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http://awesome.good.is/transparency/web/1104/congress/flat.html

Opinions?

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*Sigh*  I guess I have to be the one to respond since no one else will.

I'm not surprised by the chart.  Most in Congress are white, rich, male.  But I wonder if thats because most people who can run for office and want to run for office are white, rich males?  Right now, the majority of Hispanics are claiming they want to come to our country to do the jobs Americans dont want.  Well, those jobs dont pay well do they?  Furthermore, Hispanics are a minority here.  VOTING eligible hispanics are even a bigger minority!  Perhaps if more would do the paperwork to come here LEGALLY...they would get better representation?

Asians are a minority.  Blacks are becoming more represented, but are still a minority.  Most dont seem to want to vote.  NONE of my black friends (I do have black friends btw that do come into my home) wont vote.  The ones who do, vote for whoever the Dem congressperson is.  White, Rich Males.

So to me, the lesson is...get legal and get involved!

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Originally Posted by Dennis Young:
*Sigh*  I guess I have to be the one to respond since no one else will.

Maybe we should rename this form "the Dennis and Miles show" eh? :-P Where are all the folks who were active on the Myspace group, I know a lot of them moved over here in the beginning.

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I hear that I have scared them all away.      Dod is tired of all the draaama (plus he's got some important stuff going on).  I think I saw Marconius the other day.  Alun shows up once in awhile.  

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i personally follow the ideals set forth by MLK that it doesn't matter what race, religion, or gender of someone (as in a representative), but what the content of their character is. and in this regard, too many of our elected officials are severely lacking. too many get caught up in the "washington bubble" and just become so detached from what the feeling on main street is. the government has become a huge money laundering pyramid. everyone has their favorite government subsidy for certain segments and industries, and in return, they receive campaign cash to get re-elected. it's entirely self serving and what's wrong with our system.

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Is this a hint at something???

Do I see a "card" coming???

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Originally Posted by Mark Simmons:
Is this a hint at something???

Do I see a "card" coming???

race, gender, or...?

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Originally Posted by Dødherre Mørktre:
i personally follow the ideals set forth by MLK that it doesn't matter what race, religion, or gender of someone (as in a representative), but what the content of their character is. and in this regard, too many of our elected officials are severely lacking. too many get caught up in the "washington bubble" and just become so detached from what the feeling on main street is. the government has become a huge money laundering pyramid. everyone has their favorite government subsidy for certain segments and industries, and in return, they receive campaign cash to get re-elected. it's entirely self serving and what's wrong with our system.

Well, one solution there is term limits - you have them for president, why note for senators/congressman? Say they're allowed sit two consecutive terms, then they have to bow out of the next election. They can run again, but not until they've served at least one term out of office since their last term. You could say that this will hurt the "honest decent" politicians who actually get real stuff done for their constituents, but how many of those are there compared to the "dead wood" these days? And if they're that good, they should have no problems getting re-elected next time.

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Miles, from your lips to God's ear.  I've been hoping for term limits for years.  But Congress would have to vote that in.  Doubt they'd do that.  But it would solve some issues.

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Originally Posted by Kieran Colfer:


Well, one solution there is term limits - you have them for president, why note for senators/congressman? Say they're allowed sit two consecutive terms, then they have to bow out of the next election. They can run again, but not until they've served at least one term out of office since their last term. You could say that this will hurt the "honest decent" politicians who actually get real stuff done for their constituents, but how many of those are there compared to the "dead wood" these days? And if they're that good, they should have no problems getting re-elected next time.

The Irish are so wise. I wish my fellow countrymen were so wise.

Actually I think this would fly with voters, but since Congress are the lawmaking body..........

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Originally Posted by Mark Simmons:


Actually I think this would fly with voters, but since Congress are the lawmaking body..........

Do you guys have many referenda over there? If there's a change like this that would require a change to the constitution, then by law over here it has to go to the people in a referendum. And we generally don't vote the way the politicos want us to vote (look at the votes on the lisbon treaty). So, all you need to do is to get enough votes to hold a referendum.  

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yeah, i think 2/3rds of the states would have to vote in favor, but what's the last time we had a constitutional amendment?  miles, i fear these issues are just too large for our current system to deal with. politicians dont want to initiate any meaningful change, because they're all dug in like ticks with the money/power broking apparatus that is DC. perhaps if we were moving forward as a nation, but we're not united as a single nation anymore. rather, we're dead bang in the middle of an ideological civil war, with THE PEOPLE scarcely represented. and this doesn't fall strictly along party lines. it's not rep vs. dem, but it's central planning vs. the will of the people. there are so many reforms that the people want, but the ruling class is content to sit on, in the hopes of suppressing the change needed.

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and this is why i'm so disappointed with the republican leadership right now. here you have the tea party movement, the closest thing to a movement of the people, and not only has it been marginalized by the media and the democratic machine, but it's not even been given the full support of the republican ruling class, which is much more content to play the same old ballgame with the dems, of "tag you're it," where they simply take turns running this ship aground.