Treasury turns to Facebook for cut plans Facebook is no doubt celebrating today's free publicity provided by its supposed role in planning the UK's economic policy. In fact Facebook's role is limited to providing a link from its Democracy UK page, maintained by its PR company, to what looks like a micro-site cut and pasted from last week's YourFreedom website. The …
Dave is thinking of using Sadville as the best way to fix Parliament. MPs can all log in as their avatars to attend debates (John Redwood can use Spock as his). This will get rid of the expenses problems as MPs can all live in their constituency houses and not have to worry about whether they can claim for the duck house.
I'm sure some enterprising entrepreneur can sell the Govt their one Sadville houses where they can live so they won't even need a constituency house.
I had the crazy idea that one of the main reasons politicians are elected is to make good decisions on difficult issues. Not to ask the great unwashed and clueless on the interweb what we should do. The internet over-represents minorities with the craziest opinions and the loudest voices. That's why we don't rule by "he who shouts loudest and longest wins".
I would despair, were it not for the fact that everyone knows this is a dumb PR exercises where the great unwashed and clueless on the interweb are asked, and then ignored. But they can't complain they weren't consulted.. eh?
"... that one of the main reasons politicians are elected is to make good decisions on difficult issues"
Ah, but the problem is that they innately prefer their own opinions over anyone else's, so when they're offered good advice by people who know better (David Nutt) they're too fucking stupid to listen and get all pissy about people treading on their toes (Alan Johnson).
Politicians are elected because the status quo (like any good feedback loop) tends to persist. No-one asks the electorate if we're happy going on the way we do, we just carry on doing the same thing year after pointless year, trying not to think too much about it because it might drive us bonkers if we did.
Come to think of it: When did anyone ever ask you if - given the choice - you'd go for this electoral system, or a different one? Oh sure we might, possibly, maybe get to choose from a selection-list of predetermined options at some point in the future, perhaps. That's not a very scientific way to go on, though. If you want to do things better what you need is good old boring research involving double-blind trials, careful statistical analysis, people who challenge assumptions and so on. Trying to do that kind of thing via vox-pop is feeble at best: Isaac Newton didn't discover gravity by polling his neighbours, and we won't get better government until we're prepared to do more rigorous experimentation.
Call-me-Dave won't do that, though, because he believes (probably correctly) that the public won't like experimentation, and if they don't like his experimentation he won't be popular, and if he's not popular he won't be voted in.
Which brings us back to another of your points: We /do/ rule by "he who shouts loudest and longest wins". We just do it in a more roundabout fashion.
... in that you know that whatever they say, they just make it deliberately provocative and you can't help yourself but get involved in an argument. Well, this spending challenge site is exactly the same thing. It's a giant sounding board for people who ... well, you decide.
My fave suggestion is banning boob jobs and transgender ops on the NHS. Because that's going to make back the billions that the country owes...
After reading a couple of stories, here, today, I believe it's fit to say: If there was any time when the second coming of Bugs Bunny should be at hand, I believe that only his wily antics would be able to bring the necessary grain of salt back to the proverbial landscape. He was such a good-natured and yet clever cartoon bunny.....
Either that, or Jessica Rabbit. Sure, why not.
Who the hell are these idiots posting so-called ideas on that site, anyway?
Do they really think some governtard official is actually a) going to pay attention and b) actually thinks their ideas about paying the unemployed with Lidl gift hampers instead of benefits is a good idea?
EPIC FAIL from all parties involved I'm afraid.
Unfortunately, this is exactly what our leaders are considering, and has been reported elsewhere, along with forcing anybody whos doctor believes them not to be within 6 weeks of death out to work. Got a clue who'll employ such ? er no..... thought not.
Good bye welfare state, education, if they run true to form healthcare, and social mobility.
After all, us serfs should know our place.
Im no follower of Facebook or whats the other one, some ornithologists site?, anyway there was a question
Election 2010: What do you Want? It lacked the option
'bugger off to France even if the Conservatives win with a vast majority'
Tony & Gordon Clown fucked us over good and proper & its going to take a long, long time to get anywhere near fixing with the likes of facebook input.
Seriously guys, you (rightly) complain when the previous government brings in crazy oppressive laws and that the establishment are out of touch then when the new government come in and actually try something new you still complain.
Cynicism is fine so that you aren't disappointed but try laying it aside for a few minutes and give this new idea a chance, maybe they will ignore everything but you know what? They definitely won't do anything you want if you don't do anything other than complain here!
I find it hilarious that you guys find it highly amusing to talk about the "Daily Fail" when in fact you sound exactly like them.
I wouldn't touch Facebook with a bargepole but if the government are just using it for free advertising of the real site I don't have problem with that. You can't complain that they made the 'Spending Challenge' site hard to find if they rope sites like Facebook into publicizing it .
It's worked with me, via El Reg. Having had a look now, there are some hideously stupid ideas and comments on the site (a bit like there are on the Register), but there are also some interesting threads with actual good discussions. Moving troops out of Germany, and replacing the car tax disc with an equivalent fuel charge were just two I saw.
Can our Supposedly well educated MPs not make decisions on behalf of the country.if not what are we paying them huge salaries + huge expenses for.They would want paying if they were putting any good schemes forward tell Osbournes lot to get their fingers out,or do the decent thing and leave.
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