If by some miracle, I ran for the presidency of the United States, I would need a platform. My platform is a guarantee that I would not be elected. In fact, it may be a guarantee that I would end up in a plane crash, "committing suicide", have lethal cancer, or "accidentally" drink a nuclear cocktail...be shot, car brakes fail on a steep incline..just disappear....All of these things have happened to people who promote justice and humanitarian causes.
The Gardenbug Platform
1. The IRS would be abolished. Instead, there would be an across the board 10% tax. No exceptions. The government would have to live within this constriction. This means that a lot of political cronies would have no jobs. We don't need the undersecretary to the undersecretary anyways.
2. Parts of the US government can be set up as a non-profit agency. What is the government doing in mortgages anyways?
3. There are some responsibilities that are best accomplished through local, regional or national government. The government is charged to meet these responsibilities and not foist them on individuals or on business. Health care works around the world. So does maternity leave.
4. Large chunks of land should be set aside and not used/exploited for any reason...even if oil and gas are known to exist there. 20 to 25 percent of the US should be unspoiled land. no logging. no mining. no dams. No tourists, either. Well, maybe tourist around the edge, so We can peek in. Critter cams and cameras in trees can broadcast to our TV stations so We can enjoy the view without polluting it.
5. The cleanest source of energy is solar. That should be our main source of energy. It is within our technology to use this energy. Remember the electric car. (Did you see the DVD, "who killed the electric car?") The oil and gas guys aren't going to like this. Don't care if they do or do not.
6. The United Nations should be strengthened to encourage dialog between nations. If We talk to each other, We can cooperate with each other. Imagine what We could do with the resources spent on war if they were redirected to social services, education, health, protecting the environment.
7. Social Security is not a tax. It is a mandated savings program. Our social security money, sent to Washington, must not be mixed with tax revenue to make our financial picture look better than it is. Social Security would not be in any trouble if the money were in a separate account and invested for growth. On the other hand, We would see the awful truth about the gigantic debt our government is handing down to our children. The Government should keep its hands off the social security account.
8. Administrative Housekeeping. It is a practice in business to call in a consultant to show how the business can operate more efficiently. There are study groups that have done this , addressing our bloated bureaucracy. Their recommendations should be implemented. To avoid firing people, jobs should be frozen as people retire or leave for another job. People can be shifted to fill important vacancies. Our government does not need to be as big as it is.
9. The president should have a line item veto. In this way, pork projects can be taken out of bills so the good parts can go forward.
10 . The election process should be cheaper and shorter in length. When We have presidential debates on TV, ALL the candidates should be allowed to speak, even candidates from splinter groups. Have you ever heard the platform from the Green Party? Libertarians?
11. Our founding fathers never intended that politics was a career. They served their time in office and went back to the farm. There should be no career politicians. Abolish the perks that they've voted for themselves.
12. The political process is in the hands of lawyers. It is supposed to be in the hands of the people. Laws are written that require the service of an attorney. What attorneys charge is beyond what most people can afford to pay. How shall this issue be addressed?
13. Media is now in the hands of a few very rich persons. This controls ideas and thoughts. Large media holdings should be broken up . No one person should own more than 1% of any media, so opposing points of view can be expressed.
14. The world now is three times more populated than it should be to have sustained resources. Population control is a key to a healthy world and to healthy people. Overcrowding leads to stress, fights for resources, exploitation of other countries and of individuals, the death of ecosystems. If We continue to allow people to have as many children as they want, the world will become a sterile desert. We bring on the four horsemen: famine, disease, pestilence and death. The key to population control is not a dictatorship, but through education and economic development.
15 . Our societies shall be judged on how well they meet the needs of the citizens of that society. Once people are born, they have a right to be here. This means everyone, not just males in their prime. This means women, children, old people, people of different colors and cultures, those who are handicapped. The resources of the country shall be used to support all of us, not just the wealthy minority.
The Gardenbug Platform
1. The IRS would be abolished. Instead, there would be an across the board 10% tax. No exceptions. The government would have to live within this constriction. This means that a lot of political cronies would have no jobs. We don't need the undersecretary to the undersecretary anyways.
2. Parts of the US government can be set up as a non-profit agency. What is the government doing in mortgages anyways?
3. There are some responsibilities that are best accomplished through local, regional or national government. The government is charged to meet these responsibilities and not foist them on individuals or on business. Health care works around the world. So does maternity leave.
4. Large chunks of land should be set aside and not used/exploited for any reason...even if oil and gas are known to exist there. 20 to 25 percent of the US should be unspoiled land. no logging. no mining. no dams. No tourists, either. Well, maybe tourist around the edge, so We can peek in. Critter cams and cameras in trees can broadcast to our TV stations so We can enjoy the view without polluting it.
5. The cleanest source of energy is solar. That should be our main source of energy. It is within our technology to use this energy. Remember the electric car. (Did you see the DVD, "who killed the electric car?") The oil and gas guys aren't going to like this. Don't care if they do or do not.
6. The United Nations should be strengthened to encourage dialog between nations. If We talk to each other, We can cooperate with each other. Imagine what We could do with the resources spent on war if they were redirected to social services, education, health, protecting the environment.
7. Social Security is not a tax. It is a mandated savings program. Our social security money, sent to Washington, must not be mixed with tax revenue to make our financial picture look better than it is. Social Security would not be in any trouble if the money were in a separate account and invested for growth. On the other hand, We would see the awful truth about the gigantic debt our government is handing down to our children. The Government should keep its hands off the social security account.
8. Administrative Housekeeping. It is a practice in business to call in a consultant to show how the business can operate more efficiently. There are study groups that have done this , addressing our bloated bureaucracy. Their recommendations should be implemented. To avoid firing people, jobs should be frozen as people retire or leave for another job. People can be shifted to fill important vacancies. Our government does not need to be as big as it is.
9. The president should have a line item veto. In this way, pork projects can be taken out of bills so the good parts can go forward.
10 . The election process should be cheaper and shorter in length. When We have presidential debates on TV, ALL the candidates should be allowed to speak, even candidates from splinter groups. Have you ever heard the platform from the Green Party? Libertarians?
11. Our founding fathers never intended that politics was a career. They served their time in office and went back to the farm. There should be no career politicians. Abolish the perks that they've voted for themselves.
12. The political process is in the hands of lawyers. It is supposed to be in the hands of the people. Laws are written that require the service of an attorney. What attorneys charge is beyond what most people can afford to pay. How shall this issue be addressed?
13. Media is now in the hands of a few very rich persons. This controls ideas and thoughts. Large media holdings should be broken up . No one person should own more than 1% of any media, so opposing points of view can be expressed.
14. The world now is three times more populated than it should be to have sustained resources. Population control is a key to a healthy world and to healthy people. Overcrowding leads to stress, fights for resources, exploitation of other countries and of individuals, the death of ecosystems. If We continue to allow people to have as many children as they want, the world will become a sterile desert. We bring on the four horsemen: famine, disease, pestilence and death. The key to population control is not a dictatorship, but through education and economic development.
15 . Our societies shall be judged on how well they meet the needs of the citizens of that society. Once people are born, they have a right to be here. This means everyone, not just males in their prime. This means women, children, old people, people of different colors and cultures, those who are handicapped. The resources of the country shall be used to support all of us, not just the wealthy minority.
Labels: My presidential platform
posted by gardenbug at Sunday, September 30, 2007
5 Comments:
Amen to that. I have no doubt that these things do occur to good people, but good people are often the people without money, and sadly, the people with money will always arrange things to suit themselves. Guess I'm a bit of a cynic.
They say the price of freedom is eternal vigelence. Good people have to get organized and keep watch that exploiters don't gain ground. They also say that for bad people to win, all it takes is for good people to do nothing. It is important for all of us to be informed and take an active part in our political process. We also have to throw out of office, those who don't do their job.
We've come so far now, from what our forefathers had in mind. I wish I could remember who it was that said that governments evolve. They start out as governments by the people, then go to socialism, then communism, then fascism. Then there's a revolution and it starts all over again.
Although I certainly have my views on government and politics, I don't often discuss them with many people. Since I found this topic interesting, I just simply wanted to say that I agree with your platform. I wish that you were in the running instead of Clinton, Obama, Giuliani, and the others. I would vote for you. :-) I especially agree with your ideas on switching to solar energy, equal share of the media, and overpopulation and overconsumption of resources. As a matter of fact, I was just reading a chapter in Jane Goodall's book Reason for Hope, in which she discusses the latter. She says, "The natural resources of the world were not inexhaustible; the world's human population was increasing inexorably; therefore the time was approaching when there would be more humans than the planet could feed and shelter, wilderness areas and most other species would be gone, the complex web of life, the biodiversity of the world's ecosystems, would be destroyed. The inevitable outcome would be human extinction." In this quote she refers to the 1980s when subjects like this were considered to be "politically sensitive." It's unfortunate that we still haven't resolved this issue today.
Hi Anthony. I am glad to know that you are aware and caring. We think that our local, regional and national leaders are somehow wiser than We are. This isn't true. They're just people like you and I are. I recommend getting involved in your local government. First join a party. Then let your district representative know that you are willing to serve on a board or commission. Cities...communities belong to the people that live in them. Take control and make your voice heard.
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