Quote:
Originally Posted by Botnst
The Founders believed that a populist government would create a tyranny against the minority. So they set-up a system in which each state's individual power was equally balanced against every other state in the upper house while the more populous states would have greater power in the lower house. Since people are the source of wealth, that is why spending bills originate in the lower house.
The election of the presidency is through a compromise of the 2 houses of government in which the electors are mostly selected by the population of each state, moderated by the 2 electors each state is apportioned regardless of population.
Currently, the 2 major parties have devised a "winner-takes-all" system within each state (with a couple of exceptions). For example, Florida has 25 electors -- one for each congressional district and 2 for the senators. In 2005 all of the electors went to Bush.
Why should that be the case? Why not have each elector from each congressional district vote according to his district and the 2 senatorial electors vote their conscience?
And so forth with most of the remainder of the states.
The reason is that the 2 major parties recognized that true proportional representation would allow 3rd parties into government. They would lose control. The 2 major parties are all about power. Control is a manifestation of power.
B
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This is all true, but the other side of the coin is that the sysetm of having two senators per state regardless of size or population was also, perhaps more importangly, a politically pragmatic solution. They passed it that way because it was the only way the small states would agree to join this new country.
And for the same reason we will never (probably) change that feature of our wonderful, flawed, sysem of government. (Its still the best one that I know of).
I don't really understand the details of how Canada's system and England's system works but I would say that it has some very good features that I like, such as not having elections at set intervals, thereby eleminating our expensive never ending election cycles. Their system seems to be fairly stable too and folks enjoy individual freedom much like ours.
Tom W
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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.
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..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.