So I recently set out to define my personal, political belief system. What prompted this is kinda dumb ... Facebook. I sought to update and define my political views in the "About" section. The "religion" part, I got down pretty easily, but when it came to politics ... I find that I'm a bit more complex.
My belief system falls into capitalism - but capitalism goes too far. It also falls into socialism - but socialism goes too far. Now many capitalist and socialist societies fall into a "mix" category. But my version of the mix is a little more complex and precise I guess.
The Constitution of the United States of America does not (despite popular belief), define a form of economy. We developed into a capitalistic form over time that has come to be assumed as the law of the land. In fact, it is constantly being tweaked. And in recent years, has become open to more scrutiny and corruption than ever.
I believe, we need to become pioneers once again. The world has changed. We need to open the doors to a new, sustainable, fair, and prosperous way of life. We need to eradicate poverty, excesses of greed, damage to our environment, and we need to restore some form of compassion for our fellow mankind.
So what is it I believe?
Well - I am not against (as some may believe), free enterprise. I think one of our greatest American freedoms has historically been the right to establish, own and operate our own businesses. This practice has built this country and by default helped to perpetuate the idea of democracy across the globe. However, what I fear from capitalism in its present form, is greed. Greed has been permitted to proliferate and damage the system we hold so dear. Our politicians, in general, have proven to be of poor character and are proving to be easily bought and swayed by corporate lobbyists. Now this is exactly what our founding fathers feared would happen. Now - how we end this is unclear. It is obvious that it can't continue but as more plutocratic control over this country's systems occurs, the more difficult it will be to break it. So something will have to give - and soon.
I'm also a fan of some aspects of socialism. For example - one of the biggest controversies in this country is the idea of universal healthcare. I'm all for it. And yea, though most politicians in Congress will tell you it's the Devil's work - they of course benefit from ... anyone??? Ferris??? You got it - universal healthcare. Until the day they die.
So while it's not OK for the common citizen to receive such benefits, it's OK for them? Hmmmm??? Curious.
At any rate, socialism, while virtuous in many areas, establishes state control over production. So in many socialist countries, while private business do exist, the economies of those countries are interdependent upon the businesses within. This is a slippery slope. We can see the negative affects of such inter-mingling in Europe presently.
Germany, with its social market economy has fared the best, but even that system has been criticized as placing money over people in the order of importance.
So, we're finally coming to the meat of my blog - what I think should be established.
Some of my beliefs DID actually exist in the U.S. until recently. As I list my thoughts, I'll be sure to point that out.
First of all, I would like to see a mixed economic system, where free-enterprise and the market continue to exist ... BUT ... I believe the government (as in WE the PEOPLE), should retain control over all basic, human needs. In other words, I don't trust private enterprise to handle responsibly, those areas critical to the needs of our citizens.
The areas I deem critical and therefore retaining the need for "social" responsibility include:
- Public utilities (power, water, sewer, waste management(contractors OK here for pick-up) - incidentally, all of these used to be run by municipalities until the latter half of the 20th Century.
- Phone/internet (communication has become paramount - I believe that the cell system should be dismantled and in its place a revolutionary satellite system involving ground-based repeaters be established. Perhaps we could combine forces with Canada to make it a North American effort.) This would still provide private enterprise for phone manufacturers and web-based companies but the people would control the open lines of communication. Laws would be established to ensure that the web remain free and not open to the cherry-picking of sites.
- Prisons - I would see that it is made illegal for private industry to own and operate prisons. I believe every aspect of the incarceration of citizens should be handled by the government. It is in my opinion, one of humanity's most colossally dumb actions, to have opened prisons to be "for profit." The actual corruption occurring is already unfathomable, and that corruption is likely to increase the longer this practice is permitted. (Again - privatization was a late 20th Century change to our system)
- Healthcare - universal. I think it is the RIGHT of every citizen to receive healthcare when sought. I think it is the RESPONSIBILITY of a free and human society to see that we take care of each other in times of need. By reducing the bloated military budget and the price-gouging that the government is subject to for goods and by no longer subsidizing industries who are turning RECORD PROFITS and by not subsidizing religious institutions - who don't pay taxes ... universal healthcare can be easily achieved. Period. It's NOT rocket science.
Other areas of concern:
- Food supply - I want to see the return of the family farm. Yes - this is private enterprise, and yes - this is how it USED TO BE DONE here in the USA. Family farms would produce, they could organize co-ops to help transport their goods to the food companies and markets which would of course remain privatized. This system worked. The size of our country and our exports of food is NOT a factor in the ownership of family farms. Corporations began establishing control of agriculture in the 1980's when Uncle Ronnie made it difficult for the local farmer - clearing the way for the Monsanto's and the Conagra's of the country to plutocracize the nations food supply. This needs to stop. No one is saying that Monsanto can't process food, but the unfair business practices - the virtual rape of the American farmer was and is wrong. I would like to see the family farmer make a comeback. The system used to work and food was safer and the agricultural system was more accountable.
- Military - I mentioned earlier that we need to cut back on the budget. The reason I say that is NOT because I want to weaken the military. To the contrary - better focus on our resources will strengthen our security. We have military personnel on the ground in 148 countries on Earth (Politifact). We also have 662 bases in 38 countries worldwide (Politifact). Add to this - the fact that the United States military has technically been engaged in a constant state of war since World War II. This statement includes the Cold War, many various conflicts, cyber-war, and the current war on terrorism - which of course is an on-going battle. Our founders clearly intended our military to be a DEFENSE force. Instead the plutocratic powers that be, in the 20th Century and spanning to the present, have been in a constant state of imperialism. We are the current Great Britain, Spain, Rome, Greece, Mesopotamia - name your empire. We are it. And we control the strings of more people than any other empire previously. Our founders gave the world democracy. They showed the world a system of self-governance - not new, but not used at the time of our nation's birth. And now more countries than ever employ some form of that system. Negligence however, will make us fail. It is time to focus our military energy on technology rather than coverage. We could save so much money by cutting our worldwide presence and instead by building alliances around the world, create security. Meanwhile, we can continue to focus on innovation here and free money up for much needed use at home.
- Regulation. The final viewpoint I'd like to see implemented in our country - in our political system is proper regulation. I believe our government does a piss-poor job of regulating business. While business is important to our economic prosperity - it should never come at the cost of the lives of the citizens who build those businesses. Again - this is a symptom of greed. Poor working conditions result when the few seek to profit at the EXPENSE of the many. Unions were created to combat this situation, but unions and the questionable tactics they employ and the corruption they can breed would be wholly unnecessary if the government would simply create rules and regulations that defend the people. Again - don't forget - the government of the U.S. IS the people. Or it's supposed to be anyway. Why don't we create regulatory laws that serve our best interests? It is simply illogical. In my perfect sociopolitical system, private enterprise would be encouraged but not at the expense of the well-being of the worker. Unions would need not exist because the government of the people would see to what is right! Less government is bullshit - unless you're a CEO or corporate owner. Yes, it could mean less of an overall profit, but if forced - it would also create an economy where those profits would become the norm - driving the price of inflation down to meet it. And it might mean a corporate owner makes a pitiful $20 million instead of $25 million a year. But gee - that's a price they might have to pay to do the right thing.
So in conclusion, I don't really know what you would call this system. My political and economic viewpoints are diverse and hard to define. I suppose it's mostly a liberal viewpoint, but I think rather than looking at defining systems of government, maybe it's time we just start doing what's right.
