re: #95 dangerman

- Political parties lead to divisiveness, and they should
- If we have honest disagreements, arguments are good
- Arguments are good only if they lead to statesmanship, or it’s just theater
- Statesmanship *is* compromise
——
Also
Ben Franklin thought the only hope for democracy was if people respected each other enough to compromise

what’s going on with some of these lame duck maneuvers is more proof positive that one side and only one side is abdicating its position in this process

they think they’re solidifying it. ultimately the curtain will be drawn back and they will lose it all

Our system of government is ultimately designed to generate consensus. You need to get 218 of 435 people from 50 different states to agree to something, then you need to get 51 of 100 other people from those 50 states to agree to that exact same thing in the exact same language, then you need a president to sign off on it and enforce it, then you have the courts to make sure its constitutional and being implemented/enforced fairly. Oh, and we stagger our elections to prevent political fads from taking hold.

Unfortunately, this all breaks down when you have people involved who don’t believe in compromise or building toward a consensus. And that’s where we are now.