Subject: »NEWS AROUND THE WORLD

Yes, the first-past-the-post system also leads to having only two parties in the US. That is bound to create polarization. However, England has also a first-past-the-post system and there this all is less of an issue.

I think England has not so much better political situation than US (maybe, I don't know, they are better as citizens, intending they are better informed, more interested etc.. but the same system produce the same results..), however they produced a third alternative.

The interesting thing in bipolar systems is that the only vote that count is the one in the middle. So both sides end to seem the same things.
In Europe we saw several example of this happening, and at the end of it, when new formation rises (or there's not a real winner).. the old enemies party get toghether to keep power ("maintain governability" they usually say..) with national coalitions (we have it in Germany and Italy now for example.. ).

To answer you, Don Enzo and El Pupe:

I also think there is not much difference between Republicans and Democrats. They are just the legs of the ruling class. Also, Romney was not as bad as he was pictured in Europe (I don't know for Argentina of course). Romney's policies as governor were not at all right-wing (which is not surprising as Massachusetts is not a 'Red State'). He just had to pretend to be a 'real Republican' to not lose the right-wing vote (the public that likes idiots like Sarah Palin). However, he lost the middle voter with that, which El Pupe has explained is the one with the real political power in a two-party system.

However, I do not think this is unique for the first-past-the-post system. In my country, the middle voter also has much more political power than the left-wing or right-wing voter. Okay, sometimes we have a so-called purple cabinet (a mix of the blue of the liberals and the red of the social-democrats), but often, the center party decides whether a center-left or a center-right government is to be formed. That is pretty logical: the right-wing will most of the time (certainly when the economy is a major issue like in an economic crisis) want to rule without the left-wing and the other way around.

The two-party system has advantages and disadvantages that the proportional system does not have and the other way around. However, I do not consider the two-party system to be a threat to democracy itself.
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I do. But that's my opinion!
;D

I mean it's been a long time since the US has been satisfied with a us president which was Clinton

Bill Clinton was president during the economic peak, the 90's. The middle and high class was doing great, he could not do many things wrong, not even a sex scandal harmed him that much. I think in all western countries during the 90's the economy was flourishing and people didn't dislike politicians that much, eventhough it was worldwide and out of the hands of politicians. Those times are over, only the rich are still getting richer, but everyone else is losing more and more. So indeed, blaming Obama for the financial crisis is just dumb. Those who should be blamed for this crisis are the ones who gave cooperations so much power they can't be stopped anymore, like banks. But that happened over time, large cooperations and the filthy rich bought and/or lobbied for more and more power, and now we have to live with that as no one seems willing to stop them. Just look at ACTA, SOPA, PIPA and now TTIP, or those who are not imprisoned because of the corruptions which lead to the world crisis.

but I mean do you really think it matters whether they are Republican or Democrats ? To me it's just a title.

But I think there are some real differences, like how the deal with groups like Hispanics and gays. Do you think the same things would have changed if the president of last 6 years had been a republican instead of Obama?

Question for Belgians:

Is the really your minister of health?:)

You can have a proportional system with 4 parties reflected in the Parlament. Still, you dislike all 4 of them, at least partially, and what's more important, you cannot split your vote or vote only for the part of the program you like. So it would still be the case that "party X getting 47%" may or may not be stupid depending on your choices.
I think the only way to prevent "Simpson's aliens" elections ("who cares, you have to vote for one of us anyway") is to have "free entry" into the political arena. If forming a new party to support particular policies and achieving good electoral results is a credible threat, either existing parties will follow the actual will of voters more closely, or these new parties will appear and lead the change. However, this is typically not the case in normal times, when the chances of any newcomer outside the established money/media networks. The recent crisis has opened a window of opportunity of easier entry (for example in Spain), but you can also see the system fighting back.
I think more creation and destruction of parties, and more people going in and out of politics, would be desirable.

I agree with you.
The problem of a "perfect representation" is unsolvable.
the only way democracy can be perfect is without representation, DIRECT democracy.
but it's almost impossible to realize (for now.. new technologies are free to be understood in that sense..)

I'm very curious about the first experiments of liquid democracy around the world. It's still aflawed version, but it goes the right direction, for me.

Agree mostly. In regards to the Hispanic community, it was just a matter of time that the republicans would agree with a change in their policy. I think the Hispanic community is going to account for ~20% of the vote in a couple of years so they couldn't keep it out much longer without risking losing most of the Hispanic vote. Honestly it seems that the democrats did what the republicans were scared to do. I mean how would it look like to the republican voters if the republicans agreed to a immigration reform? Not good for sure. Now that Obama has taken action I think the republicans will happy about it on the inside but show that they are mad on the outside since they are "republicans". Hopefully this makes sense lol I'm typing from my phone

Yes, and she's a doctor.
And actually one of the few decent ministers of our previous government.

AV (aleternative vote) is the first step to this "perfect representation" problem... along with the empty votes.
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http://www.un.org/en/ga/third/69/docs/voting_sheets/L56.Rev1.pdf
Look at NO and Abstain votes.

(USA, Canada, Ukraine)
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charles, what is your opinion on this :-)?

Please, no spam, just tell us, what is your opinion on this...other guys can say their opinions too.
Please, be adult, just tell the opinion...

Do you think the UN should make charters concerning the combating unwanted world views?

Honestly it seems that the democrats did what the republicans were scared to do.

That's most probably what has happened :) But it is a shame the republicans didn't have to make these changes with gays and Hispanics for example, it would have broken some more barriers if these 'conservative old white men' had done it. II think that would have made this world a better place. On the other hand, voters still have the tea party :/

Michael Brown shooting

Ferguson police officer won't be charged in shooting death of Michael Brown

- Grand jury finds that Darren Wilson, 28, did not break the law
- Jurors considered range of charges including manslaughter and murder


The mother of Michael Brown, Lesley McSpadden, covers her face after the announced decision by the grand jury in Ferguson not to indict Darren Wilson. Photograph: Larry W Smith/EPA

The police officer who shot dead an unarmed black 18-year-old in Ferguson, Missouri, leading to weeks of unrest and reviving a national debate about law enforcement and race in America, will not face state criminal charges, it was announced on Monday.

A grand jury in St Louis County declined to indict Darren Wilson for killing Michael Brown on 9 August, following an altercation after the officer stopped him and a friend for jaywalking. Wilson is also under investigation by federal authorities, which could bring civil rights charges.

There were multiple reports of looting in Ferguson after the announcement by St Louis County prosecuting attorney Bob McCulloch, and windows were broken at shops near the Ferguson police department.

A series of witnesses had claimed Brown was shot after fleeing Wilson and raising his hands in an apparent surrender. But in announcing the decision, McCulloch said some of those witnesses had recanted while others admitted not seeing the shooting.

“I’m ever mindful that this decision will not be accepted by some,” McCulloch said at a press conference in Clayton. “It may cause disappointment for others. But all decisions in the criminal justice system must be determined by the physical and scientific evidence, and credible testimony corroborated by that evidence. Not in response to public outcry, or for political expediency.”

Speaking moments after McCulloch finished, Barack Obama urged protestors to seek “constructive” outlets for their anger as his appeal for calm from the White House briefing room failed to quell growing violence on the streets of Ferguson.

“There is undoubtedly going to be some form of negative reaction and it will make for good TV,” said the president, warning that “throwing bottles or smashing cars” will not solve the underlying mistrust and genuine problems still facing African Americans.

As he has throughout, Obama refused to comment on the specifics of the case, saying all Americans should recognise the decision not to indict Darren Wilson.

“We are a nation based on the rule of law so we need to accept that this was the special jury’s decision to make,” he said.

But the president also said there were legitimate grounds for mistrust of police more generally and argued it would be wrong to try to “tamp this down” or “paper it over”.

“This is not just an issue for Ferguson; this is an issue for America. We have made enormous progress in race relations over the course of the past several decades – I have witnessed that in my own life – and to deny that progress is to deny America’s capacity for change,” he said. “But what is also true is that there are still problems and that communities of colour are not making these problems up.”

As he spoke, protests has already broken out in Ferguson and elsewhere. In New York, hundreds of people gathered in Union Square and Times Square before marching uptown.

In Ferguson, a Walgreens pharmacy was seen in flames, and people were seen entering other stores – a beauty supply shop and a nail salon among them. The Associated Press reported that a Little Caesar’s pizza shop and a storage unit were among the buildings that burned.



In Oakland, California, dozens of people blocked traffic on Interstate 580, while the Associated Press reported largely peaceful protests in Chicago, Los Angeles and New York.

The grand jurors had been asked to decide whether there was probable cause to charge Wilson with any of five crimes ranging from involuntary manslaughter to first-degree murder. McCulloch declined to say whether the decision was unanimous. Nine out of 12 votes had been needed for an indictment.

Autopsies by the county and Brown’s family found that he was shot by Wilson at least six times, including twice to the head. McCulloch disclosed on Monday that Wilson’s gun was fired 12 times in the course of the encounter. The prosecutor said that the struggle ensued after Wilson realised that Brown matched a description broadcast over police radio moments earlier for a grocery store robber.

Brown’s family said in a statement: “We are profoundly disappointed that the killer of our child will not face the consequence of his actions.” They called for peaceful demonstrations over the decision, saying that “answering violence with violence is not the appropriate action”. They said: “We ask that you channel your frustration in ways that will make a positive change.”

The entire St Louis region was immediately braced for protests over the grand jury’s decision. Brown’s death was followed by successive nights of intense clashes between police and protesters. Some businesses closed while some school districts cancelled classes for the week.

It had been widely anticipated in Ferguson that Wilson would not be indicted. Many of those involved in demonstrations accuse white authority figures in the city, whose population is two-thirds black, of covering up the truth about the killing of Brown by Wilson, 28, who is white.

Residents said that Brown’s shooting caused the boiling over of long-simmering discontent between Ferguson’s majority-black population and the 94% white police force. Many accused McCulloch, whose father was a white police officer killed by a black man, of a pro-police bias and called for his recusal from the case.

Officials and police around St Louis have been making extensive preparations for renewed protests and more than a dozen arrests were made in the past week. James Knowles, Ferguson’s mayor, said this month that they would “prepare for the worst”. He told a local television station: “There are expectations that demonstrations probably will break out in several places.”

McCulloch pre-emptively defended the grand jury from inevitable attacks they will receive from supporters of Brown’s family. “They are the only people who have heard and examined every witness and every piece of evidence.”

Missouri law states that an officer may shoot someone who is reasonably feared to pose an imminent threat of death or serious injury to the officer or another person. Courts have ruled that officers may also shoot to stop someone suspected of a killing or grievous injury from fleeing if they pose others a serious threat.

Wilson chose to testify before the jury for more than four hours. He told jurors that Brown assaulted him in his patrol car and that the pair struggled over his pistol. McCulloch said that several witnesses had testified that after fleeing, Brown turned and advanced on the officer. He said that there was disagreement about where Brown’s hands were when he was shot.

While some did they say they saw Brown raise his hands in the air, McCulloch said, “several witnesses said that Mr brown did not raise his arms at all, or raised them briefly”.

In a long and at times angry statement, McCulloch sharply criticised people in the region and on social media for spreading a version of the shooting that he said had been disproved by physical evidence and a series other eyewitnesses. Some African American witnesses testified that they saw Brown charging or moving towards Wilson before the 18-year-old was shot dead, he said.

Dorian Johnson, a friend who was with Brown at the time, has said repeatedly that Wilson simply reacted aggressively when the pair declined to comply with the officer’s request for them to move from the middle of the road to the sidewalk on Canfield Drive.

Johnson told reporters that Wilson grabbed Brown by the neck and shot the 18-year-old as he escaped the struggle. Several other witnesses, including two workmen cutting nearby trees at the time, have agreed that Brown appeared to be surrendering when he was shot dead.

McCulloch also attacked the “insatiable” appetite of the news media, accusing the industry of hindering the grand jury process. The grand jury of seven men and five women met on 25 days over three months, he said. Nine of them were white and three were black. McCulloch said they heard more than 70 hours of testimony from more than 60 witnesses and watched “hours and hours” of interviews witnesses gave to police and the media.

Evidence was presented to the jury by two assistant prosecutors, Kathi Alizadeh and Sheila Whirley. McCulloch pledged that all material from the case would be published if Wilson were not indicted. His office immediately made public some documents and testimony.

The jury had already been impanelled to hear other cases in the county when Brown was shot dead. Paying tribute to the jurors’ service, he said: “These grand jurors poured their hearts and souls into this,” adding that they “gave up their lives, put their lives on hold, put their families on hold, put everything on hold so they could come in and do their civic duty”.

Asked for his message to the Brown family, McCulloch said: “My heart goes out to them. Regardless of the circumstances, they lost a young man, they lost a young life.” He added: “No young man should ever be killed by a police officer, but no police officer should ever be put in that position.”


Unfortunatly not really a surprise :/

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