By News on the Net ——Bio and Archives--October 2, 2009
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In the middle of two wars and an economic meltdown, the highest-ranking idea was to legalize marijuana, an idea nearly twice as popular as repealing the Bush tax cuts on the wealthy. Legalizing online poker topped the technology ideas, twice as popular as nationwide wi-fi. Revoking the Church of Scientology’s tax-exempt status garnered three times more votes than raising funding for childhood cancer.That’s right, in this day of wars and world-wide terror attacks, economic collapse, foreign threats and constant natural disasters Obama’s fans were more concerned about getting high, gambling at cards, and the status of a nutty, but tiny, pseudo religion. So what did we learn from this web effort? What else than that Obama’s fans are goofs that have no clue about the serious issues of our day. Of course, this whole experiment is a perfect example of why a direct democracy is the last thing we Americans should ever want. Most people are not informed enough to vote intelligently on every issue of government. The founders knew this and that is why they vigorously opposed a direct democracy — even feared it — and created this representative democracy. I am not saying that everyone in the voting public is stupid. Far from it. But most people simply don’t have the time to stay up on all these issues as they lead their lives. They have their families, their employment, their lives to worry about. To worry about all the things government is supposed to do is what we expect of our representatives. And it is their duty to navigate the delicate balance between being guided by their own ideals and that of the voting public. That is their job, after all. So, let Obama’s pot headed, gambling addicts hand wring over the Church of Scientology. But please spare us any thought that the Internet could become our sole forum for government.
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