not to mention all the progress traps capitalism stepped into

  • Earthwormjim91@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    By voting. The US has set term lengths at every level. If the leaders are not fulfilling their job properly, they get fired.

    For representatives it’s every two years.

    That requires having an informed and active constituency though, which we do not have.

    • pleiades@lemmy.ml
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      2 days ago

      And what happens when the elections are not-so-subtly influenced by corporate lobbyists and whoever has more money to spend on campaigning?

          • Earthwormjim91@lemmy.world
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            14 hours ago

            Well, voting for one. The US has abysmal voter turnout. More people stayed home and said they don’t give a shit in 2024 than either candidate got in votes.

            The highest turnout we’ve had in over 100 years is 66%. A full 1 in 3 people that can vote put literally zero effort into voting.

            That would be a decent start. Just actually doing anything to participate in the system.

    • Leon@pawb.social
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      2 days ago

      And it will never happen because the people who control the resources also control the narrative. They promote their candidates, who change the laws in their favour, and progressively make things worse for your average person.

      The system you describe is a pipe dream, and it’s a nice dream, but it’s not reflective of the world we live in today.

      • Earthwormjim91@lemmy.world
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        21 hours ago

        It’s literally the only possible system that could work. The alternative is just giving unrestricted power to politicians, and the people have no say at all.

        Their power is ultimately derived from the voting public. That’s it. That is the power. You either have the ultimate power rest with the people, or the people have zero power.

        It’s a cop out excuse to not put in the effort to be active and informed in the system. “It’s pointless anyway” is just defeatist bullshit.

        • Leon@pawb.social
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          18 hours ago

          I really wish I could believe in the system as much as you do. I think I’d be happier that way.

          However, all the power lies with the capital. The capital controls the narrative, which in turn leads to people voting against their interest. The capital promotes their politicians. The politicians enact politics in favour of the capital. Then ultimately, capital controls the forces.

          See for example how Murdoch and Thatcher completely destroyed the newspaper unions in England during the 80s. They went from having really strong worker rights and collective power, to being completely powerless and literally shot at by police within the span of a few years, all due to processes the workers were purposely locked out of.