Are politicians getting stupider?

[Swash]

I'm beginning to wonder if there's something sinister at work here.
We've got politicians all over the world making absolutely unbelievable statements with no hint of irony.  We just had an Australian senator (and parliamentary secretary to the opposition leader) state that allowing gay marriage would lead to beastiality becoming acceptable.

I'm sure BC's already pointed it out, but it never stops being true - these people are elected and trusted to pass laws.

What really stinks is that I have absolutely no control over any of it.  I'm in a safe conservative seat with an MP that pretty much flies under the radar as far as outlandish comments goes.  I could campaign locally, get full community support and even get elected and it would not make a bit of difference to the number of out of touch morons who end up in government.  I might as well write amusing limericks on my ballot paper for all the difference it would make.

I'm starting to seriously consider putting together a kickstarter campaign to buy a fertile island nation somewhere.

[The Hanged Man]

I'm starting to seriously consider putting together a kickstarter campaign to buy a fertile island nation somewhere.

Well if it does come to that can I come? (my area is ran by the Lib Dems)

The Lib Dems are useless my town was ok till they took over, now look at it! It's a hole!
Not the kind of exciting hole either, the kind of place where everything looks run down and crappy. What gives me a stomach ache about it all is that some dumb constituents keep voting them in every election...

[TK]

It's an exercise in doublethink.

I'm always incredibly sceptical whether anyone who publically makes huge leaps in logic to the pont of lanacy actually believes in what they espouse.  Unless they actually are certifiably I feel that they are a deliberately destabalising element and make any rational discussion for one side or another seem less palitable by association.  Politics is essentially a psycological battle ground and things like this just serve to make the public less sure of the views that they hold. 

The pursuit of power and wealth by the unscrupulous is a dissociative game where they can disbelieve or believe what they say with no actual reference to what they may really think about a situation.  Quite possibly triplethink.

I'm not a conspiracy theorist I just know that the narcissist and the sociopath are the ones most likely to forge sucessful careers in deceitful environments and that they couldn't care less about the world outside of thier personal experience unless it serves them to feign interest. Obviously there are some good people out there in the land of politics but they rarely tend to be this vocal unless they are pushed beyond endurance.

[Desolo]

A distinct problem with goverment today is that it is run by politicians..... if it were run by the people it claims to represent we would all be better off.
And I mean EVERY where, not just in the USA.

Im no anarchist but sometimes I cant help but ask myself "Wouldnt this all be so much better if it was just completely liquidated and started again from scratch?"

NO party systems, votes done solely by merit of individuals and no more then one term for ANYTHING. and the electoral college? A joke, we've moved past its original use and its nothing more then another way for people to control the outcome. In this day an age it shouldnt be hard to go by popular vote alone.

[TK]

The problem with very a short tenure is that those in power would be crippled by social policy, to a large extent a new government is held to the policy of the outgoing government, some things they can change instantly but many of the things that actually affect people need to be wound down.  Changing policy at the drop of a hat where a large part of someones well being depends on it would be political suicide and would cause massive civil unrest.

People can be intensely politically polarised so having a system where we try out people with radically different ideas every year wouldn't be anarchy it would be chaos.

Not to say I don't agree with your sentiments, world politics really does need to look at cleaning house and to stop being driven by consumerism.

Electing people to power by popular vote in a society where people and celebrity are still seen as commodity would be disastrous, I would need to based on testimony of trust by an honest electorate or peer group. This kind of world governance would hinge on people actually knowing each other and their character, quite hard in nations of millions so world governance relies on bureaucracy, trying to make that system honest and transparent is the real challenge.

[Swash]

Yep, the biggest problem with true democracy is that the vast majority of voters have absolutely no interest at all in any given issue and quite a large proportion of those who DO have an interest are completely misinformed.

I've been doing spreadsheets all evening, so I've got numbers in my head.  Therefore I shall pull some out at random.

For any given issue:
70% of voters have no interest.
15% are interested but have their facts wrong.
10% are interested but want more information to weigh up the options.
5% are interested and ready to make an informed decision.

Thankyou for watching Swash's cynical political analysis.

[Desolo]

If only more people were interested in whats going on, it would help so much  that breakdown sounds pretty close to me....

[brujahonly]

I'm beginning to wonder if there's something sinister at work here.
We've got politicians all over the world making absolutely unbelievable statements with no hint of irony.  We just had an Australian senator (and parliamentary secretary to the opposition leader) state that allowing gay marriage would lead to beastiality becoming acceptable.

Well beastiality IS acceptable, since statistically more people are being killed by donkeys than plane crashes every year.

And where exactly can one have an encounter with "true democracy"? It is an utopia where every single person has the equal access to:

1) Basic needs such as food, shelter, hygene, free sexuality etc.
2) Advanced needs such as cultural activity, freedom of thought and speech.
3) Untainted, unbiased information from media.

In order to positively participate the decision making mechanism of the demos (people).

Where in the world can a people boast that they have all of it? None, because 3rd item in my list is unattainable at the moment.

[BlueCross]

I'm beginning to wonder if there's something sinister at work here.
We've got politicians all over the world making absolutely unbelievable statements with no hint of irony.  We just had an Australian senator (and parliamentary secretary to the opposition leader) state that allowing gay marriage would lead to beastiality becoming acceptable.

Well beastiality IS acceptable, since statistically more people are being killed by donkeys than plane crashes every year...

It was really hard for me to get past this sentence...

[brujahonly]

I'm beginning to wonder if there's something sinister at work here.
We've got politicians all over the world making absolutely unbelievable statements with no hint of irony.  We just had an Australian senator (and parliamentary secretary to the opposition leader) state that allowing gay marriage would lead to beastiality becoming acceptable.

Well beastiality IS acceptable, since statistically more people are being killed by donkeys than plane crashes every year...

It was really hard for me to get past this sentence...

Throughout the world! It's got to be legitimate!

[TK]

So this is like a donkey based fatal attraction thing?  All these jilted donkeys go on the rampage when their illicit affairs come to an end?  I think you're confusing things Glenn Close didn't look that much like a donkey

[Swash]

Maybe it's a remake starring Sarah Jessica Parker?

[brujahonly]

I won't stand while you're humiliating the victimized donkeys! They've been men's second best sexual companion since ancient times, a tradition which mankind carefully preserves even today.

No really, this is a fact of life. And an ugly facet of humanity who doesn't have access to ANY social life or personal improvement. In fact, every single one of us could be in the same shoes, providing that we grew in a mountain range far away from any near-adequate educational facilities and especially if our daddies taught us how to bang a farm animal (or family member, as far as perversions go!). 

Reverting back to the original topic; these numerous people among humankind have the same right to vote as the rest. And among the rest, there are other perversions, supersititions, traditions and ignorance (bliss?) to pollute the mind.

For the next elections, I am going to vote for a donkey, if available, just to show the world that the harrassed ones also have support.

[The Hanged Man]

For the next elections, I am going to vote for a donkey, if available, just to show the world that the harrassed ones also have support.

I'd be careful about voting for animals... they never keep their promises...

Take this douche bag who promised me free bannanas for example...

[brujahonly]

Does this guy look like he would break a promise?