Quote (fender @ Jul 11 2020 12:35pm)
not only have you clearly not looked into what fracking does to the environment (especially water, already a critical issue in many parts of america - so much for ignorance), it's also not my point. what i'm saying that this isn't biden NOT pandering to some imaginary radical minority on twitter, but it's biden pandering to an ACTUAL minority to win the election (and do the bidding of his donors). if he had to worry about what a majority of people wanted, he'd at least take this issue seriously and not dismiss it outright, maybe look into regulating / banning the most exploitative forms, considering how they disproportionally affect already poor and minority communities (very much like covid) - but he doesn't, his whole policy can be shaped to appeal to a few hundred thousand voters in certain swing states, because of your idiotic system (and the fact that both party establishments serve only corporate interest, not the people), no matter what the rest of the country wants, their votes are basically worthless.
I have researched fracking and it's still not clear what the long term ramifications are (if any). I can respect the position that we shouldn't engage in a certain technology if you are very risk averse. Personally, I'm VERY happy that fracking is a direct cause for the decline in coal use. The natural gas revolution has been incredibly important for reducing carbon emissions in the US.
There's very little difference between pandering to people whose careers depend on fracking, the trans community, over-policing, etc. They are all minority, special interest groups. However, sometimes those minority groups perform a very important function to the US. Sometimes those special interest groups need to be protected in the name of justice for all. The majority isn't always right and they are often GROSSLY misinformed. Americans as a whole could not tell you the difference between a single-payer system, a public option, non-profit insurance companies, etc. They are incredibly uneducated when it comes to policy. I'm very skeptical of what the "majority" wants outside of simple, bite-sized issues like "gay marriage."
As for the electoral college, I'm with you. The EC does cater to certain swing states (though that could be mitigated by adopting a proportional allocation of EVs like Maine and Nebraska). Personally, I'd make it so that you don't even vote for a PERSON. Instead, you would vote for a party platform instead.