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Showing Original Post only (View all)This Kid Made An App That Exposes Sellout Politicians [View all]
By Hannah Ewens Jul 7 2014
With US politics swimming in so much corporate money that it's pretty much an oligarchy, it can be hard to keep track of which particular set of lobbyists is trying to milk more cash out of health care, fossil fuels, and other very important issues from one week to the next.
But thanks to 16-year-old Nick Rubin, keeping track of just how much politicians have sold out has become a lot easier. He created Greenhouse, a new browser plug-in that operates under the motto "Some are red. Some are blue. All are green." The plugin aims "to shine light on a social and industrial disease of today: the undue influence of money in our Congress." It sounds like a bit of a lofty aim for an app, but it's actually pretty simple and effectiveit provides a breakdown of a politicians campaign contributions when that politician's name comes up in an article. It is currently available for Chrome, Firefox, and Safari and is completely free. As you can imagine, reading about how your member of Congress voted in a recent health bill becomes all the more enlightening if you know how much money the health industry showered him in at the last election.
I spoke to Nick Rubin about the plugin, politics, and what he calls the "money stories" behind what you read in the news.
But thanks to 16-year-old Nick Rubin, keeping track of just how much politicians have sold out has become a lot easier. He created Greenhouse, a new browser plug-in that operates under the motto "Some are red. Some are blue. All are green." The plugin aims "to shine light on a social and industrial disease of today: the undue influence of money in our Congress." It sounds like a bit of a lofty aim for an app, but it's actually pretty simple and effectiveit provides a breakdown of a politicians campaign contributions when that politician's name comes up in an article. It is currently available for Chrome, Firefox, and Safari and is completely free. As you can imagine, reading about how your member of Congress voted in a recent health bill becomes all the more enlightening if you know how much money the health industry showered him in at the last election.
I spoke to Nick Rubin about the plugin, politics, and what he calls the "money stories" behind what you read in the news.
How does Greenhouse work?
It works by highlighting the name of any member of Congress on any website, and when you hover over these names a little box appears that shows detailed contribution information with amounts and where those amounts have come from. Its basically a list of the top-ten industries from which they receive their money. My goal was to create something that promotes transparency. It would be great if people used it on sites where theyre reading about politics every day. For example, if youre reading a piece on Congress votes for energy policy, you might see that a sponsor has received hundreds of thousands of dollars from the oil and gas industry. I like to say that Greenhouse allows people to see the money story behind the news story.
It works by highlighting the name of any member of Congress on any website, and when you hover over these names a little box appears that shows detailed contribution information with amounts and where those amounts have come from. Its basically a list of the top-ten industries from which they receive their money. My goal was to create something that promotes transparency. It would be great if people used it on sites where theyre reading about politics every day. For example, if youre reading a piece on Congress votes for energy policy, you might see that a sponsor has received hundreds of thousands of dollars from the oil and gas industry. I like to say that Greenhouse allows people to see the money story behind the news story.
What do you hope from Greenhouse?
I just want it to educate people because thats really the first step toward a solution. Thats exactly why I designed Greenhouse with simplicity in mind, so that everyoneeven kidsare able to understand it. In terms of whether Greenhouse will solve this issuewell, education is the first step. I really do believe that increased transparency will help fix the problem. Easy access to data empowers voters to make better decisions. Once people are informed, they will reject elected officials who are motived by money instead of principles. But for now, Ill leave the solution to others.
I just want it to educate people because thats really the first step toward a solution. Thats exactly why I designed Greenhouse with simplicity in mind, so that everyoneeven kidsare able to understand it. In terms of whether Greenhouse will solve this issuewell, education is the first step. I really do believe that increased transparency will help fix the problem. Easy access to data empowers voters to make better decisions. Once people are informed, they will reject elected officials who are motived by money instead of principles. But for now, Ill leave the solution to others.
Smart kid and a neat tool. The full interview is at this link: http://www.vice.com/read/greenhouse-app-hannah-ewens-nick-rubin-201
I found his website where you can download the plugins. http://allaregreen.us
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Not yet. They're still collecting evidence of pole dancing and cardboard boxes.
Tierra_y_Libertad
Jul 2014
#9
Cool. I wish he'd make a version that provides info on the political donations of individuals and
Dark n Stormy Knight
Jul 2014
#20
Yes. But an app similar to the one described in the OP would be nice.
Dark n Stormy Knight
Jul 2014
#31
PS. I'm going to make the opposite app. One that measures a politicians' integrity.
tclambert
Jul 2014
#29