The "Best Form of Government"

Because of some miscalculation and miscommunications, we have experienced some confusion about our meetings on Easter Sunday and April 30th. We apologize to anyone who may have missed us.

Our next conversation falls on May 14th, which is Mother's Day, but we will hold it regardless. The following one would fall on Memorial Day weekend if we stick to our bi-weekly schedule; we will discuss whether to reschedule and keep you posted. Please watch for our updates to keep current on our semi-regular schedule. Thank you.

Last time, we continued examining our government and comparing it to others. We assessed the balance of powers among our three branches and explored the history and legitimacy of the Supreme Court's right of judicial review. The ruling Gore v. Bush was criticized along the way.

The talk then centered around identifying the "best form of government". A debate ensued as to the criteria that we would use to determine such a thing. One suggested that the longevity of a particular government woult indicate its success. Another thought that the degree to which it executes the "will of the people" is most important. A third believed the happiness of a government's citizens might be the best criterion by which to judge.

As a 200+ year old, civil war survivor, the US system is a contender that even put "pursuit of happiness" into a founding document. Canada was given high praise. Castro was awarded credit by some, and derided by others, as a "benevolent dictator." And speculation was put forward about how well the French revolution and the Nazis enacted the public will.

It was generally perceived that the complexities of society necessitate a common-held government to counterbalance the other powers that will naturally arise. The "best system" is the one that evolves organically, and peacefully, from the culture it is destined to rule.

So, has our system finished its evolution? Is representative democracy, with perhaps a little tweaking, as good as it gets? Has America achieved the pinnacle of rational governance or is this just one stage of an ongoing process? What does the future have in store? Come help create it as we debate our place in history May 14th, 3 PM at the City Café.

Links on Parliaments and Voting

The following sites seem interesting considering our previous and future discussions on parliaments and presidents.

See:

For voting
http://www.cfer.org/learn/gloss.html

For parliament
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parliamentary_democracy

For presidentialism and parliament
http://teacher.scholastic.com/researchtools/researchstarters/presidents/

The American System

At the April 2nd discussion we compared our understandings of how democracies work and speculated as to if ours even does. We spent some time fleshing out the mechanics of parliamentary systems and measured them against the three-branch approach of the United States. Several viewed elements such as coalition building and ministerial accountability as positives of the old world structures. Concepts like Prime Minister's questions and votes of no confidence seem especially appealing these days. The American way was deemed not without merit however. For instance our federal system helps to disperse power and promote political balance.

Although our Constitution was praised not all of us were pleased by its implementation. Government debt, the influence of money, the parceling out of our nation to the highest bidder were all causing the founders "to be turning in there graves". We looked at the contradiction of their behavior and the ideals they espoused. Those ideals were alternately seen as promises to be kept by future generations. We also debated the evolution of the two party system and the viability of independents and third parties. And we even considered alternative voting systems.

All in all it was lively discussion that barely scratched the surface. We ended the talk itching to keep scratching. So we'll continue this exploration at our next event. Are the three branches still in balance? Are federal and state powers divided appropriately? Has gerrymandering solidified a political divide? What aspects of governance would you like to debate? Debate we shall, Sunday the 16th, 3 PM at the City Café.