Washington D.C. is broken.

Thank you again for this wonderful debate. It has been very fun. Let's take a look at voter apathy. You say that those who don't care about political issues shouldn't be forced to vote on political issues they don't care about. I agree. I'm not advocating that we make everyone vote. What I am saying, is that in order for a democratic republic to work, essentially everyone needs to participate. Look back to my first argument in the first round. The reason that the political process worked so well, is because everyone was involved. The country was much smaller then, and it was a lot easier to get everyone to vote. Now, with the size of our country, it is nearly impossible to have everyone vote. I would even venture to say that it is completely impossible. This hurts the democratic process because we know that all of the people who this government affects did not have a say in the process. That is what a democratic republic is all about. Now to show you exactly why this is broken. Since a democratic republic relies on the people to elect it's officials, and it relies on the people to participate; when not all of the people vote, it hurts the actual process of electing officials. It undermines the very base of a democratic republic. Again, in my first paragraph, I said that it worked very well on a small scale. America is no longer a small scale. Even though technology is extremely easy to use, it is still a much too large of a country to have the same type of success that it once had. So if our country has had greater success than it is having today, then that proves that our government is broken today. It is not working to it's fullest capacity. Even if our government is a "four-ounce cup" we're only pouring in two ounces. Yes, it may be working, but not to it's fullest capacity. That means that something needs to be fixed in order for it to be working to it's fullest potential. It's not a matter of personal preference. Yes, I think that everyone should be voting, not because they have to, but because it is a responsibility of theirs. I hear too many times that voting is a privilege. It's not. Voting is a responsibility. This means that you should do it because our government relies on people voting. This isn't a personal preference, it is what is necessary in order for our government to really work. You then say that it isn't broken because it isn't perfect. I grant that. But because this same government has worked better in the past than it is working now, I say it is broken. If your car, I'm stuck on car analogies today, normally gets 30 miles to the gallon, and all of a sudden one day it's getting 15, it is still working, but not to it's fullest potential. That means that something needs to be fixed in order for it to get back to where it was working the best. It is in need of repair. No, it doesn't have to be perfect but it should at least run to the fullest of it's proven capabilities. That isn't too much to ask of a car, and it certainly shouldn't be too much to ask of our government. You then go on to talk about the economic principle of fairness and efficiency. I have two arguments here. My first is that we aren't talking about economics so this principle doesn't really matter. My second argument is that it is possible to have a government that is efficient and fair. Efficiency and fairness are not mutually exclusive. One does not rely on the other one to exist. Therefore just because we have a fair government does not mean we have an efficient government, and vice versa. So if this is a matter of taste like you say it is, then I prefer to have my cake and eat it too. I prefer a government that is both fair and efficient. And to say that a government that isn't both isn't broken sounds a little odd to me. Maybe it was set up to only be one, but if it was, then we should definitely change that. Too many times people settle for something that isn't the best thinking that it can't be better. We should definitely fix the fact that our government can't be both fair and efficient. That definitely needs fixed, and to say otherwise is absurd. This is again where you talk about perfect people. I already answered this in my last speech. Did you miss my point about the checks and balances? Because you certainly didn't respond to it. What that was saying is that the imperfect people we elect make imperfect decisions. I completely agree with that. No where have I ever said only perfect people should be elected. But because our system is set up to catch those mistakes, when they don't catch them then our system is obviously not working as it should be. That means that we should fix it to where it is working correctly. Once again, the mistakes that our government, and it is our government as a whole not just one person, has made prove that it isn't working correctly. As for the political parties arguments, you are correct. I will concede that point. Now you start to back up that washington is robust. Let me define robust for you. Strong and healthy. Just because it is ever changing does not mean it is strong or healthy. You have failed to show how just because it is continuously changing it makes it robust. Yes it is changing, but that doesn't mean it is changing for the better. You are assuming that everything will work out in the end, as we have seen it doesn't. You and I both agree that no one is perfect, so every single official we elect is going to be bad in one area. I agree. This is again where I talk about the system. If we have a bad official, which we are bound to have, then it is the system's duty to either get rid of that official, or protect it's citizens from the bad decisions that official makes. We have seen that system fail with Iraq, Katrina, and all the other examples I already gave previously in this debate. If the system can't stop mistakes from being made then I say it is broken. Our government is set up to stop mistakes from being made, and now it is failing to do so. That means it needs to be fixed. I eagerly await to see the result of this debate. I imagine that it will be a very close one since this has been a great debate. Thank you for taking your time to debate me. I am eager to see your final remarks.