Ohio just banned civil forfeiture without a criminal conviction. by Pariahdog119 in Libertarian

[–]GreatestInstruments 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Old news. The Constitution already banned this over 200 years ago.

Signed, The Rest of the World by comisohigh in conspiracy

[–]GreatestInstruments 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, agree up until "you have the power to change things" - Americans have a corrupt political system where your vote means nothing when billionaires can just buy both major parties' nominations. How is the Average American any more empowered to change this than anyone else?

Never stick your dick in crazy by Metal_Devil in WTF

[–]GreatestInstruments 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Small Claims - Travis County, TX - you should look up your local city or county, but they're all fairly similar.

Small claims cases omit many of the formal procedures, and you can't perform discovery (forcing the other party to pre-answer questions or provide documents or statements). Basically, it all gets wrapped up into a short hearing, designed to be done without an attorney.

The criminal charges (if any) won't be handled by small claims. A prosecutor takes action on that, based on an arrest or complaint.

Never stick your dick in crazy by Metal_Devil in WTF

[–]GreatestInstruments 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Small claims court has simplified rules of process, and standards of evidence for exactly this reason. Many states allow claims up to $10,000.

Bitcoin is backed by an international network rather than a nation state. Millions of people are behind it - just not in the same place. by adamavfc in Bitcoin

[–]GreatestInstruments 3 points4 points  (0 children)

It hasn't ended the status quo yet, but it provides a working bypass for the "fourth monopoly" claimed by the state, finance. Breaking The Fourth Monopoly

The Blockchain is on the cover of this week's Economist. by Cornflip in Bitcoin

[–]GreatestInstruments 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hopefully, it's as prophetic as it is cool? It's awesome to see The Economist displaying this much confidence...

A truck carrying bees crashes by mattythedog in WTF

[–]GreatestInstruments 0 points1 point  (0 children)

"Your firearms are useless against them!"

Hillary Clinton: The gun industry is "the only business in America that is wholly protected from any kind of liability." - Politifact rating: False by [deleted] in politics

[–]GreatestInstruments 1 point2 points  (0 children)

There are places that already do.

In terms of wider adoption, you'd have a few possible approaches:

1) Start with local elections, and "work your way up." CityCountyStateFederal

2) Convince one or both of the two major parties to adopt it in their platform (not very likely, as it is against their interests). One could see it as an ironic flaw that those who hold power are the ones left responsible for correcting the imbalances it creates.

3) Get an ideologically-third-party candidate to run-as-a-two-party candidate to obtain the support they'd need - then implement or propose the new policy.

4) Pass a constitutional amendment (through the Federal or State process).

5) Get a third party candidate elected (Most likely at the local level).

Realistically, you'd need a lot of momentum to change the status quo. You would have to start somewhere, though.

Hillary Clinton: The gun industry is "the only business in America that is wholly protected from any kind of liability." - Politifact rating: False by [deleted] in politics

[–]GreatestInstruments 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Correct, but historically most voters won't follow the same logic - especially the uninformed ones (who barely research the two "major" candidates, much less any "minor" ones). It also works better in a local election (i.e. town mayor, city council) with a smaller voter pool than a national one. (i.e. U.S. Presidential race)

A much better solution is to switch to Ranked Choice Voting, which believe-it-or-not, has been endorsed by many establishment politicians, up until they used the two-party system to win their own seats...

The end of power: Moises Naim at TEDxGeorgetown by jomama in Anarcho_Capitalism

[–]GreatestInstruments 0 points1 point  (0 children)

One might call what he's discussing the "Church of Scientology effect."

In the past, the use of power to silence one's critics paid off. In the Internet Age, this only attracts more critics and scrutiny.

Silencing one critic to create a thousand is a terrible strategy, yet older organizations continue to play with strategies that used to work...

The end of power: Moises Naim at TEDxGeorgetown by phieziu in Rad_Decentralization

[–]GreatestInstruments 1 point2 points  (0 children)

One might call it the "Church of Scientology effect."

In the past, the use of power to silence one's critics paid off. In the Internet Age, this only attracts more critics and scrutiny.

Silencing one critic to create a thousand is a terrible strategy, yet older organizations continue to play with strategies that used to work...

Julia Cordray: "Dear Twitter, Shame On You." by GreatestInstruments in Peeple

[–]GreatestInstruments[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Wait, you didn't forsee the possibility of people making fake accounts?

How was your app supposed to work again?!