Todd G. Simpson

Listening to the playground antics of the US government around the debt ceiling is very painful.  I still expect there will be a "last minute deal," but I also hope that the pathetic posturing that is bringing the US to the brink causes people to rethink the process. On NPR this morning there were two interesting comments on the underlying psychology that is aiding and abetting the current process. Short term considerations overwhelmingly override long term ones.  The example was that if I ask you to give up an ice-cream cone next year, it is easy to say "yes".  If I swing by right now with the desert tray, you will have a hard time saying "no".  The debate around the debt ceiling is really about long-term concerns....but the (somewhat artificial) deadline of August 2nd is making it into a negotiation about the short term. Men are hyper-competitive without women present to moderate things.  Maybe not too surprising, but it leads to men acting in no...

Such is the title of a great article in the Atlantic magazine. The article clearly articulates why the US political system is completely broken, and not even close to a "democracy".  In my view, the system has devolved into a religious war - there is no room for compromise, intelligence, facts, or the good of the people.  There is only room for bickering, hard stances, and 100% faith in your party. As many of the comments point out, while the article outlines some ideas for fixing the system...it gives no guidance as to "how."  Obama's social media campaign in the last election was largely one-way: he broadcast his message to people through SMS and twitter.  Perhaps two-way social media is now at a point where average people can have their voices heard.  That said, Google Groups or Facebook Groups don't seem to be organized enough, or mature enough, to handle the task of synthesizing the voice of large groups of individuals into something cohesive and co...