Dear Friends, Neighbours and Countrymen! (Lend me your ears!)
Last year your humble reporter wrote about twenty articles on things I believed we could do to change the world and make it a better place to live.
With the apparent (hopeful) demise of 'Don the Con Trumplethinskin' in the near future I dusted off ten of these essays that pertained directly to the United States of America and I would like to summarize them here so that there is perhaps someone (anyone) who will hear my cry in the wilderness for a more sane equal and just society! (I am going to go under the assumption that I, as a Canadian with a dispassionate view of American society and culture, am the last honest broker who has unlimited authority to make changes to the good ol' U. S. of A!) 😎
Let's start off by noting that American culture is a strange combination of a 'wild west' mindset tempered by puritan and reactionary tendencies so in order to tame these disparate attitudes we need to dig into the heart of the American psyche and lay down a few ground rules! (As for all the sects, cults, militias and nut cases.......... I don't have a clue what to do!)
Let's call these "The Ten Commandments of the United States!"
1. This would not normally be at the top of the list except for the fact that Don the Con Drumpf is in charge right now and this needs to be changed immediately since the future of the country might depend on it! (Drumpf AND Pence didn't really win the election and need to go for obvious reasons...., and if you don't know what they are you might as well stop reading right now!)
In their place we should install a transitionary cabal made up of the Republican John Kasich and then Democrat Joe Bide, John Kerry or Elizabeth Warren as Vice President. (This is not set in stone but seems to be the best combination.)
Sometime between now and the 2020 elections the Libertarians need to get off their ass and become a viable third party in all Federal, State and Municipal jurisdictions. Voters are too polarized between the far Left and the far Right so this will be a place to call home for all the 'middle-of-the-road' types who currently aren't voting! (Besides, more choice is better than less choice!)
2. Make it mandatory that everyone votes. If you want democracy then ya have to work for it! (Oh, get rid of Gerrymandering and abolish the Electoral College!)
3. Get rid of all lobbyists! Lobbying makes the American Government one of the most corrupt on the planet since these people only work for special interest groups...., NOT the American people.
4. Overhaul the justice system from an adversarial process to some kind of co-operative arrangement. Then get rid of nonsense like "three strikes and you're out" and the "war on drugs" by making the entire system geared towards rehabilitation rather than retribution!
5. Ban ALL handguns and assault rifles. Ordinary rifles are for hunting and as long as you have a permit for them that's O.K. Handguns and assault rifles are only good for killing people, so they should be illegal! (By the way, you need a license to drive, and a whole bunch of other stuff, so why not for owning a gun!)
6. Reduce the military budget by half and use that money for infrastructure and social programs.......... including a guaranteed minimum wage or annual income. *
7. Put a lot more emphasis on cyber security since these are the nuclear weapons of the 21st. century!
8. Reduce the U.S. role of "Global Policeman" (reduced military) and instead concentrate on areas of financial and strategic interest such as a form of union similar to the E.U. between the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Australia and New Zealand. (The five eyes!)
9. Lead by example toward a 'New World Order' that emphasizes equality, justice and human rights.
10. Get rid of the idea that DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISM is a bad word. The key difference between socialism and democratic socialism is that democratic socialists don't want the government to own the means of production and socialists do. They believe that certain general social goods like health and welfare, police & fire departments, the military, transportation, infrastructure, etc. should be run by the government, but otherwise, support capitalism.
* Remember, any nation is judged by how it treats its least advantaged citizens, and under your system of rampant capitalism the record is not very good!
Last year your humble reporter wrote about twenty articles on things I believed we could do to change the world and make it a better place to live.
With the apparent (hopeful) demise of 'Don the Con Trumplethinskin' in the near future I dusted off ten of these essays that pertained directly to the United States of America and I would like to summarize them here so that there is perhaps someone (anyone) who will hear my cry in the wilderness for a more sane equal and just society! (I am going to go under the assumption that I, as a Canadian with a dispassionate view of American society and culture, am the last honest broker who has unlimited authority to make changes to the good ol' U. S. of A!) 😎
Let's start off by noting that American culture is a strange combination of a 'wild west' mindset tempered by puritan and reactionary tendencies so in order to tame these disparate attitudes we need to dig into the heart of the American psyche and lay down a few ground rules! (As for all the sects, cults, militias and nut cases.......... I don't have a clue what to do!)
Let's call these "The Ten Commandments of the United States!"
1. This would not normally be at the top of the list except for the fact that Don the Con Drumpf is in charge right now and this needs to be changed immediately since the future of the country might depend on it! (Drumpf AND Pence didn't really win the election and need to go for obvious reasons...., and if you don't know what they are you might as well stop reading right now!)
In their place we should install a transitionary cabal made up of the Republican John Kasich and then Democrat Joe Bide, John Kerry or Elizabeth Warren as Vice President. (This is not set in stone but seems to be the best combination.)
Sometime between now and the 2020 elections the Libertarians need to get off their ass and become a viable third party in all Federal, State and Municipal jurisdictions. Voters are too polarized between the far Left and the far Right so this will be a place to call home for all the 'middle-of-the-road' types who currently aren't voting! (Besides, more choice is better than less choice!)
2. Make it mandatory that everyone votes. If you want democracy then ya have to work for it! (Oh, get rid of Gerrymandering and abolish the Electoral College!)
3. Get rid of all lobbyists! Lobbying makes the American Government one of the most corrupt on the planet since these people only work for special interest groups...., NOT the American people.
4. Overhaul the justice system from an adversarial process to some kind of co-operative arrangement. Then get rid of nonsense like "three strikes and you're out" and the "war on drugs" by making the entire system geared towards rehabilitation rather than retribution!
5. Ban ALL handguns and assault rifles. Ordinary rifles are for hunting and as long as you have a permit for them that's O.K. Handguns and assault rifles are only good for killing people, so they should be illegal! (By the way, you need a license to drive, and a whole bunch of other stuff, so why not for owning a gun!)
6. Reduce the military budget by half and use that money for infrastructure and social programs.......... including a guaranteed minimum wage or annual income. *
7. Put a lot more emphasis on cyber security since these are the nuclear weapons of the 21st. century!
8. Reduce the U.S. role of "Global Policeman" (reduced military) and instead concentrate on areas of financial and strategic interest such as a form of union similar to the E.U. between the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Australia and New Zealand. (The five eyes!)
9. Lead by example toward a 'New World Order' that emphasizes equality, justice and human rights.
10. Get rid of the idea that DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISM is a bad word. The key difference between socialism and democratic socialism is that democratic socialists don't want the government to own the means of production and socialists do. They believe that certain general social goods like health and welfare, police & fire departments, the military, transportation, infrastructure, etc. should be run by the government, but otherwise, support capitalism.
* Remember, any nation is judged by how it treats its least advantaged citizens, and under your system of rampant capitalism the record is not very good!
The way I see it anyway!
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