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Cake day: June 13th, 2024

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  • In response to that Pyongyang announced early this week that it will be sending troops in the form of a military engineering unit to support Russian forces on the ground in the Donetsk region. The troops are expected to arrive on the battlefield as soon as next month.

    One engineering unit isn’t much, but perhaps there is more to come. It didn’t say anything in the article about future commitments.

    Ilya Ponomarev, a former Russian member of parliament told the UK’s Daily Express that North Korea has become an important bridge between the Kremlin and China. Beijing can indirectly transfer military equipment to Moscow through Pyongyang without falling foul of Western sanctions.

    As he explained: “North Korea is one of key Russian partners and the meaning of the rationale behind them becoming such a partner is because they are acting as a bridge between China and Russia.

    “Essentially all the military equipment that is delivered from North Korea was developed for the North Koreans by the Chinese.

    Perhaps this is less about North Korea then it appears on the surface. I wonder what Russia is giving China for this help?



  • The LWV (League of Woman Voters) sponsored the United States presidential debates in 1976, 1980 and 1984.[75][76] On October 2, 1988, the LWV’s 14 trustees voted unanimously to pull out of the debates, and on October 3 they issued a press release condemning the demands of the major candidates’ campaigns. LWV President Nancy Neuman said that the debate format would “perpetrate a fraud on the American voter” and that the organization did not intend to “become an accessory to the hoodwinking of the American public.”[77][78] All presidential debates since 1988 have been sponsored by the Commission on Presidential Debates,[79] a bipartisan organization run by the two major parties that some argue has established rules with the intent to exclude airing candidates associated with other parties.[80]

    Source



  • The elimination of the First Past the Post voting system would allow voters to support third-party candidates without the fear of causing a spoiler effect. This change would promote greater competition in elections, improving the caliber of candidates available to all voters. Also, it is likely to boost voter turnout and increase political engagement.

    Electoral reform has already been achieved at the state level; Alaska and Maine have successfully implemented changes to their electoral systems, demonstrating that broader reform is feasible.

    However, Republicans have taken steps to preserve the First Past the Post voting system. For instance, Florida recently outlawed Ranked Choice voting. Despite this setback, there are numerous alternatives to First Past the Post, ensuring that bans like Florida’s do not obstruct progress toward electoral reform.

    This raises the question: why do predominantly Democratic states continue to utilize First Past the Post voting? Why continueto use a voting system favored by Republicans? In states controlled by Democrats, there are no Republican obstacles preventing these reforms.

    It is evident that Democrats recognize the shortcomings of First Past the Post voting. Mentioning third-party voting on social media often prompts numerous Democrats to caution against “wasting” votes that could inadvertently benefit Republicans. It is perplexing to acknowledge flaws in the voting system yet fail to take action to address them. Lecturing others about the drawbacks of First Past the Post voting while neglecting to pursue solutions is contradictory and counterproductive.

    Here are some videos on the topic if you’d like to know more:

    First Past The Post voting

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7tWHJfhiyo

    Other electoral systems to choose from:

    Alternative vote

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Y3jE3B8HsE

    Ranked Choice voting

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Z2fRPRkWvY

    Range Voting

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3GFG0sXIig

    Single Transferable Vote

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8XOZJkozfI

    STAR voting

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-mOeUXAkV0

    Mixed Member Proportional representation

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QT0I-sdoSXU