Nice Try, Regressives.

Government Is A Problem; Government Is A Solution

Not really. Government simply is.  It's a tool that can be used for good or for evil.  Nattering on about "the government" is just talking about yourself, because you, me, and several multi-national corporations are the government.

Kiplinger's has a fine essay on the futility of arguing over "Big Government".

In short, we want the government to be there when we need it, whether it’s to rescue the financial system or to plow snow covered streets. But when government is inefficient and wasteful -- or doing something we don’t believe is wise or critical -- then it’s a different story.

*Source: Kiplinger

The elephant in the room is the multinational coporations, which have been given carte blanche to do what they will in terms of spending on elections.  Supporters to a man say that a corporation is a person, and can't be denied the right to speak.

Well, that all sounds good in theory.  As Dad used to say: "Everything works in theory".

The counter-argument is that it's easier to organize money than it is to organize people.  Who's got the money? The corporations.  It gets you media buys, billboards, flyers, etc.

People gets you people.  They have limited money, limited time, and they aren't usually able to hire out PR agents or bundle bribes contributions to legislators.

Now here's a fun option: Google TV ads could potentially be a leveller.  I wonder if we could have flash ads, like we do flash mobs?

But that's all flash and glitter.  What the people in the country need is information that's correct, that's put together, and that shines a light on what's really going on.  We need to connect the dots.

More on that later.

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*Sorry about any rendering or ads, it was required by Kiplinger.

We've been doing this a long, long time

The first self-executing bill was the U.S. Constitution.

Of all the issues that the Anti-Federalists gave for rejecting the new constitution, the lack of a bill of rights was the most compelling for many people. In the ratifying documents of five states, requests or demands for a bill of rights were included in the text, along with suggested lists (see the ratifying documents of Massachusetts, South Carolina, New Hampshire,Virginia, and New York. Rhode Island also included a list, but they ratified the Constitution after the first Congress approved the Bill of Rights).

Mind the Gap

I got into another Internet Spat this week, 'cause nothing was on TV.  For the most part, we were talking past each other, because the basic reality of the situation was pretty simple.  It got a little silly toward the end, but nearly halfway civil as we finally agreed to disagree.

(Normally I cut off "debate" when the person in question starts calling names, but like I said, there was nothing on TV, and there was some halfway decent argument in the fellow's posts)

Anyway, I got this little gem in my email the other day, "When Debating a Liberal, Start With First Principles", by hardworking Big C Conservative Mark Alexander.  It's a nice little essay on how to slide your way around talking points without having a real conversation.  He's at least honest enough to say that when you're up against another True Beleiver, it's not going to end with agreement, but with a scorched earth, and the only thing that counts is ammunition.

I remember seeing a similar article after the 2006 election.  It was titled "How to talk to a Conservative" or similar, but damned if I can find it now.  It was taken from texts on how to convert former religious folks and smokers.  I found it a smarmy bit of writing and disregareded it. 

eHow.com has a surprisingly good article on simply having a discussion.  Yes! Magazine, who's new to me, has a whole series on talking past the gap.

I've been watching the Coffee Party, which hasn't decided what it'll be when it grows up, but it shows promise.  Guess we'll see.

In other news, Redstate has banned Birthers.  Good move, I think.  Wonder if my Rep knows?

You can't say you didn't see it coming...

Here.  This is where we passed the "PATRIOT" act.  Notice how few people were in the room.  Notice how if it weren't for Maxine Waters, working all stinking day long, there wouldn't even be any recorded votes.  Don't forget the parts where Congressmen come in and say "hey, this bill is different from the one I agreed to last night".  Remember for a few months later, other Congressmen (Republican and Democrat) objecting to bits of the bill that were inserted while they weren't looking, and quietly removed them.

Conrast with the political theater that has been the health care debate.  How many people have had their hands in this pie?  How many trees killed, how many hard drives thrashed, how many good proposals stripped out and/or ignored?

Opponents have had their chance, gotten in their hits.  It's time for the grownups to get to work.  You can be part of the problem or part of the solution.

Oh, one more thing: you're welcome.