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Surely it would be even better if Supreme Court Justices were not allowed to be partisan in the first place?
Isn't the whole point of a judge to be impartial?
Isn't the whole point of a judge to be impartial?
America - The Official Thread
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Danoff
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I guess, if we were rewriting this from scratch, I might prefer that the supreme court was elected. I know I've ranted about this here before, but the US has this absolutely insane system in which we elect local judges who handle cases like a local robbery, graffiti, or traffic ticket disputes. We elect those judges for who knows what reason. They have essentially no power over policy - over things which could be considered political. They merely interpret the law as it is written.
Conversely, we do NOT elect supreme court justice who do have the power to change policy - things which could be considered political. I have no idea why this would be the case. A local judge who has no policy power should be appointed. A supreme court justice who has policy power should be accountable directly to the people.
But since this would be wildly different from the current system, I'll take term limits as a band aid.
Conversely, we do NOT elect supreme court justice who do have the power to change policy - things which could be considered political. I have no idea why this would be the case. A local judge who has no policy power should be appointed. A supreme court justice who has policy power should be accountable directly to the people.
But since this would be wildly different from the current system, I'll take term limits as a band aid.
If that were possible, it would be great.
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Never understood why Sheriff was an elected position in a lot of communities. While I get that voting demonstrates the trust of the majority, law enforcement shouldn't be something that happens along party lines.
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I was thinking this morning - could this presidency, and should Kamala win, the following presidency set a precedent for a more effective executive branch? It's clear that Biden has refocused on doing actual President stuff that he arguably hasn't been able to do for at least the last 6 months (which is a little crazy). But if you really think about it, Biden has had to filter his policy through the lens his re-election gambit since basically day 1. Imagine a presidency elected for 4 years and then focusing solely on that job for 4 years - lame duck from the start, so to speak. Obviously there is personal ambition to remain in office for many Presidents, but a POTUS-V-POTUS 8 year cadence seems like it could be a very effective way to govern, from a party standpoint at least.
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- TexRex72
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A good analysis from Heather Cox Richardson, link below.
Here's a condensed version:-
President Joe Biden announced the successful release of four Americans and one British-Russian activist who had been unjustly imprisoned in Russia. The complex prisoner swap, which involved the United States, Russia, and at least seven other countries, also included the release of seven Russian political prisoners who had been detained for opposing President Vladimir Putin's regime. The swap highlights the U.S.'s ongoing commitment to securing the freedom of its citizens held abroad and supporting those who stand up for democracy and human rights. Biden emphasized that the deal is a testament to the power of diplomacy and the strength of international alliances.
The exchange was a major diplomatic achievement, especially given the backdrop of ongoing tensions between the U.S. and Russia over the war in Ukraine and other geopolitical issues. The U.S. had been negotiating the release of these detainees for some time, and the deal was nearly derailed by the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny earlier in the year. Nonetheless, Biden and his team persisted, working closely with allied nations including Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Norway, and Turkey to bring the negotiations to a successful conclusion. The swap did not involve any monetary compensation or sanctions relief, but rather the exchange of individuals who were being used as political bargaining chips by various governments.
While the prisoner swap is a significant diplomatic victory, the Biden administration was careful to clarify that it does not represent a broader breakthrough in U.S.-Russia relations. Tensions remain high, particularly due to Russia's ongoing aggression in Ukraine and its closer ties with adversarial nations like China, North Korea, and Iran. The deal may, however, indicate that Putin is facing increasing internal pressures due to the war's impact on Russian society and may be seeking to negotiate on other issues. Despite this, the administration remains committed to standing up to Putin's aggression and supporting its European allies, as demonstrated by the broad international cooperation that made the swap possible.
I encourage you to read on and subscribe to her "Letters from an American".
Here's a condensed version:-
President Joe Biden announced the successful release of four Americans and one British-Russian activist who had been unjustly imprisoned in Russia. The complex prisoner swap, which involved the United States, Russia, and at least seven other countries, also included the release of seven Russian political prisoners who had been detained for opposing President Vladimir Putin's regime. The swap highlights the U.S.'s ongoing commitment to securing the freedom of its citizens held abroad and supporting those who stand up for democracy and human rights. Biden emphasized that the deal is a testament to the power of diplomacy and the strength of international alliances.
The exchange was a major diplomatic achievement, especially given the backdrop of ongoing tensions between the U.S. and Russia over the war in Ukraine and other geopolitical issues. The U.S. had been negotiating the release of these detainees for some time, and the deal was nearly derailed by the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny earlier in the year. Nonetheless, Biden and his team persisted, working closely with allied nations including Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Norway, and Turkey to bring the negotiations to a successful conclusion. The swap did not involve any monetary compensation or sanctions relief, but rather the exchange of individuals who were being used as political bargaining chips by various governments.
While the prisoner swap is a significant diplomatic victory, the Biden administration was careful to clarify that it does not represent a broader breakthrough in U.S.-Russia relations. Tensions remain high, particularly due to Russia's ongoing aggression in Ukraine and its closer ties with adversarial nations like China, North Korea, and Iran. The deal may, however, indicate that Putin is facing increasing internal pressures due to the war's impact on Russian society and may be seeking to negotiate on other issues. Despite this, the administration remains committed to standing up to Putin's aggression and supporting its European allies, as demonstrated by the broad international cooperation that made the swap possible.
I encourage you to read on and subscribe to her "Letters from an American".
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Weird.
Edit: Link. Be warned that there's a popup to sign up and the X to close it appears in the top left--absolutely sociopathic.
Aberdeen councilman arrested on suspicion of child rape
Carter is listed as being part of the Aberdeen City Council as of Thursday, no action having been taken following an executive council session.
www.seattletimes.com
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RFK Jr and what he did to a dead bear. Perfectly normal behavior of course.
www.independent.co.uk
RFK Jr wildly confesses to dumping dead bear cub in Central Park a decade ago
After brain worms and accusations of eating a barbecued dog, the long-shot presidential candidate is now faced with yet another absurd tale from his colorful past
www.independent.co.uk
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RFK Jr and what he did to a dead bear. Perfectly normal behavior of course.
RFK Jr wildly confesses to dumping dead bear cub in Central Park a decade ago
After brain worms and accusations of eating a barbecued dog, the long-shot presidential candidate is now faced with yet another absurd tale from his colorful past
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There's something clinically wrong with RFK JR and the fact that anybody would want him to hold the most powerful office in the world is mind blowing.
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I say elect him and let's see what the brain parasite has to offer.
I just took this political quiz.
I'll post my results in a bit, but I will say that some of the questions needed more emphatic answers.
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The Republican party under trump has drifted to be the polar opposite of Libertarian...fiscally liberal (or at least trending that direction hard, with overt government intervention in the economy to pick winners & losers) and socially conservative. This is what's known as hell.
I think this is why we see people like @Danoff @Joey D @Duke and myself aligning more with the Democratic party...half right is better than all wrong.
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No one is more surprised (and disappointed) than I am about that.
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Danoff
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For me it's a mix. I'm drifting more to the left for a bunch of reasons.
1) What you said, the republicans have been drifting fiscally liberal / socially conservative for a long time.
2) I don't see money as something you earn from hard work anymore, and it loosens my idea of it as fundamentally unimpeachable property. Money (and other property) makes money all on its own - quite a lot of it actually. So much so that as you enter higher financial brackets you exit the concept of really "earning" money at all. Your earnings more and more come from just being a property owner. This eases my concerns over taxation, because a LOT of that value depends on and is enabled by a stable government.
3) Authoritarianism is its own risk. This last one is the biggest reason. I don't just vote democrat to avoid socially conservative things like bans on abortion or restrictions on gender. I vote democrat because for now democrats still believe in voting. Voiding democracy isn't socially conservative, it's authoritarian. And what's more precious to me than money, or even some personal freedoms, is the fundamental principle of representative government. I guess we should be thankful we still have a party that believes in it at all.
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Democratic mainstay....about what I expected though I feel the questions were too binary as is typical for this kind of stuff.
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FTFY
dylansan
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Not particularly a surprising result, but I was already skeptical of this particular division into distinct categories, and the questions did not help with that.
It's not just a lack of nuance. I don't think the average duration of prison sentences is a major issue—the issue is that some things are criminalized that shouldn't be, or not prosecuted but should be, and some people are given harsher or lighter sentences based on their class/race/etc. I don't think that question was very insightful, nor the military strength one. I'm more concerned about the use of our military to support bad actors, and the wasteful spending and carelessness with money.
I'm also not as concerned with people saying offensive things as I am with targeted hate toward people or groups.
Maybe these questions are good predictors of where people sit on the political spectrum, but I kinda don't think these results really tell anyone anything important, especially the categories which seem to be chosen specifically to divide people into nearly identically sized groups.
Also, the position of outsider left near the middle seems bizarre given that most of my answers would probably be considered extreme leftist views by anyone else.
I do notice that "Independent" tends to be used synonymously with "Undecided" or even "Moderate" even when a lot of people on the left are Independents because they feel both major parties are too far to the right—not because they feel torn between two parties to their left and right. If this questionnaire is using "outsider" to mean "Independent", it would explain the issue.
It's not just a lack of nuance. I don't think the average duration of prison sentences is a major issue—the issue is that some things are criminalized that shouldn't be, or not prosecuted but should be, and some people are given harsher or lighter sentences based on their class/race/etc. I don't think that question was very insightful, nor the military strength one. I'm more concerned about the use of our military to support bad actors, and the wasteful spending and carelessness with money.
I'm also not as concerned with people saying offensive things as I am with targeted hate toward people or groups.
Maybe these questions are good predictors of where people sit on the political spectrum, but I kinda don't think these results really tell anyone anything important, especially the categories which seem to be chosen specifically to divide people into nearly identically sized groups.
Also, the position of outsider left near the middle seems bizarre given that most of my answers would probably be considered extreme leftist views by anyone else.
I do notice that "Independent" tends to be used synonymously with "Undecided" or even "Moderate" even when a lot of people on the left are Independents because they feel both major parties are too far to the right—not because they feel torn between two parties to their left and right. If this questionnaire is using "outsider" to mean "Independent", it would explain the issue.
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