Argument: There are benefits to in-person argument and discussion. Response: As technology has adjusted to the demands of interpersonal communication, there is no business that can be done face to face that can't be done hundreds of miles away. I would respond that there is no measurable benefit to convening in D.C. outside of traditional circumstances (SOTU, major speeches, etc.)
Argument: There are size limitations on the effectiveness of deliberative bodies- likely about 500. Response: The United Kingdom operates with 650 MPs and 744 Lords, one of many stable legislative systems that break that treshold. Argument: We could not find a way to pay these extra $1,000-2,000 congressmen without adding to our debt problem. Response: The salary of a congressman ($174,000) is just a drop in the bucket compared to their franking privileges, the district office rental, their up to 18 permanent staff members at up to $150,000 each, and domestic travel (minimum of $9,700). We can certainly reform the system and cut costs. We have, as a proportion, nearly the poorest representation in the entire Western hemisphere. If America had the same level of representation as Canada, we would have 2,778 congressional districts. In pure numbers, we're beaten by Mexico, Cuba, and Brazil. The New Hampshire House of Representatives (population 1.3 million) has nearly as many members as the U.S. House (population 312 million). We can't even get residents of our capital their own voting representation. Meanwhile, we have a series of 435 feifdoms headed by a body with a 95% re-election rate. Strongmen in the Middle East are more likely to be removed from office than our representatives, even at an 13% approval rate. But, even through all this, our legislative system is not broken. We're stable. We don't resort to violence and assassinations to influence policy. We can still do better, though. -- Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community <[email protected]> Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org
