Forum Post: American Party REFORMS list (contribute to reforms wishlist)

Posted 12 years ago on Jan. 5, 2012, 11:28 p.m. EST by NLake72 (510)
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American Party REFORMS LIST (CONTRIBUTE IDEAS)

Note: I'm starting this thread and not returning to this forum for a few days. This is your thread, not mine. I'm not going to moderate it, or reply for a few days. Let's just see where we really are...

Let's try a new approach to the problems at hand... America was built on compromise, not hardline partisanship. So, let's try to forget our personal political alignments in this thread, and simply pretend we're creating a brand-new political party. We'll call ourselves the American party, since we're all Americans here, or, focusing on problems the United States is facing.

So, let's first figure out what we can agree upon, and then start a new thread to work on solutions to the reforms we can all agree are required. My request for responses on this thread should be limited to a list of extra reforms required, the debate on the solutions should be saved for a new thread. Agreed?

Given: Congress currently has an 8% approval rating. Regardless of who's President, the problems are clearly far more systemic in nature. Reforms are coming, one way or another. “The people” are quickly losing their patience. We are “the people” for the intents and purposes of this thread.

So, listed below is a quick, very incomplete list (right off the top of my head) of areas that need to be addressed. Can we agree on this list of problems? If we can agree on our definitions of the problems, then it is our civic responsibility to find solutions and work toward a compromise amongst ourselves. The solutions belong in another thread. I, or someone else, will agree to start that thread in a few days.

Warning 1: the solutions won't satisfy anyone 100% of the time, but, for now, let's try (just for laughs) to find a middle ground regarding the actual problems at hand. If we can agree on the problems, then we have to work even harder on finding solutions, again, as a third party, a non-partisans, as true Americans.

Warning 2: When we have agreed on the reforms, we can't allow “civil war” “bloody revolutions” or other “destructive/violent” solutions to be valid responses. Ok, a few eggs might have to get broken in the long run, but we are seeking peaceful solutions only. That thread will be started once these reforms can be properly defined.

INITIAL LIST OF REFORMS THAT SEEM REQUIRED: (correct me if I'm wrong, add to it in your responses)

1) Campaign financing reform (gotta get the money out of elections)

2) Lobbying Reform (too much corruption from lobbyists once elections happen.)

3) Transparent Financial Activity / Regulation of markets (lack of oversight was a key to our financial meltdown)

4) Gotta get the national debt paid down, and some kind of controls over how big it ever gets again (consider our current debt more or less the maximum we can possibly sustain)

5) Tax Reform (one way or another, we have to raise taxes somewhere to pay down the debt.)

6) Legal system... There's a number of laws that are unjust and dumb (and, too much incarceration already)

7) Repeal the Patriot Act, NDAA 1022, War on Terrorism/Extremism (we all get angry thinking about the rights and freedoms that have been curtailed.)

GENERAL PHILOSOPHICAL PRINCIPLES (that seem to already guide our “Fantasy” American Party)

(contribute to this list as well. We are Americans, we can rally behind mom, baseball, and apple pie, for instance.)

a) The Constitution and Bill of Rights are two documents we want to keep more or less intact

b) The Environment is worth saving, and we have to find a way to protect it.

c) Elected officials should serve the people's needs first, certainly more than the politician's own personal interests, or corporate interests.

d) We like having a strong military.

e) Our basic standard of living is something we want to preserve: America should have the highest standard of living of any other country in the world, and we like being technologically at the cutting edge.

f) There should be more jobs available than Americans who are looking for work. Let's say, 3-5% unemployment is a pretty healthy goal, since you'll always have some people out of work, for whatever reason. These jobs have to pay a wage that can actually support one person who is working most of the year (allowing for one short illness period each year, or a little extra vacation time, whatever... Alternatively, a person could work without time off all year long, if they so desire.)

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[-] 1 points by ZenDogTroll (13032) from South Burlington, VT 12 years ago

End corporate personhood, and campaign finance reform [item 1 above] - Sanders Amendment:
- Sanders Proposed Constitutional Amendment:
- Sanders Petition here:
- Full amendment PDF:
on the economy [item 3 above] -
- If they engaged in fraud - they see the judge, and the sentencing better be in line with the crime, and had better include serious restitution
- End the foreclosures.
- End the philosophy of a deregulated economic system - from the Universities to the policy makers
two step approach to the issue of national debt, [items 4 & 5 above]:
- short term: end bushite tax breaks and corporate welfare
- long term: restructure / simplify the tax code so that it is competitive for businesses to do business and keep their money here; and pays down the debt, and keeps social security solvent
Item 7 - the Patriot Act etcetera
- quit fucking around with the issue of terrorism - it's a crime, unless you happen to catch them on an actual battlefield - and if it is a crime, treat them in accordance with our criminal laws. No more indefinite detention
- Close Gitmo - we've got large pens practically empty in the mid west. I'm sure they can handle it. Stop fucking around.
We need an energy policy uninfluenced by fossil fuel industry, one that takes into account the fact of global warming, and institutes a NASA like approach to solving both our need for energy and the need to reduce atmospheric carbon
- No KeyStone Pipeline
Given corporate shenanigans and their affect on public policy and adverse social consequences, the following must all be secured in public, rather than private, hands.
```
 + energy production, 

 + telecommunications, 

 + economic infrastructure, 

 + public health care 
```
No downsizing the Postal Service - the Vermont delegation to Congress is actually active on this issue
end debate over entitlements I'm sick of hearing about it as if it were dirty. Forget privatization of social security and just shoot the next bastard who suggests otherwise [speaking for myself of course.]
No to internet censorship in any form legitimate claims of copyright infringement can be pursued using current legal means
end the two party political system
we need to provide stiff and compelling sanction to corporations that engage in disinformation - as with the tobacco industry before and the fossil fuel industry now [and for the past 10-20 years]
regulatory reform - we must have regulations that are functional and fully funded, not dysfunctional and sabotaged from two separate directions at once, with the ultimate goal of ensuring a wide variety of:
- consumer protection
  - FDA
  - EPA
  - ect