A Tunisian friend shared with me how amazing it was that women's rights continue to be one of the top priorities for the New Tunisia, the post-revolution Tunisia: "The French introduced that idea in 1952. Now it's such an important part of Tunisian identity it's a vision citizens hold for the country," he said.
This led me to wondering: what would make it to the top of the priority list if Americans stood up determined to reboot government? What is so essential to our national identity that it would be central to the New America?
I found myself coming back to something my step-father, a serious O'Reilly-loving Republican had said to me (a tree-hugging homo): "I think we need to get back to some of the basic tenets of democracy in the constitution."
I couldn't have agreed more.
I think if we had a good citizens' uprising the New America would be based in many of the principles of the Old America. In a word: all that democracy stuff.
Lest we forget we were pretty much the first country to be established solely on the idea that: we wouldn't bow down to people because of their lineage, the amount of stuff they own or their position in the church.
Instead we came together around the sacred notion of personal freedom and dignity built on informed choice. Central to that are debate and discussion. No longer would people come into office because of their money or birth but because of their capacity to listen to and speak convincingly to the needs of the people.
The more I thought about this idea the more excited I got. There are so many good things we could do to become more democratic.
The three core concepts of democracy that came to my mind immediately are:
1 - rotating leadership (we all take turns leading),
2 - a person's capacity to listen to the needs of a people and then speak convincingly to a crowd and
3 - the people's right to vote based on good information.
Just in the light of those three notions a whole slew of modern American practices suddenly seem completely unnecessary because they weaken democracy. Let me just tick off a few for starters:
That old electoral college has got to go - in the country that sorta crystallized democracy we really need direct suffrage. Standardized modern voting machines are a no-brainer. DUH! Term limits become the norm. Thirty-second sound-byte voting ads slapped together by marketing whizzes and sold for huge sums of money to local TV stations a week before the vote are just out.
In the New America real interactions with human beings just may become necessary.
The one place where this old-school form of democracy REALLY works of course is in the whole local-caucus-thing leading up to the giant presidential nominating conventions we put together every four years to elect our candidates for president. Surely that model will work great for the New America. These are after all the ultimate events of citizens coming together first on a grassroots level then building momentum over 18 months to ensure the most empathic, smartest and most powerfully persuasive person makes it to the top of the food chain.
What a let down! Go ahead; read Wikipedia. You'll see how since the 1970's these conventions have basically become three ring circuses that are rigged from the start with no real vote because the candidate is already chosen and the people making speeches are mostly already-elected party members. Most of the caucusing only happens in a couple of states anymore. What?! How can political leaders expect us to have good political debates if they don't include us in the discussion?
What a let-down to find out these are not really about the party bringing together the smartest and most articulate to put together a platform. Now I get why US parties don't really have detailed platforms and prefer to keep it blurry. Because they're not built plank by plank from the ground up. It also explains why candidates can pretty much present themselves as one thing then once they get elected behave in a completely different way (think Obama or Gov. Walker).
In the New America citizens will actually be interested in public debate in part because leaders will actually be engaging in it again. TV stations will have to hold equal time for each candidate and no one will be able to communicate to voters in scary ads or marketing-spin, simplistic blurbs.
The Virginia Constitution which predated and inspired the US's founding docs puts it nicely when they refer to state legislators:
...they should, at fixed periods, be reduced to a private station, return into that body from which they were originally taken, and the vacancies be supplied by frequent, certain, and regular elections, in which all, or any part of the former members, to be again eligible, or ineligible, as the laws shall direct.
There's something to be said for stepping out of the DC bubble and going back into the constituency - coming back to life on life's terms for a while before returning to Washington or some other government position.
So another big loser in New America is of course the lobbies, the regulating commissions and the industries that hire recently terminated politicians and the many rotating doors between them and the legislature.
Suddenly under the bright lights of New American democracy these make no sense at all. After all isn't feeding a legislator paid-for bill proposals similar to being a legislator - only more slimy?
Of course legislators need experts from whom they can glean information in order to make their own informed choices but lobbyists can't be dominating their choices. We all know that behind lobbyists are industries and behind industries are campaign donations that legislators feel they can't live without.
Then of course there's the notion of representivity. Legislators are elected to be the voice of the majority of people who elected them. This feels like a lost notion to me. How often have you been polled? Do you feel heard? Just who are legislators listening to? And how?
So in the New America we will have harnessed technology so that communication between citizens and legislators is fluid and open. Legislators will have to confer with their constituents and will no longer be able to vote because of a lobbyist's or donator's influence. And if they do they will really have to explain clearly to their constituents why said vote was in the interest of a majority of those folks.
Which sorta leads to the next idea. Another biggy dear to the hearts of democracy lovers --and that the New America will insist upon --: the notion of equality in the face of the law. Not only won't wealthy individuals or corporations be able to find tax loopholes so they pay less than middle class or working class folks percentage -wise but the whole silly notion of "money as speech" and "corporations as individuals" will of course disappear.
Speech is speech. And citizens are citizens. Money cannot develop an argument, share it passionately with another human being and convince someone to vote for it. Money like a corporation cannot think, does not have dreams and aspirations. They do not have free-will.
So in our renewed democracy If a millionaire sends a check for $200,000 and I send a check for $2 - that doesn't make him anymore important than me. He still has one vote and I have one vote. My legislator still has to give my concerns equal voice to his concerns - even if the millionaire takes him out to lots of fancy restaurants (a dubious practice at best).
To get back to the idea of experts: learned people are a necessary part of helping make informed decisions. Democracy needs them from time to time to get expert witness opinions be it in a courtroom, in the press or in a legislative chamber.
But of course in this country where marketing was invented we have turned expertise into a commodity that we can grow, cultivate to our liking and then distribute nicely. We mostly call these think-tanks. But there are also communication agencies that just spend their time coming up with catchy phrases to turn a complex human political issue that has a real impact on the everyday lives of millions of Americans into a knee-jerk two-word slogan to be pushed away or adopted and repeated again and again until it has no meaning whatsoever.
Take for example a recent newcomer to the think-tanks: a certain Veronique de Rugy - a French economist with a Phd. I'd say more about her but it is virtually impossible to find any kind of information about her on the Web aside from her education and her professional affiliations.
These have her working for CATO, AEI, Mercatus and Reason - all of these are right-wing think tanks which most folks believe to be heavily funded by the Koch brothers. So her bias as an expert is pretty clear: she is a hardcore, small-government, low-taxes, free market kinda gal.
Now that these institutions have styled her an expert she can appear on various TV shows as, you guessed it, an expert. She is the poster-girl for free-market-at-all-costs folks because 1) she is a bonafide economist and 2) she talks about how bad the French model is for poor people.
The internet is covered with articles by her that usually have the word "Truth" in the title: The truth about healthcare, the truth about bio-terrorism, the truth about tax incentives...I imagine there were at least 30 other economists in her graduating class but thanks to a well-oiled system she is the one bending our ear about what's good for our wallets.
Nowhere does this expert on what is good for American pocketbooks mention how much money they give her to sell her Phd stamp of approval to all of these well-funded think tanks; one of whom has no doubt helped her get a work permit in the US. She doesn't mention how much FOX news pays her each time she comes on and defends a Republican idea then plugs her next book. She certainly doesn't mention how much money she does NOT owe a bank in France for her 9 years of higher education because she comes from a country where access to college is a government priority (for both left and right parties). And she is connected to an aristocratic family. I'll just hint at the idea that this most likely allows her to access to a rather well-connected network of folks born in high places.
Real democracy absolutely needs unbiased, fact-based experts who allow legislators and citizens alike to get access to cutting-edge information before they vote. Citizens need fact-based science and not values-based analyses. Of course no one is without bias but it is possible to strive to being really close. New America doesn't need any well-paid, well-connected "experts" who sell themselves to a spin-industry in order to influence the American people.
The next idea for New America is a doozy so I hope you're sitting down.
The phrase "too big to fail" got written into some government documents after the whole Savings and Loan implosion in the late 80's. Some policy wonk decided that certain financial institutions had become so important they were by nature infrastructural and if they collapsed the nation would go down with them. So in case of emergency they would have to be propped up somehow.
According to a recent bipartisan commission investigation, top banks did what they do best: they actually competed with each other to expand and make it to this imaginary list to get that protection. (Remember last decade when your local bank changed names three times in as many years?) The study shows that banks on this fictitious list were even able to offer better rates to borrowers compared to banks not on this list because they were implicitly backed by the US government.
Lo and behold - a sort of socialist protectionist mechanism allowed a bunch of really capitalist capitalists to make a lot of money (and we're talking about more money than most of us can even comprehend) with the help of a government safety net that ended up 1) sorta bankrupting the American people and 2) keeping the financiers out of jail.
Well, in a country that puts democracy first and foremost -- even before capitalism -- the most important natural resource is the brains of the citizens.
Well-working brains help citizens develop critical thinking and realize that too good to be true really is. They helps citizens to be both curious and cautious. Well-trained brains break down the barrier between those who have access to the latest information and technology which help make them more wealthy and the other people. They help citizens understand when a politician (or a journalist or a loan-maker) is selling you a line of BS or not. They help you see that when a government agency is saying "We can't afford it" what they really mean is that it isn't a priority. They help you get the fact that the upheavals of the economic crashes and bubbles aren't just an out-of-control phenomenon like an earthquake or a tornado but are actually designed by humans in order to make lots of money. Well-primed brains help you suss out that an article, an email or a Web page is 90% opinion being passed off as facts.
In order for those brains to work well they need to be:
1- in good health and
2 -taught in an environment that enhances creativity, critical thinking and a capacity to analyze.
These brains need to understand the importance of democratic discussion, Socratic thinking, checks and balances, the importance of voting.
So in the New Democracy of America - the two things on top of the "Too Big to Fail List" i.e. the two things that are democratically infrastructural are not GM, Goldman-Sachs, the Pentagon or the highway system. They are: education and healthcare for all citizens.
I can already hear you saying: Whoa! That's Socialism!!
But in a healthy democracy where the central concern is about keeping citizens involved in and enjoying the workings of citizen-centric government, these are the two components everyone should go to extreme lengths to protect.
And of course in this healthy new democracy the government doesn't think twice about implementing this policy because they themselves are active citizens with their ears and eyes open to the needs of their fellow citizens and not some elite who drops in for the occasional congressional visit while benefiting from a health insurance, an income and a lifestyle that look absolutely nothing like the real life of their constituents.
Imagine the money we would save from people no longer buying into fraudulent Ponzi schemes. We would save even more on healthcare costs since we know that educated people actually integrate public health messages more readily.
Some of the great advantages this New America will enjoy:
- News outlets will be more focused on communicating with citizens on the ins and outs of what goes on behind closed doors in our nation's capitals and less about what goes on in the bedrooms of the rich and famous - because an educated people will actually be interested in government and will have forced government -and the corporations they work with - to be much more transparent.
- The official government line will not just be what the White House dictates. Members of congress will have strong voices and a variety of positions on the same issue. Secretaries will not just toe the party line but will be real leaders with real ideas who are not afraid to say when they disagree with the President. Because in a healthy democracy citizens don't have to be subjected to black and white thinking, they can actually tolerate complex, subtle variations on the same issue.
- New political parties will emerge - some based on region (Western States Party), some based on cultural values (The Green-First Party), some based on a single issue perhaps (The Low Tax Tea Party). The Tea Partiers won't simply have to merge into the GOP to have legitimacy.
- The level of opacity will go down and transparency will go up as more and more people are involved in the actual political process of their town, their county, state or country. Opacity is the enemy of democracy.
- Not too surprisingly opacity is the friend of capitalism ("Read the fine print" didn't come into our colloquial language for nothing). Lots of money gets made daily because people including regulators don't understand the complexities of what is being bought and sold. But a stronger democracy - one where people exercise their right to assemble and share information, their right to have clear language and transparency, their right to say no -- actually makes for healthier capitalism. It also leads to the creation of more citizen-centric capitalism such as cooperatives, credit unions, member-owned car insurance organizations. Imagine a non-profit HMO where the term "member" actually means you can attend a general assembly, have a say in the way the organizations is being run and vote to have your premiums lowered during the better years...
- Education will no longer be an ivory tower. We won't have to stand in line to get access to a doctor, begging him or her for expertise because we'll have far more doctors per capita than we do now. Colleges won't just be these expensive places in charming towns where people disappear for four years of blissful thinking. Instead they'll be like community colleges - where well-educated local citizens teach people of all ages at an affordable price. Recent statistics from the OECD show that though we were on par with other rich countries in college enrollment after World War Two we have fallen behind to almost half of most other rich countries ever since. And a recent US study shows that knowledge of the social sciences is suffering greatly among kids in America due to the focus being put on reading and math as driven by No Child Left Behind.
(So in the New America people will actually know what socialist means when they throw it around and they will stop equating it with Nazis.)
- We will create flexibility to engage in new government entities: maybe five of the New England states will come together and create a regional parliament to oversee certain legislation, several of the Mountain States will create an elected government entity designed to protect the environment and develop a green transportation plan that serves both commerce and citizens, DC will become a state with real representation, while Hawaii and Puerto Rico will decide on Self-rule (and we will celebrate their determination --or not-- to democratically stand on their own two feet!). Metropolitan Chicago (which covers two time zones, four states and multiple counties and cities) will get to decide if they want an extra layer of government to manage certain parts of their lives and eliminate others.
- We will eliminate other unneeded government entities: in my own neighborhood I regularly cross paths with police from the public transportation agency, the nearby US Mint, the university around the corner, the municipal government and the county. But when I have a problem and need a cop to come to my house I get lost because I am at the intersection of four precincts. Perhaps if we open a better dialog between citizens and government we'll come to the conclusion that all of these police agencies are actually costing us a lot of money and not really accomplishing much.
- Medical care will no longer be a privilege. We will be able to walk into medical centers and receive care with the same ease as we receive services in a courthouse, a police station, or a DMV.
- Foreign Policy will no longer be that well-kept secret at the State Department. American citizens will actually have a say in how we want to participate in other countries' affairs. Americans will be able to question the massive amounts of money poured into Defense and whether that's really how we want to make use of our wealth. They'll be asked to wonder what it must be like to have a foreign country keep a military base on their sovereign soil and whether that's really the way we want to behave in the world.
- By improving the dialog between those who govern and the governed, the government will have to be more accountable meaning citizens will have a clearer idea of the many roles government actually does play in their lives. Not only will citizens cease to fantasize that government only supports welfare moms and immigrants, they will also have a clearer notion of which industries we taxpayers subsidize and why.
- That friggin' comma in the second amendment will finally be decided upon because we'll actually be able to sit down and write a modern constitution that works for us all - and that includes gun lovers (but not militias).
- Some members of congress will not be high-paid lawyers because real people with smarts and drive and passion for democracy will be able to get elected without needing to give ad agencies and TV stations millions of dollars in campaign funds.
- One-man-show non-profits like Grover Norquist will no longer be able to hold the American people hostage with a single issue. Citizens groups' weight in legislation will be based in part on the number of citizens -- (ie the "demo" part of democracy) they actually regroup and not because of their power to bully or charm.
- Heated issues that seem to touch our very identity such as gay marriage, immigration, the right to bear arms and the role of religion in government will no longer be hashed out in courtrooms or ignored entirely for fear of not getting re-elected. Town-hall meetings will be organized and people from neighborhoods will come together to discuss their ideas. These ideas will be pooled and shared with elected officials who will actually attend some of the meetings.
- Emails from candidates or their campaigns won't just be requests for money. They'll actually ask you to participate in a discussion, design a real platform, vote for a position, hold a house party, boycott a group, stand in the streets and distribute pamphlets.
- In the New America young people will be so interested in geo-political issues they'll actually be making the news. Instead of the same old comb-over, face-lifted journalists of the last thirty years - who stoop to lower and lower heights to attract higher ratings - the cast of Glee (or 90210 or something similar) will be using their brains instead of their buns and pecs to gain fame. The next morning kids will be so excited they'll be tweeting one another:
"omg! did u c bieber tear up obama last night?! cool!" or
"lindsay really hit putin hard on corruption"
When I read over this I realize that all of this civic participation takes time. This is tough at a time when many Americans desire more training and have to work three jobs to pay for their healthcare and mortgage. Plus many have been taught that education is a bad thing, that critical thinking and analysis are for wimps.
Ironically I conclude that this deep democratic change will actually have to come from people near the top of the American economic-influential pyramid. The irony of history is that the aristocrats developed the theories to put themselves out of a job in part because they had the free time and good health to think about better ways for society to live. These European aristocrats inspired Washington, Madison and Jefferson to become citizens and no longer subjects of their cousins the monarchs.
I know all of this wreaks of European Social Democracy but I'm afraid if we don't create an American version of that social model (one that includes creative, market-driven aspects but also citizen-centered qualities) we will end up with becoming the model at the other end of the spectrum: the China model. All the wealth and decision-making power will be concentrated into few hands while huge masses of poorly-paid laborers will be moved about at the whims of the elite. In some ways it feels like we're already there.
So here is a 10 point recipe for leaders in America to shift more and more toward the second model:
1 - Keep putting reasonably-priced, widespread higher education at the bottom of the priority list
2 - Keep making healthcare more and more expensive and harder to access
3 - Keep all of the money at the top while preaching the power of the ever-out-of-reach trickle-down effect
4 - Keep speaking to Americans like they are stupid
5 - Keep hiding the back room deals from Americans
6 - Keep making elections about money and spin rather than about human connection, empathy, analysis and discourse
7 - Keep telling Americans they should be happy to have a job even though their wages and benefits have decreased over the last 30 years
8 - Keep impoverishing the political debate by using snappy catch phrases, robocalls and prostitutional media coups
9 - Keep replacing fact-based analysis with values-based analysis, blurring the line between research and opinion, journalism and entertainment
10 - Keep demonizing any other social model besides our own
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