The American Form of Government

RstarNavaja Says:

Jul 21, 2010 - ZEIGEIST

MrBokai Says:

Jul 21, 2010 - well done! easy to understand, and interesting!

justinscott1979 Says:

Jul 22, 2010 - @TheArtOfTheComment you miss the point entirely. The author is giving the definition of each form of government and showing that the U.S. is not a true democracy. We are a Democratic Republic, or Constitutional Democracy, whichever you want to call it. The author is simply pointing out the REAL definition of each form of government listed and then giving examples of each. He is not going into the multitude of combinations of the basic forms/.

justinscott1979 Says:

Jul 22, 2010 - This is an outstanding video. Most of the people that don't like it feel that way because they were never truly taught the basic forms of government. Too many schools in this country teach that the U.S. is a democracy which is incorrect. We are a democratic republic, or constitutional republic (same thing essentially), whichever you want to say. The people vote the lawmakers, and the laws rule the land! This video is not designed to go into the plethora of combination forms of government!

jlglex99 Says:

Jul 22, 2010 - Great video. I would call our system a "Constitutional, Democratic Republic". It is based on law and government powers ARE restricted by the Constitution and by law. However, our system DOES allow for the people to change the laws, through Democratic processes. We are in between Democracy and Republic, as defined by this video. It should also be noted that the Decline of the Roman Empire was marked by a lot of foreign wars and overextensions of military might.

jlglex99 Says:

Jul 22, 2010 - This video, while very interesting and informative, oversimplifies our system, a bit, in my opinion. Yes, as the video states, the powers of our government are restricted by laws and by the Constitution; and that does help keep people free. But, our government powers are also restricted by checks and balances between the different branches of government (leg, exec, judic), as well as checks and balances between the different levels of government (local, state, federal).

jlglex99 Says:

Jul 22, 2010 - @jlglex99 And, therein lies my complaint about the extreme state rights movement that has marked conservative politics this year. I am a conservative. I support all conservative policy positions, within the context of the USA as it currently exists. However, those conservatives who seek to dismantle the USA, for example, via Texas Secession, have gone too far towards the far right end of the spectrum. Unchecked state sovereignty, without federal checks and balances, can become tyrannical.

jlglex99 Says:

Jul 22, 2010 - @jlglex99 One feature of our system that protects individual liberties is the tension between different levels of government. When state and federal are fighting with each other, for example in Arizona, then they are less likely to exert tyrannical power over individual citizens. Without a federal government, as extreme state right advocates desire, there might be a tendancy towards state tyranny over the people.

jlglex99 Says:

Jul 22, 2010 - @jlglex99 One feature of our system that protects individual liberties is the tension between different levels of government. When state and federal are fighting with each other, for example in Arizona, then they are less likely to exert tyrannical power over individual citizens. Without a federal government, as extreme state right advocates desire, there might be a tendancy towards state tyranny over the people.

GizmoMofo7 Says:

Jul 22, 2010 - America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves. - Abraham Lincoln

jlglex99 Says:

Jul 22, 2010 - Another important issue not addressed in this video is the some of the details of the judicial system. For example, should judges be elected or appointed? I say that they should be appointed, with some means of removing them other than elections ... a process akin to impeachment. Elected judges can be prone to sympathize or be pressured by the mob, because they are up for re-election every 2 years. It is also important for judges to have a some training and education in judicial processes.

jlglex99 Says:

Jul 22, 2010 - @GizmoMofo7 I think that the invasion of Mongol hoards had something to do with the decline and fall of the Roman Empire.

GizmoMofo7 Says:

Jul 22, 2010 - @jlglex99 Your an idiot

Thalassean Says:

Jul 22, 2010 - Kind of a misrepresentation of anarchism, but whatever.

MegaCrazydutchman Says:

Jul 24, 2010 - Good video, it opened my eyes. I always thought that communism was on the far left and fascism on the far right. btw modern day America looks like rome, it is being taken over by powerfull elite who call themselves the New World Order.

koelschwolf Says:

Jul 24, 2010 - The USA never has been a Democracy. It's a Republic with democratic guidelines.

gammaworld Says:

Jul 25, 2010 - Good vid, but a bit simplified.

PeaceIsRad Says:

Jul 25, 2010 - Wonderful video, very informative...Thank you! Watch "FREEDOM TO FASCISM"

desertbutt Says:

Jul 26, 2010 - Decent video, but for crying out loud, learn how to use spellcheck :/

Ray21C Says:

Jul 27, 2010 - @Thalassean How did the video misrepresent anarchy? Do you know of any anarchistic "governments" that exist today?

astorianygirl Says:

Jul 29, 2010 - This is the truth.

ronaldneil Says:

Jul 29, 2010 - Wow. That was beautiful, accurate and understandable. This clip and the video it came from is my number one of all time favorite DVDs from the OneDollarDVDProject (com) list of 42 titles. I call this one Americanism 101. It is thirty minutes of an Overview of Our World by John McManus plus a few choice clips which bring us up to speed on what has happened to our Republic. Look for it on the Order/Preview page and watch the whole DVD, right on the project site. If you want to wake a friend.

ronaldneil Says:

Jul 29, 2010 - @gammaworld Simplified is a good thing. For example: The Declaration and the Constitution.

ronaldneil Says:

Jul 29, 2010 - Watch the whole thirty minute video on my project site and come to also understand that the fight is not capitalism vs. communism but, free market capitalism vs. state sponsored monopoly capitalism. Sounds like a mouthful but, the video makes it simplified.

ronaldneil Says:

Jul 29, 2010 - This is pretty cool that you posted just the one, damn near perfectly timed, video and hit half a million views. You sure know how to pick'em.