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stickfigure | on: Lula wins election after final votes tallied
The skill to win elections and the skill to govern are not the same. And humans have biases against change. Term limits guarantee the downside is limited and they are healthy for a real democracy.

Also... too long in power makes it easier to dismantle the democratic process.

The entire American system of checks and balances is not designed to get optimal leadership, it is designed to limit damage from bad leadership.

senderista | parent | next
> The entire American system of checks and balances is not designed to get optimal leadership, it is designed to limit damage from bad leadership.

Well how's that working out? There's a reason the rest of the developed democratic world hasn't adopted a strong executive.

stickfigure | root | parent | next
I agree with you, the system is far from perfect. But right now we're talking about the benefits of term limits and it is greatly comforting that no matter what, in two more years Trump will be gone.
ckdarby | root | parent | next
American system maintained being a super power for 80 years, great stability and giant prosperity.

Worked out very well for the American system till recently.

senderista | root | parent
I think that's just because both parties managed to keep demagogues from being nominated until 2016.
ngcazz | root | parent
I mean, US foreign policy been supercharged with Trump, and from that perspective his leadership's been plenty adequate. Declaring war on Iran in particular has long been a neoliberal aspiration that no one had the political courage to implement - enter Trump, the nominal adversary on whom they could outsource their ambitions, and whose blunders could cynically be disavowed.
lopis | parent | next
> And humans have biases against change

Funnily enough, a lot of people who voted for Flávio only did it because they wanted a change from Lula.

anonymous908213 | parent
> The skill to win elections and the skill to govern are not the same.

Then elect someone else next time. This, however, is a criticism of democracy more than it is a justification for term limits.

> The entire American system of checks and balances is not designed to get optimal leadership, it is designed to limit damage from bad leadership.

How's that working out for you? You got Trump and Biden as a direct result of term limits. The way I see it, your system has selected for the maximally damaging bad leadership possible.

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