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redneckgaijinI've been thinking about this for a very long time now. Is there any hope in supporting the Democratic Party? What are the chances of a new third party getting enough support to unseat the Blue-Dog controlled Dems and fight toe to toe with the radical Republicans?
At length I've finally decided that the thing needed is not a new political party, nor an attempt to reform the Democrats from the inside. What's needed is strong outside pressure on Democrats to actually be the liberal party they're accused of being.
In short, what's needed is a liberal version of the tea party movement.
And no, the Coffee Party is NOT it. The Coffee Party was founded on "civil discussion." Conservatives haven't been interested in that since Reagan. They've been practicing extreme, uncivil discussion since at LEAST that long, and ostracizing those within their ranks who attempt civility or compromise. As a result, they have succeeded in dragging the mainstream of political debate from 1985 (when Social Security was saved by raising taxes) to today (when leaders of both parties are discussing partial or total privatization or abolition of Social Security and Medicare).
The right has been essentially unopposed for thirty years... and it's made gigantic strides in its effort to return America to the 19th Century.
It's time to defend and expand the New Deal- which is why I propose that the name for liberal opposition be the New Dealers. (And yes, there's a nasty joke in there. We'll be on equal terms with the tea party people. I can live with that.)
My proposed list of tenets for the New Dealers:
* We hold all human beings are born with the right to freedom.
* We hold that, in most matters, no government at any level has either the right or duty to influence or interfere in the choices of individual citizens.
Such issues include:
- Religion. Government should not either promote any religion nor penalize any religion. If a mosque cannot be built in a town or neighborhood, likewise no church or synagogue should be allowed; and if a church may be built, so may a mosque. Tax funds and use of public property for religious display should either be open to all religions equally, or to none at all.
- Drug prohibition. Drug prohibition has corrupted our system of justice, overloaded our prisons, and undermined the governments of most of our neighboring countries- while drug use is as widespread as ever and organized crime stronger than ever. It is long past time to rethink our strategies in reducing drug usage. We have an ideal test case to hand- the full legalization of marijuana- that will allow us to determine if legalization of other recreational drugs is feasible, safe and effective.
- Family formation. The bonds of family cannot be mandated by law, but the law has been used to destroy and disrupt them. The definition of family, marriage, or any such term should be an individual matter of conscience, not a matter to be enforced by the law.
* On the other hand, we maintain that some issues pose such universal or drastic problems that individual choice alone cannot solve them- indeed, that in many such cases individual choice is the root cause of such problems. In such matters government action is the only functional and just means of solving these problems.
Such issues include:
- Energy and the environment. We continue to use energy sources that poison our air, water and ground while contributing to rapid changes in the global climate. At the same time, several of these energy sources are running short, with the most important (oil) likely to become unaffordable within fifty years or sooner. When these sources run out, or when climate change becomes extreme enough to displace millions of Americans, there will come an economic catastrophe on unprecedented scales. Government must take action now to mitigate the pain of switching to new, less polluting energy sources and taking positive action to halt climate changes before they become irreversible.
- Poverty and old age. While we understand the desire to avoid creating dependency upon the state, we maintain that allowing people to live in poverty is more wasteful and expensive than providing a safety net for those unable to work or just plain unlucky in finding work. Private charity has proven throughout history to be completely unable to meet the needs of the poor. Government should, at a minimum, maintain Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and welfare at current levels, if not expand them to a universal dole program for those in need.
- Health care. Over one-fifth of Americans under 65 cannot get health care coverage, and another fifth have coverage but dare not use it because of high deductibles and low coverage rates. The private sector is quite happy to ration health care solely on the basis of wealth, with no regard for need. As a result America spends twice as much per capita as any other nation on Earth for health care, but only about half of Americans actually receiving any. The government must step in to stop rampant profiteering on the suffering of human beings, while guaranteeing health care to prevent, cure, or mitigate crippling or life-threatening disease and injury.
* Finally, we recognize that in many matters government has become the problem itself by forgetting that its core duty is to protect the individual. In such matters where government has gone wrong, it must be put right by the people it is responsible to- we, the voters.
Such issues include:
- Civil liberties. Our government currently claims the right to torture and abuse prisoners at will and to imprison or assassinate anyone at will without due process of law- solely on the word of a single person. Our law enforcement agencies abuse their powers to spy on Americans without any check or accountability for their actions. THIS MUST CEASE. Those who committed, ordered, or enabled torture must be tried and punished for their crimes. All prisoners must either be tried in a civilian court with full protection of their rights or released from custody. The Fourth Amendment protections against search, seizure or wiretap must be fully reinstated.
- Tax policy. Government has fallen under the control of the mega-wealthy. As a result, taxes on the richest among us have not been lower since the Great Depression, while subsidies for corporate business have never been higher. It is time to restore progressive taxation, based not on a flat percentage per capita but on the percentage of the nation's wealth enjoyed by the taxpayer; in short, tax those who can pay and stop taxing those who can't. By encouraging the wealthy to either earn less or pay their employees more, a progressive tax system will encourage a reduction in the extreme disparity between rich and poor in America and thus reduce the dangers of crime and civil unrest.
- Race and immigration. We believe that all human beings have equal rights, without regard to race or nationality. We further believe that there is no danger whatever to America from immigration, and that immigration laws should be relaxed to make it easier for people to come here legally, either as citizens or as migrant laborers. We hold that the current extremely abusive immigration laws are racist and nativist in nature and only serve to create an underclass in America ripe for abuse and slavery.
* To support these beliefs we pledge to demonstrate in public, to educate our fellow citizens on the facts, and to support and campaign for candidates for public office who share our views, while withholding support from candidates who actively work against our goals.
So- those are my thoughts. Feel free to pass this around- in fact I hope you do. I would love this to catch on. In fact, I'd love to see April 15th New Dealer counter-protests against the tea party.
Liberals have taken enough unblocked punches from conservatives. It's time to fight back on equal terms.
At length I've finally decided that the thing needed is not a new political party, nor an attempt to reform the Democrats from the inside. What's needed is strong outside pressure on Democrats to actually be the liberal party they're accused of being.
In short, what's needed is a liberal version of the tea party movement.
And no, the Coffee Party is NOT it. The Coffee Party was founded on "civil discussion." Conservatives haven't been interested in that since Reagan. They've been practicing extreme, uncivil discussion since at LEAST that long, and ostracizing those within their ranks who attempt civility or compromise. As a result, they have succeeded in dragging the mainstream of political debate from 1985 (when Social Security was saved by raising taxes) to today (when leaders of both parties are discussing partial or total privatization or abolition of Social Security and Medicare).
The right has been essentially unopposed for thirty years... and it's made gigantic strides in its effort to return America to the 19th Century.
It's time to defend and expand the New Deal- which is why I propose that the name for liberal opposition be the New Dealers. (And yes, there's a nasty joke in there. We'll be on equal terms with the tea party people. I can live with that.)
My proposed list of tenets for the New Dealers:
* We hold all human beings are born with the right to freedom.
* We hold that, in most matters, no government at any level has either the right or duty to influence or interfere in the choices of individual citizens.
Such issues include:
- Religion. Government should not either promote any religion nor penalize any religion. If a mosque cannot be built in a town or neighborhood, likewise no church or synagogue should be allowed; and if a church may be built, so may a mosque. Tax funds and use of public property for religious display should either be open to all religions equally, or to none at all.
- Drug prohibition. Drug prohibition has corrupted our system of justice, overloaded our prisons, and undermined the governments of most of our neighboring countries- while drug use is as widespread as ever and organized crime stronger than ever. It is long past time to rethink our strategies in reducing drug usage. We have an ideal test case to hand- the full legalization of marijuana- that will allow us to determine if legalization of other recreational drugs is feasible, safe and effective.
- Family formation. The bonds of family cannot be mandated by law, but the law has been used to destroy and disrupt them. The definition of family, marriage, or any such term should be an individual matter of conscience, not a matter to be enforced by the law.
* On the other hand, we maintain that some issues pose such universal or drastic problems that individual choice alone cannot solve them- indeed, that in many such cases individual choice is the root cause of such problems. In such matters government action is the only functional and just means of solving these problems.
Such issues include:
- Energy and the environment. We continue to use energy sources that poison our air, water and ground while contributing to rapid changes in the global climate. At the same time, several of these energy sources are running short, with the most important (oil) likely to become unaffordable within fifty years or sooner. When these sources run out, or when climate change becomes extreme enough to displace millions of Americans, there will come an economic catastrophe on unprecedented scales. Government must take action now to mitigate the pain of switching to new, less polluting energy sources and taking positive action to halt climate changes before they become irreversible.
- Poverty and old age. While we understand the desire to avoid creating dependency upon the state, we maintain that allowing people to live in poverty is more wasteful and expensive than providing a safety net for those unable to work or just plain unlucky in finding work. Private charity has proven throughout history to be completely unable to meet the needs of the poor. Government should, at a minimum, maintain Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and welfare at current levels, if not expand them to a universal dole program for those in need.
- Health care. Over one-fifth of Americans under 65 cannot get health care coverage, and another fifth have coverage but dare not use it because of high deductibles and low coverage rates. The private sector is quite happy to ration health care solely on the basis of wealth, with no regard for need. As a result America spends twice as much per capita as any other nation on Earth for health care, but only about half of Americans actually receiving any. The government must step in to stop rampant profiteering on the suffering of human beings, while guaranteeing health care to prevent, cure, or mitigate crippling or life-threatening disease and injury.
* Finally, we recognize that in many matters government has become the problem itself by forgetting that its core duty is to protect the individual. In such matters where government has gone wrong, it must be put right by the people it is responsible to- we, the voters.
Such issues include:
- Civil liberties. Our government currently claims the right to torture and abuse prisoners at will and to imprison or assassinate anyone at will without due process of law- solely on the word of a single person. Our law enforcement agencies abuse their powers to spy on Americans without any check or accountability for their actions. THIS MUST CEASE. Those who committed, ordered, or enabled torture must be tried and punished for their crimes. All prisoners must either be tried in a civilian court with full protection of their rights or released from custody. The Fourth Amendment protections against search, seizure or wiretap must be fully reinstated.
- Tax policy. Government has fallen under the control of the mega-wealthy. As a result, taxes on the richest among us have not been lower since the Great Depression, while subsidies for corporate business have never been higher. It is time to restore progressive taxation, based not on a flat percentage per capita but on the percentage of the nation's wealth enjoyed by the taxpayer; in short, tax those who can pay and stop taxing those who can't. By encouraging the wealthy to either earn less or pay their employees more, a progressive tax system will encourage a reduction in the extreme disparity between rich and poor in America and thus reduce the dangers of crime and civil unrest.
- Race and immigration. We believe that all human beings have equal rights, without regard to race or nationality. We further believe that there is no danger whatever to America from immigration, and that immigration laws should be relaxed to make it easier for people to come here legally, either as citizens or as migrant laborers. We hold that the current extremely abusive immigration laws are racist and nativist in nature and only serve to create an underclass in America ripe for abuse and slavery.
* To support these beliefs we pledge to demonstrate in public, to educate our fellow citizens on the facts, and to support and campaign for candidates for public office who share our views, while withholding support from candidates who actively work against our goals.
So- those are my thoughts. Feel free to pass this around- in fact I hope you do. I would love this to catch on. In fact, I'd love to see April 15th New Dealer counter-protests against the tea party.
Liberals have taken enough unblocked punches from conservatives. It's time to fight back on equal terms.
