Control of the many by the few

[AndrewC]

It amazes me how everything gets distorted in politics. Obama's "Yes we can!" platform should be more like "You vote... You pay... I decide everything else". Obama isn't interested in a partnership with the American people. He wants Americans to vote for him and send him money. Everything else is for him, Congress and the Federal Reserve to decide.

Why are Americans so willing to give so much power to so few? Have we lost any confidence in our own abilities? Are we so afraid of each other that we are willing to trust political and banking elite with our well being? Why are people so willing to trust Obama and the worthless politicians in Congress more than their neighbor?

Time and time again I hear people complain about government. Yet time and time again I see people more willing to let government run their lives. If you aren't willing to trust the people on this board to run their lives. Why would you trust a few politicians and bankers in Washington to run our economy and our lives?

Limited government is about realizing that the few cannot, no matter how well intentioned, make fair and efficient decisions for the many. Individual freedom and liberty are as relevant today as they were when our nation was formed. We should not fear the beliefs and actions of our neighbor. We should not seek to control the beliefs and actions of our neighbor through government. We should focus on what makes us happy and successful. We should seek to allow all Americans to decide for themselves. What is best for them. This is not weakness or giving up on hope. It is hope. That each of us do have a stake in this great nation. That each of us seeks to improve our lives and thereby improving our country/world as whole.

 

[Harshaw]

If I could explain the unconditional adoration and, in some cases, deification of Obama, I'd write a book on it and make millions.

 

[DamnYankee]

BO's plan was not to unify the country. I know he went around campaigning on that, but his plan really did not include everyone. It's all about him.
"I have a gift," he told Reid. BO is very arrogant.

 

[disneydude]

If I could explain the unconditional adoration and, in some cases, deification of Obama, I'd write a book on it and make millions.

Its pretty easily explained...after having nearly a decade of an idiot in the office surrounded by a crew of criminals and liars, the American people are happy to finally have someone who might possibly restore some honor and integrity to this country.

 

[Cold Highway]

Its pretty easily explained...after having nearly a decade of an idiot in the office surrounded by a crew of criminals and liars, the American people are happy to finally have someone who might possibly restore some honor and integrity to this country.

No amount of words can explain how much BS that is.

 

[obvious Child]

No amount of words can explain how much BS that is.

especially that last bit about "honor" and "integrity."

That said, the fact that a junior senator with scant experience won is a sign of just how little the country liked Bush. Even more when the Republican candidate was bashing Bush too.

 

[CaptainCourtesy]

Y'all are naive to think that any candidate, liberal or conservative has your interest at heart in the least.

 

[LaMidRighter]

Its pretty easily explained...after having nearly a decade of an idiot in the office surrounded by a crew of criminals and liars, the American people are happy to finally have someone who might possibly restore some honor and integrity to this country.

:2funny: As to what was underlined, are you $&%^ing kidding me, Hillary Clinton has more legal skeletons in her closet than a science surplus company, Geitner....Taxes!? As per the bolded part, tax cheats all over the place, one of them confirmed, Biden....plagarism, Clinton.....liar, dishonest in business, etc.

 

[Harry Guerrilla]

If I could explain the unconditional adoration and, in some cases, deification of Obama, I'd write a book on it and make millions.

Groupthink, one word, very short book.

 

[Harshaw]

Groupthink, one word, very short book.

Maybe, but why HIM? I cannot for the life of me fathom the religious fervor attached to him. He's never come across, to me, as anything other than the lightweight he is. An uncommonly arrogant lightweight, but a lightweight nonetheless.

I'm genuinely curious as to how anyone with average intelligence can look at him and see some kind of mythic figure.

 

[Mach]

Why are Americans so willing to give so much power to so few?

That's what I said about the financial companies as we endure the recession why were we willing to give so much power, to so few?

 

[Ikari]

It amazes me how everything gets distorted in politics. Obama's "Yes we can!" platform should be more like "You vote... You pay... I decide everything else". Obama isn't interested in a partnership with the American people. He wants Americans to vote for him and send him money. Everything else is for him, Congress and the Federal Reserve to decide.

Why are Americans so willing to give so much power to so few? Have we lost any confidence in our own abilities? Are we so afraid of each other that we are willing to trust political and banking elite with our well being? Why are people so willing to trust Obama and the worthless politicians in Congress more than their neighbor?

Time and time again I hear people complain about government. Yet time and time again I see people more willing to let government run their lives. If you aren't willing to trust the people on this board to run their lives. Why would you trust a few politicians and bankers in Washington to run our economy and our lives?

Limited government is about realizing that the few cannot, no matter how well intentioned, make fair and efficient decisions for the many. Individual freedom and liberty are as relevant today as they were when our nation was formed. We should not fear the beliefs and actions of our neighbor. We should not seek to control the beliefs and actions of our neighbor through government. We should focus on what makes us happy and successful. We should seek to allow all Americans to decide for themselves. What is best for them. This is not weakness or giving up on hope. It is hope. That each of us do have a stake in this great nation. That each of us seeks to improve our lives and thereby improving our country/world as whole.

[ame="http://youtube.com/watch?v=DioQooFIcgE"]YouTube - The American Form of Government[/ame]

 

[Harry Guerrilla]

Maybe, but why HIM? I cannot for the life of me fathom the religious fervor attached to him. He's never come across, to me, as anything other than the lightweight he is. An uncommonly arrogant lightweight, but a lightweight nonetheless.

I'm genuinely curious as to how anyone with average intelligence can look at him and see some kind of mythic figure.

Bear with me but reading the entire definition makes the case more understandable.

Groupthink is a type of thought exhibited by group members who try to minimize conflict and reach consensus without critically testing, analyzing, and evaluating ideas. Individual creativity, uniqueness, and independent thinking are lost in the pursuit of group cohesiveness, as are the advantages of reasonable balance in choice and thought that might normally be obtained by making decisions as a group.[1] During groupthink, members of the group avoid promoting viewpoints outside the comfort zone of consensus thinking. A variety of motives for this may exist such as a desire to avoid being seen as foolish, or a desire to avoid embarrassing or angering other members of the group. Groupthink may cause groups to make hasty, irrational decisions, where individual doubts are set aside, for fear of upsetting the group’s balance. The term is frequently used pejoratively, with hindsight.

Its part of Maslow's hierarchy of needs. At this point people are looking to belong. They don't want to rock the boat by presenting contrary points of view and they eventually get lost in the sea of people, conforming to there ideas no matter how irrational they are.

Its because they only have average intelligence that they fall into this trap of wanting to belong to a group no matter how ridiculous it is.
(In my opinion.)

[ame=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Groupthink]Groupthink - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[/ame]


A lot of these people have never and probably will never reach the top tiers of Maslow's pyramid. Instead always being a plebeian but at least comfortable with their minor position in life.

[ame=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maslows_hierarchy_of_needs]Maslow's hierarchy of needs - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[/ame]

 

[NoMoreDems-Reps]

No amount of words can explain how much BS that is.

I think he's fundamentally correct.
Bush screw things up so bad he made the Dems look good.
Now that's not to say that the DEMS suck so bad that America
pick Bush! TWICE !

We are really scraping the bottom of the Barrel in America.
I thought that Bush would be the breaking point for the America Sheeple
to start voting for other parties, but I guess we'll have to give Obama and
the DEMs 4 yrs to top Bush's fiascle.

 

[Harshaw]

Bear with me but reading the entire definition makes the case more understandable.

Groupthink is a type of thought exhibited by group members who try to minimize conflict and reach consensus without critically testing, analyzing, and evaluating ideas. Individual creativity, uniqueness, and independent thinking are lost in the pursuit of group cohesiveness, as are the advantages of reasonable balance in choice and thought that might normally be obtained by making decisions as a group.[1] During groupthink, members of the group avoid promoting viewpoints outside the comfort zone of consensus thinking. A variety of motives for this may exist such as a desire to avoid being seen as foolish, or a desire to avoid embarrassing or angering other members of the group. Groupthink may cause groups to make hasty, irrational decisions, where individual doubts are set aside, for fear of upsetting the group’s balance. The term is frequently used pejoratively, with hindsight.

Its part of Maslow's hierarchy of needs. At this point people are looking to belong. They don't want to rock the boat by presenting contrary points of view and they eventually get lost in the sea of people, conforming to there ideas no matter how irrational they are.

Its because they only have average intelligence that they fall into this trap of wanting to belong to a group no matter how ridiculous it is.
(In my opinion.)

Groupthink - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


A lot of these people have never and probably will never reach the top tiers of Maslow's pyramid. Instead always being a plebeian but at least comfortable with their minor position in life.

Maslow's hierarchy of needs - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I get the concept; I know about Maslow's hierarchy.

But it doesn't answer the question -- why does it fixate specifically on Barack Obama? What does HE have which would attract it? It's completely baffling, and the extent to which people are deliriously under his thrall is astonishing.

I've never seen anything but a cocky college sophomore trying to fill out a man's suit.

 

[Harry Guerrilla]

I get the concept; I know about Maslow's hierarchy.

But it doesn't answer the question -- why does it fixate specifically on Barack Obama? What does HE have which would attract it? It's completely baffling, and the extent to which people are deliriously under his thrall is astonishing.

I've never seen anything but a cocky college sophomore trying to fill out a man's suit.

If I'm not mistaken he used focus groups to target what words and policies appealed to the general person the most.

They are very heavy marketers, using color schemes and wording to attract as many people as they can.

 

[Analyst]

I truly think it has quite a bit to do with how inundated we are with such a ridiculous amount of marketing laced with appeals to our base desires (sex, food, comfort, speed, etc). It might sound silly, but particularly the uneducated are equipped with few tools to combat the blinding number of messages that constantly tell us what to think, eat, smoke, drink, who's hot, and who's not. It's so easy to simply not think for yourself. Unfortunately, those that lack college educations/critical thinking skills are still a pretty huge voting bloc.

More educated folks tend to self-monitor and avoid such things as much as possible (or at least see through them), but I wouldn't say critical thinking is a huge priority for the average American. Along comes Obama spouting "Change" and "Yes, We Can".

 

[Harry Guerrilla]

I truly think it has quite a bit to do with how inundated we are with such a ridiculous amount of marketing laced with appeals to our base desires (sex, food, comfort, speed, etc). It might sound silly, but particularly the uneducated are equipped with few tools to combat the blinding number of messages that constantly tell us what to think, eat, smoke, drink, who's hot, and who's not. It's so easy to simply not think for yourself. Unfortunately, those that lack college educations/critical thinking skills are still a pretty huge voting bloc.

More educated folks tend to self-monitor and avoid such things as much as possible (or at least see through them), but I wouldn't say critical thinking is a huge priority for the average American. Along comes Obama spouting "Change" and "Yes, We Can".

I agree and disagree at the same time.

Were I disagree is with college educated people being able to filter the garbage out.

If that were true we wouldn't have so many of them voting the same every time.