TOD:If you could change one aspect of the way this country is run (and not just by ousting any number of people that you’d like to oust), what would be your solution.
Many of today's problems are caused by an ever increasing and obtrusive government (at all levels) which seeks to fill the vacuum being left because the citizenry has been abdicating personal responsibility. Not only are insufficient voters failing to object to "Big Government", more and more they seem to clamor for it - either through legislation or the courts.
The rapid acceleration of technology has made things possible today that were unheard of when I was young - I pre-date Helicopters, penicillin, national network TV, organ transplants, etc. Until the advent of Polio and the Iron Lung, there was no way the medical system could spend $50,000 on a patient. There was no "instant" communication of disasters. You saw Pathe news footage once a week when you went to the movies. Nobody clamored for prompt help from a central government thousands of miles away.
Throughout most of our nation's history a strong back and a willing attitude were sufficient to enable a man to accumulate the necessities of live. Strong, extended families (formed by attachment of teenagers married for life) formed the basic societal building block. There was always a "frontier" ready to welcome the adventurous or the malcontent: unhappy in "Our Town", move over the mountain!
While I pride myself on a pretty good insight into what's wrong, I'll be damned if I have any simple solution fixes - the cures lie in the education and awareness of the people.
Some fundamental suggestions"
Give the President a line-item veto.
Expand our public educational infrastructure to provide monitored care for all children ages 4-18 for 10 hours a day, five days a week (at least). Our families, and by extension, our Villages, are not providing the necessary nurture for our next generations - until they are ready and able, society must plug the gap.
Provide a "None of the Above" option on all ballots, and count and publicized the results. (At least those elected may get a more realistic evaluation of how the citizenry viewed their candidacy.)
Decriminalize recreational drugs and provide maintenance programs for hard-core drug users.
Eliminate the death penalty - it really doesn't work and costs us enormous amounts of money that could be better spent elsewhere.
Question why prisons have better libraries and recreational facilities than most of our public schools!
When all else fails, Whistle a Happy Tune and blame Jose!
der Brucer (if Vixmom can sound like a conservative, I can sound progressive!)
