America without governance

by YankeeJim | March 27, 2010 at 11:03 am

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We’re losing it, or may have lost it. America has become ungovernable. The people have not lost it, but elected officials have driven the institution into a state of entropy. That is why I wrote, Smart Data, Wiley Publishing, a book that addresses how to fix the problem from the top down. It takes very smart people working together despite differences to reach an ideal solution. Diversity is a good thing. Polarization is a bad thing.

The referenced Newsweek article is masterfully written and most timely, and in my opinion, is an award winning piece of journalism.

Perpetual failure

“…the minority wins when the majority fails, and the minority has the power to make the majority fail. Since the rules work no matter which party is in the minority, it means no one can ever govern.”

http://www.newsweek.com/id/235560/page/1

“What Happens When Congress Fails to Do Its Job?

Don't be fooled: The House and Senate still need fixing.

“Last month he announced his retirement.

There was no scandal. Bayh wasn't plagued by poor fundraising or low poll numbers. Nor is fatigue a likely explanation: at 54, Bayh is fairly young, at least when you're grading on the curve that is the United States Senate.

What drove Bayh from office, rather, was that he'd grown to hate his job. Congress, he wrote in a New York Times op-ed, is "stuck in an endless cycle of recrimination and revenge. The minority seeks to frustrate the majority, and when the majority is displaced it returns the favor. Power is constantly sought through the use of means which render its effective use, once acquired, impossible."

The situation had grown so grim, Bayh said, that continued service was no longer of obvious use. Americans were left with a bizarre spectacle: a member of the most elite legislative body in the most powerful country in the world was resigning because the dysfunctions of his institution made him feel ineffectual. "I simply believe I can best contribute to society in another way," Bayh explained, "creating jobs by helping grow a business, helping guide an institution of higher learning, or helping run a worthy charitable endeavor."