Ten Ways to Change the Country

I’m not sure why—when we are clear about the need to lessen the gap in wealth inequality, when we know the need for aid is at an all-time high but the services provided are at an all-time low, when we know corporations avoid taxes by any means necessary (like moving overseas), when we know the financial institutions are broken—we don’t hold anyone accountable, not even ourselves. If we started with ourselves and took a real stand, we could have more solutions than we do problems.

Here are ten things we could do to change the direction this country is going in:

1.     Term limits. Too much power for far too long results in corruption, plain and simple.

2.     Eliminate lobbyists. No corporation or special interest group should have more power in Washington (or anywhere) than the average citizen.

3.     Transparent single issue bills and laws. No riders, no amendments, unless they are specific to the bill. No pork belly trade offs.

4.     Higher taxes for corporations that move overseas. Corporations that move to another nation in order to avoid taxes should pay higher taxes to continue doing business in the US. If they are bailing on their fiscal responsibility to this country in order to save a few bucks, they should put what they save back into the economy.

5.     Eliminate all campaign donations. Candidates that accept money when running for office are indebted to the people that pay them, and that’s not what a democracy should be about. If there were limits on the amount of funds candidates could put towards a campaign, we’d have more equal elections. Acceptance of outside funding should be punishable by heavy fines, jail time, and expulsion from any political election.

6.     Individuals receiving welfare or food assistance are required to do community service. This way, people accepting money from the government are giving back to the citizens who work and pay taxes for those programs. It can also improve the labor force in needed areas, without eliminating paid positions that already exist. Community service could also include educational or vocational training to help improve skills and further employment opportunities.

7.     Eliminate labor unions. Instead, create educational and free programs for lawyers or regarding law, so that if someone is being treated unfairly for big bad business, they feel empowered to advocate for themselves.

8.     Overhaul the education system, starting with eliminating tenure for teachers and scraping the “No Child Left Behind Act.” We need a more inclusive educational system in place.

9.     Heavy penalties for corporations that misbehave. Any corporation that withholds, twists, or ignores information which puts the American people at risk should be fined at a level that is at least 10% over the gross profits culled from that deception, as well as criminal charges against them.

10.   Mass donations from corporation leaders. The CEOs and presidents of corporations who monetarily benefit from recklessly jeopardizing lives, jobs, or environmental degradation should donate their bonuses and perks into a fund, which will be used to help the individuals who suffered under the hands of the corporation.

We have to make sudden, swift and severe changes, unless we want business to go on as usual and have it come to a screeching halt.

What are your top ten? If they include hiring/firing/electing or impeaching I will delete the comment. I neither support nor blame a single person, party or company. Share what you think are the best of the above solutions, or come up with some of your own.