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Comment by mbrutsch | Hacker News Reader

Sadly, most Americans don't hold themselves responsible for the actions of our duly elected leaders. It's how we sleep at night.

brb, dropping Dropbox...

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Actually Rice has never held a democratically elected office - a strange trait of the American government system is that The President can appoint anyone he likes to hold these offices.

This counters to countries like Britain where these roles have to go to,democratically elected Members of one of the two Houses (usually the lower House of Parliament where the Prime Minister sits).

So assumeing Condeeleza Rice had some degree of agency in her role of Secretary of State, it's hard to even hold President Bush accountable for all of her actions.

The check there is that all cabinet members have to be confirmed by the Senate, which are all elected officials.

> Rice has never held a democratically elected office

Technically true, however, she WAS approved by 2/3 of the Senate to hold what is widely considered the second-highest administrative office (after the President).

See, that doesn't work. There's no such thing as a recall for some positions, and it's pretty hard to be responsible for someone who says they're going to do one thing and then does a completely different thing once they're beyond accountability.

>beyond accountability

There is your problem, America. Fix it.

do other countries fix that somehow? in a way that actually has some teeth?

Its called violent social revolution, and it happens all over the world where political injustice is perceived by the masses.

But not in America.

All that means is that Americans value social stability over all else. The threshold hasn't been crossed yet.

Despite what the media might say, life is still pretty damned good here, and what injustice exists affects a minority, rather than a majority of people.

I have to disagree with this. Look at the civil rights movement. When a minority is affected, we will rise up to change the status quo.

Biggest prison population, enslaved, of any western nation.

Largest perpetrator of crimes against humanity in the last 80 years.

Among the worst health care in the developed world, Atrocious statistics in welfare conditions, in general (been to Skid Row, lately, homie?), categorically the worst exporter of waste, of the so-called developed nations, never mind it considers itself a super-power.

Apartheid in America? You're just not watching it on your channels .. but its there.

Slavery? White slavery? America is the home of it.

"Enslaved"? Hyperbole. Though it is a problem.

Every single developed nation has done (and still does) some pretty horrible stuff.

Healthcare? Disagree, citizens of other nations find themselves coming here. Cost is an issue (another thing we're working on as of late), but quality certainly isn't.

Welfare has always been a sticking point. We're making progress.

And the rest of your post is utter hyperbole.

>Sadly, most Americans don't hold themselves responsible for the actions of our duly elected leaders.

Something is going to have to change, sooner or later. I hope its for the better, but I doubt it will be.

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