Your Money or Your Vote, Or What’s Fair?
Nobel Prize-winning economist Amartya Sen asserts that all political systems present themselves as fair. But “fair” can mean either of two very different things: one citizen-one vote or one dollar (or share or other currency unit)-one vote. Both models are currently popular. One is the basis of democratically elected government; the other is the basis on which corporate power structures are constructed. So, in choosing what’s fair, we are often forced to choose between all citizens are equal and some are more equal than others because they own more. I was reminded of this yesterday while talking with a friend, a young American who lives in Denmark, where his three sons are guaranteed an education and health care and the government is also lavish in its support of the arts. Yes, Virginia, they take from the rich and give to the rest, and most everyone seems happier for it.
Today I was reminded of it again by a post on voting machines on Slashdot. For voting machine makers, the answer is clear: Money beats votes every time. That is why an average bank ATM is so much more robust and secure than your average electronic voting machine. The industry rationale? Voting officials can’t afford the extra features that ATMs use to protect your money. Shows where the country’s priorities are.
Posted: April 26th, 2008 under Aargh, Ain't That America, VOTE!, We Are the Enemy.
Comments: 2
Comments
Comment from Sasha
Time: April 26, 2008, 6:02 am
Yes, yes. And the piece reminds us that Diebold renamed themselves, hoping the smut would stick to the old name. So beware of the “Premier” name.
When I voted in the primary I was given a survey about my satisfaction with the process. I took that opportunity to tell my county in great detail about my satisfaction with their choice of voting machines.
Comment from timr
Time: April 26, 2008, 10:02 am
John, I think that it is already to late. The multi’s already pretty much own and run the US. What you see and hear on TV and radio news, and what you get from the MSM is censored, not by the govt, but by the corps. Example; The NYT story on the “military annalists” and their ties to both the pentagon and the “military-industrial complex” have not been mentioned anywhere by any MSM outlet. Example; what we get on the big network news, along with the weekly newsmagazines, is heavily censored by the corps, we are probably the most underinformed(overall) citizens of any country in the world-and yes, I include China in this statement. We are told what to think and how to think it, advertising has become a science, and it is used for far more than just to sell us stuff. Actually, I hope that I don’t live long enough to see the final downfall of the US, it is coming, and much faster than you might believe.
Write a comment