Senate How should the U.S. government be reformed?

Sure, Hef. Are you the first abortion?

 

There's also no pathway to reform. Just an impending dissolution of the union and a refusal to look at the fact that the core values are unhealthy.

 

Why would you say that to me?

 

You were similarly enthused?

 

Any new constitution should have clauses explicitly outlawing racism, sexism, homophobia, biphobia, and transphobia in terms of housing, employment, etc. There should also be a clause that protects a woman's right to an abortion, whether it is medically necessary or not.

 

No it shouldn't, pipe down Satele.

 

This isn't exactly accurate. First off, I hope everyone realizes that in 46 states (including DC) felons already get their voting rights restored upon the completion of their sentence? In two states, felons can vote while in prison. So the issue isn't if felons get their voting rights restored. They do for the most part. Once their sentence is up, felons in some 94% of the states can vote in whichever election they want.* The issue is allowing prisoners the right to vote while serving their sentences, which I think everyone understands the folly of allowing actual prisoners to vote in elections, which is why most states limit the act.
*= in some of those states, felons have to re-register to have their vote restored, so it might not be automatic, but this makes sense as well.

As far as the "felonies are given out like candy," argument, it's not accurate either. We can use Cook County as an example, but I imagine most metro areas would be similar. (Cook is the country where Chicago sits.) During the example year, roughly 215,000 people were charged with crimes. Out of that number, 31,000 were felonies. Which is what, basically a 7 to 1 ratio? Or out of all criminal charges, 86% were misdemeanors, and 14% were felonies. This is charged, not convicted of. If felonies were truly being used as a bargaining chip to force plea deals, shouldn't the number be closer together? Cook County hovers around an average conviction rate of 90%, which means that roughly 27,000 people were actually convicted of a felony of any level out of the total number of people charged, out of an overall population of 5 million people. (and this figure doesn't scrub for repeat offenders, so the actual "per person ratio" would realistically be much lower)

The legal requirements for felonies vs misdemeanors are set by the state legislature and over-reach isn't that common.

 

Here's a reform for you all,

Rewrite the entire constitution exactly as it is, but include at the very end: in bed.

You wanna save this country? That's how.

 

Passing the Equal Rights Amendment would be a good start. A climate change amendment would be beneficial, given how many governments in the world favor this now.

But, then, there are so many things we need to do in order to repair the U.S. government. It may not seem feasible, but if enough people complain and rise up peacefully, we can reform, if not replace, the constitution with something better. I do think that the way the Founders wrote it, with a system of checks and balances and a system to add amendments, was good. It functions as living document, although some successfully derail that notion. But it either needs to be restructured, if not replaced, with one that guarantees more rights to the oppressed. We can never outlaw racism, sexism, biphobia, transphobia, homophobia, etc. But we can outlaw discrimination against these folks in the workplace and in housing, plus we can enforce penalties for hate crimes against anyone who is nonwhite, non-heternormative, or feminine...until these laws are no longer necessary. In theory, affirmative action is meant to be there until it is no longer deemed or proven to be a necessity.

As for the system of courts--local, state, and federal--I agree with academics who favor less courts in a simpler system. If it is based on the principles that we favor, then such a judicialsystem would be beneficial. However, law is a commodity to be bought and sold by the highest bidder. We need to combat that through legislation of a better system of protections for the helpless.

Most importantly, we need to get money out of politics. We need stricter campaign laws to cease all this legalized bribery. Also, these damn campaigns are too long. We've had permanent campaigns for a while now, and it's relentless. It's annoying. It's like they stand for election in other countries, but we are constantly running for elections here. It's overwhelming.

Personally, I would favor new laws that would restrict a president to a single, six-year term. I would restrict Supreme Court justices to twelve years on the bench. I would limit U.S. senators to two six-year terms. I would limit representatives in the House to four two-year terms. I would give Congress more oversight into military matters by requiring cabinet members to be members of both houses of Congress. I generally would favor the vice president being more of a senator than a member of the executive branch, and I would favor the cabinet officers to be legally bound to recuse themselves from certain matters, especially ones in which they are involved. I would make it illegal for corporations and churches to monopolize the political process for their own ends. Of course, I would be open to compromise if someone proposed ideas which are similar to this.

In my novel, I laid out a social democratic constitution for a fictional planet. I'll have to dig that up. But I'm certain that I described about half of what I would prefer. I wrote that document eight years ago, of course. I tend to get more liberal with age, but also more sarcastic and testier with those who do not care for the oppressed.
https://seniorplanet.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/streep-quote.ft_.jpg

Intentionalism and functionalism matter in any system, legal, economic, political, social, etc. How groups evolve is a mix between the two concepts. There is pressure from above and pressure from below.

 

The post of President of the United States should be unelected and placed in the hands of neutral, benevolent leader. The reign is for 15 years maximum, the Senate are their to advise them. There will be two Vice Presidents.

An updated Bill of Rights, which understands we're living in the 21st Century (no more 'we need guns and militias to protect ourselves' BS); Congress and the Senate to be elected via proportional representation, two term limits for elected officials and party donations (over $1 million) to be banned. Companies will be prohibited to donating to party funds and the media to be transparent and politically neutral.

This will, hopefully, open the doors for third parties to break in and end the GOP/Democrat monopoly.

Similar to Europe, strict rules on reporting of political news during elections and a blackout of political news stories during polling day - that way, the media cannot be seen as influencing the vote.

before you scream freedom of speech at me, this occurs in most sane, grown up democracies. France, for example, has a 48 hour ban on political news on voting weekend.

The constitution will be amended to reflect these changes and will be treated as it should be - a set a rules. It is not a holy document, wasn't written by gods and should not be worshipped. Every so often, the Senate will see whether or not further changes are required, to ensure government is running smoothly. Constitutional reform is a good thing and should actively be encouraged.

Voting will be moved to weekends and be across two days.

The separation of church and state will, finally, be acknowledge and all references to God will be removed public or state display.

Only god recognised by the Federal Government will be Bast, an Egyptian cat goddess. Independence Day will be replaced with Festival of Bast, were the President and both Vice Presidents will lead the nation in offerings to Bast. Public celebrations will involve citizens setting off fireworks and wearing cat masks. Those, who oppose Festival of Bast, will face execution by firing squad.

 

I like the statement that it is a living document.

Also, great idea about voting. "Voting will be moved to weekends and be across two days." It ought to entail either that or an election day should be a national holiday.

 

Burn.

It.

Down.

 

I still don't think you ever answered my question from a while ago...what are we going to do with all these nuclear weapons while we're busy burning it all down?

 

There isn't one. As befits the Donald Trump era, many of Ender's posts just revolve around yelling about "provocative," ill-defined ideas while making thoroughly immodest reference to the wealth/superiority/whatever of either himself or his preferred associates.

 

I didn't see it tbh, and just sidestepping Wocky's usual nonsensical stupidity...

You're a country that on an annual basis defies the structure of the ribcage to fellate yourselves over your own historic myth of a revolution. It's really clear that you have systemic rot culturally, economically, and politically so nobody can articulate how things "get saved". And whilst you're incapable of critical thought due to the pervasive and persuasive brainwashing you endure since birth with respect of the apparent virtues of your system, you view any suggestion that it cannot be saved as dangerously radical and without factual basis.

You've created a climate where people value the right to own guns over the right to life. Where people have willingly participated in a war on labour and collectivism for centuries. Where the poor believe they're on the cusp of richness and therefore won't support progressive taxation or estate taxes because it could be them (but is almost guaranteed not to be them).

None of this is worth saving, and you're worried about nukes? My response will unhelpfully be "this is why a basic emotional maturity should be tied to nuclear weapons". It would scope you guys out from ownership. But are you willing to sit there and watch a broken system fall so far into disrepair as to be parody of itself over nuclear weapons? You're headed for a phyrric civil war, I would submit your concerns are more immediate.

 

Yeah, I'm worried about nukes. I'd love to be able to do something about all that, but when you say "none of this is worth saving" I assume you mean violent revolution and civil war, which means nukes falling into the hands of god-knows-who. And that's a problem for the entire world.

 

And your slow collapse isn't?

 

Nonproliferation should be a thing again.

Also, we should have referendums.

 

Referendums should only be allowed on major (rare) constitutional issues.

Nonproliferation has never gone away.

 

You should firstly learn how to speak English, the pair of you.

Plural of referendum is REFERENDA.

When and if (more if) you do reform the US, can you prohibit American English for all time?

 

You invent fake words like girt.

 

actually both referendums and referenda are acceptable

 

1. Term limits for Senators and Representatives: 2 terms (12 years) for Senators, 4 terms (8 years) for Representatives.

2. Make gerrymandering illegal:
2a. Congressional districts shall be drawn around the entirety of the contiguous counties.
2b. State legislative districts shall be divided based on existing physical borders (roadways, rivers, etc)
2c. Strike down Reynolds v. Sims, the ruling that both houses of the state legislature must be apportioned by population. The State House of Representatives will be based on population, but the State Senate shall be composed of one senator per county.

3. Remove the 15% polling threshold that third party Presidential candidates need to participate in debates. Mandate that a minimum of four parties be represented at every debate leading up to the election.

4. Pizza.

But all of this pales in comparison to the most important thing:
5. Overhaul our education system so that Civics and American History are placed on the exact same level as mathematics and science in public schools. All too often, social studies classes are where the schools stick the football coaches. As a result, kids who hit voting age have absolutely no clue about our political system, much less actually care about it. Our schools are churning out future apathetic voters.
No joke...A few weeks ago, my son reported that a number of his classmates (14-15 year olds) actually believe that Donald Trump is a Democrat simply because he came after Obama.

 

Closeted yank.

OK so how does this address systemic racism; systemic inequality; the cult of individualism as a cultural identifier at the expense of any collectivism, and the epidemic of gun violence?

 

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what's closested ?

one of your Australian words perhaps