中新网评:美国众议长选举“连续剧”暴露美式民主痼疾******
中新网北京1月9日电(蒋鲤)在15轮投票表决后,美国众议院议长选举这场“连续剧”终于落下帷幕,众议院共和党领袖凯文·麦卡锡最终成功当选第55任美国众议院议长。这是美国国会过去164年来耗时最久的一次议长选举记录,将美国“对抗式民主”的弊端暴露无遗。
资料图:美国众议院共和党领袖麦卡锡。中新社记者 沙晗汀摄
由于两党对立加剧、党派内斗、利益分配不均等因素,众议长选举陷入一场拉锯战。在此次众议长竞选中,美国民主党议员继续抱团,多轮投票中,一票不投麦卡锡,共和党右翼“强硬派”领头的约20人小团体也拒绝投票麦卡锡。
麦卡锡的当选之路一波三折,除了本人的“政治投机派”角色在国会不受欢迎外,与共和党内部政治分歧关系密切。
一方面,共和党党内反对者认为,麦卡锡对民主党态度过于软弱,无力对抗民主党控制的参议院和拜登政府,另一方面,因为共和党的多数优势微弱,党内一些影响力较小的派系的政治力量则被放大,有利于他们巩固自己的选票。
此外,党内反对者也认为,自己的选票没有换取更多利益,希望以此作为筹码换取麦卡锡更大的让步,比如让他们获得众议院重要委员会中的职务。
作为仅次于美国总统、副总统的政坛三号人物,众议院议长通常由众议院多数党领袖担任,选举几乎没有悬念。然而,麦卡锡此次为当选,不得不做出多个关键让步,其中可能包括恢复一项罢黜议长动议机制,使得众议长的权力被削弱,难以掌控众议院。
美国有线电视新闻网CNN称,麦卡锡在这场不合时宜的政治勒索中作出让步,这种绥靖政策只会让极端主义势力更加强大。
这场引发全世界围观的尴尬选举暴露出美国政治存在严重的对立和分化。在权力博弈思维的裹挟下,党派利益凌驾于国家和人民利益之上,美国两党相互拆台,陷入“为反对而反对”的无脑对垒。而即便是一党内,也会因为利益分配问题产生不同的小派系,相互对抗,选票变成了谋利益的工具。
从国会山骚乱到打破记历史记录的15轮众议长选举,“对抗式民主”让美国政治陷入瓶颈,长期对抗势必会让政客们丧失客观公正的判断能力,其政治阶层是否有能力治理国家也会引发质疑。
两党之争和党派内斗进一步放大了美国政治体制弊病,美国所谓的“民主”形象,让全世界大跌眼镜。鼓吹以选民利益为先的美式选举,变成了政客们利益置换的游戏,进一步彰显出美国“民主政治”日渐失能,不断极化的党争已使美国政治制度陷入死循环。
House speaker election reveals deep-rooted problems in U.S. democracy
(ECNS) -- The Republican leader Kevin McCarthy was elected as the 55th speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives after 15 ballots. As the most grueling House speaker election in the past 164 years, the election has highlighted the defects of the country’s "confrontational democracy".
The election once reached a stalemate due to intense partisan strife, inner-party struggle among the Republicans, uneven distribution of interests, and more. Democratic Party members forged a close alliance, refusing to vote for McCarthy, while about 20 Republicans also declined to cast ballots for the GOP leader.
Except for his unpopular role as a "political speculator" in Congress, McCarthy’s hard-won election can be attributed to turmoil within the Republican Party.
On the one hand, opponents in the Republican Party believe that the GOP leader's attitude toward the Democrats is too weak to confront the Senate controlled by Democrats and the Biden administration.
On the other hand, the political power of some less influential factions in the Republican Party has been amplified due to the Party’s weak majority advantage in the House of Representatives, which is conducive to consolidating their ticket warehouses.
Meanwhile, these opponents believe that their votes failed to win them more benefits, hoping to use this as a bargaining chip for McCarthy's further concessions, such as getting them positions in important House Committees.
As the third political figure after the President and Vice President of the U.S., the speaker, by tradition, is the head of the majority party in the House of Representatives.
But McCarthy has made many concessions in order to bring the ultra conservatives along, involving what’s known as the “motion to vacate,” a mechanism by which members can force a vote to depose the speaker. The reported concessions will empower individual members at the expense of McCarthy’s sway as speaker.
CNN thought the concessions he made during this unseemly political shakedown would only make the extremist faction more powerful.
This embarrassing election, which has drawn global attention, exposed the serious opposition and polarization in American politics. Both Democrats and Republicans put their interests before that of the country and its people, attacking and opposing each other irrationally.
Besides, different factions arise within a single party and confront each other because of the distribution of interests. Votes have become a tool to win more benefits.
From Capitol riots to the House Speaker election with record-breaking ballots, "confrontational democracy" has become a bottleneck of American politics. Long-term confrontation will surely impede politicians to think objectively and fairly while their capacity of governing the country will also raise doubts among the public.
Both parties’ struggle and infighting among the Republicans have further amplified the defects of the American political system, with its "democratic" image shocking the world.
The U.S.-style election, which advocates putting voters' interests first, has become a game of interest exchange among politicians. In addition, it further demonstrates the malfunction of American "democratic politics" and the constantly polarized party struggle that has trapped the American political system into an infinite cycle.
何宝宏:从学习到创造,生成式AI取得突破性进展******
“2022年AI绘画和ChatGTP的重要性不亚于2016年AlphaGo战胜人类围棋冠军的价值,这是否会引发新一轮的内容科技的革命,是值得我们关注的问题。”在近日举行的“风向Talks 2023”思享会上,中国信息通信研究院云计算与大数据研究所所长何宝宏围绕技术转型、信息革命、数据资产、Web3、信任科技、元宇宙、技术周期律、经济学2.0、AI、数字原生等热门领域进行了分享。
何宝宏表示,生成式AI在2022年取得了突破性的进展,人工智能开始从学习走向创造。
近年来,随着技术的发展,内容创作的方式不断发生变革,经历了从PGC(专业生产内容)到UGC(用户生产内容),再到PUGC(专业用户生产内容)的发展历程。到了人工智能时代,可实现AIGC(人工智能创作内容) ,未来可能发展到P-AIGC(专业人员指导下的AIGC)。
AIGC背后是一个大的模型,何宝宏介绍,过去五年,由于大模型的参数指数级增长带来了大模型“智力”的指数级增长。2020年,机器基本只能完成文本生成,目前可以进行图像生成,未来能实现视频生成。2016年,机器视觉可以从图片中识别文字;2022年,机器实现了AI绘画,可以通过文字生成图像。
不仅如此,人工智能的进步还体现在科学方面,目前正在兴起的AI编程的软件2.0,可以实现以代码为中心到以数据为中心的编程思维,即程序员只需要设定超级参数,普通参数将通过数据训练实现。生命科学方面,2021年AI发现了蛋白质结构,2022年AI生成了蛋白质结构,由此AIGC入选了《Science》2022年度科学十大突破。
在谈到在2022年同样大火的“元宇宙”时,何宝宏表示,每隔7年左右,都会有名为“下一代互联网”的技术出现,每次还都不一样。目前,互联网发展正面临以元宇宙为代表的信息互联网以及以Web3.0为代表的价值互联网的“新岔道”。
不过,在他看来,现阶段,元宇宙依然是各种要素的“大杂烩”,还没有找到最佳实践。基于VR的元宇宙在未来3-5年内依然会是小众市场,实现“生态化反”还需要更多时间。
“VR现阶段的体验并不像数字孪生,而更像是‘数字植物人’,除了有视觉和听觉体验之外,还缺少嗅觉、味觉和触觉的感受。未来,仍需积极探索,将生产要素有机地组织起来。”何宝宏说。(宋雅娟)
(文图:赵筱尘 巫邓炎)