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Dr. Doug Gilbert's avatar

Yes, it was an assault on a broken system of democracy. As aptly pointed out recently by Timothy Synder, the parallels to the rapid collapse of the USSR (5 years, 7 months, 29 days after Chernobyl) are all too evident. The inability of a government to project a better future for its citizens after a prolonged stagnation can prove fatal to the government and many of its citizens. The rage and anger that resulted in January 6th, 2021, were predicitably the matches that lit the fire. All that was needed was planning and focused cheerleading for the rage to ignite.

The "monetization" of the political system has so totally corrupted and corroded the imperfect system of American democracy that the future is clearly at risk. Being politically involved should not mean having six fundraising emails a day from whatever political candidate or cause. It should mean being engaged in dialogue with elected officials about how things get better and what they are doing for their constituents.

Perhaps a small addition to the BBB bill might help. Let's impose a 100% exise tax on any federal political contribution totaling over $200 from any individual or related entity. The money could then be used to fund a public trust for elections and election integrity. Based on limited FEC disclosures, that would net somewhere between $3 and $5 billion per cycle. And, guess what, taxes require reporting and disclosure!

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Craig B. Highberger's avatar

I try to keep my spirits up, try to keep hoping this is somehow going to work out okay - but I am fearful that not going to happen, that it is already over. Trump keeps up with the blatant lies, and maybe forty percent of the population of the USA believes, and a huge portion of that group believe that violence in furtherance of their agenda is okay. Worse, here in Georgia where I live and in other GOP run states they have put people in place who will ensure that they decide election outcomes, not the voting public. I try to be hopeful for the future of American democracy, but in the face of present reality it certainly is not looking very likely.

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