FiveThirtyEight 2022 Election Forecast • Hacker News Board

Re: FiveThirtyEight 2022 Election Forecast

#51

Post by meatsauce » Fri, Jul 01, 2022, 5:36 PM UTC

cjohnson318 wrote: post #41

timapplesauce wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The Electoral College exists because popular vote would lead to just a handful of our largest cities holding all of the political power. Switching to popular vote would lead to presidents completely ignoring or worse enacting policies that harm smaller cities, suburbs, and rural Americans.

A handful of the largest cities, where most of the people in America live. We already have a Senate where Wyoming with ~500k people has as many votes as California, with ~38M people. How much are we going to stack the deck against the average, likely more centrist voter, that lives in a metro area? Maybe we could finally pass common sense gun control legislation that a majority of Americans support.

Without the EC, you'd have mob rule, which would eventually decay into a tyrannical regime. Please read the federalist papers. All of them.

Re: FiveThirtyEight 2022 Election Forecast

#52

Post by meatsauce » Fri, Jul 01, 2022, 5:36 PM UTC

md2020 wrote: post #40

timapplesauce wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The Electoral College exists because popular vote would lead to just a handful of our largest cities holding all of the political power. Switching to popular vote would lead to presidents completely ignoring or worse enacting policies that harm smaller cities, suburbs, and rural Americans.

Another way of saying this is we have tyranny of the minority. A handful of small states hold the majority of the political power and get to make decisions that affect the majority of people. I don’t know why you think this is better than a majority of people holding the majority of power.

You could say that but you'd be wrong.

Re: FiveThirtyEight 2022 Election Forecast

#53

Post by meatsauce » Fri, Jul 01, 2022, 5:37 PM UTC

rgifford wrote: post #45

timapplesauce wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How much of our food supply comes from New York City and Los Angeles? Your comment implies that the needs of these states is somehow less important in the governance of our nation.

The needs of these states are less important. They have fewer people, less productive capacity, less economic output, etc. They are lesser by every metric imaginable. In our nation's bread basket folks love to hold up agricultural achievement. Ironically California dominates that too [1]. Getting rid of the electoral college system in favor of popular vote isn't enough. A couple states drive the productive, agricultu…

What a nonsensical conclusion

Re: FiveThirtyEight 2022 Election Forecast

#54

Post by rgifford » Sat, Jul 02, 2022, 9:01 PM UTC

meatsauce wrote: post #53

rgifford wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The needs of these states are less important. They have fewer people, less productive capacity, less economic output, etc. They are lesser by every metric imaginable. In our nation's bread basket folks love to hold up agricultural achievement. Ironically California dominates that too [1]. Getting rid of the electoral college system in favor of popular vote isn't enough. A couple states drive the productive, agricultu…

What a nonsensical conclusion

Many states in middle America receive net federal subsidies while exercising outsized per capita political influence in presidential elections and Congress. You tell me how that's fair or right.