[TrashMan]

Drop by my country and you'll be glad you live in USA.

Our dear president is a pathological liar. He constantly smiles like an idiot and travels around the world, insults his critics (using strret vocabulary).
In 1967, while Yugoslavia was still in tact, he condemned all who signed the "Declarations or rights and position of the Croatian Language", demanding them arrested for crimes against brootherhood and unity.

In 1991 he attacked in media the former YU diplomat B. Lončar, since he was instumental in the UN vote in a weapons embagro (which hurt us far more than it hurt Serbia) and now he appointed the same man as his councelor, now saying that with the embargo he helped Croatia.
His goes against his own taped stances and statements like they never existed..all the time. Most of the media are on his side to boot...

Our prime ministed is no better. He's a populist and a yes man, kissing up to foreign powers. He would sell his own mother if that would get him some points with them.

The mayor of our capital is part of hte ruling party and all good jobs and positions in teh city go to his friends. They're even kicking people of good spots on the cemetary and taking those spots for themselves and friends.

We control no bannks, or financial institutions, our most sucesfull companies have been sold out and wel las half of our cost.


I have come to a simple conclusion - democracy is a procedure of making people apathetic to whatever happens, dumbifying them so that whoever is in charge can rule without opposition.

If so, then we must be the most democratic people in the world, since no one here does anything about it.

[Turey]

They're even kicking people of good spots on the cemetery and taking those spots for themselves and friends.

Little girl:(holding flowers to put on here grandma's grave) Where's my grandma?
Man: We had to move you grandmother to a pet cemetary so that my father could have his TV buried next to him.

[BlackDove]

Aha... ha... ha.

That was funny.

....

Don't pursue a profession in comedy.

[Sarafan]

I have come to a simple conclusion - democracy is a procedure of making people apathetic to whatever happens, dumbifying them so that whoever is in charge can rule without opposition.

If so, then we must be the most democratic people in the world, since no one here does anything about it.

You know, I once thought that, but I think that the only problems of democracy are 1) the people are apathetic (but they always become apathetic in every kind of government) and 2) even if the people werent apathetic, there arent many ways for them to punish people who abuse their power. Unfortunately you're not the only one who lives in that kind of country.

[BlackDove]

Of course not.

His country's name currently is "Road to a similar America".

America already adopts the above system fully. He's in disbelief because it's going from bad to worse, and he can see the difference in motion.

[Nuclear1]

I have come to a simple conclusion - democracy is a procedure of making people apathetic to whatever happens, dumbifying them so that whoever is in charge can rule without opposition.

The problem with democracy is that it gives people the freedom to be apathetic; democracy in itself doesn't make people apathetic.   It's the citizen's duty to vote and participate in the government, but how many Western democracies (besides Australia, with compulsory voting) actually enjoys high voter turnout or widespread political activism?

[Tyrian]

(besides Australia, with compulsory voting)

They force people to vote?  I like it.  Maybe we should adopt that in the USA.  What happens if you don't vote?

[Nuclear1]

(besides Australia, with compulsory voting)

They force people to vote?  I like it.  Maybe we should adopt that in the USA.  What happens if you don't vote?

I believe the penalty is a fine, but I'd have to look it up.

Ah, here we are:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_electoral_system#Compulsory_voting

Voting is compulsory both at federal elections and at elections for the state and territory legislatures. In some states voting at municipal elections is also compulsory. Although about 5% of enrolled voters fail to vote at most elections, prosecutions for failure to vote are rare and the fine is nominal.

...

Over 95% of eligible Australians attend polling, and in both 2001 and 2004 only around 5% of Representatives votes were informal.

Not that bad.

[IceFire]

(besides Australia, with compulsory voting)

They force people to vote?  I like it.  Maybe we should adopt that in the USA.  What happens if you don't vote?

I think they have fines and jail time.  I'm definately infavour of compulsory voting.  I've voted in every local, provincial, and federal election I've been allowed to vote in.  It shouldn't be an option...you live in this country, you're a stakeholder in the countries future, you need to be responsible enough to take the time to go down to a polling station and fill out your ballot.

[Nuclear1]

(besides Australia, with compulsory voting)

They force people to vote?  I like it.  Maybe we should adopt that in the USA.  What happens if you don't vote?

I think they have fines and jail time.  I'm definately infavour of compulsory voting.  I've voted in every local, provincial, and federal election I've been allowed to vote in.  It shouldn't be an option...you live in this country, you're a stakeholder in the countries future, you need to be responsible enough to take the time to go down to a polling station and fill out your ballot.

That was actually the thinking behind Australia's system to an extent.  Problem is, technology is making it an issue in the USA, with people saying "well, I can do just about everything else from home on the computer, so why not vote here too? I don't have time to go down to the polling station..." etc.  People who work and don't have access to the polling stations early in the morning have a legitimate excuse, on the other hand;  because of that, I actually believe making election day a national holiday would benefit those who are usually occupied with their jobs.

[Sarafan]

Compulsory vote is a good thing, it goes a good way to end the apathy but a bigger problem is the quality of most of the people who want to get in office and once they do, its near impossible to get them out, if there was a tool for removing them easily, things would actually get moving.

[Turey]

That was actually the thinking behind Australia's system to an extent.  Problem is, technology is making it an issue in the USA, with people saying "well, I can do just about everything else from home on the computer, so why not vote here too? I don't have time to go down to the polling station..." etc.  People who work and don't have access to the polling stations early in the morning have a legitimate excuse, on the other hand;  because of that, I actually believe making election day a national holiday would benefit those who are usually occupied with their jobs.

I know this isn't true in most of the US, but in California, all you have to do to get an absentee ballot mailed to your house is ask for one. It's mailed to you, you fill it out and send it back. There shouldn't be any complaints about going to the voting booths if it's that easy to get a ballot delivered to your home.

[TrashMan]

If you ask me, the only way to improve the profile of hte people on top is to punish them DRASTICLY when they f** up.

If a politican is caught lying or stealing, misusing his power he gets a slap on the wrist. Worst case scenario he gets some minimal jail time (house arrest). That's no real deterrent.

You f*** up our country with stupid laws and even dumber decisions and stealing money?
Time to go medival on your hiney! Bring forth the ropes and horses, iron maidens and other goodies!

[Rictor]

Drop by my country and you'll be glad you live in USA.

Cuti bre, makar vi niste imali Slobu. Naj opasniji su oni koji misle da imaju neku mocu, pa da pokusaju da se prave vazni i najebu. Prema Srbiji, Hrvatska je raj - imate dobre odnose sa susedima, dobra ekonomija i sve to, cak i Jadran.

[Dough with Fish]

I agree we need something like compulsary voting, but then you have the issue of botched elections or the very real possibilty of it being falsed. And, on top of that we have ****ers like these give the chance to run, and are in office.

[TrashMan]

Drop by my country and you'll be glad you live in USA.

Cuti bre, makar vi niste imali Slobu. Naj opasniji su oni koji misle da imaju neku mocu, pa da pokusaju da se prave vazni i najebu. Prema Srbiji, Hrvatska je raj - imate dobre odnose sa susedima, dobra ekonomija i sve to, cak i Jadran.

Pa ajde, tu i nisi baš u krivu.. Slobo je bio katastrofa..

Kakav vam je sadašnji "vodža"?

[Janos]

Compulsory vote is a good thing, it goes a good way to end the apathy but a bigger problem is the quality of most of the people who want to get in office and once they do, its near impossible to get them out, if there was a tool for removing them easily, things would actually get moving.

Having uninformed and uninterested people to decide the policies for years to come against their personal choice doesn't really sound like good move to me.

HAH I AM SUPERFAST
V V V V V V V V V V V

[karajorma]

Compulsory voting is ****ing stupid.

If the majority of people are so ****ing lazy that they can't be bothered to take 5 minutes out of their day to vote for someone who will be making major decisions that will affect their lives for at least the next 4 years then I say we're better off without their opinion.

How many of these people have a clue about politics? How many of them know the issues involved? Strikes me that anyone whose opinion matters already is voting.


Oh and feel free to point out the high voter turnout in Austrailia all you like. Then look at who they actually voted for

EDIT : Janos you got there just before me.

[vyper]

Btw, keep it in English *****es.

[Nuclear1]

Compulsory voting is ****ing stupid.

If the majority of people are so ****ing lazy that they can't be bothered to take 5 minutes out of their day to vote for someone who will be making major decisions that will affect their lives for at least the next 4 years then I say we're better off without their opinion.

So you favor rule by the educated elite?  The major problem with America and other democracies isn't that people are "too ****ing lazy", they're just not educated to think that their vote counts.  The US voting system especially, with the electoral college, makes this somewhat true, but even electors have to vote based on a region's choice (this isn't in the Constitution, but 99.9% of electors do/have done this).

It's really not fair to bash people who don't have time to vote on election days that have work or otherwise; that's the fault of the employers if they don't allow time for voting at home (by that, I mean in the community wherever the polling station is), or don't provide some other method.

Bear in mind, I almost entirely agree with you on this, as I wouldn't want my country being run by those with little political interest either, I just feel the need to keep up my history of arguing with you/aldo/Kaz in political threads.