Election Thread 2016

**Diff-chan** · 05 Feb 2016, 11:37 AM

Originally Posted by Andrew

Right now? Yes.

After Super Tuesday, the Trump/Cruz clown show will be over. Rubio will emerge as the serious candidate. A minority freshman senator with little in the way of accomplishments but a compelling personal story and an outlook that is unfailingly optimistic. And in the other corner, Hillary Clinton.

I feel like I've seen this show before...

Have you listened to Rubio speak? He's actually not that optimistic. He's saying the same nutty things as Cruz, he just has a prettier face.

And he's not even that good speaking. He doesn't sound like he has confidence in what he is saying, probably because he doesn't.

**A Robot Bit Me** · 05 Feb 2016, 11:55 AM

Originally Posted by Yoshi

That's a ridiculous statement in the context of lobbying and the like. It's hardly (publicly traded) corporations vs. the government. It's more like individuals and small businesses against both.

This is the thrust of Robert Reich's new book Saving Capitalism--that it's not a matter of government intervention versus free market, it's about who gets to make the rules about property. As long as government is a prosthesis of big business, then corporations vs. government is totally arbitrary at best and, at worst, distracts us from the true problem.

It's really good! A Yoshi would dig it as much as a Diff-Chan imo.

**Cowutopia** · 05 Feb 2016, 01:16 PM

Originally Posted by Yoshi

That's a ridiculous statement in the context of lobbying and the like. It's hardly (publicly traded) corporations vs. the government. It's more like individuals and small businesses against both.

You can look at it this way except individuals and small businesses have already lost. The path to competition lies through government intervention.

Individuals and small businesses simply aren't viable enough anymore.

In any case, we need to separate out the corporate money from Washington if we are going to shrink the government. Bernie's focus on campaign finance reform is my number one issue. The established corporations can't make the rules if there is going to be a healthy market. Also we need to save enough of the planet for it to matter.

The only path forwards seems to be through Bernie. Start with campaign finance reform and civil rights protections and justice system reforms and that can transition into a more centered, republican stance. Right now we need some serious fixing up of our systems.