ten ideas that won't be discussed in the kerry-bush debates

[welshTerrier2]

we've had many debates on DU about whether there are significant differences between democrats and republicans ... my personal view is that there are many important, even critical, differences ... i would NOT make an argument, as many on the far left have made, that there is essentially no difference between the two major parties ...

HOWEVER, having said that, I would argue that our two party system does limit our national dialog to a very narrow range of views and opinions ... i think it's tragic that other parties and candidates are essentially locked out of the process ...

consider some of the issues i've thought about (see below) ... i don't necessarily advocate all of these things, but i do believe they are worthy of a national discussion ... a national discussion that will never take place ... i'm, at least to some degree, trying to explain here why i hold deep resentments against the two party system ... i believe it stifles an honest look at real change because of its compulsion for politically pragmatic centrism ...

new ideas are often not viewed as politically pragmatic ... it takes a long time and a lot of effort to introduce change ... change implies risk ... i'm afraid our political system has become so risk averse that we are forced to settle for mediocrity ...

Why can't these ideas be debated in the marketplace of ideas ...

1. put an absolute cap on individual income because the super-wealthy are able to control government policy ...
2. outlaw paid lobbyists ... our system of lobbyists leads to bribery (via campaign contributions) of elected officials ...
3. tax unearned income ten times as much as earned income ... an hour of labor should be valued much more than a dollar of capital ...
4. ban the property tax as a method of financing public education ... the current system provides good schools for the wealthy and bad schools for the poor ...
5. require all major media (TV, Radio) to provide 10 hours a week of free coverage to all "major" candidates ... this should include significant 3rd party candidates at the beginning of the election season with the "qualifying requirements" becoming more difficult as the election nears ...
6. polls should be open for one full week (24/7) for all elections ... the goal should be to encourage participation, not to block it ...
7. eliminate 75% of high tech, cost bloated, weapons systems and use some of the money for investment in personnel and training for "small scale" warfare ...
8. withdraw from NAFTA and the WTO and negotiate trade treaties bi-laterally (as Kucinich suggested) ...
9. change the presidential debate rules so that the people's best interests are served instead of allowing a canned, scripted format ...
10. limit inheritance amounts to $1 million per person and a total of $5 million per estate ... we cannot ever have real democracy if we allow "cyclical inherited wealth" to insulate a privileged class from our democratic institutions ...

[jpgray]

1. I think some of these ideas aren't the best

1. put an absolute cap on individual income because the super-wealthy are able to control government policy ...

--No, I'd rather tax the extra income heavily.

2. outlaw paid lobbyists ... our system of lobbyists leads to bribery (via campaign contributions) of elected officials ...

--Unfortunately, the lobbyists have free-speech rights, and if they didn't exist, other ways would be found. Public funding for campaigns would solve this problem more effectively, in my view.

3. tax unearned income ten times as much as earned income ... an hour of labor should be valued much more than a dollar of capital ...

--Dunno about ten times, and I'm not sure if this would help more than it would hurt. I am no economist.

5. require all major media (TV, Radio) to provide 10 hours a week of free coverage to all "major" candidates ... this should include significant 3rd party candidates at the beginning of the election season with the "qualifying requirements" becoming more difficult as the election nears ...

--I'd prefer that the media trusts be busted, so that risk-taking independent groups can start competing. Right now the major networks have an astonishing amount of vertical integration, and that needs to be stopped too.

6. polls should be open for one full week (24/7) for all elections ... the goal should be to encourage participation, not to block it ...

--I'd prefer a one-day national holiday for voting.

7. eliminate 75% of high tech, cost bloated, weapons systems and use some of the money for investment in personnel and training for "small scale" warfare ...

--I'd eliminate 10-50% of the defense budget period.

8. withdraw from NAFTA and the WTO and negotiate trade treaties bi-laterally (as Kucinich suggested) ...

--Sounds fine to me

9. change the presidential debate rules so that the people's best interests are served instead of allowing a canned, scripted format ...

--Yes.

10. limit inheritance amounts to $1 million per person and a total of $5 million per estate ... we cannot ever have real democracy if we allow "cyclical inherited wealth" to insulate a privileged class from our democratic institutions

--Many founding fathers wouldn't agree with this one.

[welshTerrier2]

3. the key point

thanks for taking the time to go thru the various issues i raised ... as i said, i'm not sure i would necessarily advocate all of these things ... they are just ideas i think should be discussed ... we shouldn't be afraid to take a real look at radical change ... in doing so, we might be able to more clearly define exactly how our public policy should be defined and what our values are ...

for example, even kerry's idea of a modest tax increase for the super-wealthy fails to address the issue of whether great wealth leads to a corrupting amount of power and distorts our democracy ... the issue i'm raising (about capping wealth or income) will not see the light of day, and that's too bad ...

my key point was not to specifically advocate these ideas but rather to advocate an open discussion of them ... i'm troubled that our two-party political process stifles open discussion and therefore inhibits the likelihood of real change ...

[merh]

2. I agree with the idea that some of the issues on your list should be

addressed, however, some of them are not practical in a free society.


1. put an absolute cap on individual income because the super-wealthy are able to control government policy ...
====================
Very impractical, everyone dreams of wealth. (If you don't then you are an exception to the rule.) Folks have the right to acquire wealth, it is the abuse of the wealth that is the problem. The love of money is the evil, not money alone.


2. outlaw paid lobbyists ... our system of lobbyists leads to bribery (via campaign contributions) of elected officials ...
====================
Couldn't agree more with you on this one. All campaigns should be very limited in their funding sources and there should be limits on the total amount that is allowed to be collected.

3. tax unearned income ten times as much as earned income ... an hour of labor should be valued much more than a dollar of capital ...
====================
Agreed.

4. ban the property tax as a method of financing public education ... the current system provides good schools for the wealthy and bad schools for the poor ...
====================
Sounds good, but how would you fund schools?

5. require all major media (TV, Radio) to provide 10 hours a week of free coverage to all "major" candidates ... this should include significant 3rd party candidates at the beginning of the election season with the "qualifying requirements" becoming more difficult as the election nears ...
====================
Most definitely

6. polls should be open for one full week (24/7) for all elections ... the goal should be to encourage participation, not to block it ...
====================
Not practical and too expensive. Elections should be held on Saturdays and the polls should be open 24 hours.

7. eliminate 75% of high tech, cost bloated, weapons systems and use some of the money for investment in personnel and training for "small scale" warfare ...
=====================
Agreed. Money should be spent on troops, training and equipment for the troops over the high tech stuff that doesn't work. Troops and veterans should be exempt from paying taxes and paying for gov. subsidies. If folks volunteer to serve the nation, they should have to pay taxes to pay their salaries.

8. withdraw from NAFTA and the WTO and negotiate trade treaties bi-laterally (as Kucinich suggested) ...
======================
Agreed

9. change the presidential debate rules so that the people's best interests are served instead of allowing a canned, scripted format ...
=======================
Agreed

10. limit inheritance amounts to $1 million per person and a total of $5 million per estate ... we cannot ever have real democracy if we allow "cyclical inherited wealth" to insulate a privileged class from our democratic institutions ...
=======================
Not practical as it is against the American dream. Also posting 1 and 10 in your list takes away the credibility of the other issues. Not all of the wealthy are crooks and rethugs. This one shoulds like wealth envy.

(IMHO)

[welshTerrier2]

4. wealth envy

with the understanding that the essence of my post was to highlight the limitations on new ideas caused by our two-party system, i wanted to respond to your comment:

Also posting 1 and 10 in your list takes away the credibility of the other issues. Not all of the wealthy are crooks and rethugs. This one shoulds like wealth envy.

first, trust me, i understand that my views on wealth have zero political viability in this country at this time ... second, while i'm no millionaire, i do not suffer from "wealth envy" although i understand my comments could make me vulnerable to this criticism ...

here are my reasons in a bit more detail for wanting to limit wealth ... i'll start with a very simple belief i hold: we all should be as free as possible to do whatever the hell we want to do until we either infringe on the rights of others or have sufficient power to be able to infringe on the rights of others ... at that point, we must recognize society's need to begin to impose some restraints on the individual ... it might be helpful to decide whether you agree or disagree with this guideline as a starting point before continuing ...

i can think of no democratic society in history where the super-wealthy did not exert a dominant influence over policy decisions ... i believe that all government policy in the U.S. caters to the wealthiest corporate shareholders ... I FULLY AGREE with your statement that: Not all of the wealthy are crooks and rethugs ... but allowing massive wealth inevitably leads to a ruling class ... there are many among the wealthy who do not exploit their wealth ... but there are also many, or at least some, who do ... and in doing so, they infringe on the rights of others to be heard, to be represented, to have an equal voice in our democracy ...

the current national dialog around this issue, such as it has been, has focussed on the elections process ... of course, most can now see what a joke McCain-Feingold has become ... but looking only at elections and failing to understand the power of big wealth in both the legislative and foreign policy arenas misses a huge part of the problem ... restricting wealth is indeed an extreme measure to take in a "free" society ... my fear is that if we don't restrict the accumulation of massive wealth, we really do end up with the best democracy money can buy ...

again, if your point is that such views are "not practical" in today's America, i suppose i would agree with you ... but in having our candidates discuss this issue, especially with the visibility presidential candidates will get during the debates, i think we begin to awaken the American people to the idea that great wealth is distorting our democracy ... the discussion needs to start someplace and the two party system is not likely to bring it up ... it's not that my authoritarian restriction of wealth is necessarily the best way to deal with the problem wealth brings in a democracy, but rather that we don't seem able to even discuss the issue in a national dialog ... that's the essence of what i'm trying to highlight ...

[merh]

6. Restricting wealth in the USA leaves us open to domination by wealth

of internationals. The restriction of wealth is not only impractical it would lead to international abuses far more harmful than what we have now.

To include the restriction of wealth as part of the discussion takes away from the credibility of the other issues.

The regulations we have regarding elections are an effort to control, but they are simply band aids. If we passed laws that said anyone who violated campaign laws could not hold office, any office, whether elected or appointed, we would be on the right track. You would be surprised as to how many who hold office today (especially in the admin) have been fined for violating campaign finance laws (Ashwipe is one and many of his appointed US attorneys). They pay the fines and then they pursue dems for conduit campaign contributions. The campaign finance laws are a joke. Of course * wants the soft money ads to stop, he knows how successfully the repugs have used soft money in the states to have their candidates elected. (Biggest culprit is the US Chamber of Commerce.)

PAC's should be outlawed. These are the evil little funnels that both parties misuse to accumulate wealth. Individuals can donate $2,000 to a candidate, but they can give $2000 to this PAC and that PAC and the PAC can give $5000 to the candidates, it is just another avenue for folks to use to give to their candidates. Outlaw PACS.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

5. Agreed with some adjustments and additions.

7. Offer to help fund, equip, and participate in a UN peacekeeping force with teeth to be controlled by the UN.

11. Require that congress be informed, in detail, of every miltary or covert action and that every such action be approved by congress.

12. Freedom of movement, being a basic freedom, should not be inhibited unless such movement by citizens can be proved to be an immediate danger to security.

13. Institute a consumption tax on all personally owned vehicles that do not meet fuel efficiency standards set by congress.

14. Institute a consumption tax on gasoline on all personally owned vehicles not meeting fuel efficiency standards.

15. Require that all religious institutions be taxed based on their income from anything other than donations.

16. Institute a program of reparations for the descendents of slaves held in this country in the form of educational grants.

17. Immediately close down the School for the Americas.

18. Fully disclose all funding for the military and the "Intelligence Community".

19. Immediately end the embargo on Cuba.

20. Establish health care for all as a basic right.

I could add a lot more but that will do for now.