1. Forbid by law past or present corporate officials from contributing to our regulatory processes. Public service and private interests ought not be combined. This works both ways -- legislators and regulators must be forbidden -- FOR LIFE -- from joining private sector industries whose interests came under their purview. This separation should be at least as bright-line as that between church and state.
2. Re-institute and zealously enforce regulation of our broadcast media, most significantly through stricter ownership restrictions and the restoration of the Fairness Doctrine, dismantled by Reagan, that ensured that news over the airwaves is reported and researched fairly.
3. Finance our political campaigns completely and exclusively publicly. There is no place for bribery in a democratic society, at least not without the risk of getting caught.
4. Restoration of steeply progressive income tax rates, combined with implementation of progressive FICA taxes extended to all income. End the favorable treatment of unearned income, a nonsensical thing in the first place. It is in society's interests to redistribute wealth. Big fish eat little fish, and once all the little fish get eaten, the big ones starve too. We're at that point right now.
5. Massive, labor-intensive public works. This both puts more money into the hands of more citizens, it makes life better for everyone in the long term.
6. End these ridiculous wars. No consequences of ending these wars are as serious as the consequences of continuing to fight them.
7. National health care. This would IMMEDIATELY render our manufactured products more competitive on the world stage.
8. A crash program to increase energy efficiency in cooling/heating, transportation, and consumer electronics and electrical appliances. This would include direct subsidies to industries for R&D and marketing, in return for sharing any resulting technological benefits with competitors and other industries for which they may be relevant.
Strangely enough," added Woody, "all of these things are really just tweaks around the edges that would not really have a whole lot of day-to-day impact on the activities of our citizens. But all go against powerfully entrenched interests that profit at the rest of our expense from the status quo. but one thing for sure: It is NOT 'government spending' that got us into this mess."
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