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Re:Ask HN: Problems for the Next Decade by maybetryit on Sunday July 09, 2023 @10:37PM (#36661400)
"For example, in Democracy, you settle disputes by voting, where the majority wins, and the rest don't get their way. This ability to settle disputes without violence, is what makes us civil and what makes society a society. Without it (such as with communism), you are in complete anarchy, where raw might/ability (eg successful violence/persuasion) is the only thing there is left to settle disputes. Thus, those who wield it typically end up becoming the "authority", and is why over time, communism/anarchy will naturally change into one of the other forms of government."

In the US only 50% of the population votes. The church doesn't pay taxes but lobbies the gov via proxies. Rich people definitely have more rights than the others. Just because they fight in court doesn't mean it's not called violence. Rich people are the authority in the US. They decide what you watch, what you buy and where you can spend your money. Just because they work for corporations doesn't mean there isn't a hierarchy. Rich people own America and they behavior of it's citizens, because they shape the contexts in which you live. They also own the rest of the world via Hollywood.

Re:Ask HN: Problems for the Next Decade by Rury on Monday July 10, 2023 @06:40AM (#36664423)
You're right. The US isn't a democracy, it's predominantly an oligarchy/republic. And as matter of fact, no government is purely a democracy. Most are hybrids to varying degrees. The way I categorized the forms of government was just a way to show how things work. Nothing prevents it from being a spectrum.