If we started a 3rd party, what would you want in the platform?

[billbuckhead]

If we started a 3rd party, what would you want in the platform and what would you call it?

The first thing is that we should move away from Empire and try to get along with the rest of the world. The Iraq war must end.

The second thing is to become energy independent and to once again be a world leader in peaceful technology.

The third thing is transparent government and transparent fair voting practices.

The fourth thing would be single payer healthcare.

The fifth would be an immediate roll back of the Patriot act, Americans should be free again.

What would be your first 5 things in the platform and what would you call it?
I'd call it the Progress party and would use that orange color for a symbol.

[morgan2]

1. the root of everything wrong in American politics

is moneys effect on politics. If one doesn't address this fundamental problem in our Democracy no major changes will occur.

[Carolab]

9. Exactly. Kick the corporations out of politics. n/t

[Sapphire Blue]

16. Abolish Corporate Personhood

[cire4]

15. BINGO....Public Financing of all elections....

As long as private groups and individuals can donate to politicians and their political camaigns, elected officials will only act in the interests of those who are donating to them and not to those of their constituency.

[Freddie Stubbs]

2. The first thing

would be to support Democratic candidates for office.

[wuushew]

10. That is not the premise of the thread

"If we started a 3rd party" Accepting that condition what would be that party's platform.

Hopefully an improvement over the pro-war and pro-corporate DLC

[K-W]

3. Massive cut in the pentagon budget.

Complete overhaul of the pentagon including the exclusion of people with relationships to the defense industry.

The decriminalization of all drugs, to be replaced by taxation, regulation, treatment, and education.

An educational plan that aims for strengthening schools, not punishing them.

Agressively governing corporations.

4 day work week.

Garunteed minimum income.

Socializing mature industries especially resource procuring and food producing industries.

[sam sarrha]

4. The"party".. Party..legal weed, free beer, easy women.. 4 day work week

:party: :smoke: :toast: :headbang:

[Sapphire Blue]

5. The Progressive Labor Party

Livable Minimum Wage

End of Corporate Personhood

Unionization for all workers

Universal Health care

Establishment of the Department of Peace

[longship]

6. I like your general program.

I would phrase some of it in more general terms:

1. Peace in the Middle East, expecially Iraq. Bring the troops home. Put forth an aggressive program to rescue the fucked-up situation there.
   
2. A strong pro-science agenda, including an aggressive program to defeat Global Warming and to promote environmental stability.
   
3. Open, honest, and accountable government.
   
4. Codify the right of every citizen to vote. Election Day is a national holiday. Totally accountable electoral practices.
   
5. Corporations have no Constitutional rights as individuals.
   
6. Affordable healthcare for everybody in the country in whatever way this can be accomplished.
   
7. Restoration of full Constitutional rights. Repeal the so-called Patriot Act. Enaction of whatever legislation or Constitutional reform to guarantee that rights can never again be abridged.
   

There ought to be Constitutional reform to codify some clarifications of the founders words. Government should be open and accessible to the people. Voting should be a right of every citizen. Election Day should be a national holiday. Representatives of government should tell the truth. War should be an act of Congress and no other. Certain rights of citizens should be extended to all residents, legal or otherwise.

[Sweejak]

7. The Neither Party.

http://www.neitherparty.org/

http://www.neitherparty.org/nei_political.html

[longship]

8. Support for the Neither Party...

...is equivalent to support for the incumbent party.

This is a well known political maxim.

It's easier and better to take over the Democratic Party.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

11. Your platform sounds Green to me. Why bother with another?

After 40 years as a Democrat, I'll be voting Green in '06.

[Malva Zebrina]

12. the Democratic party is what I would call it

let the rest of them fufus form another Republican light party which is what they have done. Let them wallow in appeasement to the point where voters see no difference.

They have hoist themselves on their own petard.

[NewJeffCT]

13. My 5

1) Universal Health Care. A long-term goal would be a single-payer system but, realistically, I think we'd have to roll that out slowly. First, we'd ensure that everybody has coverage & doesn't lose it if they change jobs.

2) Return to more progressive taxation. Raise the income tax rate on the top 1% to 50%; then the next 4% to 45%; then the next 5% of people pay 40%... the limit of $90,000 on payroll taxes will also be eliminated. The temporary hike in taxes will be used to pay down the deficit. Once the whole $7 trillion is paid off, we'll think about cutting taxes again.

3) Prosecute all the decision makers in the Iraq War for war crimes, or else turn them over to The Hague. This includes Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Rice, Wolfowitz, Powell, Feith and others. If we throw the lot of them in jail for a long stretch, it will do a lot to restore our credibility in the world.

4) Invest heavily in our infrastructure and environment - upgrade the power grid, invest in green technology, repair our roads, invest heavily in mass transist - trains, buses, etc. If China can have mag-lev trains, why can't we?

5) Improve our public school system. I'm at a loss how to do this, but it might take reorganizing the whole damn system.

[Guaranteed]

14. All great ideas.

My issues, in order:

1) Media de-conglomeration.

2) YES, energy independence (that really would be number one, if I didn't think that democracy was suffering directly because of the media).

3) Transparent voting practices

4) Protection from ACTUAL terrorists/building a strong international coalition/strengthening the UN

5) Ensuring the survival of the separation of church and state and other civil liberties (PATRIOT Act)

6) A BALANCED BUDGET, fer Christ'ssakes!

7) Single-payer/Universal Health Care

8) Do something about outsourcing jobs

9) Prosecution of those who started the Iraq War

10) Free beer for everyone (may not be feasible) :)