Eugine_Nier comments on On saving the world - Less Wrong

101 Post author: So8res 30 January 2014 08:00PM

You are viewing a comment permalink. View the original post to see all comments and the full post content.

Article Navigation

Comments (166)

Comments (166)

You are viewing a single comment's thread. Show more comments above.

Comment author: ChristianKl 31 January 2014 03:56:56PM 0 points [-]

In this Brit's NSHO, the main problem with the US system is the lack of a limit on campaign spending.

You can't really limit campaign spending. If you forbid a billionaire from buying ads they can go ahead and buy themselves a TV channel or a newspaper. Of course not everyone can buy a newspaper, your limit shifts power to those people who are wealthy.

You can't create a situation in which nobody can spend money in a way to increase the likelihood that a particular politician gets elected. Money is just to useful for you to be able to pass a law that prevents it to be used to effect public opinion.

If you start with hard limits the money just takes a less obvious road.

On the other hand public funding of elections actually works. You actually need well funded parties that are funded through government money as actors if you don't want rich people to dominate the political system.

Comment author: Eugine_Nier 04 February 2014 04:11:55AM 0 points [-]

On the other hand public funding of elections actually works. You actually need well funded parties that are funded through government money as actors if you don't want rich people to dominate the political system.

Then you get into the question of what qualifies as a party for purposes of getting public money. I can see this degenerating into a system for keeping non-established parties out.

Comment author: ChristianKl 04 February 2014 12:46:07PM 0 points [-]

Then you get into the question of what qualifies as a party for purposes of getting public money. I can see this degenerating into a system for keeping non-established parties out.

I think our German system works quite well in that regard. The main reason the pirate party didn't join the Bundestag is they were largely incompetent. Infighting weakened them. Snowden gave them the perfect topic but all they did do is being reactive and saying the establishment is bad instead of developing policy ideas with they could have pushed into reality.

The main problem with establishing a new party is getting competent people together who are willing to think deeply about public policy and who don't destroy each other through infighting.

Comment author: Eugine_Nier 05 February 2014 07:14:29AM -2 points [-]

I think our German system works quite well in that regard. The main reason the pirate party didn't join the Bundestag is they were largely incompetent.

I don't know that much about the German system, how is the public funding allocated among the political parties? Did the Pirate Party get public funding? What about say the AfD?

Powered by Reddit Powered by Reddit