Can someone explain to me how the electoral college is a good idea?

[korn469]

shawnmmcc

You spoke of where soverignty came from first, and implied it came from state or federal government; it's my opinion that soverignty has always came from the people, and in a proper (ideal) society government should just be a tool to serve people, instead of vice versa. Not that I'm saying you think people are tools of the government, but I just wanted to make that point.

[Mr. Harley]

kron469, I agree that's how it should be. Unfortunately, when you look at most arguments concerning sovereignty, including the ones prevailing in relationships between countries, that is hardly the case. I am making the sovereignty argument based on the national soveignty concept, even though I agree with you.

If you look at the founding of the US, it follows a similar tendency. They gave lip service to sovergnty of the people, and then set in place many mechanisms to ensure oligarchial guidance, if not control (look at how both Senators and the President were elected).

I am one of those odd people (for the United States) who vote in part on Supreme Court nominees. When George Bush said the Scalia and Thomas were his kind of justices, I held my nose and pulled the lever for Gore. In the conservative arguments/confusers over states rights, they never seem to get around to mentioning the people:

Amendment IX. (Article IX))
The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.

Amendment X. (Article X)
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

Where does the right to privacy come from? Read the amendments (not aimed at you kron469) sometime. Modern neoconservatives larglely look at "...are reserved to the States respectively..." while libetarians focus on "...or to the people." That's why Supreme Court justices are a big thing to me. I personally believe "the people" should come before "the State".