After thinking about this some, the answer came to me: We need a platform. So I thought that I would just draft up a platform and see what folks thought. It is not particularly elegant and I am sure that I made a few errors in grammar or spelling, but here goes:
Draft Platform for the Coffee Party
1. Our Country is Drowning in Debt
We cannot serve a growing population, fight wars, and cut taxes all at the same time. For nearly a generation we have cut taxes to the very rich in the false hope that the money will trickle down in the economy. The experiment has not worked.
Solution: Increase the maximum tax for parties making more than $2 million annually.
2. The Media Machine is Broken
Media cannot become actors on the political scene. When the Fairness Doctrine disappeared in 1987, we opened the door to partisan media and propaganda in our country. Americans need balanced, factual reporting and the FCC needs to monitor and enforce fairness.
Solution: We need to bring back the Fairness Doctrine.
3. Our Retirement Accounts are Tanking
Changes in the tax code and retirement planning have given Wall Street and the corporate sector access to monies in the expectation that reasonable returns would flow back to the retirement plan investor. Unfortunately, out-of-scale executive compensation, ill-advised mergers, and rewards for risky ventures have compromised our country’s collective nest egg. Solution: There needs to be more stockholder and government input on executive compensation, risk taking, and mergers.
4. Corporations are Compromising our One-Person- One-Vote System
Presidents Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, and Dwight Eisenhower all made strong public statement about America’s need to beware of the power corporations. In spite of these strong warnings and the clear intent of our Founding Fathers, the US Supreme Court just ruled in Citizens United vs. The Federal Election Commission that corporations have free speech rights and can produce and air unlimited advertisements for or against political candidates.
Solution: Amend the Constitution to specifically define corporations as artificial entities not eligible for the same rights as citizens and getting them out of the political system.
5. Health Care is Costing Too Much and Not Making Us Healthy
We pay more than any other country for our health care and yet we live shorter lives than many in the developed world. There are also many in our country who cannot afford basic health care. And there is tremendous waste in this system. All these deficiencies should be corrected.
Solution: Heath care for all with tighter controls on expenses and standards for performance.
6. Our Only Energy Security Plan Seems to be War
We burn more energy at this point than we own, therefore, we are dependent on other countries for our energy needs. In addition, we are addicted to oil which is an energy source that pollutes our air and water and is changing our climate. We need to make a commitment to find a better way than fossil fuels and war to protect our energy future.
Solutions: We need to make massive investments in energy conservation and efficiency as well as renewable energy.
7. Our Country’s Education Program Gets a Failing Grade
The US used to be a leader in science and innovation now that innovation is coming from other countries. We need to regain our role as world leaders in innovation.
Solution: Our whole educational system needs to be examined and revamped. Including looking at sacred cows like tenure.
8. Our Food Should be Safe, Abundant, and Tasty
Our investment in the food industry has mightily benefited agribusiness interests at the expense of farmers, particularly family farmers. While that trend is reversing with the emergence of the farmers’ market movement, our current system of agricultural subsidies favors large operators who ship produce long distances. As a result we have lost a treasured American icon, have food that tastes like it was made in a factory, use way too many fossil fuels in food production, and have farms that pollute areas rather than enrich.
Solution: Institute programs that encourage local food production and consumption, facilitate the return of family farmers, and remove subsidies that unfairly favor large over smaller operations.
9. Our Air Should Not Kill Us & Our Water Should Not Make Us Sick
Plans to keep our air breathable and water drinkable should be driven by people and public health professionals not energy and chemical industry lobbyists. Clean air and water are basic rights.
Solution: Provide agencies with the resources and authority needed to enforce our laws and protect our health.
10. Bail-Outs for People
The stimulus packages have helped but while intentions of the funding were laudable the targets were not. More money needs to go to help people broadly rather than institutions and executives in the investment community. We need real benefits for real people who are trying to save their homes and feed their families rather than buy another vacation home.
Solution: Any future stimulus programs should focus on making investments in people and places rather than multi-billion dollar institutions.
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These are certainly not art in terms of construction or content, but I want to get the discussion going. What do we want? We lose if we do not know the answer to that question. We lose if we do not know specifics. Have fun and get to work.
Jeff Lincrooseisen
