Just How Big Is Oklahoma Government?

[Chard]

How can one go back to something that we haven't had?

Even so, the Electoral College serves an important purpose in elections. People in geographic regions tend to think in a similar manner in a sort of herd mentality. What you get is some regions that have larger herds than others (whether by procreation or warm and sandy beaches or that it is established as the corporate base). So what you get is a disproportionately large group of people in Chicago, NYC, DC Metro, or California that have common political beliefs because they are the prevailing beliefs of the local herd, and not necessarily the same beliefs they'd have if they lived elsewhere.

What the Electoral College does is act as a check on this herd mentality, using the states as "regions". States can choose how to allocate their electoral college votes (See Nebraska in 2008). But through the Electoral College, states with a smaller or more rural population get an increase in voting power (30% in Oklahoma's case), while states with much larger or more urban population, and thus an increase in herd mentality, get a decrease in voting power. The Electoral College is more representative of the overall desires of the People by neutralizing disparities between population centers and rural areas.

Now, if you want, we could go back to the pre-12th Amendment Electoral College, where it was usually the "Second Choice" candidate that won...

Excellent explanation!

 

[TRAINr]

Thanks for the replies to my questions. Sorta makes sense I guess. It seems that D.C. is the dominant force constantly in the news so why the point in having fifty secondary governments and all the laws? I'm not sure how religion has anything to do with things since it's said were a Christian nation. I know some folks up in New York who seem to believe the same things as people here. I understand competition but if we're one nation how is this important? Aren't we all working towards the same thing? I know my questions are dumb but I like things to be simple so I can understand them. I'm not a political person, just an average person trying to make sense of stuff.

 

[LightningCrash]

That video has little to do with the size of Oklahoma's government.

I liked the "Now do you know where your tax dollars go?" at the end... uh, no, we don't. All the video did was list entity names.

 

[soonerwings]

It seems that D.C. is the dominant force constantly in the news so why the point in having fifty secondary governments and all the laws?

We're a HUGE nation composed of several regions with different needs and different beliefs as to what the law needs to address. Allowing for states to have their own laws enables people to have the chance to live somewhere that most closely matches their beliefs? Want to be gay and have your marriage recognized? Move to California or Massachusetts. Want property/sales tax but not income tax? Move to Texas. There are more examples but you get the point.

I understand competition but if we're one nation how is this important?

Because competition drives innovation. Think of private companies. Apple and Google are constantly competing to bring you the coolest cell phones. The result of this competition benefits the consumers because the finished products are better as a result of this competition. Governments work the same way. If one state finds a super efficient means of deliver services, all the surrounding states can either implement it themselves or come up with something better.

Aren't we all working towards the same thing?

Maybe and maybe not. I doubt that states like Indiana are worried about immigration. This being said, if there were one huge problem that needed to be solved, wouldn't you rather have 50 possible solutions examined rather than just one?