[Cloud9...68]

Rap,



If you ran for national office, I'd vote for you!

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[flash]

the problem with term limits is how to set it up and control the ability to jump from one branch to the next. people could still be career politicians. they would start in local, move to state, move to congress, then to the senate. i don't know how you could stop that, other than to make it a voluntary position, which would then be problematic in getting anything done, as they would still have to work a job. we couldn't really reduce the salary either, as then you wouldn't get much in the way of quality or education of your candidates.



also, what if you get a good one and want to keep them?



i'm not taking a position on him, but we have a glowing example of the term problem here. now on his third term, our current governor has bounced from one spot to the next his whole life (he's been at it so long that he has now been both our youngest and our oldest governor). he's second generation too.



it won't be simple for sure, but i think we have to take the money out of the equation, eliminate corporate lobbying, and require minimum vote counts to elect anybody. if they don't get it, the seat remains empty, and they don't get to run again in the next election.



why don't we give a tax credit for those who vote? we record their vote, so there is no privacy issue. why not encourage people to vote by giving them a tax credit?



i'm all for a balanced budget requirement. the government should have to live just like the rest of us. "here's the money. figure out how to spend it" not "what do you want to spend and how do we get it?"

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[ds968]

Voting also does not ALWAYS guarantee the results will stand. The opposition can challenge, courts can overturn the result, the other opposition can appeal and the issue gets tied up in the legal game for years and years.. But that happens very rarely so perhaps not that big of a concern that your vote will not count , and maybe it's even a good check and balance to make sure there is a recourse in case some collection of lunatics ( even if they happen to be the majority of the votes in a given locality or state ) passing some idiotic measure that violates civil rights or similar protections ..

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[Cloud9...68]

I'm very impressed with the quality of opinions and ideas expressed in this thread. And it's amazing that we're three pages into a topic that's political in nature, and yet there have been no partisan rants. Very cool.

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[ds968]

one more piece of evidence that 968 owners are a class act.. not necessarily modest <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/rolleyes.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> , but classy nonetheless..

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[flash]

it also goes to show how the site and its operation, and how the members respect each other and their rights to speak their mind, without fear of reprisal, stands head and shoulders above others.



once again, my thanks to all and a huge "congratulations"



keep it up guys. this is great.

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[Rap]

Cloud thank you for your kind words. Because of them i have decided to form an exploratory committee to look into running for office. What office, what does it matter? So I am soliciting donations from like minded individuals for the creation of this committee. I will pledge and promise that if you give me donations I will do my best to endevour to represent your interests. Depending on the amount of money you are willing to give me, I will work hard in these efforts. The more money you give me the harder I will work. As a candidate I will be a results oriented individual. The more money I receive the more results you will receive. The sky is actually the limit here. Your interests and needs will be aligned with the amounts of money you are willing to invest in me as a candidate. Give a little get a little. Give a lot get a lot! Money talks so what's it going to be?

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[rxter]

OK, so I have to risk mass expulsion by bringing this conversation back down to base instincts - again. Cloud will not be impressed with my classiness, and I'm about to test the "no reprisals" claim



"why don't we give a tax credit for those who vote? we record their vote, so there is no privacy issue. why not encourage people to vote by giving them a tax credit?"



I have a slight spin on the above idea. Give me 1 date with Scarlett and I'll vote every November, I promise. 2 dates and I'll run for local office. A 6-month voucher will get you a serious campaign against any incumbent governor, anywhere anytime.



Running for the exits......

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[flash]

lol - and you will handle the alimony how?



oh yeah - the graft from being in office - sorry i slipped for a minute there

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[Rap]

Well at the risk of violating the civil discourse that we all congratulate ourselves on. In Pa. We have these new voting machines-3-4 years, that have sides that extend to not even shoulder height. Old ones used to have a closed curtain. No one has a sense of privacy. I live in a village of 350 people. Not sure how many voters. The most number of voters in the voting room has been two, so no big deal on the privacy issue. In larger cities I suspect it's different. In England in the 1800's votes were outright bought. Everyone understood the deal. Far from the best candidates ran and were voted in. Votes were counted by polling, raising your hand. Should we change the thread to who supports having your vote bought? I suspect we would see a continual increase in the amount offered to solicit participation. We vote now in secret to preserve the sanctity of the vote. Privacy allows voters to not fear repercussions based on their vote. If you look at my thread above rxter my idea is a better one. Those that pay those running the most money get the best service. Think about it. Straight forward everyone is welcome to participate. Built in competition allows individuals to buy influence. It certainly because of it's transparency is honest. I have just never been a fan of tax credits!

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[flash]

when you vote, you have to show your registration just to be allowed to vote. they already record that you voted (not how you voted). a simple record of that could then be sent to the irs to then result in a tax credit. i'm just suggesting that people be rewarded for voting. it might encourage others.

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[Rap]

Would you include a COLA with that?

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[rhudeboye]

I also like your point of view RAP(your points made on page 2). But I have no faith that anything close to that could ever come to be. The controlling powers have too much power and too much greed.

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[Cloud9...68]

While I like the tax credit idea, as it would benefit me, it might have a wee bit of trouble getting passed into law, considering that something like 40% (it's too late for me to look up the actual number) of citizens don't have any tax liability. A mighty big voting block to be giving away...

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[Rap]

I sure think it would be unfair to exclude those folks who don't pay taxes! Instead of a credit perhaps we could hand out turkeys. The govt could give a loan or a grant to a unionized turkey producer. Think of the jobs that could be created and we could feed people at the same time. Imagine a slogan "Turkeys for Votes"!

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[tamathumper]

I vote, but I don't always feel good about the choices.

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[rhudeboye]

kinda on topic. No wrong answers here, just opinions.



What was the last big change made by government that had lasting benefits to the Nation or for humanity as a whole?

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[968Syncro]

[quote name='rhudeboye' timestamp='1320411591' post='117540']

What was the last big change made by government that had lasting benefits to the Nation or for humanity as a whole?

[/quote]

The Civil Rights Act of 1964, signed into law by Johnson.

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[flash]

at the risk of bringing up a very polarized topic, and sincerely hoping to avoid discussion of it, and rather merely to point out that it happened, i think women might have a more current change than that in mind, though it was the judicial branch, and not the legislative one, that made the change

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[lbpesq]

We are heading, inevitably, in the direction of some type of on-line voting. When that happens, I suspect the percentage of the population who votes will rise significantly. Things could get interesting.



Bill

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