Most Popular
1500 questions
64
votes
12 answers
Has there been a non-trivial, stable, and functional anarchy?
Has there ever been a non-trivial, stable, and functional anarchy?
Sure there are lots of small groups that operate on personal relationships and don't have what could be called a government. I don't dislike such things. I just worry that they are…
user21424
64
votes
15 answers
Why do dictators ban their people from traveling?
I grew up in a country where we were not allowed to leave/travel to an other country even when we were able to do so – we had the resources and dual nationality.
After two decades I still can't figure out why dictators, like Kim Jong-un for example,…
Ulkoma
- 837
- 1
- 7
- 10
64
votes
7 answers
Why did the DNC try to prevent Bernie Sanders from getting the Democratic nomination?
I recently read a few news articles talking about a class action lawsuit against the DNC for cheating Bernie Sanders out of the primaries. Is there any truth to these claims that there were concerted efforts of Democratic politicians and the…
MultiMike
- 1,221
- 2
- 11
- 19
64
votes
5 answers
Is Japan still bound by the terms of its surrender in WWII?
After Japan surrendered to Allied forces in 1945, the Potsdam Declaration required Japanese military forces to be disarmed, limited Japanese sovereignty to specific islands, and prohibited Japanese industries from rearming the country for war (among…
Wes Sayeed
- 12,075
- 3
- 27
- 48
63
votes
13 answers
Why do the United States openly acknowledge targeted assassinations?
The obvious motivation for the question is the latest news: U.S. kills al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri in drone strike
Targeted assassinations are a reality of political and military life, and perhaps an unavoidable necessity when it comes to…
Roger V.
- 20,106
- 3
- 39
- 114
63
votes
22 answers
Exit strategies for the Ukraine war
[Remark three months later, Aug 24, 2022: The question seems as pressing as ever. The conflict has indeed turned into a text book war of attrition, with neither side being able to make a decisive move. Instead, both sides try to exhaust each others'…
Peter - Reinstate Monica
- 9,705
- 1
- 26
- 48
63
votes
11 answers
Why is a big country less suitable for high-tax, high-welfare system?
Back when the US presidential election, I frequently heard the US is not suitable for the high-tax, large-welfare system like in Scandinavia. This is especially common among leftists, mostly Hillary Clinton supporters (example):
Flam said, “We have…
Blaszard
- 2,711
- 4
- 17
- 25
63
votes
5 answers
Why shouldn't BBC have to register as a foreign agent?
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is, as far as I know, a fully government-subsidized British TV channel. Does that not make it an arm of the British government? While some may point to its independence, the same is claimed for the US…
grovkin
- 6,958
- 3
- 22
- 54
63
votes
8 answers
Can the UK realistically back out of Brexit?
Note: this is not a question about whether Brexit is a good or bad thing. Keep answers impartial please.
It is quite obvious that the current British government negotiating Brexit terms has a very weak mandate. It is also obvious that while there…
Guran
- 2,521
- 2
- 13
- 22
63
votes
13 answers
Why are gun restrictions based on terror watch list and mental health so controversial in the US?
The latest (but not recent) episode I remember is this vote from June 2016, when the US senate rejected restrictions on sale of weapons to people on the terror watch list.
These are people that the same government deems too dangerous to allow on…
Federico
- 6,726
- 4
- 36
- 58
62
votes
10 answers
Has there ever been an independence movement with the goal to split off an underperforming part of a nation?
There have been many independence movements in history. The Wikipedia category of independence movements alone lists 145 articles about mostly distinct independence / seperationist / liberation movements.
It seems that all of these movements have…
Robert Hönig
- 673
- 5
- 6
62
votes
13 answers
Isn't acknowledging the existence of God, as a state, a contradiction of the separation of Church and State?
I'm not an expert in politics at all, but I have been wondering about this for a while.
If Church and State are supposed to be separated, isn't it a bit of a contradiction to have "God" so strongly "embedded" in politics? I'm thinking of:
In God we…
Tommy
- 703
- 1
- 5
- 6
62
votes
19 answers
When is a democratic vote actually the wrong tool?
Democracy is defined as:
Democracy is sometimes referred to as "rule of the majority".
Democracy is a system of processing conflicts in which outcomes depend
on what participants do, but no single force controls what occurs and
its…
Wadih M.
- 703
- 1
- 5
- 12
62
votes
13 answers
How can the influence of wealthy individuals on democratic processes be reduced?
This question is inspired by the discussion about lobbyism and free speech.
There are two fundamental ideas in modern democracies that seem to contradict each other, while both being so fundamental that none could be severely restricted without…
Thern
- 3,802
- 1
- 15
- 28
62
votes
11 answers
What is this line of counties voting for the Democratic party in the 2016 elections?
Here is a preliminary image from The Guardian showing the individual counties during the 2016 election in the United States:
There appears to be a line of counties in blue, curving from Maine in the north-east to Mississippi in the south. Those…
isanae
- 1,052
- 1
- 9
- 14