[geeks] Ping...

[Joshua D Boyd]

On Tue, Oct 29, 2002 at 03:56:08PM -0500, Andrew Weiss wrote:

> But I'm a socialist #1, and #2 I'd do away with the electoral college and
> have a real vote.  I'd also do away with a two party system... I think we
> should have 3 or more... that way you don't have two parties that are
> basically the same and compete on petty irrelevant details.  I am for strong
> central and responsible government.  I'd like to start a standards
> organization for everything (i.e. things that aren't yet standardized yet...
> and hold companies to it)... for instance shoe size.  My girlfriend loved to
> buy a certain brand of shoes at a store (it was the store brand)... They
> redefined their shoe sizes without warning, and her old size no longer
> fits... and there isn't a replacement size.  We held the same shoes up side
> by side and the difference was dramatic... there was no justification for
> this, it was completely arbitrary.

But there are lots of potential problems here.  Like, what if the
government standard shoe sizings are stupid.  It's not like government
standards haven't been stupid in the past.  Look at ATM, for instance.

The only thing we need standards for are things are are likely to be
cheated on.  Like the amount of gas you actually are buying.  To this
extend, maybe a government decree of what a megabyte is would be usefull
so we actually get the harddrive we think we are getting, and the ram we
expect (although it usually not screwy like harddrives).

Also, exactly how do we have a two party system?  I know that in effect
we have a two party system, but how is the government reinforcing it?
Ie, what would have to change to get rid of it?  Party caps (if your
party has more than x% of congress, more can't be elected despite the
people voting for them?)?

I don't think you can get a goverment that is both large (and anything
central to the whole US would have to be large) and responsible.  That
would require trustworthy people only are allowed to run, but who is to
say who is trust worthy?  Certainly the voters do a bad job, and the
electoral college ain't so hot either.  

-- 
Joshua D. Boyd