[Griff]

Western Europe seems to have mostly functioning representative government. Ours seems to be good at representing the interests of oil companies, banks, and nutters. We've been told so long that government can't do stuff and the GOP works hard at proving it, that I don't single-payer happening without a huge movement and a popular change agent. Watching the manipulations and smear campaigns this election cycle makes me doubt we have the tools to build a sensible system rather than a special interest feed trough.