS0Jfb0tqbjdQSld2ZkFmS3dWZVM0MGk2WVZoOWJmRWZPUlVhOFN2akp2aTJsbk9ZMEZfWDM1XzFMY1FrZnhISWpRQ2NwYkFBS3BWTFpiMUw2Smw3QTdEMU15 |
This is such an important point if we genuinely want reform at the national level. People on the right are just as disenfranchised as those from the center or left, and the more we are fighting for the same reform, the more likely we are to win.
Where people on the left may focus on Citizens United and corporate money, people on the right talk about crony capitalism — it's two sides of the same coin! Ultimately we all want to end monied special interests' stranglehold on the U.S. Congress and get our senators and representatives to focus on representing their constituents, not their funders. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-14 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyLTRWVzE3LUVXTWZscWZtSVRDcUJWVjl5WmR5MG9Fc0ZQdkc3UkpUc05laFV4TENJTV8xUGZUMGRULVdTZFFZNmZZd3UyWGVyZnZUZWcwX1Zhdks2aWNzcGMzdnA0UlpHVE55ZXVSVDNzRkk9 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5ZFNOeXpFeGtzR1h5MXQwVWtnYk1vaG9UREdQSUp5bGdBcVE4S3g5RnlRSVFVRUs5OF9fbUtVRll1RXpQWEZmWEt1SE1USEhZZnNraGxxbVA3QS1Lc1dEOElzRkR6RnkwOENQSHpMbE93b2lSNm5fc0FGWkIycHZwZzMzSzNfUjE2MXBJcDlxSmx3S2JkT0lsZGlwVDUzVGlYQnpRRkRWR25oTTJ3bE5Ya2tkaTNoSFVMeEdvWEJqU3JIVmR2ZGh3S1hwclpBQjdTV25URnlxdk1QT1VvZz09 |
Not really. But if a strictly single issue candidate did win, they would have an overwhelming mandate. That's why I think support from Congress is "really not the point of failure in this plan." The point of failure is getting elected president. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-14 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyRzBWUjRIMG9YRXNiMERNaFIyUGhTSU0tZDVGUXdleTluQ3A1MnNkY1BrUlllYTdNMGpURkl5SzNHa0dNZm15WmhLb2VRbDliRzQ3eWJ1RFIyZzlYOFE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5djZrVlhQUEJKcDBqYUlqV0JYQko3Z2lzSFVxX0VFTEV5OVdubzI0ODRKV1lXeFc3OExXVkhWeWM2NWxaclczMlZySHY4UE9TWFU0empSWFkxbFVqd0Z1UzBTajNGR21aXy1UV1ZZWjhiaWU2WVZReE5sZUJOWkRUOTVaVnVKZGFNWGU2OXEwWjh3X2ZMb3FVU2JOcHdtM21nTm83ZTA2M2FYOTZfS19SZk1FWFF0amNfTHd3a2lQeWN4RnQzR1ZiZXNRZ1JCMHR6bnl3R3VHTWhpb0QzUT09 |
I only used the CA and WA cases as examples of how it is possible to change the voting system through initiatives. They still use plurality voting and it is little better than picking two candidates out of a hat. For it to work, it needs to use approval voting.
If you want to see how well different voting systems elect the best candidate, you can see it through computer simulations. Under [this simulation](http://zesty.ca/voting/sim/), the best candidate for the population is defined as the Condorcet winner (the candidate that beats all other candidates head to head). It is assuming that voters are 100% knowledgeable on the candidates and vote honestly. These aren't realistic assumptions, but they are helpful in that they can identify intrinsic problems with the system. Under these conditions, the winner under approval voting is nearly always the Condorcet winner.
There is another [simulation program](http://rangevoting.org/BayRegsFig.html) by Warren Smith that uses a utilitarian model instead of the Condorcet winner to determine which is the best candidate for the voters. It calculates the average avoidable unhappiness that results in the elected winner of each voting system. Under this method, range voting would by definition be the perfect voting system provided that voters vote honestly and are 100% knowledgeable on the candidates. This simulation , however, allows for variable changes in ignorance of the voters and percentage of them who vote strategically. Under this simulation, range voting and approval voting do the best.
If you want real life examples of how different voting systems effect election outcomes, you can look at the [2014 exit poll for the governor's race] (http://rangevoting.org/Maine2014Exit.html) by CES that I already posted and a [2007 poll](http://rangevoting.org/French2007studies.html) of the French Presidential election. These polls asked the voters who they would have voted for with different voting system.
In the Maine election, Elliot Cutler would have won under approval voting and beaten Republican Paul Lepage by 57.4% to 42.6% in one on one competition. He would have beaten Democrat Mike Michaud 59.9% to 40.1%. In the actual results, he only got 8% of the vote. Of those who were polled, 28.6% voted for someone who was not their first choice; 6.75% voted for someone who they didn't even approve.
In the French 2007 election, Francois Bayrou would have been the Condorcet winner and the approval voting winner, but in the official results he didn't even make the top two for the run off. In both these examples, we can see the how plurality voting masks actual support candidates have and how it affects voter behavior.
Even without studies, it should be blatantly obvious that if you want to elect good candidates, you can't have a voting system that punishes you for voting for them. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-15 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoydnJHU2RlbXdRRVpnWnI5Z2o4SEs0SVFvRWEtYzlRV0VOclY3NDNCSHhVdldQbzRERlBwaUQ4aWlBbjdlakJBOC1zSHhzYWUtS0xtT01BR0NQRjVTdWc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5dEN2UHY5LUhyQVBtTFlrQUxPY2xGY0JGNWhRRGhaa3dHeEJTMXREMDBFNFVKajVWZjFKeThGcE1CWmJkcjc3SXpvZDVzcG92UWZwS2N3dk9VVjlQUlFCYjd4TGw3RUtlV3h2ckt3UkJHS1ZEUnNRTmtJclVvaGY4OTVQZ0o5U3J0MU1jWEY4ZmVZOXFjOVBaQUItbVBET1ZfQ0EweW9fekZwbHVqcHJYTUxxWVcyMUxiMGdPSURiZUdDU3RCSmo5bGhCTzNza3ItSkYyTGU4cGdmNDd2QT09 |
You are absolutely right. Progressives and tea partiers have basically the same frustrations with the system, they just approach the problem differently. It is a gap that can definitely be bridged. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-15 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyejNCN2JCWmpISVhqLWRib3dhOEhRLUI4STdTUGVwSXBidUJmb2dHMWxCOHgzbTV3dUMwd3dUX1VnRmpjcjdFcUdGVHFpbGFXdGgxTks2cXJqdXRER2c9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5Mi1WNkpTSVVUejhMQWIzZDNyeHJyMnFwME1zTklsMzFLRU52aTNPaUlDdEZ5cGpKTFNpU3pBV2FmenIzazc4Z2pFNWxnWTNzTTZxc096REVhd1VvYUxTOG5BQWV1c3FPZXZ5S0VrWDIxSnVmdWw2MWxOS2xHSDNtR0VXWHlHdWEwV0h2YTlHNHRHWkl5RXRmck1YMF94MWducWV0NklSZ21RTXp0ZDVnUTB4TXVXOHNhYnpMZkZuc1NTU3NFdmpWRmRKaGxBWDNTQjlFNVBWRnJ3WEFvQT09 |
I've liked range/score voting since I read the Wikipedia article a few years ago. But your simulations only show that better voting systems would better represent the preferences of voters to some extent. That's a good goal, but I remain unconvinced that voting system reform would have a significant impact on the quality of policy. What important policies that are currently blocked would be enabled by range or approval voting?
(By the way, your Maine and France examples are potentially misleading. If different voting systems were in place, the candidates would have campaigned differently and the dominant party candidates likely still would have won.)
Regardless, the two key questions are these:
1. Given the overwhelming influence of wealthy political donors over voter knowledge and opinions, with even more influence on the behavior of elected officials between elections (especially on the 99% of issues below the radar of the average voter), how much impact would voting reform have?
2. Which is more likely to be successful: focusing on voting system reform first, then on election financing reform; or focusing on election financing reform first, then on voting reform? | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-15 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyekpEemNOc3loVWd3dUdXNzlFVV9TV2dUNG5pTjhDTUVScjNyYXk4VWUtMjFoMnVLV194eHMxaXZVeGQ5ckR6c1BsUjBzYWowZWZieXNUN2k0MnQ3Q2c9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5SVpsWndHU0pTbUtNZWlZcTNYNV9rWkhjeG1VYjVCSlFqM0szNXhSbDhGRDdmbEUwMVBZSjA5UExESlJKUS12dmZ1cy1Rdmc1SGRGQWdfYlJGa3RLMXlEXzZITmJiRGk0RVlaMlNpMGJ1Qm5aalZhbDFlWmZGWmt2UnJVa0NQa1U1WXFYU1RxVjNPNWljYVBpVUt4U3lIYlN0X0NKZ1JiQjJfMzhFcHU4RU13RmlHYi0xOURPVGgtSURiZDVkT3JGWC1EN0tqemVIQ29DZjJIQmp0U2g3QT09 |
Let's join r/sketchdaily this week and draw some cars!!!
VROOM VROOM!!! | r/weeklystudy | post | r/weeklystudy | 2015-06-15 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyTkRDemN2OGQ2dTdSYm9jTnNSMUhsemRYd0tyVlNPSkRsbmplZTh5cnZNMElFSTFoVzEwR25Ha2psTUFIdjRpNnRuaUtRVWx4OENIVWlTcmdsZ2pzQ1E9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5YURwQjRybEZzU1RfZmtWYkE1VUhhejNfRGFJSkp4MXNnSEZGRm9YZ2VtbUNCZjRDQllpU1o0THhjalNCUlVLdHRLelRpRC1iT1d6MlhJNFJCbVUyUkRCZENESkhiTWJib3RHM0tDWlRNU0NQZ1E3aTBCVnRjZ0RqdGhTdTN2WWpGSVpDVWZ3MC1Qbm5CS2ZqYzBIT185YlNyTmdZNE55SGh2SVZLQnNyM21BPQ== |
I just need a map of New Mexico and Colorado, but only the areas that are above 5,000 feet, but also where I can see roads, streams, and rivers. Any ideas on how to do this? | r/mapprojects | post | r/mapprojects | 2015-06-16 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyd0lybFk2N19zRkNXNXV3MVJLb1YwRUJHRkxNSVdRMjQ1QVVNYTh0VV9yUW10Rlo5b0wzX01ESmNiS0psNHVGV25IOXQxd2JpcmlIZ1llQmJDQmR1MkE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5X1VYRUE5QndDWHBpWF94TzJfQnpEa0pxZlhDZGJSWUF6WW44UDFvT3d0cXV0cG5mNmlMMmcta0x1bU1vLTlTQlJZMGwtc21QdHFXUGVPZ2plY0JQbmVCeDI3QTZpVEM5ZW5oZXhvSmhYTVN4MF9MdE54WTJBZnVTS3pDTGctNEZuTzVKSzhod2ljRzhBT2RsY0laTUtfeXdCbkxnTE41dmNKYzNjZW1IOXJTY3RIbG0yTUlNNXVRWUV5bDMwLUdvcTJnX2pLVzR2YnJ2dV9NckxEdmI1Zz09 |
There is no doubt that money in politics corrupts government, but there isn't much evidence that the correlation between campaign spending and election victory is anything more than a correlation. LiberalViewer of Youtube did a pretty [good analysis on this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBO7_XvCeMs). It appears that candidates need a certain amount of money to get their message out, but beyond that money doesn't matter too much in securing a victory (although I'd argue that it does matter in determining who the two default candidates are). It is more likely that more attractive candidates attract more donors and the big donors are also more likely to place their bets on and purchase the more attractive candidate.
Both of the Democrat and Republican candidates are bought off and those are effectively our only choices. If voters are given the opportunity to vote for other candidates without being punished for it, it follows that it becomes possible to vote in good candidates.
Let's consider the reform I've been advocating – top two primaries that use approval voting to two candidates for the general election. If we used this, parties would essentially be gloried advocacy groups. Their function would change from nominating candidates to endorsing candidates. You would have a many-to-many relationship between parties and candidates. A party can endorse multiple candidates and a candidate can be endorsed by multiple parties. This also allows for the creation of influential smaller parties that only concentrate around a small set of issues.
This makes it much easier for voters to coordinate around issues and vote soundly without having to put in too much research. Let's say that you are a college slacker and you only care about legalizing weed. You can vote for all the candidates endorsed by the “Legalize Pot Party.” That is it; you don't have to do anything else. But let's say that you also care maintaining net neutrality and don't want any more SOPA/PIPA like legislation. You can vote for all the candidates mutually endorsed by both the “Protect the Internet Party,” and the “Legalize Pot Party.” Or, if you are more generous with your vote, you can vote for all candidates endorsed by either party.
Parties can built up a reputation much easier than each individual candidate. They can be the guiding light so that candidates don't have to spend so much on campaigns. We also know that a significant amount of voters will always just vote for their favored party regardless of spending done by candidates. This system allows for a more diverse set of parties than the Democrat and Republican packages. Voters would effectively be able to organize around issues that are important to them.
So, let's go over what we know. We know from the market that competition forces companies to provide better goods and services. We can assume the same thing would happen with elections. Most elections are uncompetitive because the district is dominated by a single party. When elections are competitive in swing districts, the two candidates are pretty much corrupt and we only have those two choices. It stands to reason that if we have more competitive elections which involves a large pool of candidates who can be competitive and we give voters the ability to very easily organize and vote around issues, we will elect better quality candidates who will serve the public. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-16 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyQnRqRWFSdnFVSHRGcmdsd3dCcUJYQndINk85UmpidFZoQ1ZDQmVfaXhobWxnM3kyRmhPUWFHcUVHZTdIbDNTMkdrRC1IYURkMU1LLUUyUm51a3BmN1E9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5SEstTUlsNzV4ekE1eEpQd0ppS2lZM3p2eXplNTAwdHVGMW9wemhXdnNiZE5zNDRISzE5Q0hzcnhQbFVEazE5Z195VlhGcW5RTXdXN21OeGlqUGZDQ0tUYUlsYk4tWnoxdVE3c1FWdXd1MFpKOVV2bTRzS2VMRlZTcEtLc2xLcmMyc2dxSFFpXzI0VTlfTExXalJyTENaVDdtdXJwSlFnQUhQdDNHSzB4QlVwa3BMX05Tbk11Z1dlRXN0MTZjZjY1NndBMG1YQmx6S1JkYVI2S1FTVGIwQT09 |
Calling all Fangirls, time to update us on the news & info goin' on in your fandoms this week! Topics welcomed:
* anything new regarding the source material of your fandom(s) (recent interviews, announcements, release dates, etc)? Let us know about them!
* anything new regarding the fandom(s) (fan communities online, fandom meta, fanfiction, fanart, any transformative work that's gone viral recently)? Give us some context & then link us all the things!
* any recent feels you have about anything regarding the source material of your fandom *and/or* your fandom(s)? Share! We're great listeners here.
*Really* excited & looking forward to how this turns out! Let the spread of rational, dedicated & well-informed flailing begin!!!
---
PS - If you're wondering, the idea for this weekly series is derived from the comment I made in [this post](http://redd.it/39eljf). Nobody replied, per se, but it was still up voted enough for me to give it a whirl.
| r/fangirls | post | r/Fangirls | 2015-06-16 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyd1NSLXlab2ltZE1UcUk1WnowLTF6SUdVZTVpN1BYYnhPUTVzTkNCTXdtdmNZalM0d3JzQk51ZktUMnFCM0F6c2NLb3E2ak5rN3J4RmNzWmJyUHBvNGc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5aXg3bmF0Mlg0TkQxNE9mTHpldlBoelNzTjZWODFpXzdVTU5uQkw0LWQ2T3Bsa2tjelAtMTBqd2dTSUd3b3AxQ0VheTN6ZmZ2R3ZNLVFpUzhuMGwtR0F3akExV3lSUk1Wcy15UUJGdVZOOG9Rd0NfSklyejNRMHVWeWZzTjJieDRVQmR4Q0VSZTJLczBYb2hodTJNUGJpWHVfUDZ1SVlSQVlIaldLV1A1YVZFPQ== |
Thanks for making this one of the best new subs across the redditsphere. You're all shining stars and I enjoy you. | r/latetotheparty | post | r/LateToTheParty | 2015-06-16 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyTlJ2TlVNLWRub212am55XzRzNk9kQ05IU3IxU1dqS2d1Z29rRWI3MzZnZ0JyRWlhN1lLNzNPTlBrRHo4YXMxdVBVYk11TGc3OEd6dFJPOUV1NTdVdUE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5VzFSOHVBelUyQ1MyYmstVXJyVHlUVlR4ZTg0YWt0Z1dKdUJLQmxXa2U3QWdxemlKVWdXSU1fN1VZZDVnMHF1OVhvZUdTVE5laUlHaGI3YjlneVpONVJVak95T1hmbTh0N0F0NWdYNElTVDV2NXBIR2ZtbTF0SVpuS2EyUUZrNFA5OHFzcUpOOWdGbTJXM1Y2dmllaGhISzd5MjFwUjFCb2xsV2JOYUFLdVdRRXUzbkliMm92TmxGS0VPb3BGVTZXamNrakhFMUp5VkpwNDhXalBtZHlGdz09 |
The good news there is that the reforms being pursued by Mayday PAC and Represent.US do not require overturning Citizens United and the idea that money = speech. | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-17 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoybnJDVUVCTlJnaFpIVTFMaUlpUGt1MVJJcUhvSnpfV1hsS2V6a3pMd3RucmZSUlhobzlfNmVPZTNRLUxiQkViS2M2TWlkUzRsRFYwNkcza3p0Y1ozcWF0ODZ1Q3VGYkttQTUxcDNkVUN5YXM9 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5U3RwWWlFN1kxT1NGZHpBSWdKelJIaEhqUEM3V3pULWx1TFJqVS1Kb1AyNlR3YWNsYWRMRGd6UVVTdUFLZmUyNkNFTV9hbkliRThVeEFQWmJwb0pLSEVMRUJneHpOM2txS2JiU2QtTTRzczRtbkFDTU5weWhmQVYtMXlQeE5PZnBUUlcwcnlMQUtPc1dwUTBUeWVzTS14UmhsZFI2Q1pIRGdlY2l3Um45THo4VEk4WWFxbkhYZ1FNT1VobmllVjl1NnlkTWY0bEdCLWljeDg1YUJ1ZC0xUT09 |
I just finished a two year trip around the world. I'd like to be able to indicate the different different modes of travel (eg motorbike, boat, train) on a world map. I'd also like to be able to label the distances. The goal is to have a version that I can hang on my wall that is large, clear, and good-looking.
So.. I'd appreciate it if someone could point me in the right direction! :) | r/mapprojects | post | r/mapprojects | 2015-06-17 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyVGNTSzlxRkRuSXAyZlNyWExiYmRadVNxazN2dWtnVy1lVEJ4VkVUaXNNM251ZTdyZDgxWThZMHNlbXAzNjI2cU44TE9uMEdfZVQ1d2J2ZzVMdkwwLXc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5Ymk3WTRTdnRLWm5LaHRoWkdBS3g0Q2NSajNuNFI2WXE1ZmhWWkRMZEJFeWVFRmdkM2tXcXJic1VwTzNqUVVOQ1VjclVnTDVHZ3BtZDZBcXRFeVQzcENOcFE0ellMZ1lITG85NkxJWmI1S3BFX0dBdDhUWVYxYWt3dTJWQVlUaDIxdnY1WTBBMHA1djJZYTY4dFpIMFFOOXBqM0RobjNZNjB2LTZOU0o5clU4b3FCVVpISV9wdXhjaEV1bUNfQTFCbEpmOVpyYlMxMFpTY2ZjNHYtZnRoZz09 |
Why is this link to a computer game site relevant to MAYDAY.US? | r/maydaypac | comment | r/MaydayPAC | 2015-06-17 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyMkVWUTFoX3M4TFB2WmVvTUJLWm5OVllYZGE2QzZ5QWFld3BVMnNCZWxhbV9xcmdpeWJkcXRJLWwydUNNT2k1MFJ5QlNNV1JIMThZdlVMNW1KWE1oWmc9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5ckE0YjQzaktNaGpLeVlJSHJmSUpSNHJMbHlVVEhaMWJqSkkzT0FMYndTbUhYSzQzZXY3WVB5dV9UQ1BfVGExSm9abV9JZG5QTVQxazdjWl9aNUlVZ2R3VFdzNm9HVWdmVEcxS2trMlBZblJaS091TUZDSGdPWjM3NVp2RE5sN1BfcU5JdVJuVW54VTV1amFSQkhkUXU3ZUJlVkNCeU5rZENibWF6QzFPZ1Q0PQ== |
So, I am trying to write a bachelor degree paper on fanfiction. The fact is that I postponed it for too long and now I am in a rush. I made quite a bit of research, but I do not know if I can fill around 40 pages or so on this topic. I planned on starting with a definition on fan fiction and even other fan activities - fan labor as wikipedia calls it, with a description and examples. History of fanfiction - from the 50s 60s to the present time, but I could also insert predecessors of fanfiction. I am thinking here of Sherlock pastiches and some other. Legitimacy, copyright issues, opinions on fanfiction by established authors. Fanfiction in academia: mainly Henry Jenkins and Karen Hellekson and Kristina Busse, and I may include someone else.
All in all I think I can barely fill 20 pages... so if you think that I could add something more, please make a suggestion.
I promise I will submit it to you after I will take this exam, which is in about 3 weeks. | r/fangirls | post | r/Fangirls | 2015-06-18 | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFoyRXlCUGhZRGxNR3VxcFVfTVNlN2FRaVZqTHZCV3dUOF9VOHNRQTZmSnFzeWhpX3JkRV8zYVM1ZFZlVmtvd0MzUG84N2lpVFFGNWF5bTBjZ05hUWNxaFE9PQ== | Z0FBQUFBQm41SFo5M2d5OUhTOXQtb0VkMVJiN3lQVFRjVVRFRTc0NXRROFRlZFhkaVRVc0xxQnlPb3ZmNVVzN0hmNFFFaG5hZGhhekprTE9Na1pWcGVMZlNQVmRSMEUzNE9Lbmc4UDMwZVhFYWpnbHBWWThnNU5mU1V3WDB4elJHUE00U0pNS3J6SGI1cThhOW15ZFE4NF92cWVxZFlFNnB1Wl9ocjJibnRVc1NKSzJlSWhEM0I0cFNXTDN1enF1X2VrSTRlV3J0M1hy |
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