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Off Topic / Re: United States Politics Thread | Mount St. USD is about to Blow Up
« on: October 25, 2021, 03:29:10 PM »I've refained from insulting, but this is getting ridiculous, are you people braindead?in theory that's true, but in practice most voters are uninformed and apathetic toward the selection of representatives, and district lines are often drawn to all but ensure election of the legislation's preferred candidate (or at least category of candidate)
Representatives vote in the way that gets them re-elected, they don't have to care about the opinion of people who won't vote for them anyways or won't vote for their primary challengers.
Please look up on wikipedia how representative democracy works.
i agree that the basis of power is technically election, but those aren't conducted from on high; the people who stand to benefit from elections also hold the power to determine how they work, and historically those people have rarely decided to conduct them completely fairly. elections are more about swaying the critical mass (possible minority) of undecided voters than those who have strong enough convictions to robotically vote red or blue.
i do get frustrated with leftists that refuse to engage with the electoral system on principle alone, so i understand your sentiment, but it's not true that voting alone can always result in tangible change. people elected are probably genuinely going to at least attempt their more strongly-stated ambitions, but when it comes to harder issues like police reform, climate change, worker's rights, etc. direct action often makes more of a difference. i find it apt that you brought up the civil rights era because that was a political movement largely defined by direct action through protests, marches, riots, etc. which forced the issue into public conversation and nudged the hand of those in power to create solutions. the options aren't just vote, revolt, or working within the system (e.g. courts and lobbying). you can make enough noise that they can't ignore a problem that's easier to leave unsolved, and often that is the most meaningful way to incite change.
all that said, i think it sounds like my personal view is similar to yours though, even if you make a lot of noise about climate change, there's still only one party that meaningfully acknowledges it at all, and i would probably would rather leave those policy decisions in their hands if they were going to be forced to act. i have no delusions about changing the minds of democrats in power with my voting habits, and would discourage anyone from thinking that's the case. my main reason for voting for democrats isn't that i'm happy with their results or ambitions, just that they're at least more likely to tackle critical problems favorably if and when the time comes that the fire under their seat burns hot enough to force action
