Our democracy no longer represents the people. Here's how we fix it | Larry Lessig | TEDxMidAtlantic

Harvard Professor Lawrence Lessig makes the case that our democracy has become corrupt with money, leading to inequality that means only 0.02% of the United States population actually determines who's in power. Lessig says that this fundamental breakdown of the democratic system must be fixed before we will ever be able to address major challenges like climate change, social security, and student debt. This is not the most important problem, it's just the first problem.
Lawrence Lessig is the Roy L. Furman Professor of Law and Leadership at Harvard Law School, former director of the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics at Harvard University, and founder of Rootstrikers, a network of activists leading the fight against government corruption. He has authored numerous books, including Republic, Lost: How Money Corrupts Our Congress-and a Plan to Stop It, Code and Other Laws of Cyberspace, Free Culture, and Remix.
This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at ted.com/tedx

[@censorthis-uu6cc]

Favourite line - "The voters don't choose the politicians, the politicians choose the voters"

[@mayhelm811]

Yeah, it's basically gerrymandering in a nutshell. We like to think of it differently, but that's what it is.

[@bascostbudde7614]

@@mayhelm811 Oh no it is way worse. Gerrymandering can be "fixed" because it is detectable fraud. This is fraud in the very outline of the system itself. Well, I'd say.

[@aaronking5170]

That's how it is now, but it wasn't always like this. Americans have been conditioned by the elites to believe what they dictate.

[@bascostbudde7614]

@@aaronking5170 What influence has one ever had in which candidates are running for president?

[@deejannemeiurffnicht1791]

even that's old.... whoever owns the most owns the politricians

[@MVanDamm]

I was watching this in 2020, then realized this was from four years ago.

[@AshtonCoolman]

I bet this hits differently today than it did just 3 months ago. Peaceful protests have been ignored for decades so a little noise had to be made. The results speak for themselves.

[@GavriJ]

@@AshtonCoolman As in theft?

[@frostellie]

And now we have a lot more voter suppression.

[@SovereignStatesman]

Mr. D The USA is an international union, not national. Sorry Hillarite.

[@leealexander3507]

I watched it four years ago and I'm watching it again in 2020. It has even more meaning now.

[@GARYHYPERAMPED]

Listening to this was, by far, the best way I spent 20 minutes in my memory. I wish every American would listen to this.

[@chrisparsonson420]

Not just Americans

[@mikeontko15]

I wish every American would act on this. The combination of complacency, apathy and ignorance have done more to kill the concept of a true democracy than anything.

[@chadm2343]

@@mikeontko15 What are we supposed to do? Practically 50% of the country's able voters actively vote to hand away our rights to fight against a tyrannical government, and the other 50% are too afraid of the government to go forward with it.

[@meganbaker9116]

@@mikeontko15 The time for people to learn about this and still have the energy and idealism to care about it is in school, but that’s the last place most of us learned anything about government (the reality of it, that is) or how the world works. We sleepwalk through 13 years of mind numbing schooling and then wonder why people aren’t motivated to change the world. We can’t change it if we don’t know how it works.

[@michaelfallin6859]

Amen. Now, what is our plan to DO something? Article 5 of the Constitution?

[@bunsenn5064]

I wish my school lectures were like this. This dude is great at combining humor with valuable information and fulfilling education on a relevant problem.

[@pterafirma]

Your state government and school board goes to great lengths to ensure that your school lectures _aren't_ like this.

[@firstname8707]

This aged in the best way possible In the worst way possible.

[@Emilthehun]

The illusion of choice is what keeps the people at bay , and from making a change

[@Emilthehun]

@@jameseverett9037 step one is to realize there is a problem. After the problem is identified, its easy to come up with a solution.

[@Emilthehun]

@@jameseverett9037 the illusion of choice, is when people believe that by voting for Democrat's or Republicans actually matters. In reality it makes no difference. They are the left and right hands of the same people. That's the illusion. People could make a change by voting independent, starting at city level and work your way up to state level.

[@jameseverett9037]

@@Emilthehun ok I see what you mean. Yes, I agree. Sorry......I've been arguing with other people about free will for the last week on another video comment section.

[@Emilthehun]

@@jameseverett9037 i understand. KZbin can be a bit of a pain every now and then.

[@DogDog173]

probably best comment ever

[@bwolfe58]

This lecture is even more relevant today than in 2015. Our political system has gotten even worse since then.

[@MichaelLloydMobile]

He's right. The system must be fixed for problems to be addressed.

[@edwinamendelssohn5129]

The best thing is to chop DC down to their original size and give government back to the people

[@bookbunny9]

The older this video gets while staying relevant, the more depressing it is.

[@autohmae]

It's not the age of the video that matters, it's that this has been going on for over 40 years.

[@ryanmarks1224]

@@autohmae i think u forgot a 0

[@autohmae]

@@ryanmarks1224 I'm talking about Buckley v. Valeo and later Citizens United v. FEC in 2010. Which made it legal to take brides and thus most of the current politicians don't represent the people. And the media are complicit

[@ryanmarks1224]

@@autohmae i was just joking lol

[@autohmae]

@@ryanmarks1224 sorry for getting awfully specific for a joke then. :-)

[@bikebudha01]

It's 2019, the worst part about this presentatoin is it was done in 2015 - and none of the important 'fixes' have been incorporated... Sigh....

[@drublod530]

And now it’s 2020 and still, nothing’s changed. In fact it’s even worse.

[@johnmalvent2189]

@@drublod530 Indeed. There's a breaking point somewhere. Hopefully we can enact reform before then.

[@hour_logic]

watched this for the first time tonight, thought this was a more recent talk since it’s so relevant until I saw your comment

[@Mocha69A]

Ad a couple more decades to that

[@Mocha69A]

@@jeffjansen6951 Trump is a Democrat in disguise

[@sephiroth838]

I find it interesting that his "solution" requires people who are beholden to the "tweeds" to willingly put a bill in place that goes against the "tweeds". If we could do that, then this wouldn't be a problem that needs solving.

[@Twisted_Code]

Yeah, you'd need to somehow get 51 senators and 200+ reps on board to go against the economic elite, and getting citizens just to agree on who these congresspeople... Well, people hardly need an excuse to disagree with each other, never mind someone with a vested interest in keeping us from changing the system.

[@stealthxsin]

That's a really good point. His explanation was really great. It's always tough to come up with the solution though.

[@naberville3305]

​@@stealthxsin that's simply because there is no solution to the scope of the problem he lies out. This isn't the result of an errant flaw in our specific political system. But of a deeper contradiction between capitalism and democracy proper that can never be reformed away. Fixing this surface level issue require uprooting the whole beast. And while there are certainly people saying that. No corporately owned media outlet it's going to show them to you.

[@nditahsamweld346]

Professor Lawrence Lessig, thank you for such a wonderful lecture.

[@mediastarguest]

"Few of us desire true freedom and liberty; most of us wish only for a fair master." Sallust, Tribune of the Plebs. Rome, 62 BC.

[@laaaliiiluuu]

Nothing has changed. Most people are not even worth the clothing they wear.

[@jackiebiskan4748]

@@laaaliiiluuu what clothing is under 1 hours work in most the 1st world

[@alfredcourtney1360]

The country started wrong. It very possible that things may never change.

[@abuseofmainstreammediacanh5713]

"To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize." Voltaire

[@GARY84ROCKS]

People of color, women and gays would be a start.

[@martymcfly5423]

Nobody is allowed to criticize the dictatorship of Leftism.

[@l.a.chancey]

@@martymcfly5423 CRITICIZE IT, WE MUST.

[@100consciouseternallightho6]

@@GARY84ROCKS We are all not allowed to be criticized as the eternal holograms we are. So therefore, very few know.

[@lynnkelley6655]

@@GARY84ROCKS Are you kidding? Can you tell me who is criticized MORE than the 3 entities you name?

[@zachrowell6795]

I’ve voted several times here in Dallas and I have NEVER needed to wait in any sort of line. I can understand that the long lines must exist for surely they do, but I guess I’m somehow lucking out to be able to walk straight up to the machine from the car and vote! Longest I’ve waited is probably 30 seconds. Also, I totally agree we should end gerrymandering!

[@zachrowell6795]

@Brad B Over the course of the years that I’ve lived here is what I mean. 2016, 2018, 2020, 2022, etc. Each time I vote I’m typically in and out of the building within 10 minutes.

[@jammin3858]

There are laws against gerrymandering. Unfortunately, the corrupt have found ways around them.

[@johnspooner1403]

@@zachrowell6795 -Are you white, living in a predominantly white district? Then yeah.

[@raystinsky]

The system isn't corrupt. It's working exactly as intended. Until people understand this, they cannot address the problem.

[@thereoncewasalimerickwriter]

I've felt our democracy was corrupt for many years, but it's wonderful to see this lucid explanation of the core cause. Nominations controlled by wealth? Well, that's my vote wasted. It also explains why the American primary system works to exclude all decent people from becoming candidates.

[@MsEagle20]

This is why you cannot blame any individual for voting for any given candidate. The voters do not pick the candidates and we basically only have two choices in this country. The people to get mad at are the people who nominate the candidates. I have always known this intuitively but Professor Lessing put my intuition into words. Great talk!

[@raevj]

That is why the elites want to keep the partisan battle going 24/7 in the elite owned media. It keeps our attention off the real battle we should be waging TOGETHER. We must unite or we will are letting the elites win.

[@jeremiahrush5695]

Our democracy has been corrupt since it’s founding and it won’t change unless we do something about it

[@hyphen8d725]

Bernie Sanders, the most sane primary candidate we've ever had run, is a perfect example. Opinions are changing, and I'm hopeful for our future!

[@scottjohnson9032]

Don’t forget that Republican and Democrat parties are private clubs. I would be really interested to have an election with no party affiliation. Just policy, nobody having to be loyal to their party, just people voting for candidates based on qualifications and policies. But it’s pie in the sky, I know. Seems like there was a time when the differences were more about how to do something, with more agreement about what needed doing. Nowadays the difference is more substantial, about radically opposite ideals and changing the basic premise of America. It’s a huge shift and it’s not good, and it’s in a direction that has always proven detrimental.

[@21dolphin123]

Possibly one of the most important TED talks ever given, this should be seen by every single American .As President Abraham Lincoln said over a hundred years ago "Government of the people ,by the people, for the people. "

[@sirvapalot]

every Australian and UK resident should see this talk

[@mharper5049]

Possibly not. Clearly liberal. Extremism and alarmist. There’s a fallacy in the overall argument that candidates our “tweed” system creates (who have the money to run,) only do the bidding of the tweeds and the common good. That’s not the case, otherwise there would be very few people who get out and vote because they wouldn’t see representation in their candidates. Check out Candace Brown, a prominent african american voice about political discourse and policies. We don’t have a FANTASY in America. The truth is that in America we have FREEDOM of opportunity, the pursuit of happiness bettering ourselves. There are millions of stories (small business owners) who are living examples.

[@johnmalvent2189]

​@@mharper5049 Name the fallacy, because if I understand what you meant (you have typed it wrong) then you are committing a fallacy yourself with the appeal to authority/institution. As for the error, not sure if you've typo'd or had a brain fart but you say "fallacy....tweed system....only do the bidding of the tweeds and the common good" and in the next sentence you state "not the case...otherwise few get out to vote....representation" Those two sentences oppose one another as written even though your intent was for both statements to be in support of your assertion. But I assume you're attempting to defend our current system, even in the face of the Princeton study presented. Might wanna clearly evaluate and present your own counter before you clumsily attempt to degrade someone else's point based on party bias. "Liberal" or Conservative has absolutely nothing to do with this, and that's your second fallacy; ad hominem. Stop being obtusely divisive. There is clearly an issue with the current system. You hiding your head in the sand isn't going to make it go away.

[@paulducharme60oo]

But which exactly "people" was he talking about? Oh yeah, His.

[@ArmadilloSusan]

@@mharper5049 Spoken like a true well-to-do white person that thinks all you have to do is work hard and money will be handed to you. Well, this white girl from a semi-well-to-do family learned how much that is not true. The greed at the top has done horrible, serious damage that has destroyed the middle class. There are NOT hoards of lazy people out there. There are huge masses of people that have been under paid for 40 years.

[@hypolitej]

I’m always forced to evaluate what we mean when we talk about equality for all people. To me it means an equal chance or opportunity to achieve success or one’s potential. There should be systems in place in furtherance of this objective such as good schools and teachers for all children. The government at both the federal and local level plays a critical role in ensuring that these systems are in place, something that has been historically lacking. As a society we continue to make slow progress in ameliorating this historical deficit. Of critical importance also is the role of the individual in promoting his or her own equality. No amount of government intervention will confer equality if individuals fail to take advantage of the opportunities before them. So I say first things first, let’s ensure that we build a system where there is equal opportunity for all so that individuals can succeed or fail on their own merit. Will such a system guarantee full equality? I have my doubts but I’m convinced it will promote greater equality in our imperfect society.

[@umenhuman7573]

if you seek true equality of opportunity then you first need to extinguish from all government policy a dependence on the anceint slaver practice of landlordism ... the fact you, or anyone else dioesn't even list it as an issue of priority simply indicates how many people take it for granted that everyone actually has a solid foundation upon which to build a life.. the simple reality is the natural law dictates that ALL human beings NEED access to the land and its resources simply to live, let alone stay alive, yet such a NEED is treated as a secondary concern as if such a need is merely a consumer product equivalent to a trinket, or shiny object of amusement you will never create equality of opportunity until such natural law dictates are recognised, because the involuntary servitude created by the policies of landlordism do not treat people of equal worth and so the very fabric of society is fundamentally corrupt to its core forcing people to live on quicksand is never going to rproduce equality of opportunity, but it will perpetuate the creation of homelessnes in order to continually relabel people renters

[@jjwood29]

I enjoy how this talk makes it so painfully clear how extraordinarily delusional we all are. People have opinions about everything and know next to nothing.

[@jeffw5263]

“It’s a big club, and you and I ain’t in it.” -George Carlin

[@toosunakabooma1213]

But would you really want to join if they would have you for a member?

[@topherno]

@@toosunakabooma1213 The uncomfortable truth is that you can often achieve and change things more when you do it from the inside as opposed to the outside. "Change from within" as they say.

[@mihailkrylov4055]

Just saw it. Thank you

[@gmanjordan4154]

Your Vote is a Joke!

[@jcat5150]

Carlin got less funny in his old age (to me at least) but he spoke LOT'S of truth!

[@jodypasalich28]

"We the corporations of this united business, in order to form more wealth, establish dominance, insure our gold, to have it protected, to promote the masses to welfare and secure our liberty and posterity, do ordain and establish this conglomerate that formed off the backs of the people." Here we are nearly four years since this was published, when will democracy be fixed.

[@thomasgassett7157]

Give it a rest. Or maybe you need a long rest.

[@thomasgassett7157]

The mindless drone spews. BFD

[@thomasgassett7157]

@HMSBlackPrince Real democracy .... the tyranny of the masses.

[@joakimawesome]

I don't even know why my University wants us to register as voters. What a waste of energy. Voting is futile. Message is powerful.

[@thetayterminator1436]

@HMSBlackPrince McCarthyism plus Rupert Murdoch & Roger Ailes creating the most dangerous Propaganda outlet the world has ever seen (Fox News) is what has caused more Americans to vote against their own self-interest, trying to enlighten an avid Fox News viewer to the lies they've been told is like trying to snatch a bone out of the mouth of a hungry feral dog. Its sad really, to hear them repeat these lies to their friends & loved ones with such conviction. I know because I get to hear it every Thanksgiving & Christmas Family gathering.... Ughhh its almost that time of year again wahoo!

[@KarimKadiriMOTIVATOR]

This is the greatest presentation I've ever seen on Ted. Thank you

[@stuarthall3874]

Really? I found it shallow and self-righteous. How can we have such different experiences watching the same video?

[@KarimKadiriMOTIVATOR]

@@stuarthall3874 different brains, different conditioning

[@stuarthall3874]

@@KarimKadiriMOTIVATOR It is amazing sometimes how we can each live in very different worlds.

[@JoolsTwo]

perhaps not the best, but informative

[@heatherupton6558]

I agree! If we do not change campaign financing nothing will ever change in this country. Our congress people will cater to rich donors and we “the people “ will be left behind.

[@l.w.4701]

SIX years after this talk…OMG 😱 this does make me feel so sad. Have we progressed any further in making the district boundaries more reasonable?

[@codyherring3895]

nope, it's worse :)

[@silentbob7984]

How do you remove corruption when both parties love the money in politics? They’re all crooks.

[@QT5656]

If we look to the past, the answer is pitchforks and guillotines 😕

[@svaz2006]

The Founders tried desperately to do just that, adding fail safes after bulwarks after limitations. We, The People, have gleefully and relentlessly torn down those protections for the sake of 'free' and expediency. In a democracy, The People get the government they deserve.

[@AnymMusic]

@@QT5656 *sigh* I'll get the WD-40 and the sharpening stone for the guillotine

[@thesoliloquist1940]

Anybody willing to sign a petition amending 'abstain' into the ballot? This gov will fall.. but possibly while we rebuild we can put 'abstain' in the ticket..

[@janedope2303]

We all need to DONATE OR VOLUNTEER TO HELP THE RUNOFF RACES IN GEORGIA!!!! We NEED TO WIN THE SENATE!!! Mitch McConnell has had a long reign of terror and he has basically been a Sith Lord of our government. If we can give the Democrats the majority we can root him out of power and then Bernie Sanders can FINALLY MAKE HIS VISION REALITY AND WE CAN HAVE HEALTH CARE!!

[@jackpamm2457]

This talk explains why in the upcoming presidential elections, both candidates are despised by the majority of people. Nonetheless, we have to pick one of them to represent our country. What a shame!

[@jacquelinewege]

You can also choose not to take part in the circus. If no one voted for either maybe the government would get the message.

[@Gophilio4567]

Now, what if everyone decided NOT to vote? I know this is not going to happen, but just imagine.

[@shawnjohnson7986]

Not necessarily, you can vote for anyone, just as long as they meet the requirements which are minimal. Doesn't necessarily mean that they will win though, even if they won the popular vote, Clinton beat Trump by popular vote, but Trump won the electoral vote. Its all about the electoral vote; therefore, its all about who you vote into office as government officials because they control that states electoral vote. Its really much more difficult than you think it is.

[@cosmicjohn174]

+Gordonkris Well what a lot of people don't know and you can find it in the Constitution if no one votes the electoral college will choose the president.

[@Gophilio4567]

John Turner Oh.

[@One-Up]

This video was uploaded 6 years ago and nothing has changed since, if anything things has gotten worse, we can talk about it and identify the problems all we want but there is nothing that was done about it, this is sad

[@Alkimi]

Very well-put, I shared this one with my family, with whom I seem to clash politically, in general, despite being in agreement on every issue of morality and specific ideas. I think this speaks to us all, simply as humans.

[@muleteammate]

Politics is the entertainment wing of the Military-Industrial-Security Complex.

[@suehall6430]

Politics is a word that means something's wrong with the system, i.e., corruption of either the elected officials or brainwashing of the slaves that the politicians thrive on & live in luxury. Democrats yell for equality, yet Pelosi, Waters, & many demons like them have not lifted a GD hand to help anyone.

[@muleteammate]

@fred ochoa I would disagree that any person, party, or government *gave* us our rights. Our rights are inherent to being human. We have rights as humans and they are not granted to us by government. A government can choose to recognize those rights or not. The US government chooses to not recognize our human right to have control over our own consciousness. If you exercise this right, it will attempt to put you in prison, for as long as it can.

[@100consciouseternallightho6]

Beyond And beyond that, there is only one political party and that is Nazis.

[@100consciouseternallightho6]

Beyond I thought that killing hundreds of thousands of children in Iraq was their entertainment.

[@MultiKalwin]

LOL... well said.

[@michaeljohnangel6359]

I'm watching this in 2020 and, man, it never changes, does it? I have a much shortened version of Dr Lessing's brilliant exposition: until Americans realise that they live in an oligarchy, not in a democracy, stopping the Tweeds from treading all over you (and us) cannot happen. A thing cannot be changed if the plan is for something that the situation is not. Oligarchy cannot be stopped by treating it as though it were a democracy.

[@havable]

@@d.boumghar7385 Term limits are a lobbyists wet dream. "One term for life" means no accountability b/c everyone is a lame duck whose only priority will be securing their next job which will mean selling their vote. But don't lose hope, there are good reforms out there. Ranked Choice Voting is excellent b/c it introduces competition to our duopoly political system. Whether or not you like 3rd parties, having them actually able to elect people to office would keep the two major parties honest. There is no need to 'strategic' vote under RCV because if your 1st choice loses your ballot now goes to your 2nd choice, and so on. Instead of the lesser of two evils, we'd have a plethora of both goods and evils to choose from.

[@MK007-YT]

@@d.boumghar7385, in substantial agreement. I thought something quite similar.... As in "Do as I say and Not as I Do." Additionally, the solutions offered seemed rather Naive, Simplistic and might lack some Pragmatism as well.

[@MelissaThompson432]

Ah, no; the problem in our country has become that a thick slice of the voting populace WANTS the responsibility of making their own decisions taken away from them permanently.

[@toothpasteman3400]

@@MelissaThompson432 "if _I_ don't make the choices _I_ can't be *responsible* for _my_ actions"

[@SchgurmTewehr]

Surprise, you can share and copy every link on the internet. Maybe the content like this video that convinced you can convince others as well. You only need to choose whether you care or not.

[@liversuccess1420]

When he did the comparison at 7:56 of the percentage of relevant contributors in America to the rest of the population, and the Hong Kong system, pretty much blew my mind.

[@mocgator]

The USA has never ever had a "democracy". The Founding Father's HATED "democracies". We are a Constitutional Republic. Having said that Larry has some excellent points on the ruling class and especially gerrymandering.

[@GH-oi2jf]

But we have various institutions which implement democratic principles to some degree.

[@watsamatau]

@@GH-oi2jf what institutions exactly ?

[@Biny123]

“All men is created equal” that doesn’t sound like it came from people who hated democracy. Does it?

[@watsamatau]

@@Biny123 democracy is not based on individualism. It is groupism . In a constitutional republic the smallest of minorities is the individual .or at least its supposed to be .........

[@rjmercer042]

@@Biny123 You mean the guys that owned people? That wrote slavery into the Constitution? That created the Electoral College so that people could not vote directly for President (because they did not trust them to do it)? Senators chose by state legislatures? The Founders were not huge fans of democracy and didn't act much like they thought people were actually equal (or that all people were necessarily people). Don't confuse words on paper with real life.

[@irishwolfhound9969]

Young politicians enter the great building of power with sincere hearts, but leave with the stench of the corrupt swamp having their noble intentions suffocated and extinguished.

[@suehall6430]

Irish wolfhound, young lawyers go to D.C. & join the mafia on Capital Hill to become wealthy. American politicians are the most corrupt people on earth & the Hill is simply an organization that you can join with $50,000 & leave a few years later with $50,000,000.

[@gfitz1999]

Irish Wolfhound. You mentioned "...the stench of the corrupt swamp..." Trump campaigned on the promise he would "drain the swamp". I wonder what happened?

[@suehall6430]

@@gfitz1999 it either takes time to drain the swamp or Trump is a part of the swamp. I'm hoping the latter isn't true. If Trump starts a war based on warmongering zionist, John Bolton, then we'll know he's a part of the swamp. Trump needs to fire those warmongering bastards to prove he's for peace & the people.

[@Sensiav703]

@@suehall6430 The answer is both. It would no doubt take time to root out corruption in government in a meaningful way, but Trump is and always has been part of the swamp he supposedly wants to dredge. Why would he want to change the very thing that makes him wealthy to begin with, his very means of survival?

[@yummygummy2133]

@@Sensiav703 during the 2016 election he spent SIGNIFICANTLY LESS on his campaign then the other candidates so in comparison he's definitely not as bad as the other politicians. Now I'm not saying he's an exception or he's the best, but considering the fact that he isn't a typical politician does give him an upper hand, and on top of that, corruption isn't something you can solve in a day you know Edit: when I say candidates I mean from both the left and right

[@BobHerzog1962]

Man this makes me glad we in Germany have: 1. Public party funding by a system (based on how parties do) & controlls on direct donations. 2. Election always on a Sunday which is always a holiday here. 3. A proportininal vote system where votes of the loseing side do not get ignored. 4. Vot districts formed by a well defined system of rules and decided by professionals without direct interference of the law makers. Still far from perfect but on the whole it seems to work a lot better.

[@thesliceisright]

NICE

[@zsydeepsky2]

recently I heard someone mentioned the philosophy differences you Germans have compare to what the British/American have, that in German political philosophy, "Government is the embodiment of all human virtue", which for British/American, "Government is the biggest enemy of freedom". so...just wondered, is that real?

[@stewiemac4017]

It's looking real well now. Your country flooded with unwanted **** and energy rationing on the way. Britain has developed its systems successfully over centuries.

[@chrisogilvie8133]

I am ever grateful to live in NZ. We have relatively little corruption here. My Dad used to say "America has the best politicians that money can buy!" Now I understand why.

[@daveditchdigger2111]

The media must also be neutral for this to work.

[@nickacelvn]

Possibly the most relevant TED talk ever.

[@ludovic2431]

Indeed, you can feel the pain. A trully rotten system

[@kionnakelly2918]

Your pfp scared the sh*t out of me. 😅 I have a fear of flying insects and I was ready to throw my phone

[@MG-fr3tn]

We're animals ,animals that behave like all the other animals and plants for that matter. Which ones have the most the biggest the latest and the most status. Why because if we don't impress we don't reproduce. So throwing the kids under the bus to impress potential mates with our consuming mantra is legitimate. Our collective prowess needs millennia to reconcile our value system with survival, to approach something like ants or termites. Science has accelerated the masses but not wisdom or culture a reductive nightmare for all a dream for the individual

[@kcbh24]

is it, though?

[@laaaliiiluuu]

@@boydy1598 Trump, Obama, Biden, Sanders or whoever are different sides of the same dice and someone else is playing with it.

[@FlyOnTheMoon.]

I just watched this on 7/24/2020. This makes perfect sense. If we, the citizens of the United States, cannot nominate who we want to nominate, how can this be a democracy?

[@wesman7837]

It was never supposed to be a democracy, and I hope to God it never is, but hopefully we can get closer to being the representative republic that we were meant to be! Hopefully one that respects individual liberty unlike either party today.

[@marcusonesimus3400]

Fly On The Moon Democracy is more an abstract ideal than anything else, almost like the 'stateless society' envisaged by some fringe radicals. If it were to work, it would be on a small scale surely, perhaps in a tightly-knit rural community or an urban enclave. Dissension, or the hint of a personality cult, would upset the delicate balance necessary to sustain cooperation. Political parties could ruin such an experiment. The right kind of spirit was present in the earliest Church, except that it was NOT a political institution at all; nor was it a democracy, but a THEOCRACY in the true sense: (Acts 4:32) 'And the congregation of those who believed were of one heart and soul' and not one claimed that anything belonging to him was his own, but all things were common property to them.' (No, they did not abolish property; they decided freely to share it according to need.)

[@hawnoogood7937]

@@marcusonesimus3400 it is interesting to think that every economic system operates like a Jehovah theocracy. Someone is in control of the needed product. The people who need the product do exchange some thing to the person who controls the product in order to receive the needed product. When fair exchange occurs things are fair. The truly needy who cannot offer something in exchange for the needed product Will be taken care of like children and disabled people. The end result is if everyone follows the good that God proclaims then we have the same foundation of the early church community. But also any other economic system that has kept its needed products readily available for the community. Gods ways are the best. But not given credit.

[@harrychildress4575]

AGAIN, WE ARE A REPUBLIC, not a Democracy. Mail-in ballots should be only in specific situations.

[@cyd_hunter99]

Six years later and it's just gotten worse. If, not when, I ever get to hear news of major positive change in this country, it's going to be an unbelievably surreal experience.

[@jam4355]

“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety” - Benjamin Franklin = 2020 and 2021.

[@poweraccountabilityleague6877]

This tool literally doesn't know the difference between a democracy and a constitutional republic. That sums up the problem: Those posing as leaders have an IQ below plant-life.

[@MK007-YT]

God Bless those Founding Fathers....wouldn't have much of anything without their Foundation to Build upon !

[@bradyoung1714]

This is literally the video I've been looking for forever to try and explain this to people without them thinking I'm crazy. Well done

[@alwaysopen7970]

Have plenty of press packets and have them record you.

[@fishhuntadventure]

What did he explain? What are you trying to explain? Cuz this info ain’t gonna sound good coming out of your head if you think he drew any logical conclusions. Anyone intelligent who doesn’t laugh is either very polite or will merely be patronizing.

[@brianmilligan1787]

Julian assange

[@brianmilligan1787]

O

[@Astoke792]

Yeah, no they will still think your crazy, because its harder to hear the truth. And people just dont do hard anymore.

[@joevignolor4u949]

How can you expect a broken system to fix itself? Don't hold your breath.

[@moses7874]

Our politics are exactly like the police. They check whether they did anything wrong by themselves. And of course, they ALWAYS find they have done nothing wrong. The same with the failing, or failed government! I mean really!!! Who would vote for a brain-dead man such as biden? NOONE who has the wit of a second grader!!! My teenage grandson asked me how this person got elected to the presidency. I find myself telling him the truth that he cheated his way in along with a large group of supposed to be trusted people with power in certain places, only to rid the country of the greatest president we have ever had, A man who put America and Americans first instead of themselves like the ones in power now and a large group who have overstayed their welcome. Also, these are the people who use the government to gain riches off the working man's back. Along with arms and dope dealing. Such as open borders. There is no other reason to give our country away for free and make the American people pay for the crimes they are committing! Their main goal is to make Americans suffer. They know the stock market like the back of their hands and then pass a law to make their stocks pay huge dividends for themselves. This I explain to him are only the clear coat on an expensive paint job with many, many clear coats. Come talk to me again, I tell him when he has researched some of what I told him. And I will tell you more. Not sure if anything is even worth mentioning with the people in play now, as we might be in a nuclear winter in a few weeks. Something I had to grow up with being repeated for our Grandkids. I tell him not to fall for the crawling under your desk BS they made us do. It won't help you any kind of way whatsoever, if you can't make it to the bunker in time probably 10 mins. it would be better to just go with the blast than to prolong the suffering for a few more weeks if even that in terrible pain. Or if real luck starve to death. After all, if you paid attention, we have the space center, Air force base, and OIA real close by.

[@toucheguy]

What a brave and honest man! This is a remarkable TALK that should be watched by all.

[@dsugimoto313]

The problem is that were asking the very politicians who benefit from the system as it is to change it.

[@larrysherk]

Larry Lessig has been my favorite political science academic for a long time. Nobody has said the truth like this, and yet he holds up the implicit promise that we can do it.

[@Charlie-ii5rr]

Anybody that couldn't identify John Lenon, has probably been an academic for too long.

[@PeopleHealthTru]

Agree that THE PEOPLE need to elect and control legislators, not corporations. Step 1 is like in other countries to ban political TV ads which is where most of the election billions are spent from corporations. Internet is much lower cost.

[@PeopleHealthTru]

Lessig - BanPoliticalTVads like in other countries. Most of the campaign money goes to TV ads. Why would they spend many millions on TV ads to get elected, except they get millions in secret bank accounts.

[@PeopleHealthTru]

He has the right problem but the wrong solution. You can't take taxpayer funding to pay politicians elections

[@CloroxBleach-yh8oi]

When u elect there should be a box to tick that says neither and if that wins then it’s a new set of nominees

[@RicOshayed1]

Clorox Bleach You make an enticing suggestion !

[@Milesco]

Similar to that idea, but better, is "Instant Runoff" or ""Ranked Choice" voting. The problem is that our "first past the finish line" or "winner take all" electoral system guarantees that there can only be two viable political parties. That's because few people want to "throw away their vote" by voting for a third-party candidate who may be a good guy (or gal), but is not a member of the Establishment and therefore has no realistic chance of succeeding. And the reason why he or she has no realistic chance of succeeding is because no one wants to vote for a candidate who has no realistic chance of succeeding. It's a vicious cycle -- a self-fulfilling prophesy. "Instant Runoff" or ""Ranked Choice" voting is a system that allows voters to vote for more than one candidate, ranking their choices in order. If their first choice candidate comes in last place, then that candidate is eliminated from their ballot and their second choice is counted. If the voter's second choice then comes in last, that candidate is also eliminated and the voter’s third choice is counted, and so on, until one candidate gets a majority of votes. That way, a person can vote for any candidate they want, knowing that if that candidate doesn't succeed, the voter's vote *doesn't get thrown away* as a result. The voter's vote counts for their next favorite candidate - and their next favorite, and so on. The result is that voters will start feeling comfortable voting for the BEST candidate, not merely the one (the "lesser of two evils") who has a reasonable chance of winning (i.e., a mediocre candidate from one of the two dominant parties). And once voters start voting for the best candidate in large numbers, the best candidate will actually win!

[@polygamous1]

If only

[@vitalnutrients744]

@@Milesco genius. what if presidents could be impeached if they didn't do what they said?

[@Milesco]

@@vitalnutrients744 : Well, the Constitution only allows for impeachment and removal from office for "High Crimes and Misdemeanors", so that wouldn't really be possible, but he/she could be voted out of office at the next election. That's always difficult, of course, because incumbents always have the advantages of incumbency. But it would certainly be easier to get rid of bad presidents (and for that matter, bad legislators) if we had Instant Runoff elections.

[@JoseGarcia-dw9tt]

When has it represented the people?! Its the land of the “Free” (government) to do and take what they want(land and rights of the people) and the home of the “Brave” (those who believe in the government and fight for them not for the country’s believes). People forget the government is supposed to work for them not the other way around.

[@prider61]

I was with Larry when we travelled to Harrisburg for mock legislature. I had a house seat, and he had the governor's office. I only got to go because many students backed out on account of the TMI incident. We used the phones freely and Larry got in trouble for answering an outside call with "Governor Lessig's office". Norway solved their green selection problem. We should too. But we won't. Try to survive on what trickles down. And sabotage whatever, whenever you can.

[@tranquil_dude]

Prof Lessig's closing sentence is particularly insightful in an indirect way, and this is something every nation, not just the U.S. should consider deeply: Americans need to wake up to the fact that they're currently NOT the epitome of democracy in the world, and they need to *learn*. Similarly, every nation needs to wake up from their own illusions of their own importance in the world, and keep on learning.

[@noahatl]

I thought that the USA was and always has been a constitutional republic. Not a democrazy Yeah, that's right every country globally need to get in league with each other. Although, great idea for the People, it's not possible for the many ego's who want control.

[@johnsimmons6637]

Well put

[@SchgurmTewehr]

You just debunked nationalism. Thank you.

[@SchgurmTewehr]

Surprise, you can share and copy every link on the internet. Maybe the content like this video that convinced you can convince others as well. You only need to choose whether you care or not.

[@torbjornlekberg7756]

Another thing is that the elections in the US is held during a work day, wich forces people to take the day off. Somthing the poorest rarely can afford. In my homeland it is always done on a sunday.

[@nancymcdonald6890]

the polls close at 8 pm, and here in California your workplace has to let to leave to go vote with pay.

[@torbjornlekberg7756]

@@nancymcdonald6890 Well, that is one state doing the right thing atleast. Glad to hear it.

[@WhoShe1973]

I live in an almost entirely right-leaning, conservative state, and OUR polls have always remained open until 9pm. I have not ever heard of any state mandating voting during business hours. Before creating an argument, get your facts please.

[@torbjornlekberg7756]

@@WhoShe1973 Well, I got the information from USamericans handling elections, and I fact checked it, so I think I got my facts straight. Sure, it works differently in different states, but just like gerrymandering the problem is there.

[@BillEastland]

@@torbjornlekberg7756 Most states require employers to let workers off to go go vote on election day. More importantly, 39 states (including DC) have "early voting" which open polling locations for up to two or more weeks prior to election day and, in most places, on weekends, or they have in-person absentee voting, which is basically the same as early voting. Five states have the opportunity for mail-in ballots for all voters, meaning no one has to take off work to vote. Only six states lack any in-person early or absentee or all-mail voting. Therefore, you don't have your facts straight. You should redo your fact-check. I have been an election worker for over 40 years, I can assure you it is much easier to vote today than it used to be.

[@jeffmorton9220]

It seems to me that only by Constitutional Amendment of term limits for all Representatives in government can we come close to achieving the equality promised by our Founding Fathers. That, along with giving the public a streamlined process for removing (and replacing) bad leaders that are elected for the one and only term allowed, would restore power to the electorate.

[@nicksalatino6386]

Many people make the same mistake you are making. They are not leaders. They are representatives. They are there representing their constituents. Too many people put them up on a pedestal. They are no different than you and me.

[@jeffmorton9220]

@@nicksalatino6386 Your reply to my comment pointed out semantic differences between leaders and representatives, but are we not entitled to expect more of our elected _______ (insert the word "representatives" or "leaders"). Shouldn't we expect more from our elected officials than, say, our friendly neighborhood grocer? Just because we all put our pants on one leg at a time doesn't blur the difference between leaders and followers. If the people we elect to represent us is not also our leader (of 'we the people'), then who should we follow? If we elect a follower, who should this person follow?

[@josefnagy1697]

Let the Founding Fathers rest In Peace, get on with what has to be done in 2022. Learn from Europe.

[@kharimarquette]

A Constitutional amendment for that may be less than likely to happen. It's been 30 years since a Constitutional amendment was passed and the Powers That Be in this place will not abide with the process of issuing such an amendment in this political climate.

[@truthordaryll5765]

@@josefnagy1697 We did learn from Europe. That's why we created the United States.

[@mr.nobody68]

I've said it for at least 15 years and I'll continue to say it If I ever become rich, the first thing I'm going to buy is a politician

[@hhheee3939]

Watching this after the two parties national convention, these times are the pinnacle of tweedism. We have a lot of work to do .

[@thesoliloquist1940]

Anybody willing to sign a petition amending 'abstain' into the ballot? This gov will fall.. but possibly while we rebuild we can put 'abstain' in the ticket..

[@williamrbuchanan4153]

If you Abstain, it is not read as vote, just Spoiled. You vote yes wife votes no. That cancellation of two , if only two to vote for, get all families to go against each other, nobody gets elected. So, just cook the up a vote, if that is not being done yet? Technology has overcome security. We have to admit it can be unseen too.

[@ViktorT6550]

I had to check what tweedism is, and I just want to tell that the term is a bit misleading, simply because many fine people would love to wear their ecological and very soft tweed without feeling as crooks. A lot of shame/guilt-free tweed exists. Long live tweed. No need to kill the sheep for wool, right?

[@voxveritas333]

@@ViktorT6550 are you just trying to be cute? you have heard of Boss Tweed, haven't you? that was his name, not what he wore. I guess you are one of the 0.02 PER CENT problem.

[@ViktorT6550]

@@voxveritas333 So long since I commented, sorry. 0.02 per cent problem - is that good or bad you mean?

[@brigham2250]

How can the laws change when the people who need to change the laws benefit from them? Conflict of interest and they're going to win.

[@lilaclizard4504]

same way the people in the Arab spring won - peaceful but unrelenting protest! America won't do it, but if 50% or more would, then the power would flip & the changes would happen The obvious protest to engage in in America would be for everyone to kneel everytime the anthem was played until the changes you wanted happened. Don't tell me that wouldn't get a reaction!

[@user-nw5te4mo1q]

The Arab spring is a failure. They were too naïve and the Muslim Brotherhood seized the opportunity. And the people suffered the protest for nothing. 50% engagement is only the first prerequisite. They need a plan as to why and how they change some laws or system. They might even need a plan B, plan C or even plan D. Their goals has to be specific, not just BS about "let's end institutional racism". A leader or organization is also needed to make those dialogue happen.

[@lilaclizard4504]

_"A leader or organization is also needed to make those dialogue happen."_ agree on that too, BUT if the leader is present & pushing it from the start, that's when you get a Muslim Brotherhood situation. It needs to start from grass roots, or a range of grass roots organisations leaders that all have the same but different goals & they need to be able to get together & agree & then take it to their people & the leaders need to REALLY represent the people, with no personal goals in mind. I think some of the democrat party candidates now standing & that recently got elected there may be some good examples in there of those sorts of people

[@capusvacans]

If it can't happen through their voluntary and peacefull capitulation of power, it might be time to look back on the french revolution. Their money has directly caused the deaths of milions, they need to aknowledge that and repent, or the masses must make them pay. It's only a matter of time tbh before something has to give and wether or not it happens peacefully depends entirely on the ones in power. This is one of the reasons why governments are spending so much on spying on their own population, putting camera's on the streets under the pretext of preventing crime. When in fact all of that is simply there to make ppl too scared of even starting a movement against the new aristocrats. As modern technology can even detect the beginnings of popular uprising so they can counter it before it boils over. Next time that you see some politician putting forth a bill for more cameras or more rights to listen to phone calls, don't look at it in the context of crime or terrorism, that's now what those measures are for. Just see them in the light of controlling the masses and you'll quickly see how bad it's already gotten.

[@SoCalFreelance]

Lilac Lizard - Watch the 7 countries in 5 years video, the "Arab Spring" was a manufactured event to destabilize the region. Everything you see as truth in the world is a lie.

[@NSAJ33]

Like Rome we once had a Republic. It's only a matter of time till we follow the steps Rome took leading to its end.

[@gibsonguy5240]

This speaker did a masterful job in outlining some problems, but what are steps we need to take what EXACTLY should we do?

[@johntexan4165]

I'm getting tired of supposed educated people saying we live in a democracy...

[@corryburton7062]

yea America was never meant to be a Democracy..... founders knew mob rule was a bad idea in 1776.....how far back have we gone?

[@cvdheyden]

The only democracy I know about is Switzerland, where the people vote for every major project/decision.

[@corryburton7062]

@@cvdheyden yea it's the closest but parliament picks the people to run not the people.... And aside from that it's not a great system anyway...

[@cvdheyden]

@@corryburton7062 Yes and no. Switzerland has no president or Chancellor. Do you know the system that is used in Switzerland?

[@user-vv2kf1kn8c]

@@cvdheyden Isn't it direct democracy?

[@wefinishthisnow3883]

All democracies have at least 4 major vulnerabilities. This talk brilliantly sums the first one, where overseas finances can lobby for and control their candidates, despite any laws to prevent it. The second is the limitations of the education of the electorate. The third is the control the media has over votes and the fourth is the fact that not all votes are equal (e.g. gerrymandering).

[@josephinegerard7484]

Oh so true.

[@SchgurmTewehr]

Everyone influential has control over voters so you should not only have the media listed there.

[@oldman9843]

This is why the Federal Gov. should have very limited power and State Gov. should have most of the power and terms limits.

[@vinvink]

This needs to get done. Is anyone working on a petition to implement these suggestions?

[@Neceros]

Democracy? You do us a disservice by calling it that. We live in an Oligarchy, controlled by the people with money. Get money out of politics ENTIRELY and then maybe there's hope.

[@robbbbbbb1]

+Neceros Look up the platform of Senator Bernie Sanders: voteforbernie.org/

[@miguelstoryteller4422]

+Neceros Exactly. The founders specifically eschewed "democracy" and said so in many of their writings. IT's a REPUBLIC. NOT A DEMOCRACY. Ahem. use it or lose it.

[@BrandonTWills]

+Neceros Really its time the rest of us buy in, how many $5,ooo donations would it take to change your district (o.o2% of the population at most probably). If you got 50% percent of people to give $2oo it would be the same as o.o2% giving $5,ooo. That's not even $20 a month to buy your country back...

[@jaystookesberry7781]

Here's a tid bit for all of you. We live in a republic not a democracy.

[@BrandonTWills]

Jay Stookesberry There are many types of "republics". The Soviet Union called itself a republic also. In fact many communist/socialist states are republics as well as some Islamic republics. America is in fact a democratic republic, if you want to be technical about it...

[@iancasey1486]

This talk is so current and applicable today in the U.S. and so many 'democratic' nations.

[@blakebrown534]

No, were the only idiots that allow private funding of our elections. Our peers do not do this.

[@josephfelix1916]

This man should spend more time listening to Jordan Peterson or Ben Shapiro. Maybe then he would realize that all lives matter. Secondly all men and women are created equal but after that IQ dictates how you will fit into a society.

[@perrottarober]

Irregardless of your political affiliation, you have to admit this man is right on every level.

[@leocapoccia9073]

Absolutely spot on assessment of the current political culture in America today, 2024! I like the methodology of fixing the Green part first, getting the money out of politics is tantamount to knocking down the old foundations and building new!! If we don’t restructure our country, we won’t have the America many of us grew up in much longer! I’m 70, born in 54, our grade school years even though our Mom was an RN, she didn’t go back to work until we were all out of elementary school! That’s not the case today, a majority of households, both parents have to work to meet the demands of economics in America. Until politicians work for every person in these United States, retirement will come later and later and too late for too many hard working honest Americans!!!

[@deborahlowe6368]

This one needs to go viral. All of our elected officials in Congress need to watch this particular TED talk. How can we make this go viral? How can we get this to our members of Congress?

[@blakebrown534]

Every member of Congress KNOWS this - they are living it. Democrats tried passing the _For The People_ Act at the beginning of 2021 - he mentions it here, written by John Sarbanes but it's called the _We The People_ Act at this time - and the Republicans called it a federal takeover of elections because it standardized rules around registering to vote, etc. and ended gerrymandering (it also removed all the corrupting money from elections, leaving publicly financed campaigns) and a bunch of people ate that line of BS and didn't support it.

[@closeharlan]

My only question: Did we ever really "drive the bus?" I'm kinda thinkin not.

[@bagiee1]

No..we didnt.

[@davidgdraper6269]

Look at the Revolution. It just changed which oligarchs pooled power.

[@MrNicoJac]

It's never been rigged this effectively or thoroughly. The rise of computing power and privately-funded think-tanks has *greatly* increased the opportunities to gerrymander and strategically increase lines (waiting times) for specific voting stations. And there used to be conservative Dems and liberal Reps, which meant that it was at least possible to try to reach across the aisle. Now, you'd be kicked out of the party for being a "traitor" -for attempting to work together with your fellow countrymen(!) So there's been a shift of powerlessness from non-land-owners to women to Blacks to Not-Stinking-Rich.

[@Wildcat5181]

@@MrNicoJac People get paid time off to vote.

[@Nicole-ww4lg]

nope, it's always been rich white men driving the bus of this country. look at the 'founding fathers' opinions on who should have the right to vote and why

[@noobisprop]

Damn, this is a great video. It is absolutely right. We desperately need this to be enacted.

[@LtSmash2032]

How does this only have 2 million views!? This should be required viewing for high school history classes!

[@bertjesklotepino]

"Our democracy no longer represents the people." It never did.

[@walterguan5036]

It never intended to. We supposed to be a constitutional republic.

[@bertjesklotepino]

@@walterguan5036 Eh, it did intend to. Democracy was setup to represent the people. And i quoted the title. Btw, You over there in the US arent even a constitutional republic. You are a corporation. Nothing more, and nothing less. Setup that way to protect the interests of a select few. Meanwhile acting as if its a democracy where the people have Any say what so ever. They dont. And they also dont have any say if it was supposed to be a constitutional republic, because the constitution is put aside almost always when it comes to the interests of a select few. Or amendments are made etc etc.

[@walterguan5036]

@@bertjesklotepino no thanks, I represent myself. Why would one vote for someone else to represent oneself is beyond me. These "democratically elected" to represent people about what? Or against whom? Do you need a tick to tell you what to do w your life?

[@bertjesklotepino]

@@walterguan5036 PS; Im not saying: surrendering to the power of a dictator or any of such. BUT.. currently.... we have a crazy system which has been setup by the rich to keep the rich there where they are. In power. NO VOTING OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT will change it. Those who had power over a part of land in the old days, Counts, Kings, etc.............. all long gone. BUT: A great KING could never have become a GREAT KING if he didnt have the majority basically behind him. NOt to say we need such "oppression" BUt perhaps to get rid of current oppression, it might help.

[@LostieTrekieTechie]

But it aspired to.

[@olivervlc1]

Thank you. As a foreigner who loves the USA - With time what you describe is more and more obvious - and respect for the usa is lessening - a credibility problem is emerging.

[@theducklinghomesteadandgar6639]

Olivervlc1 The government in the US is completely corrupted! It deserves no respect! For the most part President Trump ran mostly on his own money his first campaign and is not accepting a salary as president but is instead rolling that money over into a different program every quarter to benefit the people!!! But when looking at most branches and agencies, Even those who appear to have good intentions can in an instant change and/or hide nefarious goings on at any moment usually tied to contributors controllng what the individuaos will and will not vote on and/or the possibility often exists that in order to get enough votes for something that starts out good for the people can end up either being completely compromised to get the votes and no longer what it started out as...and/or for votes can cause for something the people would never vote for, would never authorize, would never want and would never benefi them to be added onto something that was good or started out good but been completely changed and no longer the benefit it started as but they never say it was changed and/or has this horrendous addition, i.e. Example a law to make all abortions illegal could be changed to habe exceptions but that never disclosed and/or to have a clause added that unwanted pregnancies could be experimented on for ...trials or would become wards of the state and kept as such never to be adopted out and potentially become the conutries soldiers instead of citizens per say and by becoming wards of the military at that point could become subject to all sorts of unconsented, uninformed experimentations, such as implants, vaccines, exposures to any amount of biologicals, envionmental, etc. contaminants, contagions, etc. Simply for scientists and power hungery control hungry warmongers to test theories, and possible anecdotes and have test subjects as close to themselves without endangering themselves!!! So in our near future especially we need to be sure to watch any and all legislature and laws being presented for consideration of local, state and federal congressional/political bodies to insure they do not attempt something similar or maybe not but definitely not any strings, conjunctions, add ons, unwanted changes etc. to up and coming abortions laws!!!! But the ordinary citizen is typically a good contributing member of society like most people around the world, trying to make our country and world a better place!!! There is always room at least now, for improvement!!! We just need to get everyone to wake up to the facts; That no matter which party or regime any of us support in any country, I know of no government, even in small towns, cities or even villiages where the controlling or governing body, whether one person or many isn't biased towards doing for those making them more powerful and/or leaning towards those within the community with the most influence whether money or status or power and making laws and judgements leaning more in their favor than the favor of the poorest person!!!!

[@richardmycroft5336]

@@theducklinghomesteadandgar6639 Trump is a conman and as evidence I will use your statement that he funded most of his campaign himself. According to Fortune magazine Trump spent $66 million of his own money. His total spending was $340 million. 66 is not more than half of 340.

[@richardmycroft5336]

@Jake V. His won money? And claiming one is not a crook by pointing out other crooks is not an answer, and you know it is which is why you replied as you did. By the way, I'm not fond of the Clintons...

[@richardmycroft5336]

@Jake V. Oh, and Obama's net worth? As of 2019, Barack Obama’s net worth is estimated to be $40 million. Not billions.

[@umpqua-4freedom436]

My Casino Tribe and so many other US Tribes ARE banana republics. But who cares, these millions of AMERICANS are worth less than illegal immigrants, so why fix the plantation system of slavery we are born into? Oh, and is it mere coincidence that most Tribes are governed by Registered Democrats and they spend millions on DNC pads n politicians of Federal Grant funds and Casino profits??? WHO cares, right.

[@Ron-vl4vc]

Our system is corrupt as stated here, but I don't see any suggestion on a true correction. This guy just shuffles the deck more in his favor. The problem is much more complicated than explained here.

[@jimsteele9975]

Benjamin Franklin on leaving the Constitutional Convention when asked what form of government they had formed......"A Republic.....it we can keep it!" Ever since it has been eroding away, striving to become a democracy....which will mean its demise and destruction! We need severe limitations on two things.......the length of campaigns and political contributions.

[@Argyll9846]

The corruption of democracy by money is a worldwide phenomenon. Here is Australia both major political parties represent specific interest groups not the people as a whole. Public funding for elections has been widely touted for many years, but always comes to naught. It's introduction would be welcome so that we start the game on a level playing field. It is a truism that money talks and the louder it talks the more politicians take notice. The people must take back what people with money have stolen from them over the decades, i.e. our right for true democratic representation where elected politicians carry out the will of the people not the will of the wealthy few who have corrupted it.

[@mayainverse9429]

phenomenon? are you for real? the people who try the hardest is most likely going to win. it is like saying if there is a 1 mile race between seasoned track people vs people who are laid back in a lawn chair trying to get tan and being honestly confused at why the track people win. also for some strange reason i don't know why. people somehow think the lower end of the people is going to make the system any better? poor people will only vote to steal money from the rich. old people will vote to steal from the young. disabled people will vote to steal from the able. pure democracy is evil because what you end up having is an uneducated voter base, note you can still be a doctor and be considered uneducated in the form of economy or policies it is not about being a burger flipper as "stupid" but anyone who does not focus a lot of time into civics will not know much about how things are run. and when you are trying to decide who to vote for in an office that does things you have no knowledge about you will ether vote for someone based on simply their charisma or ability to convince a crowd of people witch in the end instead of it being democracy based on money its a democracy based on personality. and if it is not based on that(most will be) it is going to be based on extremely weak understandings on how different civic policies have an affect in actual practice. like poor people will vote for welfare. take black communities they have been voting for the welfare state for decades and it has only kept them poor not helped them get out of it. so instead of voting for the guy who says "enough is enough its time we work together to climb out of this hole" they will instead vote for the guy who says "racist white people owe you. vote for me and i will make sure they pay" so now you have a system where a group of people are literally on a vote plantation living in permanent poverty because of welfare while at the same time being a drain on the rest of society. true democracy of the people only leads to a demagogue

[@Leon-le9cn]

Christian Gerber True, that is what you get when your education system is fucked up, like ours in Germany (I don't know, maybe you live in Swiss or Austria or you just happen to have a name that sounds German). However, if we would invest massively into the education of people and tell them how to think critically, it would have a positive impact for sure. However, there have to be massive changes happening to our society to ensure that there is an actual improvement, but on the other hand: things can not stay as they are.

[@kma3647]

The concept of public funding of campaigns fails because of two factors: 1) The length of campaigns and the expense of campaigning requires more money than the public fund will ever be willing or able to provide 2) Private funding cannot be banned in any country which allows for the free expression of political views If the big money donors will always be able to put up the lion's share of the cash, and the campaigns remain ridiculously expensive to run, you will always have money as a key selective factor. The solution is to reduce the cost of the campaign such that additional money doesn't make a difference, and that is a more difficult challenge.

[@suspendedhatch]

Capitalism leads to corporate rule. It is not culture dependent. It's not moral failing. It's the inevitable conclusion to the system itself. In Capitalism, profit is the only motive. Not morals, not a specific human goal, not the well being of humanity..

[@suspendedhatch]

Campaigns will make do with the money budgeted to them. Less money, smaller campaign. If there isn't enough money to begin campaigning two years in advance of an election, they'll go back to campaigning just several months in advance. No more bludgeoning us to death with ads in every medium. Some of the responsibility will shift to voters to inform themselves.

[@mattmoren6131]

It saddens me that the country I love could fall so far from the simple ideal that the citizens have a right to vote in a free and fair election

[@adorablyadorable5665]

As long as rules are followed and people are who they say they are.

[@dannnmerkle7930]

@@adorablyadorable5665 Simple, you just keep making up new rules and rig the game in your favor.

[@warrendourond7236]

The funny thing is, I don’t know which side you guys are on. Any objective observer would notice that both sides are claiming the other is responsible for election rigging. I think both sides pull every trick they can to win. The problem is, we’re so partisan that we’ll overlook the sins of our side, and focus exclusively on the media raging about the sins of the other. Therefore no one is being held accountable!

[@esk8er900]

@@warrendourond7236 very valid point sir!! It’s a human designed & operated system that affects other humans, some more than others, therefore it’s inherently flawed as a whole. But the creators were at least honest in advertising as they only claimed it to the framework of a more perfect Union to adapt & change based on the public need. We knowingly bought a sturdy but “used car” and complain about every noise and scratch wtf?? If we want a better car we need to work & save for it instead of being irresponsible, hence why we can’t have nice things.

[@warrendourond7236]

@@esk8er900 yeah… and to use your old used car analogy… while some people complain about the poor performance, others will say we can’t replace any of the old, out of date, worn out parts, because it’s not what the founding owner would have wanted.

[@WisdomThumbs]

Still the best TED Talk I've ever seen. I just noticed that Lessig did one about the internet destroying democracy, so I'll watch that next. EDIT: His talk about the Net was disappointing and unhelpful. Oh well. At least he was clear, concise, accurate, and neutral in *this* talk.

[@chrisogonas]

And the message remains as true today as it was on the day of delivery by Prof. Larry.

[@Chewy427]

"Here's how we fix it" - Missing that part of the talk. I want to fix it badly but I don't see how.

[@thesoliloquist1940]

Anybody willing to sign a petition amending 'abstain' into the ballot? This gov will fall.. but possibly while we rebuild we can put 'abstain' in the ticket..

[@ColorAgent]

He does talk about it (@ 12:57 he gives 3 examples), but I wish he talked about it a little more.

[@jamesshriver4822]

We have more guns in this country than anywhere, Biden wants to take them away. THAT my friends will be the end of us!

[@judithwiser8648]

@@jamesshriver4822 who told you that - b is a conservative demo and a hunter who owns a gun

[@wesman7837]

@@judithwiser8648 🤨🤔🙄😃😆🤣 That's hilarious, and was never true, and certainly isn't now!

[@keithmarlowe5569]

"The ink was barely dry on the Bill of Rights when those rights started to be eroded".

[@sicsempertyrannisjohnwilke3075]

👍Right-on. The craziest or perhaps just the most convenient for "stakeholders" intent on redefining/trading civil liberty is that neither the Declaration of Independence nor the preamble to the constitution are considered organic law by our "enlightened" court systems.

[@curtisthomas2670]

There is always talk of "our freedoms" and "our democracy", but our founding fathers NEVER intended there to be voting rights and equality for all sexes, races, religions or economic groups. Only white male Christian property owners were able to vote in the beginning. The "others"were gradually allowed to vote over the next two centuries ( the US was the LAST major industrialized country to give equal voting rights to ALL its citizens, almost 200 years after Independence) but ONLY after systems were put in place to subvert true democracy, giving only the illusion of being a democracy. Currently the US has one of the least democratic systems of major nations and is considered to be a failing democracy.

[@bobadams3019]

Example(s) please!!!

[@curtisthomas2670]

@J E 😂😅😃🙂

[@loreforone924]

@@curtisthomas2670 you have apparently never read the United States Constitution

[@jackmorrison4887]

This must be the best talk I have ever heard that can make America great, and set an example for the rest of the world.

[@redreuben5260]

Actually the rest of the world has given you myriad examples and you ignore them all. Because you have been sold freedumb

[@brianwalley2131]

Here in Australia elections are always held on a Saturday to minimise the disruption to working people furthermore employers are under a legal obligation to give employees a chance to vote without financial penalty I don't think there are any good reasons why the USA couldn't do something similar - only bad reasons

[@kurtgandenberger6139]

here in south carolina, we allow early voting. for weeks before an election there are booths set up without long lines and you simply go in and vote. primary election day is june 14th, but most people i know have already voted.

[@marius1794]

With every year that passes this vid gets more relevant and not just for america.

[@tomoyopop]

I will be sharing this video far and wide before November 2020. He hits on everything that is still urgent, compelling, and necessary TODAY 4 years later.

[@YeOldeTowneCryer]

Ban political advertising. No TV ads. No radio ads. No junk mail in the mail box. The money raised can only be used to pay for TV time and radio time for debates. The people send in questions they want the candidates to address so the issues will be covered. The candidates take turns being first to answer questions. That would make it very difficult to "buy" an election.

[@lourdeslocks2762]

Pura verdade! Só saberemos o que é democracia a hora que pararem de nos ensinar o errado como certo.

[@donaldbusenbark5580]

Professor Lessig didn’t mention something as important as the ones he mentioned and that was “term limits”. When the founders were putting this country together none of them ever dreamed that someone would try to make it a career out of being a legislator so term limits was not needed. The early legislators would do a period of public service and go home as soon as possible to take care of their business. Public campaign money would not work because the incumbent has greater name recognition and result in what we have today with 90% of incumbents elected. Term limits would go a long way to even the playing field and public financing could be used. But no politician is ever going to term themselves. Many states have imposed term limit as we did in Nebraska by initiating a petition putting term limits on the ballot to become a permanent part of our state constitution limiting them to two four year terms. The power to be told us of all the horrible results that would happen with it's passage but it has worked wonderfully for two decades.

[@michaelsopchak8474]

These are good points for sure, but if we fix the candidate selection issue, term limits will become completely unnecessary. Why? Because THE PEOPLE will re-elect the incumbents who have represented them well and the opponents of those who have not. In other words, the voters would decide whom to replace and whom to keep in office. To me, that sounds far better than arbitrary term limits.

[@MK007-YT]

@@michaelsopchak8474, what is 'arbitrary' about A Term Limit....? It Specifically Limits the amount of Elected Terms that a Specific Person can Serve.

[@lokensga]

@@michaelsopchak8474 Yes, but the voters will never be able to get money out of the selection process, because politicians realize that would be cutting the source of their extra income. Maybe with term limits we can start to force the issue of money in politics, the absurdity that a corporation is a person, at which point we can modify the term limit rule.

[@vladdumitrica849]

Democracy is when those who make decisions on your behalf have the duty to ask for your consent first. Today's republics are actually modern oligarchies where the interest groups of the rich are arbitrated by the people, that is, you can choose from which table of the rich you will receive crumbs. The "fatigue" of democracy occurs when there is a big difference between the interests of the elected and the voters, thus people lose confidence in the way society functions. As a result, poor and desperate citizens will vote with whoever promises them a lifeline, i.e. populists or demagogues. The democratic aspect is a collateral effect in societies where the economy has a strong competitive aspect, that is, the interests of those who hold the economic power in society are divergent. Thus those whealty, and implicitly with political power in society, supervise each other so that none of them have undeserved advantages due to politics. For this reason, countries where mineral resources have an important weight in GDP are not democratic (Russia, Venezuela, etc.), because a small group of people can exploit these resources in their own interest. In poor countries (Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, etc.) the main exploited resource may even be the state budget, as they have convergent interests in benefiting, in their own interest, from this resource. It is easy to see if it is an oligarchy because in a true democracy laws would not be passed that would not be in the interest of the many. The first modern oligarchy appeared in England at the end of the 17th century. After the bourgeois revolution led by Cromwell succeeded, the interest groups of the rich were unable to agree on how to divide their political power in order not to reach the dictatorship of one. The solution was to appoint a king to be the arbiter. In republics, the people are the arbiter, but let's not confuse the possibility of choosing which group will govern you with democracy, that is, with the possibility of citizens deciding which laws to pass and which not to. The solution is modern direct democracy in which every citizen can vote, whenever he wants, over the head of the parliamentarian who represents him. He can even dismiss him if the majority of his voters consider that he does not correctly represent their interests. It's like when you have to build a house and you choose the site manager and the architect, but they don't have the duty to consult with you. The house will certainly not look the way you want it, but the way they want it, and it is more certain that you will be left with the money given and without the house. It is strange that outside of the political sphere, nowhere, in any economic or sports activity, will you find someone elected to a leadership position and who has failure after failure and is not fired after 4 years. We, the voters, must be consulted about the decisions and if they have negative effects we can dismiss them at any time, let's not wait for the soroco to be fulfilled, because we pay, not them. In any company, the management team comes up with a plan approved by the shareholders. Any change in this plan must be re-approved by the shareholders and it is normal because the shareholders pay.

[@ZobmieRules]

Hearing about a Hong Kong protest about a Chinese law had me checking the date of this video.

[@Laura-ev2bw]

As one of those children who asks those questions he mentions at the end, all grown up now, I feel less and less inclined to bring more children into this world to ask me that same question. It seems that things continue to get worse, not better from when this video was aired. It seems that the best thing to do would be to work toward changing that system before bringing more children into this unjust world, and potentially adopt instead. I just can't feel good about bringing more humans into a world where we haven't even begun to address climate change and where our votes don't count. It feels like our chance to raise a family was robbed from us if we want to be ethical toward new life and toward the planet. I don't feel like it would be okay to say to kids that I brought into the world, "we weren't able to fix it, now it's your problem". It seems like I need to spend my whole life trying to fix this and maybe if we are successful we can feel good about procreating. Any other millennials out there thinking this way?

[@BrutalationXL]

I think he missed the mark when he made it about race. I agree with everything he said, but it's not a race issue, it's a class issue.

[@hanshananigan1233]

Yeah, it seemed that he could have saved the race angle for another talk to really hone in on the classism/tweedism.

[@alexpfernandes]

I don't know about America, but in Brazil race and class are deeply intertwined, so the correlation is very clean, maybe that's what he meant.

[@hanshananigan1233]

@@alexpfernandes They are deeply intertwined here. But the causal factors for racial disparities is complex and not captured well here, IMO. One can talk about tweedism/classism without talking about race.

[@David-qu6hz]

Is anyone else filled with an undying rage after watching this.

[@Richard-uh9sg]

only the gullible.

[@fishhuntadventure]

Richard 1406 I’m in rage over the number of people who think he said anything intelligent. College degrees and high IQ scores just aren’t the same as being intelligent.

[@risa123456789]

@@fishhuntadventure Do...do you know what "I" in "IQ" stands for?

[@laetitiapohl138]

Yup Hello from Slovenia, same situation here

[@amitkumar-sz6ze]

@@fishhuntadventure you are so intelligent, I knew your intelligence after reading your sentences 🤣🤣🤣

[@davidpierce1634]

One of the most sensible and easily understood talks on government I've ever heard this man's message should be shared by everyone to everyone to make sure that the government gets the message that the people all of the people should be represented not just the few

[@MR_DOME]

But it's not though he starts of strong with what the issue is then it gets convoluted with racial nonsense and there ought to be a law which muddy in nature loses its value. He's got a good point in the begining .but a really bad answer for it with nonsense about race and equality.

[@SchgurmTewehr]

@@MR_DOME yes, how nonsensical to believe that we are all equal even though human rights under international law say exactly that and we are all literally the same species. And because of your statements about race and what I can learn about you from that, I also have to share something with you just to be sure.

[@MR_DOME]

@@SchgurmTewehr the problem is each of us is strong in different areas it doesn't make us less of a person just different I'm not better than you or vise versa because I'm some ways your superior to me in something and the same aspect so am I to you in something else. A brilliant scientist may fail in language a linguist may be a great communicator but not grasp physics or higher level math. Both are masters but no greater than the other.

[@MR_DOME]

@@SchgurmTewehr I am native American , but also german but also swedish but also Norwegian. Were all the same color underneath. The only thing that makes me different from anyone else is genetics and culture . And culture or environment plays a key role . But if your realize the issue is with culture and communication. And we're all human so if we rule out color the confusion /expectation or stereotype goes away. An it comes down to what we want for our families , an well being . Show me what you excell at and il let you lead and vise versa , the concept of racial equality states I will limit or cripple those that excel at something in order for it to be fair for some one that doesn't excel. baised on an idea that somehow your skin color means your bieng held back and oppressed by some group or race . (Victim mentality ) you are your own champion or oppressor. Think about that. Those that tell you it's due to you being a victim are asking to get your permission to oppress someone else. They divide an do you and the other person a dis service.

[@waimar5457]

From the level of laughing around it's seems many in the audience are not too worried about the situation, hearing this speech cause to them a big laugh instead of a bitter frozen feeling of disappointment?

[@johnburnett3942]

What a fantastic speach. I hope that the leaders of the nations, watch this. With shame. The cat is out of the bag. It is time to change the system. Equality for all. In everything

[@nickfriend3629]

....over the garden fence, a conversation with my once elderly man neighbor, I remember the short conversation we had 50 years ago, (I was 11 years old at the time) .....“Son, what you should know is, all the opposition to one another politicians get together, go to their hideaway pub, drink up and have a good old laugh about it all.“ Never forgot that wise old man, RIP.

[@dwandersgaming]

Yup. Trump and Clinton good golfing buddies.

[@jonsnorri37]

@@dwandersgaming corelli

[@jonsnorri37]

Corelli

[@polarecliptek]

This speaker made me want to cry. Great speech.

[@MegaMMDL]

This video is now 7 years old: we have the knowledge, the data and the solution. But no will to execute. And that’s just so very deeply depressing.

[@greggary7217]

I have a question for America, borrowed from the movie The Untouchables, which was nothing if not about a corrupt system: “What are you prepared to do?”

[@nickmasuen1859]

What he said at this point in time when it was realist still fits in 2019 when I just watched this video.

[@theartemisgland]

Would disagree. Trump messed with it a lot but in the position he has to battle them all. Now him paying for himself makes him non tweed? One has to figure.

[@f-22r]

Brilliant talk, really exposed the source of the problems in democracy.

[@MrMarkusOlsson]

American democracy*

[@aragornthebrave]

It's not the problems in democracy, it's the problems in the actual application of democracy. Democracy only works if it's core principles are defended.

[@jackbrown3783]

We are not a democracy

[@SpennisTheMenace]

@Markus I'm pretty sure China exists.

[@larryjeffers8995]

SmoothRide you on the one hand claim that lessig doesn't know what he's talking about, while on the other hand you claim that the U.S. is a "representative" republic. Well this talk by Lessig is explaining how the U.S. is not so "representative" of the public at large. This means that you're wrong to describe the U.S. system as a representative republic.

[@whenmunkysfly]

ive already had the idea of instead of funding going to a specific candidate, it goes to a pool that is distributed to all candidates. then there are elimination criteria, and after each elimination event each candidate is distributed more funds

[@timc1604]

I’m tired of people of who say we aren’t and never were a democracy. They say, “we’re a Republic, not a Democracy.” Yes, we’re a republic but also a democracy. We’re a representative democracy, where we elect individuals to represent us. Many poorly informed people think democracy necessarily means direct democracy. They apparently never learned of representative democracy.