Things I've Built
Things Worthy of Praise
i’ve spent the last two weeks looking at past gubernatorial, mayoral and state senate elections in the US. i’ve watched documentaries, read articles and flicked through books. i’ve always been interested in US politics and think there is a lot we can learn from the US in how they go about their politics. that being said its not perfect and frankly there are parts of the US political machine that are deplorable. but what I have come to increasingly admire is federalism.
local politics seems to matter in the US far more so than in the UK. this is most likely due to the fact that local institutions have more power. but an offshoot of this is an enhanced democratic culture. simply put, democracy in the US is more direct. if we are to get more people engaged in politics, fight the apathy that afflicts far too many brits, and ensure the change we need is the change we get, we need to make this country more democratic. not simply by increasing the opportunities to vote but by increasing the opportunities for change.
local institutions should be given more power. If the words of JFK are true, that all educated citizens have an “obligation to serve the public” then we must be given more opportunities to serve. devolution was one of the best things the labour government did for democracy in britain yet one still feels a sense of entrapment by the british parliamentary system which is not uncommonly referred to as an “elective dictatorship” (Baron Hailsham).
granted, the whole idea of regional assemblies in the UK fell flat on john presscott’s face but people’s objections were based on how the assemblies would work not on the idea of more direct democracy. who would vote for another layer of bureaucracy, more hacks with negligible power. what the government seemingly failed to realise is that the people wanted reformed institutions not new ones repackaged from the remains of institutions past.
i’d suggest we have elected mayors in major cities with the ability to sufficiently influence policing, housing maybe even education in some limited cases. our local governments must evolve beyond mere rubbish collectors and corners of blame when social care fails to live up to the task. local governments need to be the hub of community driven change. local solutions for local problems.
