What could Switzerland and the United States learn from each other today?
The US and Switzerland once influenced each other as sister republics.
In view of the impact of social media on public debate and growing polarisation, all democratic countries must ask themselves what ideas they can use to win the trust of their citizens.
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Sister republics: what the US and Switzerland have in common
The US and Switzerland are different when it comes to polarisation. However, approaches can often be found through comparison. So what could the two democracies learn from each other?
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Five events that shaped contemporary Swiss-American relations
As a Belgian who is in favor of direct democracy, i see many advantages in general over representative democracy, and some of the issues i think we face in our society are similar to that of the US to an extend as being a product of "some lack of democracy".
The Swiss seem to have their politicians "far more on a leech", the possibility that any new law or project could easily be shot down by a petition puts more of a brake on "predatory politics". Politics in Belgium are imho pretty nepotist, the politicians + the party's are payed huge sums and and they are a numerous group, raising their income was one of the few things they could agree on in the many state reforms they had over the last decades. There is a "minimal vote requirement" of 5% for a party to get "party funding" giving the established party's more of a monopoly and Belgian citizens have the legal duty to vote which thereby also seemingly legitimizes the representative system.
Another issue is that of populist politics in representative democracy. Self proclaimed "champions of the people" who are everything but thrive on anti-establishment narratives which become appealing to a part of the electorate, though many times those populist politicians are as much establishment as it can get and they just sell that narrative as a "brand". The thing is, i presume its much harder to employ that political strategy if the established system is mostly just the product of the will of the citizens, It's easier i think to organize a whole political campaign on denouncing your careerist political opponent than it is by denouncing the choices the people have made, the Swiss are their own populist champions.
Its notable also how different the relations between language groups are in Belgium and how that factors into our identity compared to the Swiss. It is my impression that the Swiss have far more national unity than we have in Belgium, and that might also be due to how some cultural identity politics have played out in Belgium trough representative democracy. Sometimes it was just to easy for the flemmish to blame the Wallonian politicians and vice versa.
Its not just Belgium, it's a theme that exists in many representative democracies, just like in the US. Trump couldnt be the most Entitled "champion of the people" ever full stop, its just rediculous, and its just the same denunciary politics aimed at scapegoats a a means to receive poltical "carté blanche" for whatever policy they actually want to pursue withought the electorate still having a chance to further intervene or even to ask for political recall. All must be decide in one big money electoral show where the people must be dazzled. What you actually get is a system that is logically more self serving to its establishment at the expense of the broader electorate.
Any direct democratic society though also needs a sufficiently politically concious, educated and committed people to succeed to a acceptable degree. I do thing Belgians are generally educated enough but we dont have "the experience" of ruling our self and we wont learn much if we dont start doing it more.
You could learn us that "we have the self determinist right to have direct democracy if we choose it", you can learn us what laws and institutions are required to establish and uphold that direct democratic system. What "Fora" you would use for social media to discuss politics in a world where social media and control of it has become "often troublesome". Your past actions can provide insights on how this system works and it's electorate behaves.
Thank you for your description from Belgium - but referendums can of course also further intensify polarisation, at least in relation to individual issues: Populist decisions, which professional politicians might tend to shy away from, are taken when voters express their opinions in certain areas.
Incidentally, are you aware that direct democracy is more pronounced in US states than anywhere else in the world outside of Switzerland?
https://www.swissinfo.ch/ger/demokratie/schweizer-politikwissenschaftler-die-usa-erlebt-diesen-november-einen-rekord-an-abstimmungen-%c3%bcber-abtreibungsrechte/87458700
Vielen Dank für Ihre Schilderung aus Belgien - selbstverständlich können Volksabstimmungen die Polarisierung aber auch weiter zuspitzen, zumindest bezogen auf einzelne Themen: Populistische Entscheide, von denen professionelle Politiker:innen vielleicht eher zurückschrecken, werden getroffen, wenn die Stimmberechtigten in gewissen Bereichen ihre Meinung zum Ausdruck bringen.
Sind Sie sich übrigens bewusst, dass die direkte Demokratie in US-Bundesstaaten ausgeprägter ist als irgendwo sonst auf der Welt ausserhalb der Schweiz?
https://www.swissinfo.ch/ger/demokratie/schweizer-politikwissenschaftler-die-usa-erlebt-diesen-november-einen-rekord-an-abstimmungen-%c3%bcber-abtreibungsrechte/87458700
Yes America was bad to the indigenous people. Today many indigenous people are the wealthiest Americans and we are returning stewardship of the land. We have a lot of work to do but it is happening.
Yes America was bad with slavery, it is not fixed but it is getting better. Now we are best friends, the kids all dress and talk the same, it is now the same culture, we are becoming one people. It is why there is such an outcry over any perceived racism here.
To put it into perspective, my local hospital speaks 170 languages. We are a racially integrated society that leverages our people to make us successful internationally, we even have the Swiss immigrants that moved to Utah many years ago. I like to think we learned how to use our cultural integration as an advantage from the working blueprint in Switzerland.
Yes American politics are crazy, but they are about as real as American wrestling. It is like the Andy Kaufman political show, and it is fantastic entertainment for the whole world . . . but lets be honest, we are who we are because our government does what our businesses need them to do, so we can compete internationally. In reality we are very stable, logical and rational, very much like the Swiss.
Sure I wish we would learn to be more neutral like Switzerland again. Choosing sides in a war is almost always a bad look.
I wish we were as clean, on time, and organized like Switzerland. I wish America smelled as fantastic as Switzerland, my city sometimes smells like a sewer.
I wish Americans understood the value of leisure like the Swiss, we both work a lot but I think you guys have more fun than we do.
Thank you very much for your comment - written as captivatingly as a politician's speech!
So you don't believe that polarisation in the US is a real risk for social cohesion? https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/democracy/trump-biden-and-hatred-how-us-polarisation-affects-americans-in-switzerland/84180825
Vielen Dank für Ihr Kommentar - mitreissend geschrieben wie die Rede eines Politikers!
Sie glauben also nicht, dass die Polarisierung in den USA ein echtes Risiko ist für die soziale Kohäsion? https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/democracy/trump-biden-and-hatred-how-us-polarisation-affects-americans-in-switzerland/84180825
what ideas they can use to win the trust of their citizens?
Well, I think that DIRECT DEMOCRACY, should be an active agenda promoted by Switzerland to anyone including our EU friends.
it is amazing how people know little about it (on purpose!) and when they learn about it, think it should be adopted in their country
My overall feeling is that people are increasingly feeling powerless to make change because the democratic institutions have been "hijacked" by too many un-elected people who just seek power for power. We are getting entangled in a web of too many regulations which create too many frictions in all aspects of day to day life and "common sense" is being trashed under the supervision of those "un-elected" .
The distrust is becoming a battleground of "we" against them.
Thank you for your description! So you are of the opinion that referendums could put the brakes on dwindling trust? The contrast between "us" and "them" could also be softened by a multi-party system, for example.
Many US states have direct democratic referendums. They are now experiencing a new dawn, especially with the end of Roe v Wade: https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/democracy/why-the-us-and-switzerland-are-direct-democracy-sister-republics/87536566
Vielen Dank für Ihre Schilderung! Sie sind also der Meinung, dass Volksabstimmungen das schwindende Vertrauen bremsen könnten? Der Gegensatz zwischen "wir" gegen "sie" könnte ja beispielsweise auch über ein Mehrparteiensystem aufgeweicht werden.
Viele US-Bundesstaaten kennen direktdemokratische Volksrechte. Gerade mit dem Ende von Roe vs. Wade erleben sie nun einen Aufbruch: https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/democracy/why-the-us-and-switzerland-are-direct-democracy-sister-republics/87536566
I don't really even consider the US a democracy since the people don't directly vote for their President because the electoral votes outweigh the popular vote. This means that a handful of electors determines who is President rather than the People. If it was a real democracy, both Gore and Hillary Clinton would have taken office as POTUS. One thing, though, that I do wish Switzerland could take from the US is the separation of church and State. I think Switzerland is still stuck in the dark ages in that regard, in some ways. Although it looks like the US might be taking steps backward now as conservatives try to force Americans to live according to their own religious ideologies. One thing I do appreciate about the Swiss system is that, unlike the US, it isn't limited to only two parties, which I think easily generates so much polarization and division, as we've seen in the US, where people are basically forced to choose between left or right. And as long as two opposing parties remain in power in the US, I think division will increasingly become a byproduct of that. It's also been forcing polarized thinking among voters and politicians, and in psychology, polarized thinking is considered a cognitive defect. (Apologies for any typos, as I'm typing this on my phone and don't see a means of previewing my post before I submit it).
Thank you very much for your exciting and varied contribution. How do you experience the proximity of church and state in Switzerland?
We have also dealt intensively with the issue of polarisation: https://www.swissinfo.ch/ger/demokratie/trump-biden-und-der-hass-wie-us-amerikanerinnen-in-der-schweiz-die-polarisierung-erleben/83968569
Vielen Dank für Ihren spannenden und vielseitigen Beitrag. Wie erleben Sie denn die Nähe von Kirche und Staat in der Schweiz?
Mit der Frage der Polarisierung haben wir uns auch intensiv auseinandergesetzt: https://www.swissinfo.ch/ger/demokratie/trump-biden-und-der-hass-wie-us-amerikanerinnen-in-der-schweiz-die-polarisierung-erleben/83968569
I see almost only deplorable anti-US (!) comments down here due to the 'woke' subculture. They blithely forget that it was the USA that inspired the French revolution and the charter of human rights! Switzerland then endowed itself with a liberal confederal constitution inspired by the US model. They also forget the enormous contribution to modernity due to the countless American inventions, including the electric light. It is well known that gratitude is spat out sooner or later, and Europe today even believes that it liberated itself during the two world wars! Unfortunately, ignorance and woke culture today run rampant without limits.
Vedo qui sotto quasi solo deplorevoli commenti in disprezzo anti USA (!) dovuti alla subcultura "woke". Dimenticano bellamente che furono gli USA a ispirare la rivoluzione francese e la carta dei diritti dell'uomo! La Svizzera poi si è dotata di una costituzione liberale confederale ispirata al modello USA. Dimenticano pure l'enorme contributo alla modernità dovuto alle innumerevoli invenzioni americane, luce elettrica compresa. Si sa che purtroppo la gratitudine prima o poi la si sputa fuori, e l'Europa oggi crede addirittura di essersi liberta da sola durante le due guerre mondiali! Purtroppo l'ignoranza e la cultura woke oggi dilagano senza più limiti.
I think the comments below have nothing to do with "woke" culture but are just references to reality. There was nothing written that isn't essentially true. But I know some people such as yourself are very quick to label something as "woke" simply because you don't want to accept the reality of it. And yet if it wasn't for "woke culture" in the past, we'd still be enslaving white people, forcing child labor and not allowing women to vote. I'd rather be labeled as "woke" than to wear a blindfold.
Oops, that was obviously a typo. I meant "enslaving black people" in my other comment.
Thank you for your contribution - regardless of the reasons for the many comments criticising the USA, Switzerland has indeed learnt a lot from the USA.
I find the US role in the history of Geneva particularly fascinating:
Vielen Dank für Ihren Beitrag - unabhängig davon, was die Ursachen für die vielen Kommentare kritisch gegenüber den USA sind, hat die Schweiz tatsächlich einiges von den USA mitgenommen.
https://www.swissinfo.ch/ger/demokratie/the-sister-republics-was-die-usa-und-die-schweiz-verbunden-hat/73047092
Besonders faszinierend finde ich die US-Rolle in der Geschichte von Genf:
https://www.swissinfo.ch/ger/demokratie/zentrum-des-moralischen-universums-wie-das-internationale-genf-dank-den-usa-entstanden-ist/75840032
I agree with you that many comments have simply stated realities. The question that nevertheless arises: What is the motivation for telling these realities here?
SWI swissinfo.ch has always addressed the upheavals of colonialism: https://www.swissinfo.ch/ger/kultur/handlanger-des-amerikanischen-ethnozids/46767796
Comments along the lines of "Countries can't learn anything from each other because ..." are almost off-topic. When the question is WHAT countries could learn from each other.
Ich stimme Ihnen zu, dass viele Kommentare einfach Realitäten benannt haben. Die Frage, die sich gleichwohl stellt: Was ist die Motivation dazu, diese Realitäten hier zu erzählen?
SWI swissinfo.ch hat die Verwerfungen des Kolonialismus immer auch thematisiert: https://www.swissinfo.ch/ger/kultur/handlanger-des-amerikanischen-ethnozids/46767796
Kommentare im Stil von "Die Länder können nichts voneinander lernen, weil ..." sind ja beinahe off-topic. Wenn die Frage ist, WAS die Länder von einander lernen könnten.
Nothing - Switzerland can learn nothing from the US plutocracy, which falsely calls itself a democracy, but is based on brutal violence, since the genocide of the indigenous people and the terrible slavery system; it is a system with many political prisoners, a brutal, privatised prison system and with hundreds of wars, forced changes of government, acts of terrorism abroad, with 1000 military bases and with sanctions against almost a fifth of all states in violation of international law.
Nichts - die Schweiz kann nichts von der US-Plutokratie lernen, die sich fälschlicherweise Demokratie nennt, aber auf brutaler Gewalt beruht, seit dem Genozid an den Ureinwohner:innen und dem schrecklichen Sklavensystem; es ist ein System mit vielen politischen Gefangenen, einem brutalen, privatisierten Gefängnissystem und mit hunderten von Kriegen, erzwungenen Regierungswechseln, Terrorakten im Ausland, mit 1000 Militärbasen und mit völkerrechtswidrigen Sanktionen gegen fast einen Fünftel aller Staaten.
A view distorted ideologically to the extreme left (!) by the 'woke' mentality, also coming from the American democrats. This anti-US hatred-disdain has been typical of the European 'intelligentsia' since at least '68. He blithely forgets that without US intervention during the two world wars, Europe would probably no longer even exist, because it was subservient to the Reich or the USSR. He also forgets that our modern way of life comes almost entirely from the USA with 80% of recent inventions included.
We may admit that there is too much violence and crime from them, but if you look at European metropolises (banlieues) we are not that far off. And fortunately there are hundreds of US military bases around the world, also for OUR defence against Russia and China, to which we contribute almost nothing. With Trump, however, we profiteers, who boast a good social system precisely because we leave the burden of our defence 80% to the USA, which they cannot afford!
Un visione distorta ideologicamente a sinistra estrema (!) dalla mentalità "woke", pure di provenienza dai democratici americani. Questo odio-disprezzo anti USA, è tipico dell' "intellighenzia" europea almeno dal lontano '68. Costui dimentica bellamente che senza l'intervento degli USA durante le due guerre mondiali, l'Europa probabilmente non esisterebbe nemmeno più, perché sottomessa al Reich o all'URSS. Dimentica pure che il nostro moderno stile di vita proviene quasi tutto dagli USA con l' 80% delle recenti invenzioni comprese.
Ammettiamo pure che da loro c'è troppa violenza e criminalità, ma se si osservano le metropoli europee (banlieues) non siamo poi tanto distanti. E per fortuna che ci sono centinai di basi militari US nel mondo, anche a NOSTRA difesa contro Russia e Cina, a cui però non contribuiamo quasi in niente. Con Trump però saremo costretti a contribuire pure noi approfittatori, che vantiamo un buon sistema sociale proprio perché lasciamo l'onere della nostra difesa per l'80% agli USA, che loro non possono permetterselo!
Why do you label any critical comments about the US as being hatred of the US? And why do you label everything as "woke" simply because you don't agree with it? You should debate what is actually said and the points that were made rather than simply throwing your labels around and essentially resorting to "name-calling." It's true that the US profits from wars, as the world's #1 weapons manufacturer. The effects of the US industrial military complex were predicted by one if its own Presidents (Eisenhower) many years ago. Please do some actual research and try to put your own biases in check before instinctively labeling something as "woke" or "anti-American." Simply because you don't WANT something to be true doesn't make it any less true.
The most important thing to learn is to NOT follow the American example. It is not a true democracy. Regardless of which party is voted in, there is a remarkable consistency of domestic and foreign initiatives. Why? because it is lobby groups who determine policies and outcomes.
What we can learn is how to protect our political processes and elected officials from lobby groups by enabling better transparency and rules.
Thank you for describing your impressions! And how could American democracy become more democratic again?
Vielen Dank für das Schildern Ihrer Eindrücke! Und wie könnte die amerikanische Demokratie denn wieder demokratischer werden?
By having more than just two political parties
For one thing, do away with the electoral college and let the People / popular vote actually determine election outcomes. Also yes, eliminate the possibility of lobbyists and corporations to sway politicians and the choices they make. Part of the problem with the US is that it's become so polarized between two sides that there is no objective oversight. It's Iike being forced to sit back and watch two groups of kids constantly fight back and forth and not having the ability to step in and try to inject any rationality or neutrality in an attempt to bring them to their senses. We are basically forced to just sit back and watch them try to destroy one another. Perhaps if the power was more diluted and not restricted between two warring parties then the division would be more diluted and less people would be wearing the blindfold of bias.
Sister Republics? Do you want to be sisters with a country like the USA that is pock marked with concentration camps called Reservations?
As you can read in our articles, this is a historical term: https://www.swissinfo.ch/ger/demokratie/the-sister-republics-was-die-usa-und-die-schweiz-verbunden-hat/73047092
Whether it still has life in it and you want to revitalise it or not is an open question.
Wie Sie in unseren Artikeln lesen können, handelt es sich dabei um einen historischen Begriff: https://www.swissinfo.ch/ger/demokratie/the-sister-republics-was-die-usa-und-die-schweiz-verbunden-hat/73047092
Ob er noch Leben in sich hat und man ihn beleben will oder nicht, ist eine offene Frage.
Hi Frankly, apart from the question of "sister republics", is there anything you think the US can learn from Switzerland and vice-versa?
Maybe starting with education and mentality:
Switzerland can learn to foster traits such as being adaptable and capable to perform with limited resources and limited time, being strategic and goal-oriented, being confident, having a growth mindset, being entrepreneurial and risk-taking, and teach to think globally, teach to go in depth, support talent and competitiveness, implement community-building strategies and volunteering for all ages.
The US can learn to foster traits such as openness for compromise and teach high quality handwork, ensure solid knowledge, skills and high-level education for all, instill appreciation for quality, durability, sustainability, precision, taste, authenticity and aesthetics, respect for the environment, both natural and built, and encourage and celebrate local culture and identity.
Thank you for this very balanced contribution! It gives the impression that both sides have a lot to learn. But don't you have the impression that voluntary work is very influential in Switzerland? From the fire brigade to the broad club culture?
Danke für diesen sehr ausgewogenen Beitrag! Da hat man den Eindruck, es gibt für beide Seiten einiges, was sie lernen könnten. Haben Sie denn aber nicht den Eindruck, dass die Freiwlligenarbeit in der Schweiz sehr prägend ist? Von der Feuerwehr über die breite Vereinskultur?
I'm an American. In Zurich for now, but not for long. I think the US has got a lot to learn. For one I wish grocery stores could be super close to my house back home as well as trams and really good trains.
That's like comparing apples and oranges, as the saying goes. America is HUGE compared to Switzerland, in terms of land size and population. It's virtually impossible to have a mass transit system like Switzerland's in the US because the US is so huge and spread out. You can't have a grocery store on everyone's doorstep there. But as it is, there are already Walmarts and Target stores, mini malls, gas stations and fast food restaurants and convenient stores basically everywhere in the US unless you live out in the middle of nowhere.
America doesn't learn from others it simply repeats the same mistakes over and over again. Switzerland could learn from US consistent mistakes and not to ever follow the US dictates and end up, well, like the US...a rogue nation i.e. banana republic.
Dude. The US has learnt EVERYTHING from other cultures/nations. Including Christianity. Also think about many cultures/ethnicities live in the US. Blacks, Jews, Hispanics, Asians, etc. So being anti America is also racist, not just communist. We even learned the litteral ship building we needed to save Europe in two wars from Britain. You think Hitler would have stopped at everywhere else but Switzerland? Nope, he just would've invaded you too. So you also have America to thank for that not happening.
BRAVO! At least one who can still reason because he knows the real story!
BRAVO! Almeno uno che sa ancora ragionare perché conosce la storia vera!
It is interesting how smug the Swiss have become because they have been allowed to follow their own path for the past several hundred years. That freedom was derived from the natural isolation of the mountains for most of that time. But for the last hundred years it came from the liberal world order that has been mostly enforced by the United States. Do the Swiss really think that the Nazis or the Communists would have allowed them to merrily continue with their "neutrality" if they had controlled the rest of Europe? The United States isn't perfect but its basic values coincide with Swiss interests more than any other great power Switzerland can hope to encounter. We will see how much longer that world order lasts.
Social media and always-on handy have changed societies (also Switzerland) forever.
And it is not all good.
I agree but progress always has its downsides. If you never try anything new you never have any progress.
Thank you very much for your contributions! Swiss neutrality was not originally a completely free decision, but something that was imposed on Switzerland from outside.
You can find out more about this here: https://www.swissinfo.ch/ger/politik/der-tag-an-dem-die-schweiz-neutral-wurde/41322772
The historian Oliver Meuwly says: "Switzerland was one of the buffer zones between France, which had to be kept in check, and Austria. Everyone wanted to exercise control over the territory at the foot of the Alps, which ensured that France was sealed off.
Neutrality ultimately suited everyone. Switzerland was not in a position to guarantee stability, which is why it was decided that it had to be neutral. The Swiss came to terms with this, although they did not claim neutrality themselves. There was no project for neutrality; circumstances led to the other states imposing neutrality on Switzerland."
Vielen Dank für Ihre Beiträge! Die Schweizer Neutralität war ja ursprünglich keine komplett freie Entscheidung, sondern etwas, das der Schweiz von aussen auferlegt worden ist.
Mehr darüber können Sie hier erfahren: https://www.swissinfo.ch/ger/politik/der-tag-an-dem-die-schweiz-neutral-wurde/41322772
Der Historiker Oliver Meuwly sagt dort: "Die Schweiz war eine der Pufferzonen zwischen Frankreich, das man in Schach halten musste, und Österreich. Alle wollten die Kontrolle ausüben über das Territorium am Fuss der Alpen, das die Abriegelung Frankreichs gewährleistete.
Die Neutralität kam schliesslich allen gelegen. Die Schweiz war nicht in der Lage, Stabilität zu gewährleisten, weshalb entschieden wurde, dass sie neutral sein müsse. Die Schweizer arrangierten sich damit, obwohl sie selbst die Neutralität nicht beanspruchten. Es gab kein Projekt für Neutralität; die Umstände führten dazu, dass die anderen Staaten der Schweiz Neutralität verordneten."
Thank you for this. :)
Today, Switzerland has little to learn from the USA. The latter, however, does not sell personal weapons freely. The education. The SBB. The Swiss education of the majority of the population. The tram and bus system in the Swiss cities. The, well, neutrality...... Yes.
Heutzutage die CH hat wenig von den USA zu lernen. Diese aber, keine persönliche Waffen frei zu verkaufen. Die Bildung. Die SBB. Die schweizerische Erziehung der Mehrheit der Bevölkerung. Das Strassenbahn und Buse System in den sch. Städten. Die die, also, die Neutralität...... Ja.
So quite a bit! Do you live in the USA yourself?
Also doch einiges! Leben Sie denn selbst in den USA?
Switzerland could learn from the USA how to pull the wool over the eyes of friendly partners!
Die Schweiz könnte von den USA lernen wie man freundschaftliche Partner über den Tisch zieht!
Switzerland can learn from the US which created more war than peace in the name of democracy since WWII. Switzerland needs to be resolute not to become a partner of genocide.
Conversely, the US should learn from Switzerland not to misuse democracy.
I hope to learn more about how well is Switzerland doing as a republic? I am certainly not proud about America as a republic.
Thank you for your contribution - what are you particularly interested in with regard to Switzerland as a republic? I would be happy to put together some articles that might be of interest to you if I know more about your interests.
Vielen Dank für Ihren Beitrag - was interessiert Sie denn besonders im Hinblick auf die Schweiz als Republik? Gerne kann ich Ihnen einige Artikel, die Sie womöglich interessieren, zusammenstellen, wenn ich mehr über Ihr Interesse weiss.
Thank you for your offer to help me learn more than what Gemini answered https://g.co/gemini/share/83f7751e9890.
I am interested to learn more beyond the above, such as Homelessness that my fair city failed miserably enough that a book named San FranSicko was published a few years ago!
Another issue is political party where nationally, there are two in America. How many does Switzerland have? If more than two, how do the minor ones succeed to become one on the national level?
Direct Democracy
Both countries recognise direct democracy to a limited extent - in the USA at least at state level. Where is direct democracy better practised?
Beide Länder kennen direkte Demokratie in begrenztem Mass - in den USA zumindest auf Bundesstaatsebene. Wo wird die direkte Demokratie besser gelebt?
Yes: What could Switzerland and the United States learn from each other today?
but: both (or either one, even alone) can belong to a mutually reinforcing a critical mass of nations able to shift the whole.
and: by changing the incentives for the “Rising Expectations” scenario of global interdependence led mainly by true professionals away from the “Tough Times” scenario of national independence led mainly by money.
PD: details are available on the account @gmh_upsa on the X/Twitter platform.
Switzerland could learn from the US how to have a more transparent government. The making of regulations at the federal and state level is generally more open and transparent in the US. Draft regulations in the US are published and comments from the public are solicited. All comments and their answers from the regulatory authority are published. Generally an opportunity to comment in person is also available.
In the US, the Freedom of Information Act (https://www.foia.gov/faq.html) also provides strong access to the activities of agencies at the federal level. Most state and local agencies have adopted similar reporting requirements. In contrast I just read that several municipal governments in the Canton de Valais are refusing to publish the salary of their syndics (https://www.rts.ch/info/regions/9071771-jusqua-275000-francs-par-an-ce-que-gagnent-les-maires-de-suisse-romande.html). Doing so would be subject to lawsuits and severe penalties.
Accountability for drinking water compliance regulations is also much better in the US. Every utility serving a population of 25 customers or more is subject to strict reporting regulations (see https://www.epa.gov/ccr). See an example; https://www.ebmud.com/water/about-your-water/water-quality/water-quality-report-english. There is nothing comparable in Switzerland.
Thank you very much, that is indeed a point where Switzerland could learn. For a long time, the principle of publicity did not even apply to media professionals in some cantons.
In the canton of Lucerne, the authorities are not even obliged to co-operate with requests for information from the press until June 2025. Then the principle of publicity will also come into force there by law.
Vielen Dank, das ist tatsächlich ein Punkt, wo die Schweiz lernen könnte. Tatsächlich galt lange in einzelnen Kantonen nicht mal gegenüber Medienschaffenden das Öffentlichkeitsprinzip.
Beim Kanton Luzern sind die Behörden sogar noch bis Juni 2025 nicht verpflichtet kooperativ zu sein, wenn die Presse Informationen anfragt. Dann tritt auch dort das Öffentlichkeitsprinzip gesetzlich in Kraft.
I live in the UK, but aware of the coming presidential election, and consider that the American system could be more democratic.
The reason being that the electoral college system where the votes are counted in each individual state, to which a certain number of allowable votes are allotted, can cause an anomaly, inasmuch as the votes cast by the state may bring about a differing result to that if it were the individual votes of the citizens throughout the nation.
For example, in the 2015 election, Hillary Clinton gained 2.8 million of the individual votes, over Donald Trump, yet under the electoral college system, Trump gained the most votes and his residency in the White House.
Despite that being their system, that does not sound like democracy in the true sense of the word.
We, in the United Kingdom, because of our use of the First Past the Post system, which affects the allocation of seats for the differing parties in parliament, and as a result the seats are divided by the two main parties, with only minimal seats, are allocated, if at all, to the minor parties, meaning that overall the people do not get the representation for which they voted.
Whereas, if we were to change to a Proportional Representation system, the seats would be allocated in proportion to the votes cast for the different parties.
It would probably mean more coalition governments as a result, but that would also mean that they would have to learn to speak to each other, so consensus, replacing the adversarial kid's playground, we have at the moment.
My position, which I freely admit, is that I am a strong supporter of the EU, and pretty well convinced that had we had PR, a decade ago, that Brexit would not have happened.
A note on the Electoral College in the US- it is a relic from the founding of the country when the political elite did not trust the selection of the president or senators by the common people and installed it as a buffer so they manipulate the vote and make sure that supremely unqualified persons were not elected. It was tolerated for the last hundred years or so because the winner of the popular vote also won the EC. This changed in the 2000 election when Bush Jr. lost to Gore by 500,000 votes but won the EC. It happened again in 2016 when Hillary Clinton won the popular vote by 3,000,000 but lost the EC to Trump (ironically exactly the type of person the EC was created to keep out of the presidency). It almost happened again in 2020 and may again in 2024. Democrats want to do away with the EC but Republicans will refuse because it gives them a built-in advantage.
As far as Brexit, I thought that illustrated a danger of direct democracy. In my opinion it was crazy to allow such a momentous decision be allowed to rest on the vote of perhaps (theoretically) one person's vote. Whenever I would ask my British friends they would all say "Well, they did win the election."
The Electoral College as a federalist means of creating a balance between small federal states and the larger ones is, albeit much less consequential, somehow related to the majority of the cantons in Switzerland - or do you see no similarities?
One approach would of course be a proportional allocation of electors in the Electoral College, as only Maine and Nebraska do today.
Interestingly, some states are also deciding this November on the introduction of a ranked choice system for Congress - this would also create a far more differentiated picture: https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/democracy/why-the-us-and-switzerland-are-direct-democracy-sister-republics/87536566
Das Electoral College als föderalistisches Mittel, um einen Ausgleich zwischen kleinen Bundesstaaten und den grösseren zu schaffen, ist, wenn auch viel weniger folgenreicher, ja irgendwie auch verwandt mit dem Ständemehr in der Schweiz - oder sehen Sie da keine Gemeinsamkeit?
Ein Ansatz wäre natürlich eine proportionale Vergabe der Wahlleute im Electoral College, wie es heute bloss Maine und Nebraska kennen.
Spannenderweise entscheiden diesen November auch einige Staaten über die Einführung eines Ranked Choice-Systems für den Kongress - dies würde auch ein weit differenzierteres Bild schaffen: https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/democracy/why-the-us-and-switzerland-are-direct-democracy-sister-republics/87536566
Switzerland could learn from the USA how to pull the wool over other countries' eyes - all to its own advantage.
Die Schweiz könnte von den USA lernen wie man andere Länder über den Tisch zieht alles zum eigenen Vorteil.
Dear Mr Meyer
It is probably a very controversial discussion as to which countries are ripping others off.
But you are referring to which policy area?
Sincerely
Benjamin von Wyl
Lieber Herr Meyer
Es ist wohl eine sehr kontroverse Diskussion, welche Länder andere über den Tisch ziehen.
Sie beziehen Ihre Aussage aber auf welches Politikfeld?
Herzlich
Benjamin von Wyl
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