Goals for America

In the new year, I am writing about my dreams for America. I wish politics were more about morality and creating the world we all want to live in, rather than being angry at each other.

The human right to money is acknowledged, in addition to the supports and human rights that already exist. This is what the wealthy do with their children, and what the government does with the wealthy. The wealthy set up trusts for their kids, so they have in effect decided that their children have a dollar value. The government looks at the investment bankers and hedge fund managers, and says, they are worth money, and bails them out when they make bad bets. The government should just look at ordinary people and decide that the have a dollar value. Whether that’s called UBI or a negative income tax, shouldn't matter.

            Slavery is abolished, even for people with convictions. Slavery is wrong, whether if it’s by corporations or governments. The 13^th Amendment abolished slavery, except as a punishment for a crime. People who are incarcerated deserve rights and economic rights too. One of my other posts shows the graph of the number of inpatient psychiatric beds vs. the number of prison beds in America. We’ve just moved people from one institution to another.

            I hope we move from free trade to fair trade. Corporations had the incentive to move jobs from countries with worker protections to countries without labor protections and minimum wage laws. Workers in less developed countries deserve safe working environments, unions, and minimum wages, too. The strong dollar gives the US more flexibility to respond to crises, so I support that policy.

            People with convictions are allowed to vote. It’s sad to me that people with convictions are enslaved and then lose their right to vote, among a host of other penalties.

            A more progressive tax code. Some people think taxes are tyranny, but the meaning of taxation has changed. At the time of the American Revolution, our taxes were paid to the monarchy, who was already wealthy, so taxes were paid to monarchies to enrich them even more. Now, however, taxation can mean progressive taxation, with the wealthy paying for things for people who are struggling. I don’t know whether the federal tax code is regressive or progressive. Just from reading the news, it seems like federal tax goes from people who pay taxes, which is largely the middle class, to people who can afford to lobby for government contracts, bailouts, subsidies, and tax incentives, which is largely the wealthy. I think a multilateral treaty to establish a minimum tax on corporations would go a long way, and I've seen some steps in that direction.

            The Enlightenment was founded on scientific and philosophical ideas that were able to spread freely. Rousseau’s idea of the social contract, Kant’s human rights, and Montesquieu’s separation of powers and rule of law. These ideas were important to the founding of the United States. These ideals of the Enlightenment can only spread by advancing education and literacy. The privatization of education will not encourage the adoption of Enlightenment ideals.

            The US Constitution acknowledges that there are human rights not explicitly listed, but that these rights are up to the states. I think education, a person’s dollar value, healthcare, adult suffrage, women’s rights and reproductive care are some the rights not explicitly listed, and those aren’t the only ones!

            Since 1980, the solution to most US problems has been tax cuts, deregulation, and privatization. But taxes can decrease income and wealth inequality. One solution to wealth inequality is to tax wealth. Regulations can serve good purposes, from preserving the air and water quality, to ensuring worker safety, to guaranteeing minimum wages, retirement, and paid family leave. Corporations have argued for privatization by saying they are more efficient managers of services, but the privatized US healthcare system is horribly inefficient. There are things that would be immoral for the private sector to do, such as law enforcement, military, and prisons. I do not believe that the use of force or violence should be done for profit, which is why I don’t think that law enforcement, the military, or prisons should ever be privatized.

I hope we continue to fight the climate crisis. I am relieved that the Inflation Reduction Act passed, and I hope it will go a long way. The international community will still need to meet the Paris Climate Accord's goals.

            These are my goals for the United States. I hope to do what I can, within the bounds of the law and morality, to pursue these goals. I plan to stay in those bounds, I hope other people do too. The United States is struggling, but I hope 2023 is a year of coming together to work on our problems, rather than just anger and throwing rocks at each other. At times I have been frustrated by the United States, but I have never loved her more.