From previous threat -- listener: "Bill, you are giving me the impression that you think all Independents and Progressives are opposed to government.<<
I can only attribute this to the way Blogspot arranges posts. What I said rather explicitly referenced Alan's remarks about anarchists. Anarchists have traditionally been viewed as far-left rather than far-right, but the distinction may in fact be meaningless in this contest.
From the previous thread -- listener: "As for "electoral victory" you highlight one of my complaints! I believe the Electoral College method is outdated and should be done away with. The vision of our Founders was to have multiple parties! We have handcuffed our process with this two-party fiasco. We need only have instant runoff voting."
Abolishing the Electoral College would change nothing so long as we directly elect the head of the Executive Branch. Whether instant-runoff voting would change anything is less clear. It would certainly increase the number of votes a third-party candidate received, and therefore the attention given them. It might also provide an opportunity for implicit coalitions: "Vote for me, but don't forget to vote X #2." That sort of thing might possibly be enough to make a third party viable. And just as an anecdote, this sort of thing definitely affected the choice of a site for the 2015 World Science Fiction Convention. Orlando and Spokane both promoted the slogan "Vote No. 2," with the result that Spokane won even though Helsinki got the most first-place votes.
The electoral college does have the advantage of (usually) delivering a clear winner. Changing it would be most difficult, and probably risky. The national popular vote compact is safer, IMO. Whether it is wiser I know not. Our first-past-the-post electoral system may imply a two-party system, or it may be the result of something more subtle. Back in the late 60's (as memory serves me) Congress passed a law forbidding multi-seat congressional districts, which are not forbidden by the Constitution; that was purposely done to prevent third-party influence. The "old men" who set up the Japanese electoral system in the late 19th Century (and distrusted democracy) purposely designed it with multi-seat electoral districts for stability (and made the administrative departments very powerful). It continues to work as intended.
Experience in Illinois suggests that multi-seat districts do not inherently favor multiple parties. There was a time when Illinois House districts had three seats. But parties were only required to nominate two representatives, and that's what happened. The system guaranteed that the minority party in each district would still have a seat (except for that year in my district when the Republicans managed to totally blow it), but I don't believe there was ever a third-party state representative.
The average number of seats in a Japanese lower house electoral district is five or six, some less, some more. The parties know almost exactly how many votes they have, and therefore how many candidates they can elect. If they add just one candidate too many, they may fail to win a single seat--so they are very careful. And for the most part, Japanese political parties are only loose electoral and political associations, which come and go. They are not at all like the typical European parties, which have relatively stable political philosophies/positions. Very few members of the parliament are attorneys, and they don't write the bills they introduce--that is done by the career bureaucrats in the relevant government agencies. The influence of the German Imperial constitution is still very evident, as is that of the Napoleonic Code.
Out watching honey bees collect pollen from the blooming goldenrod today. You can get pretty close if you stand quietly. I didn't realize they have pollen sacks on both back legs There are several varieties of bee feeding there from big fat fuzzy ones to tiny little skinny ones. It's quite interesting.
The two principal kinds of bees we have are carpenter bees (much like bumblebees) and what appear to be honeybees. They have distinct differences in favored flowers. No goldenrod around here, so can't say if they would both be attracted to it. I once saw an article about all the types of wild bees that had been found in Berkeley; it was remarkable. One that stuck in my mind was green!
If there's interest, I have an in-house expert. My son was once co-author of a conference paper on the kinds of wild bees in the Chicago area. And we have loads of goldenrod in our back yard.
Bernie is FIRST!!!
ReplyDeleteSee multiple new notes on the last thread!!
A good read:
ReplyDeleteIs Facebook Even Capable Of Stopping An Influence Campaign On Its Platform?[Click] Here is the included link to the story about Facebook fires trending team, and algorithm without humans goes crazy[Click]
And now to listener's comments on the previous (not last, surely!) thread.
--Alan
From previous threat -- listener: "Bill, you are giving me the impression that you think all Independents and Progressives are opposed to government.<<
ReplyDeleteI can only attribute this to the way Blogspot arranges posts. What I said rather explicitly referenced Alan's remarks about anarchists. Anarchists have traditionally been viewed as far-left rather than far-right, but the distinction may in fact be meaningless in this contest.
From the previous thread -- listener: "As for "electoral victory" you highlight one of my complaints! I believe the Electoral College method is outdated and should be done away with. The vision of our Founders was to have multiple parties! We have handcuffed our process with this two-party fiasco. We need only have instant runoff voting."
ReplyDeleteAbolishing the Electoral College would change nothing so long as we directly elect the head of the Executive Branch. Whether instant-runoff voting would change anything is less clear. It would certainly increase the number of votes a third-party candidate received, and therefore the attention given them. It might also provide an opportunity for implicit coalitions: "Vote for me, but don't forget to vote X #2." That sort of thing might possibly be enough to make a third party viable. And just as an anecdote, this sort of thing definitely affected the choice of a site for the 2015 World Science Fiction Convention. Orlando and Spokane both promoted the slogan "Vote No. 2," with the result that Spokane won even though Helsinki got the most first-place votes.
The electoral college does have the advantage of (usually) delivering a clear winner. Changing it would be most difficult, and probably risky. The national popular vote compact is safer, IMO. Whether it is wiser I know not. Our first-past-the-post electoral system may imply a two-party system, or it may be the result of something more subtle. Back in the late 60's (as memory serves me) Congress passed a law forbidding multi-seat congressional districts, which are not forbidden by the Constitution; that was purposely done to prevent third-party influence. The "old men" who set up the Japanese electoral system in the late 19th Century (and distrusted democracy) purposely designed it with multi-seat electoral districts for stability (and made the administrative departments very powerful). It continues to work as intended.
DeleteAlan
List of electoral systems by country [Click] Certainly interesting!
Delete--Alan
Experience in Illinois suggests that multi-seat districts do not inherently favor multiple parties. There was a time when Illinois House districts had three seats. But parties were only required to nominate two representatives, and that's what happened. The system guaranteed that the minority party in each district would still have a seat (except for that year in my district when the Republicans managed to totally blow it), but I don't believe there was ever a third-party state representative.
DeleteThe average number of seats in a Japanese lower house electoral district is five or six, some less, some more. The parties know almost exactly how many votes they have, and therefore how many candidates they can elect. If they add just one candidate too many, they may fail to win a single seat--so they are very careful. And for the most part, Japanese political parties are only loose electoral and political associations, which come and go. They are not at all like the typical European parties, which have relatively stable political philosophies/positions. Very few members of the parliament are attorneys, and they don't write the bills they introduce--that is done by the career bureaucrats in the relevant government agencies. The influence of the German Imperial constitution is still very evident, as is that of the Napoleonic Code.
DeleteAlan
Out watching honey bees collect pollen from the blooming goldenrod today. You can get pretty close if you stand quietly. I didn't realize they have pollen sacks on both back legs There are several varieties of bee feeding there from big fat fuzzy ones to tiny little skinny ones. It's quite interesting.
ReplyDeleteThe two principal kinds of bees we have are carpenter bees (much like bumblebees) and what appear to be honeybees. They have distinct differences in favored flowers. No goldenrod around here, so can't say if they would both be attracted to it. I once saw an article about all the types of wild bees that had been found in Berkeley; it was remarkable. One that stuck in my mind was green!
DeleteAlan
If there's interest, I have an in-house expert. My son was once co-author of a conference paper on the kinds of wild bees in the Chicago area. And we have loads of goldenrod in our back yard.
DeleteJudge: Sessions Can’t Withhold Public Safety Grant Money To Sanctuary Cities[Click] At least for now…
ReplyDeleteBipartisan House Bill Aimed At Protecting Special Counsels Unveiled[Click]
Castro Response To US Diplomats’ Head Injuries In Cuba Surprises Washington[Click]
Solid and liquid cats, didgeridoos and cheese disgust scoop Ig Nobel awards[Click] The idea of taking up digeridoo therapy during my retirement IS rather fetching, I must say!
—Alan