political payoff fix

[point_vector]

I was just reading the news page on this site and I think I have a great way to fix the fact that large corporations like the MPAA and the RIAA are paying off Senators and Congress members etc. I think the best way to fix this problem once and for all, to let judicial members decide for themselves the best course of action without their opinions and vote being bought; this is to require anyone that would like to become involved in politics to become a monk. Not in the religious sense of the word, but with the vow of poverty and celibacy, actions done by them would be in a totally different frame of mind, and not of the pocketbook. They definately wouldn't be so quick to form a one sided opinion if this were the case.

[theReal]

But then who would want to be a politician? Not so many people, I guess...

[point_vector]

Are you saying not many people would want to be a politician because of the fact that you would have to become a monk or because they couldn't take huge payoffs? But, that's another side to the story. It would totally cut down on the number of people wanting to go into politics in the first place. It would also let the people who would be a good politician have a better chance at becoming one, instead of only those high class people whos parents could afford ivy league colleges, who mostly go into politics for the wrong reasons to begin with.

[Joe Fenton]

Most people forget that the original pay for the US Congress was kept DELIBERATELY low to keep people from wanting to run for office out of monetary gain. When they started taking "gifts" the laws were changed to account for the gifts as well. The problems started when Congress started writing laws to give themselves more money. You weren't SUPPOSED to make a living as a politician. You were SUPPOSED to be a successful farmer or businessman or lawyer or whatever who was just doing a term or two for the betterment of their hometown/homestate. Now we have "professional politicians" who have made being a Congressman their career. Term limits for Congress is our only hope at this point.

[point_vector]

I happily agree

[theReal]

It would also let the people who would be a good politician have a better chance at becoming one, instead of only those high class people whos parents could afford ivy league colleges Well, if you don't get paid then ONLY upper class people could be politicians because they are the only ones who can afford working one or two years without payment...

Most people forget that the original pay for the US Congress was kept DELIBERATELY low to keep people from wanting to run for office out of monetary gain.That was the case in the old days, right. And who went into politics back then? ONLY upper class people with a lot of money (and mostly also an ivy league education).

In Germany the agreement was that politicians should get enough money from the state so they won't accept bribes.
Of course it doesn't really work that way - only the bribes are getting higher (and most people never have enough and take all they can get...)

[Joe Fenton]

Here's an idea - treat politicians as you would a sequestered jury. They spend one term (which is really just a few months if you look into how much time the congress actually spends in session) out of contact with everyone. They make NOTHING for their time. Instead, all their needs are taken care of while they are serving, and they get the pay they would have made from the job they were doing before being called to duty. Also like jury duty, citizens are chosen at random from the pool to serve. How else can you guarantee you represent a TRUE cross-section of the people? It certainly isn't through election. Once you've served your term in Congress, you cannot be called again. The population is plenty large enough to support that.

This takes care of term limits, lobbying, and representing a true cross-section of the district. If someone is good enough to determine if someone else lives or dies, they are good enough to make laws. A Congressional Jury system would cure a lot of ills. I don't see much of a downside.