This will be edited frequently as I think of new ones or better ways to argue for the demands I've already put on the list. In no special order of importance, though if I ever do get to the “end” of the list (think of a poem, as Paul Valery said, “A poem is never finished only abandoned”), I may attempt to put them in such order. There is just so much wrong and it must be made right
Enact laws around the First Amendment (ie, disallow destructive propaganda)
End ICE and close all for profit prisons
Release all prisoners who are incarcerated unjustly, unconstitutionally, or based on immigration status alone (eg, without criminal offenses, or whose criminal offenses are minor or have been previously fully adjudicated)
Outlaw the republican party
Impeach and remove Supreme Court justices for corruption and/or ideological denials of rights (ie, womens’ right to bodily autonomy, the right of the people to demand accountability from a criminal chief executive, etc)
Specifically enshrine the Separation of Church and State; tax churches appropriately as concerns their accumulation of wealth and their political engagements
Common Sense Gun Laws to include: outlawing and removing military style weapons from ordinary citizens, requiring registration of all weapons, licensure and insurance required for all gun owners, taxing ammunition, etc
End gerrymandering; assign voting precincts based strictly on geographic and population facts regardless of any other considerations
Tax the rich. It is immoral to be a billionaire; insist that extremely wealthy people are either taxed appropriately or support the Common Good with their excess wealth. Erase all of the tax breaks since Reagan
End Citizens United; disallow private money to fund elections and build a fund of taxpayer dollars to put all candidates on an equal footing
Establish a period of time during which campaigning is allowed: when lawmakers are sworn in to office, they are to govern during their term and only campaign during the established time for that activity
Restore public education: teachers are professional, respect and pay them appropriately. Expand the curriculum in every grade level from pre school to high school, to include social studies, civics, history, art, language, critical thinking, science, and other disciplines that have been neglected or ignored for so long (get screens out of the classrom except during the time devoted to learning how to use devices such as computers, tablets, etc, teach children cursive writing, make sure they read books)
Health care for all, including dental care and mental health care
Establish a Commission for Restoration of Democracy to include:
Reparations for those harmed during the Trump administration’s hostile takeover and wholesale dismantlement of the government
Long overdue reparations for Black Americans who have been oppressed, marginalized, victimized, and denied equal opportunities under the law to amass weath and realize their share in the Common Good
Restore the History of our nation, as it occurred, not as it has been previously mythologized; unerase the history that has been blatantly obliterated by the hostile takeover of our country
As a nation, insist that ALL people are equal under the law. End discrimination against Black people, women, immigrants, non-religious, LGBTQ, and disabled persons
This is it for the moment. It’s an exercise in freedom: putting the good I want to see into the universe with a dream of seeing it realized in practice (with thanks to Timothy Snyder and his magnificent book On Freedom).
Please add input if you do read this. I know I’ve missed something; I’m sure I will want to expand on the why behind some of these.
re: voting, another idea is instant run-off voting. In addition to one person, one vote, we could choose our 1st, 2nd, 3rd choices, so if our 1st choice doesn’t make it, we still have a say in the final outcome
Great idea