Ideal for a world dictatorship - it just takes a Putin to come along and we're all stuffed.

@David_Cooper

I think it would be easier to get rid if these dickheads actually. The way the world has become interconnected and the population is growing, I think a world government is inevitable anyway. One way or another...

It doesn't work that way - big blocks fall to dictators just as easily as small ones, but the bigger they are, the harder it is to overthrow them. It's safest to keep countries small. With world government, one lurch to left or right is all it would take for a genocide of billions.

@David_Cooper

I disagree. I think if there was a way to ensure fair & democratic elections in each country or region, which I know is saying a lot, then the weight of humanity's will would overcome any wannabe dictators and demagogues.

I think our problem right now is that too many countries think that their way is the better way. Too much like religions as a matter of fact. Or sports teams.

I've heard Richard Dawkins espouse the same idea

For a democracy to work the majority of voters need to be educated. As a former long time poll worker I have seen how uneducated voters have brought us to what we have today. Unfortunately, many educated voters still lack some basic knowledge about how to vote.

@TheMiddleWay I completely disagree. I couldn't tell you what the offical line is, but clearly there needs to be one. Look around.

The GOP has built a legacy on stopping people from voting that don't agree with their party, redrawing districts to win elections easier, taking money from big corporations to vote for laws that don't represent their constituents, keeping the blue collar workers afraid of illegals, dividing up groups on single hot button issues (like gun control) causing them to vote against themselves, and stripping education away from the populace slowly to build a party of idiots who love voting and red hats.

Don't get me wrong, the Dems try to do a lot of this shit too they're just also incompetent at politics so when Clinton controls the party she runs the worst campaign ever losing in the biggest layup election in history.

We're a nation divided because of ignorance, and people should have to earn the right to vote. If you think you wouldn't make the cut and want to have your voice heard, what would you do to earn that right? On top of that, if people wouldn't go that extra mile, why should they get a vote?

Stupid people know when they're hurting - they can measure that better than intelligent elites can measure it for them, and they need to have the democratic power to defend themselves.

@David_Cooper Stupid people routinely vote AGAINST their self interests because a politician and party convince them that the thing they should be scared of is something irrelevant to them.

The most common one is illegal immigrants. Many idiots are convinced that illegal immigrants are a threat to their jobs, the economy, and their safety and they're voting for a wall that they ACTUALLY believed Mexico would pay for. The statistical reality is that illegal immigrants help the economy, don't take equivalent jobs, and commit less crime than legal citizens. They'd be better off voting for the Dems but they are buying the snake-oil. The only people who should be voting Republican are white millionaires who don't give a fuck about their children. However they throw in a few things for morons to be afraid of and they've got a party.

@TheMiddleWay We do it already. The US population is ~330M and ~123M aren't allowed to vote. The most common categories are under the voting age, currently incarcerated or past felony convictions, and mentally unable.

Of that 2/3 that are allowed to vote, about 55% actually turn out to vote. Our presidency is being decided by 1/3 of our actual population,and since the elections are usually pretty cut down the middle, 1/6 of the populace is choosing our president and on the last election the president didn't even win the popular vote.

If you want to convince me that we're doing a good job electing representatives because ~17% of the population chose them, you've got a long road ahead of you. The largest selection of GOP voters was non-college educated white males. Racist idiots selected Trump, a president who gets laughed at by the entire UN.

We've already proven REPEATEDLY that our current method doesn't work.

@TheMiddleWay I'm not saying that you need to take an IQ test or have a degree, but a certain level of participation and effort should be a prerequisite. Right now people who can't tell lies apart from the truth are being lied to and its working. You need to train and take a test to drive a car, why can't the same be true for voting?

So when and where are you running for election? ?

I would legalise the trading and possession of drugs, but make it illegal to consume some of them. That would cut out practically all the crime and environmental destruction, and the main remaining "crime" would be people harming themselves, which isn't something that requires punishment unless they're harming others in the process, but some discouragement may be useful.

@maturin1919 yes, please.

I disagree with extinction, but I do think humans should begin a population reduction program. One child per couple globally, until the population is brought back to a manageable level.

[EDIT]: As soon as I wrote that I thought about all the situations of second relationships and individuals wanting a child and I think we'd have to work all that out somehow because I do think anyone who wants to be a parent should get that opportunity but, I don't have ALL the answers yet.

@maturin1919 I am not reproducing again, and my son is dead. So yeah

@maturin1919 I said to stop procreating to lead to extinction. One of these days, I may kill myself, anyway. Won’t you be pleased?

@maturin1919 The differences are too numerous to list.

@maturin1919 should be a badge.

I agree.

@TristanNuvo I think that with our current numbers and what that does to the planet we could be classified as vermin.

@patchoullijulie Some simple mathematics about food should weigh in here as well.
meaning that by far, there isn't enough food food the whole population as it is, and the numbers keep growing at an alarming rate.

@TristanNuvo Yes and food supply is one of the most damaging things that we do.

@patchoullijulie and @TristanNuvo I accept that this is an unpopular opinion thread. However, we produce far more than enough food to feed the entire population.

People go to bed hungry because we aren't good at transporting it cheaply enough for anyone to do it. The world is not overpopulated. I never really understood this argument.

@Xuande I am actually talking about the way we produce the food not necessarily the quantity produced. I disagree on the over population question. For the stress that we put on the planet, we are in overpopulation mode.

@patchoullijulie The stress that we currently put on the planet isn't harming Earth so much as it is harming our future ability to live on it. That said, we're becoming more efficient and clean in our use of natural resources. By showing a greater respect to the environment, we could easily continue to expand.

The entire human population could live in an area the size of Ukraine. It'd be a bustling metropolis but we're not overpopulated from a land use standpoint.

Funny, I don't feel you leaning on me...

You might find higher intelligence on this site

@IBuiltTheMoon The biggest part that bamboozles me is how he fired off 3 rounds in 5.6 seconds with a bolt-action Italian piece of shit! Carlos Hathcock couldn't do it. He was the best 1000 yard shot the Marines had! Jesse Ventura couldn't do it. He was Expert. People that have served during the time said it would be hard to get a head shot in that time frame with an M-14. Your target is moving 6-8 MPH, you are on the 6th floor, and you have to shoot through trees. I do balistists tests myself.

I used to argue to juries that there are some people who are alive solely because it's against the law to kill them...you know given your intent it stops being euthanasia right?

I am all for someone choosing euthanasia for themselves but not so much to cleanse the gene pool (although it needs some adjustment). That would require judgement from other people, ie who should or should not be euthanized. I don't trust other people's judgments.

You are correct. I am on the other end of the spectrum. I eat keto and do it almost to the point of being carnivore. I LOVE bacon. Same reaction from people.

@boatdude87 Interestingly, it is possible to do vegan keto. So being vegan and being keto are not mutually exclusive. However, keto is a diet and being vegan is an ethical stance and a way of life (not just what I eat).

Oh dear. Now which natives are you talking about Davey? You mean the Beaker people or perhaps the ancient Celts? I get that you never got the romans round your end, but what about invasions from the Vikings? Now come on may be your mean those Hugenaughts from Holland or our Jewish brethern from Eastern Europe who have been abused for generations. You see Davey lad, they didn't assimilate they blended in! They brought skills, language (pyjama, shampoo, caravan...words from India) from wherever they came from and they shared it with us. So you are free to eat your battered pizza as you like it!
I am sad to hear you say that because I love Scotland, Scottish people are the warmest and most welcoming of anywhere I have been. I went on marches in Edinburugh where the SDL where laughed at. As a northen English woman, I always was made to feel welcome. Oh and Davey newly arrived immigrants can't vote! They can't claim benefits and there is a pretty tough English test for anyone wanting to become British.

Okay I go along with that, after we have paid back all the money we got from empire with interest.

@273kelvin and maybe paid reparations to all those slaves that were shipped to the Caribbean.

@Amisja You can't undo the wrongs of the past with waves of invasions - over time populations do mix and you develop a new kind of native inhabitant. The Beaker people survive as 10% on average of each of the current natives. The Angles, Saxons and Vikings make up 40% of the current natives in the same way. These invaders weren't invited in or given permission to stay, so it was far worse than what's happening today, but lots of mixing has gone on since and you can't pick out anyone from any of those old tribes in the modern population, which means that the voice of the native people is in that mix. You can obviously look ahead to a future mix going on and on until there is only one race on the planet, one language, one culture, and a much less interesting world, and you can argue that that's better, but what I find objectionable is that we have people driving that process deliberately for political reasons. Here's an example: [bbc.co.uk]

A real hero is someone who says "Its okay I will knock next door and see if they have any skins" at 3.15am

Well, wild animals are territorial too.

You need to educate people in order to do that and the vast majority of people isn’t adequately educated. It would take forever to implement. Plus, is democracy really that good? Think Trump, Brexit, democratically elected Hitler. What the world needs is a benevolent dictator.

@SergeyCornwall The trouble with benevolent dictators is they don't stay benevolent for too long. If they do? A ruthless one soon comes along. Also anyone who wants the job is unsuitable for the position. The only chance of a benevolent dictator is an absolute monarchy and thats just a chance. They don't have to fight for power, curry favour, just be born.

I had no idea that there such a thing as a twinkie maker.....that is just sad lol

@patchoullijulie the smiles on the faces tell it all

@lerlo ha ha ha that's great. I had no idea.

I second that!

I kind of like it when they dispense with the pleasantries and focus on being right. The religious apologists make a big show of being nice and flaunt that shit-eater grin because they are not arguing evidence, they are trying to get people to like them and buy snakeoil.

What is the atheist cause?

@Donotbelieve Oooh, kinky!

@Donotbelieve I believe that being attracted to a man in a cardigan is the height of kink. But then again, I'm so vanilla I'm practically flavourless.

@Spongebob IKR?

Absobloodylutely..can't abide the smugass sexist git!

There is no atheist cause. Not believing in god is no cause. You believe in god? That is your problem. Just don't bother me with your religion.