Canada and Sweden Provide Model for Economic Growth

Even though some are predicting the end of the world in 2012, there is a possibility it could turn out better than 2011 (a low bar). Many people who are not part of the political class continue to advance civilization and make things better for us — like the late Steve Jobs.

Even though some are predicting the end of the world in 2012, there is a possibility it could turn out better than 2011 (a low bar). Many people who are not part of the political class continue to advance civilization and make things better for us — like the late Steve Jobs.

Dr. Ito Briones, who is a biochemist research scientist, a medical doctor, and something of a Renaissance man, recently wrote to me that he thinks the greatest discovery in medical science was the creation of iPS (induced pluripotent stem cells, or stem cells from reprogrammed skin cells) by Drs. Shinya Yamanaka and Kazutoshi Takahashi.

According to Dr. Briones, “Even though the clinical application of iPS cells remains untested, the theories about aging and stem cells and the fountain of youth principles are groundbreaking and extremely fascinating. IPS science continues to move very fast.

"The promise for cures to cancer and other diseases appears plausible now with iPS science. What this discovery has also done is to open scientists’ minds to the concept that nothing is indeed impossible in biology,” Briones adds.

Other potential good news is that not all members of the political class are unprincipled, self-serving, ignorant, and short-sighted. We are seeing a growing band of smart, responsible, and knowledgeable people being elected to Congress and other political bodies.

One example is Rep. Paul Ryan, Wisconsin Republican, who is chairman of the House Budget Committee. Mr. Ryan, a fine economist, put together an economically sound and politically realistic budget that passed the House of Representatives but, not unexpectedly, died in the Democrat-controlled Senate.

There is a real possibility that a sufficient number of the American people will be rational enough to elect new members to the House and Senate (and the presidency) to pass a Ryan-type budget before the United States goes off the fiscal cliff, like Greece.

In democratic countries, many politicians get themselves elected by making promises for spending programs that the citizens cannot or are unwilling to pay for. The result is persistent deficit spending that ultimately spirals out of control.

The good news is that some democratic countries have learned how to avoid the spending/deficit trap, and those countries can serve as examples for the less prudent majority. (See accompanying chart.)

The best example is Switzerland. The Swiss have managed to be fiscally responsible for many decades, in part because they have a highly decentralized, direct democracy. Most governmental functions take place at the local level rather than the federal level in Switzerland, and as a result, the local governments must compete with each other on taxes, regulations, etc., which tends to hold down the growth in government and promotes liberty.

Where government is close to the people, and where the democratic process is direct, the people can more directly hold elected officials responsible for misspending and mismanagement.

The United States was designed by its founders to have a small and relatively weak central government, in which most of the government functions and power were supposed to be at the state and local level.

The 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is very explicit: “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively or to the people.”

The potential good news is that as a result of the presidential debates, more people are becoming aware of the 10th Amendment and are beginning to understand that if Congress and the courts stopped ignoring this amendment, the U.S. likely would have a smaller, more effective, and more fiscally sound government.

Canada and Sweden offer a model for Economic growth.Sweden and Canada provide role models for how highly developed democracies that have created unsustainable welfare states can find peaceful and constructive ways out of the dilemma.

In the mid-1990s, both countries were stagnating and headed toward a Greek-style credit default because of the drag of bloated government spending, taxing, and regulation.

In both countries, the parties of the left and right came together to reverse course by reducing tax rates, spending, and destructive regulation, and by privatizing much of what had been nationalized.

Real growth has been revived in both Canada and Sweden, and they both have very manageable debt-to-gross-domestic-product ratios. Because Sweden is a small, homogenous country, it is able to maintain a larger government as a percentage of GDP and still obtain normal rates of economic growth than can more heterogeneous countries like the U.S. and Switzerland.

The good news is that it is well known what economic reforms are necessary to revive growth and fiscal sanity in the major European countries and America.

However, it also takes leaders who can explain what needs to be done and persuade the people to endure the pain of the necessary transitional hardship in the way British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and President Ronald Reagan did.

As a reality check on the potential good news, my friend Jim Stewart, a neurologist, asked: “While the medical community is indeed making great strides in extending our lives, who . . . wants to live longer if the politicians keep making things worse?”

Richard W. Rahn is a senior fellow at the Cato Institute and chairman of the Institute for Global Economic Growth.

The Occupy movement has just begun

What has Occupy Wall Street accomplished? Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Ted Deutch introduced a constitutional amendment to revoke corporate personhood. What’s corporate personhood? Unbelievably, our federal court system decided that corporations have the same rights as people. They can own property, make TV commercials, and spend vast amounts of money buying politicians and elections. Despite the fact that corporations are people who do not eat, sleep, die, pay a fair share of taxes or get drafted in time of war. Revoke corporate personhood.

What has Occupy Wall Street accomplished? Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Ted Deutch introduced a constitutional amendment to revoke corporate personhood. What’s corporate personhood? Unbelievably, our federal court system decided that corporations have the same rights as people. They can own property, make TV commercials, and spend vast amounts of money buying politicians and elections. Despite the fact that corporations are people who do not eat, sleep, die, pay a fair share of taxes or get drafted in time of war. Revoke corporate personhood.

Also, Dennis Kucinich has sponsored a bill in the U.S. House to revoke the license of the Federal Reserve Bank and put it under the Treasury Department. Who cares? You should. Right now all of our money is created out of thin air by the Fed, a private bank, and then lent to the federal government. That’s the only way money is created in America. So, every dollar in your pocket is paying interest to the Fed. It’s a scam. But by putting the Fed into the Treasury Department it’ll be able to issue money without creating debt that the rest of us have to pay. And it won’t get away with making trillion dollars loans to European banks and inflating our money so rice and gas cost more while our paychecks stay the same.

Then there’s former Sen. Mike Gravel’s proposal for national initiative: direct voting on issues like revoking corporate personhood, ending the Fed and getting money out of politics. We’ve just begun.

Rich Zubaty

Wailuku

The Establishment Left, Electoral Politics and the Revolution of 2012

By Mark Hand

By Mark Hand

When they were in their prime, the team of Leftist all-stars had years ahead of them to push hard for an alternative mode of social organization. And yet, they clung to the existing system and kept warning others that the lesser of the two evils was worthy of our support. Imagine the progress we’d have made by now if these great thinkers had rallied behind a movement to dismantle “the system.” Instead, they told us to respect federal electoral politics because, as they told the story, the tiny differences between the establishment’s two political parties could have huge consequences.

They stood behind their lecterns, offering cogent analysis of the corporate state. But as they were educating us, opening our eyes to the ugly reality of American Empire, they remained anchored in the belief that the system wasn’t worth kicking over.

We celebrated the Leftist all-stars and their significant contributions to awakening people worldwide to the real America. As we discovered, though, they had been snookered into the mythology of electoral politics serving as a vehicle for positive change. Their hypocrisy left us bewildered.

That was then. Times have changed, and we have moved on. We knew it was time to divorce ourselves from the belief that these people, the ones who we had viewed as heroes for so long, would join us in creating a new society. They had been our teachers. But they, for some reason or another, could not pry themselves from the dominant culture’s grip.

 


 

“I have no interest in participating in the traditional political process. It’s bureaucratic. It’s vertical. It’s exclusive. It’s ruled by money."Jon Friesen

 


 

Many Leftist all-stars have died or moved into irrelevancy, stuck in their tired and static way of thinking. Others mock the people who are doing real work to transform our society away from its top-down, hierarchical structure.

Despite the ho-hum attitude from so many in the establishment Left, the Occupy movement has thrived, succeeding in opening the eyes of millions of people to the power of direct democracy. The movement also has succeeded in highlighting the irrelevance of established governmental institutions in creating a fair, decent and sustainable world. In fact, the movement has visibly demonstrated how the ruling elite, within the modern liberal democratic state, will push back hard and viciously when they believe their positions of power are threatened.

From its start, the Occupy movement has recognized a basic fact that the Leftist stalwarts still can’t seem to grasp: that federal electoral politics is a complete sham that distracts people from doing what’s necessary to dismantle the system. When unimaginative minds criticize the movement for its lack of demands, Occupiers gently inform these stodgy types that it’s counterproductive to make demands of a system that has no legitimacy.

In a recent interview, activist and cartoonist Stephanie McMillan cut to the chase. “I don’t have demands because I don’t recognize the legitimacy of those in power (so why would I demand anything from them?), and I don’t believe that this system can be reformed,” McMillan said. “But I absolutely have goals: a sustainable way of life free of class divisions and all other forms of domination.”

We will be pursuing these goals between now and next November and then for as long as it takes. What will the establishment Left be doing?

You can count on them expressing the same sentiment that beloved historian and activist Howard Zinn shared with us back in 2004 when he took a step backward. During the Bush v. Kerry presidential distraction, Zinn indeed warned us about Kerry’s pledge to increase the number of U.S. soldiers in Iraq, if elected president. Zinn described Kerry’s pledge as “the definition of fanaticism.” Zinn added: “It’s going to be hard for the American people to distinguish the two on the war.”

But—and this is a big but—in the next breadth, Zinn urged us to vote for the Democratic warmonger because “if Kerry is elected, we’ll have a little ledge to stand on,” referring to the potential influence progressives would be able to impart on a Kerry administration. “Presidents can be moved by their constituencies.”

(This is the same man who inspired us to live “now as we think human beings should live, in defiance of all that is bad around us.” The same man who so beautifully reminded us that “revolutionary change does not come as one cataclysmic moment (beware of such moments!) but as an endless succession of surprises, moving zigzag toward a more decent society. We don’t have to engage in grand, heroic actions to participate in the process of change. Small acts, when multiplied by millions of people, can transform the world.")

In the same year that Zinn was talking about standing on ledges, legendary dissident Noam Chomsky called on the enlightened among us to throw our values and goals out the door. Calling him “Bush-lite,” Chomsky argued that Kerry was a “fraction” better than his rival. Chomsky explained that there were “small differences” between Kerry and George W. Bush, but those small differences “can translate into large outcomes.”

If you have the patience to listen again in 2012 to these inanities during the folly called the “presidential race,” you’ll be hearing the exact same arguments coming out of the mouths of people who you generally respect but who, as we now know, have no desire to see real positive change happen in their lifetimes or the lifetimes of their children or their grandchildren.

Instead, it’s time to look forward, as the legions of Occupiers and their sympathizers are doing. In her wonderful book Anarchism and its Aspirations,” Cindy Milstein dissects the ruling elite’s version of “democracy,” also known as representative democracy:

“What gets dubbed democracy, then, is mere representation, and the best that progressives and the leftists can advocate for within the confines of this prepackaged definition are improved versions of a fundamentally flawed system.”

By participating in federal electoral politics, one is essentially giving his or her blessing to a repressive institution that sets up sham elections as a distraction to prevent real change. What the Occupy movement has done and will do in 2012—which is setting up to be the most revolutionary year in decades—is, as Milstein explains, “participate in the present in the ways that they would like to participate, much more fully and with much more self-determination, in the future.”

The Occupy movement has pushed beyond what Milstein calls the “oppositional character of the direct action movement by infusing it with a reconstructive vision.” That’s what we’re seeing across the United States and around the world in the actions of the Occupy movements and the revolutions for freedom. In the minds of the Occupy movement and other people engaged in radical change, sham electoral politics are history. Instead, as Milstein explains, a growing number of people are now determined to translate movement structures into “institutions that embody the good society; in short, cultivating direct democracy in the places we call home.”

These actions will not be taken lightly by the ruling elite. That’s why 2012 will be such a revolutionary year. Because it will be the year that people, emboldened by the Occupy movement’s success in 2011, will go to even greater lengths to take power into their own hands, causing the ruling elite to ponder new ways to curb the movement’s momentum. As Milstein explains: “It is time to move from protest to politics, from shutting down streets to opening up public space, from demanding scraps from those few in power to holding power firmly in our hands.”

(Occupy Poster by Rich Black)

Top 12 trends 2012

­After a tumultuous 2011 in which many of the trends we had forecast became headline news around the world, we are now forewarning of an even more tumultuous year to come.

While it would give us great pleasure to forecast a 2012 of joy and prosperity – all brought about by the wisdom and benevolence of our fearless leaders – since we are not running for office or looking to profit by gulling the people, we tell it as we see it in our 12 Top Trends 2012.

­After a tumultuous 2011 in which many of the trends we had forecast became headline news around the world, we are now forewarning of an even more tumultuous year to come.

While it would give us great pleasure to forecast a 2012 of joy and prosperity – all brought about by the wisdom and benevolence of our fearless leaders – since we are not running for office or looking to profit by gulling the people, we tell it as we see it in our 12 Top Trends 2012.

One megatrend looms on the near horizon. And we forecast that when it strikes, it will be a shock felt around the world. Hyperbole it’s not! Our research has revealed that at the very highest levels of government this megatrend has been seriously discussed. Read on:

1. Economic Martial Law:
Given the current economic and geopolitical conditions, the central banks and world governments already have plans in place to declare economic martial law … with the possibility of military martial law to follow.

2. Battlefield America: With a stroke of the Presidential pen,language was removed from an earlier version of the National Defense Authorization Act, grantingthe Presidentauthority to act as judge, jury and executioner.Citizens, welcome to "Battlefield America."

3. Invasion of the Occtupy: 15 years ago, Gerald Celente predicted in his bookTrends 2000that prolonged protests would hit Wall Street in the early years of the new millennium and would spread nationwide. The "Occtupy" is now upon us, and it islike nothing history has ever witnessed.

4. Climax Time: The financial house of cardsiscollapsing, andin 2012 many of the long-simmering socioeconomic and geopolitical trends that Celente has accurately forecast will come to a climax. Some will arrive with a big bang and others less dramatically … but no less consequentially. Are you prepared? And what’s next for the world?

5. Technocrat Takeover: “Democracy is Dead; Long Live the Technocrat!”A pair of lightning-quick financial coupd’étatsin Greece and Italy have installed two unelected figures as head of state.No one yet in the mainstream media is calling this merger of state and corporate powers by its proper name: Fascism, nor are they calling these“technocrats” by their proper name: Bankers!Can a rudderless ship be saved because technocrat is at the helm?

6. Repatriate! Repatriate!: It took a small, but financially and politically powerful group to sell the world on globalization, and it will take a large, committed and coordinated citizens’ movement to “un-sell” it.“Repatriate! Repatriate!” will pit the creative instincts of a multitude of individuals against the repressive monopoly of the multinationals.

7. Secession Obsession: Winds of political change are blowing from Tunisia to Russia and everywhere in between, opening a window of opportunity through which previously unimaginable political options may now be considered: radical decentralization, Internet-based direct democracy, secession, and even the peaceful dissolution of nations, offering the possibility for a new world "disorder."

8. Safe Havens: As the signs of imminent economic and social collapse become more pronounced, legions of New Millennium survivalists are, or will be, thinking about looking for methods and ways to escape the resulting turmoil. Those “on-trend” have already taken measure to implement Gerald Celente’s 3 G’s: Gold, Guns and a Getaway plan. Where to go? What to do? Top Trends 2012 will guide the way.

9. Big Brother Internet: The coming year will be the beginning of the end of Internet Freedom: A battle between the governments and the people. Governments will proposelegislation foranew “authentication technology,”requiring Internet users to present the equivalent of a driver’s license and/or bill of health to navigate cyberspace. For the general population it will represent yet another curtailing of freedom and level of governmental control.

10. Direct vs. Faux Democracy: In every corner of the world, a restive populace has made it clear that it’s disgusted with “politics as usual” and is looking for change. Government, in all its forms – democracy, autocracy, monarchy, socialism, communism – just isn’’t working. The only viable solution is to take the vote out of the hands of party politicians and institute Direct Democracy. If the Swiss can do it, why can’t anyone else?

11. Alternative Energy 2012: Even under the cloud of Fukushima, the harnessing of nuclear power is being reinvigorated by a fuel that is significantly safer than uranium and by the introduction of small, modular, portable reactors that reduce costs and construction time. In addition, there are dozens of projects underway that explore the possibility of creating cleaner, competitively priced liquid fuels distilled from natural sources. Plan to start saying goodbye to conventional liquid fuels!

12. Going Out in Style: In the bleak terrain of 2012 and beyond,“Affordable sophistication” will direct and inspire products, fashion, music, the fine arts and entertainment at all levels.US businesses would be wise to wake up and tap into the dormant desire for old time quality and the America that was.

Gerald Celente

Occupy protesters epitomize democracy

I recently attended the daily general assembly meeting of Occupy Albany. These meetings, led by a team of skilled facilitators, occur at 5:30 p.m. There was noisy, rush hour traffic. It was cold, dark and raining.

And yet, despite an environment less than conducive to a productive meeting, what I experienced in the next hour was both inspiring and fun. It got me reflecting on how we might all benefit from the broader use of some of the consensus building and direct democracy techniques employed in the Occupy movement across the country.

I recently attended the daily general assembly meeting of Occupy Albany. These meetings, led by a team of skilled facilitators, occur at 5:30 p.m. There was noisy, rush hour traffic. It was cold, dark and raining.

And yet, despite an environment less than conducive to a productive meeting, what I experienced in the next hour was both inspiring and fun. It got me reflecting on how we might all benefit from the broader use of some of the consensus building and direct democracy techniques employed in the Occupy movement across the country.

The main issue being considered that evening was a proposal to purchase military tents and stoves that would enable some protesters to maintain a presence throughout the winter.

There were two facilitators, a timekeeper, a scribe, a stack person and a historian.

All were invited. All were, in fact, welcomed. Not just anyone involved in the Occupy mvement. Any human being. How miraculously democratic is that?

The facilitators start by asking how many are attending their first meeting. They follow with a two-minute description of how the meetings are run.

Anyone can put a proposal on the agenda before the meeting by presenting a full description with a request for action — essentially a motion.

The facilitators ask first for clarifying questions to make sure everyone understands what is being proposed. Speakers are chosen in order as they raise their hands. The stack person keeps track of the order of questioners on a list, or stack, which she shares with the facilitators.

Anyone can jump to the front of the line by raising his or her index finger for a point of information — additional details that might help the group make an informed decision. For example, "I know where we can get those tents donated."

One can also jump to the front of the line by making a triangle with one’s thumbs and index fingers if that person has a process issue. For example, "we’re talking about issues that are outside of the proposal."

If you have a question about the group’s history, you raise a pinky, and the historian will bring you up to speed privately, so the whole group doesn’t have to wait.

These processes encourage participation while eliminating tangents. Picture the benefits that this kind of participation and consensus would bring to your next staff or board meeting.

After clarifying questions, a more general discussion occurs. Once all have had a chance to speak, the facilitators check how close the group is to consensus. If you generally support the proposal, you wiggle your fingers upward. If you oppose it, you wiggle your fingers downward. If uncertain, you wobble your hands in a so-so gesture.

These wiggling fingers are known as twinkles. Honest.

Consider how useful this method would be if it were utilized at a public hearing or zoning meeting.

If no consensus exists, the proposer is asked if he or she would like to amend the proposal to address some of the concerns raised. Or the proposal can be tabled.

On this night, a decision was made by consensus on a very important issue, in a fairly short period of time. Yes, it probably took longer than if one person had decided. But how much better is the quality of the final decision when everyone has had a chance to participate and to hear all of the different viewpoints?

How much more willing might you be to live with a decision with which you disagree if you had been involved in an open decision-making process?

As a lawyer, mediator and facilitator, I believe we can use these tools to improve participation and decision making in almost any organization. I also believe that we can leverage the process used by the Occupy movement to create a civic infrastructure — a permanent, ongoing, well- run set of processes — for facilitating discussion, deliberation, decision-making and action on a wide range of public issues.

Participating in the process actually improves our opinion of others’ opinions. This is a precious gift, given the current boorish nature of our public discourse. Whether or not we agree with their views, the Occupy movement can inspire us to create a local infrastructure for participatory democracy that generates more light than heat.

By PETER S. GLASSMAN

Shannah Sexton: Direct democracy might be next step

In light of recent political events such as the Occupy Wall Street and Tea Party movements, it is more than clear that both sides of the political spectrum are just a teensy bit annoyed with our government officials.

That’s a pretty big understatement.

The moment is right for some serious conversations about whether or not we should make drastic changes to our political system.

In light of recent political events such as the Occupy Wall Street and Tea Party movements, it is more than clear that both sides of the political spectrum are just a teensy bit annoyed with our government officials.

That’s a pretty big understatement.

The moment is right for some serious conversations about whether or not we should make drastic changes to our political system.

While we might not all agree on what is best for our country, I think it is safe to say that we all want a voice in the matter. We’re constantly pointing fingers at who’s to blame for one issue or another, when we fail to realize that it may not be necessary for much longer; a direct democracy might be the next step in an ever-evolving society.

In this day and age, we are more connected than ever as a nation by means of the Internet and the rise of social media, and we simply don’t have the same need for representation that we once did.

For the first time ever, a direct democracy is possible. Why, then, are we still stuck in the past?

Before you call me crazy, let me assure you that I am well aware of what would have to be achieved in order for this idea to work, if it has the potential to work at all. The point is not to bring about a revolution, only to get an undoubtedly necessary conversation started.

As for an idea of what a direct democracy might look like, the possibilities are endless. Some of our options might include continuous voting, or moderated public forums where people could give suggestions at any time.

Of course, with privilege comes a greater sense of responsibility. Considering the U.S.’s low voter-turnout rates, we would definitely need to invest more of our time and energy into educating ourselves about current events in order to take a much more active role in government.

One negative aspect of this might be a general lack of interest in small-scale issues, of which isn’t exactly reprimandable. It’s completely natural to have priorities that go beyond potholes.

On top of that, would we trust ourselves enough to do the right thing in the face of national crises? Would we willingly vote to increase our own taxes in order to avoid an economic disaster, like a turkey voting for Thanksgiving? It’s hard to say.

The idea of a direct democracy certainly brings up many more questions that could not be answered this early in the game. With so much energy and unrest floating around, it’s evident that many people have good ideas but are not getting the representation they need.

Shannah Sexton is a junior at Plainview-Elgin-Millville High School. To respond to an opinion column, send an email to life@postbulletin.com.

Movement right to stress democracy

I am glad to see the effort of Occupy Greenville toward having a leaderless organization. If this occupation is to be successful, it must remain in the spirit of direct democracy. Movements like this are a struggle, and the focus should not be on what politician to elect or making demands this early, but to build the movement utilizing direct democracy and to hold educational meetings of which we all contribute.

I am glad to see the effort of Occupy Greenville toward having a leaderless organization. If this occupation is to be successful, it must remain in the spirit of direct democracy. Movements like this are a struggle, and the focus should not be on what politician to elect or making demands this early, but to build the movement utilizing direct democracy and to hold educational meetings of which we all contribute.

We have a wide variety of opinions, but that is the point of coming together to discuss them. There is so much out there, and it is hard to figure out why everyone has been affected the way they have. As with everything else, it is a struggle. But never give up. This is not about electing some politician, and it isn’t bank-rolled by large corporations (unlike a movement the mainstream press loved to talk about years ago). Also, this isn’t a counter movement. That was the Coffee Party and it pretty much failed.

I have seen a wide variety of people take part in this Occupy movement: anarchists, socialists, communists, liberals, Libertarians and even some conservatives. This is why it is considered the 99 percent. This is why we should be hesitant to give in to the demand of having demands, due to the wide amount of differences in ideology. For once people are getting involved purely because we have all been negatively affected, and it isn’t common sense as to why. We should take the time to build the movement, to get people from all walks of life involved. Even some of the 1 percent are on our side (as in they are supportive of this movement of people). It’s not about what class you were born in or live in, its about what class you fight for.

 

ANDREW RAY GORMAN

Greenville

 

We The People Have A Tough Responsibility: Use Direct Democracy To Change Our Corrupt Government

By (about the author)

By (about the author)

The vast majority of Americans are stuck in a rapidly rotting death-grip:  On one hand, most of us realize that large corporations own and control our government — creating an unhealthy system dominated by big banks and wealthy special interests — the ruling class elite.  On the other hand, we’ve allowed ourselves, primarily by failing to stay well-informed and not taking responsibility for the healthy functioning of our government, to lapse into the fallacious believe that our two-party system is the best in the world. This dichotomy of convoluted ideology has destroyed us from both the inside and outside.
     In truth, our two-party system is a failed two party oligarchy that has never had a whiff of real direct democracy at the national (federal) level.  In the beginning, the media called it a republican form of government.  Then the media spinners started calling it a representational democracy and today our corporately owned media calls it: "The best democracy in the world!"  Sadly, this is the "great shining  lie"  that so many Americans have bought — lock, stock, and barrel!
     If you would take but five minutes to look up the words "republic" and "democracy" in the Columbia encyclopedia , — you will quickly discern the distinct difference.  In a republic, the people at large elect representatives to vote for them.  In a democracy, We the People can vote directly (majority rule) to amend the Constitution and pass some laws of our own choosing. Since there is no provision in our Constitution that empowers We the People to pass laws directly (a pathetic but understandable omission since wealthy white men wanted to rule from the beginning), we must never call ourselves a democracy.  We are a republic — plain and simple.  The realization of this salient truth will come hard for many previously deceived Americans!
     Our government, mainstream press, large corporations, and large institutions like think-tanks, foundations and universities, — have done an incredibly effective, albeit nefarious job, of enculturating us with the fallacious idea/ideal that our two-party political system is wonderful and we are the very best democracy in the world. This is pure horseshit and we must recognize the truth of its nasty aroma.  In truth, we are the very best "non-democracy that money can buy!"  It is this authentic truth that Americans must awaken to now, because without this truth we will remain forever stuck in the morass of our own delusion and fail to bring about the rudimentary changes to our government that are so sorely needed at this most critical juncture ever  in evolution.
     Without the moral integrity of truth, we Americans cannot make well-informed decisions — the inherent essence and backbone of any healthy, well-functioning government.  So here’s the real truth America and you’re not going to like it one bit:  We are not a democracy and have never been one!  We are a highly dysfunctional and very unhealthy, two-party oligarchy!  An oligarchy is "rule by the few" and that’s precisely what we are.  Large corporations, big banks, Wall Street, the intelligence complex, the prison complex, large institutions, the military-industrial-Congressional-complex,  and thousands of special interest lobbyists attached to both houses of Congress, — now own and control our once great nation. This truth hurts doesn’t it.
     Okay, here’s what the real truth tells us: As long as we allow ourselves to be hoodwinked and deluded — like dumb, obedient, subservient children — we are doomed!  If we awaken to the tough truth that our pernicious, two-party system is a failed and broken oligarchy that exists to maintain the power and wealth of the elitist few (see "You Call This A Democray?" by Paul Kivel), then we will have a window of opportunity to unite together in solidarity to bring about some drastically needed change at the federal level.  Eventually, I believe the American people will awaken to the reality that all political parties seek power and wealth for their own selves first, last, and foremost, as George Washington warned us.  Therefore, sooner or later we must elect "Independents" who are committed to a particular people in each bio-region of the country — to represent us.  Meanwhile, there is another great opportunity that looms large before us, but only if we have the courage and will to rise-up together to "seize the day": A National Citizens’ Initiative (federal ballot referendum)!
     Empowered by the mighty words of Thomas Jefferson plus our Founding Fathers and the leading lights of the 17th century enlightenment movement — i.e., Locke, Bacon, Payne — We the People can utilize "first principles" to conduct a national initiative by majority rule to pass a National Citizens’ Initiative into law. Once this law is passed, and only then, — will We the People be able to vote and pass at least one issue a year into law.  Then we can call ourselves a democracy!
     Isn’t it high time after 224 long years of unfair denial and heart-wrenching lies, that We the People be empowered  to vote and pass at least one law/issue each year of our choosing into law?  We must never forget that it was "We the People"  who voted and ratified our US Constitution in 1787 which founded America and created our three branches of government. Neither Congress, nor the executive branch, nor the judiciary is the highest authority in the land, only "We the People" can claim that inalienable and sovereign right. And guess what: Washington, Jefferson, Adams, Madison, and even Alexander Hamilton, — the primary author of the "Federalist Papers" all affirm this great truth via their oratory and documented writings: All government , — particularly representational government and  especially democratic government, is grounded and rooted like the tree of liberty itself, — in the sovereign voice and irrevocable authority of We the People.  And the second anyone digresses from this omnipotent truth, you’ve begun the repugnant descent into tyranny, despotism, and oligarchy!
     Let us not be fooled or deceive our selves:  Getting a National Citizens’ Initiative passed into law will not be an  easy task, for it will never be handed to us on a silver platter.  In fact, it will be violently opposed by all three branches of government, our two oligarchic parties, large corporations, the military-industrial-Congressional-complex, our CIA and FBI, our corporately owned press, presidents of most universities, and the wealthy elites.  Nevertheless, it must be done or we have no hope!
     Truly these are very tough times that we live in today.  Seven million Americans have lost their homes and almost 30 million Americans have no job with at least another ten million being under-employed.  Patriots Act I and II have robbed us of many of our personal rights, especially the right to personal security and "habeas corpus".  Who has allowed this deplorable situation to arise?  Please ask yourself this important question and talk to your friends about it. Are we one step away from "marshal rule"? 
     Please heed the immortal words of Benjamin Franklin: "The government you get is the government you deserve!"  Ultimately it is We the People who must step-up and take responsibility for the healthy functioning of our government ?  Who else can truly do it people?  In essence, this is what the worldwide OWS movement stands for and must stand for: Direct democracy and excellent representational government that listens to and respects the majority voice of "We the People".  And if they refuse or fail to do it, it is both our duty and responsibility to replace them.  Read Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence people, — it’s right there!
    To wrap up, here’s a very simple yet powerful direct democratic action that you can take right now:  Go to www.NI4D.US and sign onto your National Citizens’ Initiative.  "The government we create is the one we have to live with!"  The Lakota Indians say: "We are the ones we’ve been waiting for".  It’s up to us people to step-up now and help make it happen. Let’s be the responsible adult citizens that God, Mother Earth, and the people of our world require us to be.  As America goes, so goes the world.  Let’s lead with great visions, great deeds, and great solutions.  Many blessings to one and all!
CAPTAIN DOUGARS 

Citizens 9/11 Commission – A Ballot Initiative

United States Senator Mike Gravel has launched a Citizens 9/11 Commission employing a nationwide ballot-box initiative.

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United States Senator Mike Gravel has launched a Citizens 9/11 Commission employing a nationwide ballot-box initiative.

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Questions remain unanswered and unaddressed by the 9/11 Commission Report about what really happened on 9/11 – three World Trade Center Towers [ 1, 2, 7 ] fell in New York City looking just like regular controlled demolitions, so sure, so precise, so quick [ less than 11 seconds each ], indicating the use of explosives and controlled demolitions, but officially, it was the office fires and the two crashing planes that caused the "global collapse" of all 3 buildings.

Of course, the New York City Fire Department, and the New York City Police Department, regulations require a detailed, forensic examination at the scene, whenever people are killed in fires or explosions, but the City of New York never complied, as if non-compliance could conceal the DNA [ highly engineered explosives ] click here that scientists later discovered in the 9/11 dust – indicating with absolute scientific certainty that [ explosives had been planted in the three buildings before the two planes crashed into the Twin Towers ].

And Building 7, not hit by any aircraft, and the small office fires that were noticed on only several floors, were already extinguished by 5:20PM in the afternoon when the building got "pulled", just after the landlord Larry Silverstein, decided "the smartest thing to do is pull it", and "then we watched the building collapse", he said, in only 6.5 seconds – truly, a perfect controlled demolition for sure.

Senator Gravel [ Ballot Initiative Press Conference ] has indicated that the US Congress is to pre-occupied [ "looking forward" ] to commission an Independent 9/11 Scientific Inquiry, to specifically consider the use of explosives and controlled demolitions in destroying the three towers, however, the States could commission their own Citizens 9/11 Commissions, through a ballot-box initiative in each State, that would be privately financed, and would have subpoena powers to call witnesses and hear testimony from the eyewitnesses, first responders, scientists, engineers, officials, and others with knowledge of that day, under oath, in a public forum, broadcasted live, with full media coverage, revealing "the truth, wherever it leads", said Senator Gravel.

 

Take action — click here to contact your local newspaper or congress people:
Support Independent 9/11 Inquiry – "the truth wherever it leads"

Click here to see the most recent messages sent to congressional reps and local newspapers

Lance Ciepiela is a retired senior who had an interesting career in government service – a USMC veteran, who became interested in restoring the Constitution after I realized that George W. Bush had attacked Iraq on false pretense and got away with (more…)