0
0 votes
May 18, 2015

Corporations have no political power. the people you vote for have that. If the people you vote for are taking bribes ,,ummmm campaign contributions,,, and giving corporations power then for gawds sake stop voting for them.

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0 votes,
May 18, 2015

For people that live in the US, there are by and large no such people to vote for.

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linked reply
0 votes,
May 18, 2015

that is because we continue to reward the behavior. bf skinner classic conditioning. replace the reward with a consequence and the behavior will change

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1 vote,
May 18, 2015

But it's a catch-22. The only way we can punish politicians with corporate ties is to not vote for them. If all the politicians have corporate ties, all we can do is not vote. The people that do vote will give it to one of them anyway.

Besides, corporations have gotten very, very good at manipulating public opinion in favour of things that are bad for everyone but the corporations. That ability to sway opinion is the true power. We can wish all we like that people will actually start voting in their own self-interest, but without attacking corporate power directly this is difficult to do.

Also, even if they don't take bribes, a politician can still be heavily influenced by the powers of a corporation. For instance a company can threaten to shut down a large factory or move it somewhere else if politicians try to pass laws regulating that factory. This loss of jobs would make that politician very unpopular with his electorate, and so he is held hostage.

The fact of the matter is that corporations have gotten incredibly powerful in the modern world.

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0 votes,
May 18, 2015

  • first of all I would like to state that it looks like we agree there is a serious issue with the government we currently vote for and that is a good thing. I am encouraged by this view in the populace and am hopeful that eventually when we stop quibbling over a letter behind a name (not that you and I are which is very cool) and realize that there is a systemic problem that needs to be pulled out by the root things will turn around.
  • regarding your response, you are acknowledging that the worst candidates are most likely to win. That is true by and large. So, why would you believe that they worst candidates would make laws easier for them to lose? the truth is the bill is actually an incumbency protection act that they do not need. They are so threatened by a minuscule movement to throw the bums out they are introducing this garbage and wrapping it with the big bow of "we are fighting for you". They are not.
  • My view is that until more people like yourself wake up and realize that we can fix this. First, lets vote in some people that do not take this money. People with a core. Then I would feel more comfortable with rules being made about how to stop this from happening again. By having Reid, McConnell, Beignor and Pelosi be in charge it is akin to letting the fox guard the hen house.
  • Great discussion. I am encouraged that their are people that realize their is an issue and it must be addressed instead of arguing over labels or wings.
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