There have been many thought-provoking articles in the alternative news lately. Robert Reich says all current members of the Democratic National Committee should resign so that we can have a new democratic party. Noam Chomsky says, “Trump’s win puts government in the hands of the most dangerous organization in world history.” Bill Gates has argued that we need socialism to save the planet. Robert Scheer says this [the election result] is “the revenge of the deplorables.” Chris Hedges exclaims in an article, entitled “It’s Worse Than You Think,+++++” that “Widespread social unrest will ignite when Donald Trump’s base realizes it has been betrayed.”
Chris Hedges wrote in that article a few lines that could be in a future Great Quotes book: “The rot of our failed democracy vomited up a con artist who was a creation of the mass media—first playing a fictional master of the universe on a reality television show and later a politician as vaudevillian. Trump pulled in advertising dollars and ratings. Truth and reality were irrelevant. Only when he got the nomination did the mass media see their Frankenstein as a threat, but by then it was too late. If there is one vapid group that is hated even more than the liberal class, it is the corporate press. The more it attacked Trump, the better Trump looked.”
Another article said, “George Soros is paying protesters to scream and yell in Chicago.” Paul Craig Roberts wrote an article entitled “The Anti-Trump Protesters are Tools of the Oligarchy.” Since I have gotten emails from socialists groups (who definitely do not support Hillary Clinton) urging me to participate in various local and national protests, I would say that the protesters are a mixed bag.
Everyone who is very displeased with both Trump and Clinton for different reasons should work together to take all money out of politics. We can give a voice to every political party that garners one percent of the voters, and in the final months of any presidential and legislative election, we can equally empower the 7 largest political parties in public televised debates. All TV and radio political advertisements should be outlawed, as we implement public financing of all elections.
For example, imagine how much more interesting the recent presidential election debates would have been if they had included not just the Republican and Democratic parties, but the Libertarian Party, the Green Party, the Constitution Party, the Socialist Party, and the Communist Party? We could have a more informed citizenry if all the major parties could be represented. People could then actually vote their conscience, and not the lesser of two evils.
As it is now, whoever gets the most campaign money is most likely to get elected (and reelected), so our so-called “public servants” end up selling themselves to the highest bidder, the largest donor, because there are prestige and financial perks in being a politician. Public financing of all elections is the only way to create a democracy. Our current government is a plutocracy (government by the super rich) or an oligarchy (government by the few).
Personally, I am starting to tell people that I am a reformist democratic communist. It sounds more provocative and radical than just being a drab democratic socialist. Of course, being a revolutionary socialist or a revolutionary communist would be even more radical, but if violence is used, it will create violent repercussions. The world, especially the United States, needs to give peace a chance.
This proposal should get widespread support because in the United States any member of the Libertarian, Green, or Constitution parties (the three largest third parties) could easily have written this article, advocating the empowerment of the largest political parties. It is interesting and significant that none of these three major third parties proposes a neo-conservative (or neo-liberal) foreign policy, as the Republicans and Democrats do.
From the BernieSanders.com website, the following segment of Bernie’s campaign speech articulates our dire predicament: “Six years ago [2010], as a result of the disastrous Citizens United Supreme Court decision, by a 5–4 vote, the U.S. Supreme Court essentially said to the wealthiest people in this country: you already own much of the American economy. Now, we are going to give you the opportunity to purchase the U.S. government, the White House, the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House, governor’s seats, legislatures, and state judicial branches as well. The Citizens United decision hinges on the absurd notion that money is speech, corporations are people, and giving huge piles of undisclosed cash to politicians in exchange for access and influence does not constitute corruption.”
Large numbers of people are now realizing more than ever that the Electoral College method for electing a president has to be abolished. Later, in my opinion, we can think about implementing proportional representation in a unicameral national legislature, as the undemocratic US Senate is eliminated altogether. Isn’t it amazing that California and Wyoming have the same number of US Senators, though California’s population is about 70 times greater?
We can continue to work to change the third party ballot access laws in each state, but a better strategy is to get one U.S. senator and one U.S. House representative to propose bills in each chamber, and once proposed, we should expose every federal legislator who refuses to support it. Just reversing Citizens United will not empower the major third parties. Please join me in urging all national third parties to unite for this purpose.
More amendments and ultimately a new US constitution will be required to truly rectify all the wrongs in our political system. But first, let’s equally empower and give a voice to the seven largest political parties, not just to the Republicans and Democrats, as we take all money out of politics. Can we work together to do just that?
Roger Copple’s articles have been published mostly at OpEdNews.com. He has also been published at GlobalResearch.ca, InformationClearingHouse.info, Truth-out.org, Tikkun.org, and IntrepidReport.com. His website is www.NowSaveTheWorld.com.
RSS
Third parties of the world, unite! You have nothing to lose but your chains!
Posted on November 30, 2016 by Roger Copple
There have been many thought-provoking articles in the alternative news lately. Robert Reich says all current members of the Democratic National Committee should resign so that we can have a new democratic party. Noam Chomsky says, “Trump’s win puts government in the hands of the most dangerous organization in world history.” Bill Gates has argued that we need socialism to save the planet. Robert Scheer says this [the election result] is “the revenge of the deplorables.” Chris Hedges exclaims in an article, entitled “It’s Worse Than You Think,+++++” that “Widespread social unrest will ignite when Donald Trump’s base realizes it has been betrayed.”
Chris Hedges wrote in that article a few lines that could be in a future Great Quotes book: “The rot of our failed democracy vomited up a con artist who was a creation of the mass media—first playing a fictional master of the universe on a reality television show and later a politician as vaudevillian. Trump pulled in advertising dollars and ratings. Truth and reality were irrelevant. Only when he got the nomination did the mass media see their Frankenstein as a threat, but by then it was too late. If there is one vapid group that is hated even more than the liberal class, it is the corporate press. The more it attacked Trump, the better Trump looked.”
Another article said, “George Soros is paying protesters to scream and yell in Chicago.” Paul Craig Roberts wrote an article entitled “The Anti-Trump Protesters are Tools of the Oligarchy.” Since I have gotten emails from socialists groups (who definitely do not support Hillary Clinton) urging me to participate in various local and national protests, I would say that the protesters are a mixed bag.
Everyone who is very displeased with both Trump and Clinton for different reasons should work together to take all money out of politics. We can give a voice to every political party that garners one percent of the voters, and in the final months of any presidential and legislative election, we can equally empower the 7 largest political parties in public televised debates. All TV and radio political advertisements should be outlawed, as we implement public financing of all elections.
For example, imagine how much more interesting the recent presidential election debates would have been if they had included not just the Republican and Democratic parties, but the Libertarian Party, the Green Party, the Constitution Party, the Socialist Party, and the Communist Party? We could have a more informed citizenry if all the major parties could be represented. People could then actually vote their conscience, and not the lesser of two evils.
As it is now, whoever gets the most campaign money is most likely to get elected (and reelected), so our so-called “public servants” end up selling themselves to the highest bidder, the largest donor, because there are prestige and financial perks in being a politician. Public financing of all elections is the only way to create a democracy. Our current government is a plutocracy (government by the super rich) or an oligarchy (government by the few).
Personally, I am starting to tell people that I am a reformist democratic communist. It sounds more provocative and radical than just being a drab democratic socialist. Of course, being a revolutionary socialist or a revolutionary communist would be even more radical, but if violence is used, it will create violent repercussions. The world, especially the United States, needs to give peace a chance.
This proposal should get widespread support because in the United States any member of the Libertarian, Green, or Constitution parties (the three largest third parties) could easily have written this article, advocating the empowerment of the largest political parties. It is interesting and significant that none of these three major third parties proposes a neo-conservative (or neo-liberal) foreign policy, as the Republicans and Democrats do.
From the BernieSanders.com website, the following segment of Bernie’s campaign speech articulates our dire predicament: “Six years ago [2010], as a result of the disastrous Citizens United Supreme Court decision, by a 5–4 vote, the U.S. Supreme Court essentially said to the wealthiest people in this country: you already own much of the American economy. Now, we are going to give you the opportunity to purchase the U.S. government, the White House, the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House, governor’s seats, legislatures, and state judicial branches as well. The Citizens United decision hinges on the absurd notion that money is speech, corporations are people, and giving huge piles of undisclosed cash to politicians in exchange for access and influence does not constitute corruption.”
Large numbers of people are now realizing more than ever that the Electoral College method for electing a president has to be abolished. Later, in my opinion, we can think about implementing proportional representation in a unicameral national legislature, as the undemocratic US Senate is eliminated altogether. Isn’t it amazing that California and Wyoming have the same number of US Senators, though California’s population is about 70 times greater?
We can continue to work to change the third party ballot access laws in each state, but a better strategy is to get one U.S. senator and one U.S. House representative to propose bills in each chamber, and once proposed, we should expose every federal legislator who refuses to support it. Just reversing Citizens United will not empower the major third parties. Please join me in urging all national third parties to unite for this purpose.
More amendments and ultimately a new US constitution will be required to truly rectify all the wrongs in our political system. But first, let’s equally empower and give a voice to the seven largest political parties, not just to the Republicans and Democrats, as we take all money out of politics. Can we work together to do just that?
Roger Copple’s articles have been published mostly at OpEdNews.com. He has also been published at GlobalResearch.ca, InformationClearingHouse.info, Truth-out.org, Tikkun.org, and IntrepidReport.com. His website is www.NowSaveTheWorld.com.