The Wow I Can't Believe That News Story Thread

[Lisnaholic]

^ Yep, the whole stunt was a disgraceful waste of taxpayers' money, prob to deflect people's attention from what's really being worked out by the Trump admin, e.g. the surreptitious sabotaging of Obamacare, the review of gerrymandering, the absense of any plan apart from bluster regarding NKorea, etc.

Originally Posted by Trollheart

Whenever I hear the word gerrymander I always imagine a salamander called Gerry.

Oddly enough, that's exactly where the word comes from; Gerry Whoknows, an American polititian, carved out a constituency the shape of a salamander to maximise the effect of his supporters.
Yes, what with Jerries=Huns, jerry-building, gerrymandering and jerry-rigging, people called Jerry probably feel unfairly put upon. For different reasons, people called "Willie,""Dick" or "Fanny" might feel aggrieved too.

[Frownland]

Originally Posted by Chula Vista

Total cost to the taxpayers for the flight: $45,000

Damn what a sucker.

Yo Pence if you're reading this, I can make you the best scrambled eggs you've ever had for the low price of $2500 per egg.

[Janszoon]

Originally Posted by Lisnaholic

^ Haha, yes. It's much more comfortable to talk about Trump's latest tweet!
As I see it, the big stumbling block about dealing with gerrymandering is the difficulty of defining what a fair division of constituencies is. Until you have that yardstick fixed and agreed, it's gonna be impossible to decide what are fair and unfair divisions. (If I have the time or patience, I might look at what they do in Europe, where it is not a problem afaik, though don't hold your breath on that one.)

Well, there are some very smart people with some good proposals.

Originally Posted by Lisnaholic

And on that issue of the weighting to low-population states, I read that the equivalency is about 3 urban coastal votes = 1 agricultural hinterland vote. Not the intention behind "One man, one vote" I'm sure!

That may be true of the electoral college—and that's bad enough—but it's actually far, far worse in the Senate. Each state gets two senators regardless of size so the 600,000 people in Wyoming collectively have just as much say as the 40,000,000 people in California. Unless my math is wrong, that mean an individual voter in Wyoming has almost 80 times the voice in the US Senate than an individual voter in California.

[Chula Vista]

Originally Posted by Frownland

Yo Pence if you're reading this, I can make you the best scrambled eggs you've ever had for the low price of $2500 per egg.

Salt & Pepper is extra, of course.

[Janszoon]

Originally Posted by Trollheart

Whenever I hear the word gerrymander I always imagine a salamander called Gerry.

That is exactly the origin of the word actually. It's named after Governor Elbridge Gerry, who became infamous for creating a voting district that was shaped like a salamander.

[OccultHawk]

Originally Posted by Janszoon

Well, there are some very smart people with some good proposals.


That may be true of the electoral college—and that's bad enough—but it's actually far, far worse in the Senate. Each state gets two senators regardless of size so the 600,000 people in Wyoming collectively have just as much say as the 40,000,000 people in California. Unless my math is wrong, that mean an individual voter in Wyoming has almost 80 times the voice in the US Senate than an individual voter in California.

I guess I'll be the predictable one and mention the House of Representatives.

Not to mention senators don't represent their constituents in any state. Voters in Wyoming and California have exactly the same voice. None. That's why we shouldn't vote. Don't voluntarily actively participate in a lie that reinforces your own oppression.

[Janszoon]

Originally Posted by OccultHawk

I guess I'll be the predictable one and mention the House of Representatives.

It was already part of the conversation since we were talking about gerrymandering, but go ahead.

Originally Posted by OccultHawk

Not to mention senators don't represent their constituents in any state. Voters in Wyoming and California have exactly the same voice. None. That's why we shouldn't vote. Don't voluntarily actively participate in a lie that reinforces your own oppression.

While I understand the cynicism, I don't think throwing up your hands in resignation is the best approach.

[Trollheart]

Originally Posted by Lisnaholic

^ Yep, the whole stunt was a disgraceful waste of taxpayers' money, prob to deflect people's attention from what's really being worked out by the Trump admin, e.g. the surreptitious sabotaging of Obamacare, the review of gerrymandering, the absense of any plan apart from bluster regarding NKorea, etc.



Oddly enough, that's exactly where the word comes from; Gerry Whoknows, an American polititian, carved out a constituency the shape of a salamander to maximise the effect of his supporters.
Yes, what with Jerries=Huns, jerry-building, gerrymandering and jerry-rigging, people called Jerry probably feel unfairly put upon. For different reasons, people called "Willie,""Dick" or "Fanny" might feel aggrieved too.

Originally Posted by Janszoon

That is exactly the origin of the word actually. It's named after Governor Elbridge Gerry, who became infamous for creating a voting district that was shaped like a salamander.

That's just amazing. When a lot younger I wrote some sort of fantasy story in which I had a creature called a gerrymander. Must have heard the phrase somewhere as a kid. Damn salamanders: always turning the heat up!

[OccultHawk]

While I understand the cynicism, I don't think throwing up your hands in resignation is the best approach.

It's not resignation. Voting is actually harmful.

[Trollheart]

Originally Posted by OccultHawk

It's not resignation. Voting is actually harmful.

I vote that it isn't.