Two sorely needed amendments to the US Constitution

Quote: Pacomartin

I like the idea that Democracy is inherently inefficient. Dictatorship is extremely efficient. But by it's very nature Democracy will spend a great deal of time undoing it's previous "accomplishments" and waste a lot of time in consensus building.

What do you mean by "efficient."

In physics, the definition is crystal clear: the ratio between energy input and work output in a machine.

So if you put in 100 units of electricity into a light bulb and get back 12 equivalent units in the form of visible light, that's a 12% efficiency.

How do you measure such things in government, and whether or not they are efficient? You might measure how much money goes into a bureaucracy in the form of taxes, fees, etc., and how much value come out the other end.

A Dictatorship is efficient because one person spends 5 minutes deciding lets make this happen. In a democracy 100's of elected representatives debate something for days before anything happens. Human energy units that go into the decision is much greater in the democracy.

Quote: kenarman

In a democracy 100's of elected representatives debate something for days before anything happens. Human energy units that go into the decision is much greater in the democracy.

I believe I've heard that one before. But it was phrased in the form of a question. As in, "How many people in congress does it take to screw in a light bulb."

How about this: any candidate who wins a general election without a majority, or even the largest plurality, of the popular vote should be labeled "usurper"?