FOUR: Please discuss the major reasons cited by Thomas Mann and Norman Ornstein, in their book It’s Even Worse Than It Looks, for the extreme polarization and dysfunction that now characterizes our government.
Thomas Mann and Norman Einstein discuss many reasons to explain the dysfunction of the government and the extreme polarization that has occurred in the past decades. One of the reasons for the emergence is the abuse of filibustering. Filibustering is a tactic used throughout politics to impede the opposing party of speaking. Although it could have its benefits, for example when hearing of a demagogue, its use has been abused. With figures like Mitch McConnell stating “ our goal is to make Obama a one term president, “ it is quite …show more content…
As a politician, one wants to ensure victory, and will therefore if given the opportunity draw the district in certain way that favors you. Thus, districts will have extremely weird shapes and sizes to cover followers, while simultaneously dodging potential opposers. At a systemic level the effects of gerrymandering are dangerous because it means less competitive districts. By having less competition, a politician can run a campaign as he pleases without properly being challenged by any opponents or citizens to modify his agenda. Consequently, he receives virtually no challenge about the logic and legitimacy behind his proposals. Elections are supposed to be an interaction between the candidate and the people in the respective area, yet gerrymandering has effectively altered the electoral process.Due to both parties usage of gerrymandering, it has created a congress that is utterly divided since the elections that brought many of these candidates to congress were seemingly uncontested and did not effectively alter their agenda. Therefore, they promote their more extreme agendas creating clashes of inefficiency and the dysfunction seen for the last decades at …show more content…
This includes ensuring the wellbeing of their citizens is not infringed upon by arbitrary laws or other groups. A demonstration of the Swastika , a symbol that reminds many citizens of the horror their they and their ancestors have endured, breaks the stability and peace found in their town. It is not fair to expect the citizens of Skokie to react positively and to remain calm as Nazi’s parade around their town as a mockery to their Jewish background. The tensions surrounding the march, might propel both groups to utilize explicit language against each other, which might provoke physical or verbal violence. The likeliness of violence from the march is extremely high, and if it were to happen the Nazi’s could be charged with multiple offenses including breaching the peace, inciting a riot and vandalism. Therefore, the use these fighting words is not a violation of freedom of speech but also extremely dangerous both . Situations like Skokie supercede the law since they are advocating for respect and basic human decency. If not follow, not only will the idea of the government advocating for its citizens be in question, but also the government is risking the lives of its citizens to riots and violence. The Nazi’s demonstration should be cancelled on the premise that the government needs to avoid putting lives at risk and preserve the peace of their public
Thomas Mann and Norman Einstein discuss many reasons to explain the dysfunction of the government and the extreme polarization that has occurred in the past decades. One of the reasons for the emergence is the abuse of filibustering. Filibustering is a tactic used throughout politics to impede the opposing party of speaking. Although it could have its benefits, for example when hearing of a demagogue, its use has been abused. With figures like Mitch McConnell stating “ our goal is to make Obama a one term president, “ it is quite …show more content…
As a politician, one wants to ensure victory, and will therefore if given the opportunity draw the district in certain way that favors you. Thus, districts will have extremely weird shapes and sizes to cover followers, while simultaneously dodging potential opposers. At a systemic level the effects of gerrymandering are dangerous because it means less competitive districts. By having less competition, a politician can run a campaign as he pleases without properly being challenged by any opponents or citizens to modify his agenda. Consequently, he receives virtually no challenge about the logic and legitimacy behind his proposals. Elections are supposed to be an interaction between the candidate and the people in the respective area, yet gerrymandering has effectively altered the electoral process.Due to both parties usage of gerrymandering, it has created a congress that is utterly divided since the elections that brought many of these candidates to congress were seemingly uncontested and did not effectively alter their agenda. Therefore, they promote their more extreme agendas creating clashes of inefficiency and the dysfunction seen for the last decades at …show more content…
This includes ensuring the wellbeing of their citizens is not infringed upon by arbitrary laws or other groups. A demonstration of the Swastika , a symbol that reminds many citizens of the horror their they and their ancestors have endured, breaks the stability and peace found in their town. It is not fair to expect the citizens of Skokie to react positively and to remain calm as Nazi’s parade around their town as a mockery to their Jewish background. The tensions surrounding the march, might propel both groups to utilize explicit language against each other, which might provoke physical or verbal violence. The likeliness of violence from the march is extremely high, and if it were to happen the Nazi’s could be charged with multiple offenses including breaching the peace, inciting a riot and vandalism. Therefore, the use these fighting words is not a violation of freedom of speech but also extremely dangerous both . Situations like Skokie supercede the law since they are advocating for respect and basic human decency. If not follow, not only will the idea of the government advocating for its citizens be in question, but also the government is risking the lives of its citizens to riots and violence. The Nazi’s demonstration should be cancelled on the premise that the government needs to avoid putting lives at risk and preserve the peace of their public