I like Judge Sotomayor. I think she was a great pick, think she is likely to be confirmed without too much trouble, and I’m not the least bit surprised (or outraged) by any of the back and forth about her.
But, I start getting philosophically tangled up when the general debate on court appointees breaks down [...]
Archive for the ‘Majoritarianism’ Category
How ’bout legislating from the legislature, for a change?
Posted in Majoritarianism, Politics, tagged amendments, breathing document, Bush v. Gore, Constitution, legislate from the bench, Liberals, living, Sonia Sotomayor, Supreme Court on June 7, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Top 10 Populist Movies
Posted in Libertarianism, Majoritarianism, Media, Politics, Populism, tagged Dave, Erin Brockovich, Field of Dreams, It's a Wonderful Life, libertarian films, Norma Rae, populist film, Roger and Me, Seabiscuit, The Best Years of Our Lives, The Wizard of Oz, Wall Street on January 7, 2009 | 2 Comments »
Earlier today, I posted a blurb about some of the movies claimed by the Libbies. Turns out, in the late ’90s, the Orange County Register published a list of the Top 20 libertarian films as determined by the editors of the paper. The criteria they used? They looked for films “that encourage [...]
Can I be a pacifist in the culture wars?
Posted in History, Libertarianism, Majoritarianism, Politics, Religion, tagged gay marriage, Harvey Milk, Prop 6, Prop 8, Rick Warren, traditionalist on January 6, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
I rarely weigh in on social or cultural issues. If all connotations of labels could be removed, I would definitely consider myself a traditionalist. I believe in strong families, in the value of putting family responsibilities above personal desires, and a culture that doesn’t worship at the altar of the individual and their [...]
“Shall the People Rule?” Cont’d
Posted in History, Majoritarianism, Politics, Populism, Top, tagged Amy Sullivan, Anatai Etzioni, Bill Clinton, communitarian, conformity, libertarian, majoritarian, maverick, New Democrat, populism, Thomas Frank, William Jennings Bryan on December 9, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
A bunch of thoughts that probably have some tie-in:
1. Since writing yesterday’s post, I’ve done a bit more reading into the sort of neo-populism I considered as a realignment.
2. No matter how many Google searches I run (which produced a lot of interesting reading, and ultimately led to my purchasing two books on [...]
“Shall the People Rule?”
Posted in History, Majoritarianism, Politics, Populism, Top, tagged communitarianism, H.L. Mencken, libertarianism, majoritarianism, political ideology, populism, Scopes Monkey Trial, William Jennings Bryan on December 8, 2008 | 2 Comments »
I’ve tried to keep myself politically engaged since the election by living up to my pre-November 4 promise to start reading more U.S. history. I finally finished up A Godly Hero and am now about halfway through Summer of Gods (on the Scopes Monkey Trial). A few observations:
First: H.L. Mencken? What [...]
Why did people start voting?
Posted in Majoritarianism, Politics, tagged 1972, 1996, early voting, voter turnout on October 31, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
I don’t mean philosophically. I just mean, whatever happened to all that hand-wringing in the ’90s about declining voter turnout?
Since the low-point for voter turnout in 1996, turnout increased in 2000, again in ‘04, and is likely to break records on Tuesday. So, what changed? There are plenty of theories:
1. [...]
Liberals and the Constitution
Posted in History, Libertarianism, Majoritarianism, Politics, tagged Bob Byrd, Cato Institute, Constitution, constitutional amendments, Dennis Kucinich, FDR, George W. Bush, Progressive, strict constructionist, wiretapping on June 11, 2008 | 2 Comments »
My silverware drawer serves as a kind of middling region for my house – filled with things I know I want to keep, but don’t necessarily want to be reminded of on a daily basis. Aside from silverware, the drawer contains a couple of scorched potholders, a spare checkbook, a few stray keys, some [...]
Silly season defended… onto the substance
Posted in Majoritarianism, Politics, tagged campaigns, DC voting rights, elections, enfranchisement, Instant Runoff Voting, proportional representation, public financing, voter turnout on April 25, 2008 | 3 Comments »
I’ve put in my time defending all the “silly season” stuff because I like politics. I mean, I enjoy it, I think it’s fun, and I think the act of campaigning and all the little tactics and mini-stories actually do matter when the actual governing begins. I roll my eyes a bit when [...]
Does organizing still matter?
Posted in History, Majoritarianism, Politics, Populism, tagged Cindy Sheehan, Iraq war, organizing, Rosa Parks on February 14, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
I’m putting together a training on community organizing for my job, and I’m using the Montgomery bus boycott from 1955 as the main example for the major elements. Even stepping back from the merit of the campaign, it’s very impressive the level of coordination at all levels throughout the boycott, and it really serves [...]
