Glen, thank you for your comment and question. It’s nice to share a common understanding of our status quo especially concerning the "proven strategy and plan" for “turning America into the quality of democracy that we require..." I think the best way to answer your question about how to make this happen is by first answering the most …
Glen, thank you for your comment and question. It’s nice to share a common understanding of our status quo especially concerning the "proven strategy and plan" for “turning America into the quality of democracy that we require..." I think the best way to answer your question about how to make this happen is by first answering the most basic questions, 1) What’s our government’s purpose?, 2) Is it on purpose?, and 3) If not, how do we compel our elected officials to meet their purpose (i.e., satisfy their Constitutional oaths)? As a thought experiment, let’s assume that the Preamble is the mission statement for our democracy and can be summarized (and contemporized) as follows, “to promote our general welfare using best practice-based solutions and protect us from those who would do us harm.” Or we can use Alexander Hamilton’s even pithier description, “to abolish factions and unite for the general welfare.” (If anyone has a better way to define our government’s purpose, please share it if only because it is the foundation of almost every disagreement). In addition, let’s assume that such a democracy would be considered a role model democracy and the kind of government we require because I also assume that it’s the kind of government we are entitled to, for it seems silly to argue that we are entitled to less than role model quality government. Because our oligarch-controlled public sector decision-makers are continually doing things adverse to our citizens’ rights and our communities’ interests, I also assume that we have to stop them before we can get on with building a role model democracy. And that’s where the strategy and plan come into play. Several years ago Professor Erica Chenoweth revealed some remarkable results in her studies of governments that did things adverse to their citizens’ rights and communities’ interests. Chenoweth put out a book about a year ago (Civil Resistance: What Everyone Needs to Know) that explains the strategy for how to make our elected officials collaborate with our citizens to promote our general and not that of the oligarchs. She discovered that we would need 3.5% of our population to engage in persistent nonviolent resistance, in order to elect enough progressives that will pledge to meet their Constitutional purpose. Obviously, the hard part of the plan is to inspire 12 million people to engage in the strategic application of persistent nonviolent resistance. However, with contemporary knowledge and technology, how hard can it be? The oligarchs use a version of persistent “nonviolent” resistance to get their elected officials to do their bidding, and have been doing it for years. They just use different modes of coercion to get their public sector toadies elected. Rather than peaceful assemblies, petitions, and expressing ideas in a free press, they just use extortion, bribery, and propaganda.
Well, Old Dave, I agree with your analysis once more....and note that you arrive at the remedy of "persistent nonviolent resistance" via a slightly different route than the one I have taken. Recently I contemplated what the democratic, progressive response should be if the MAGA crowd attempt to steal the 2024 Presidential election. Storm the Capitol like on Jan. 6th?
No. Encircle both Congress and the White House with a very persistent, non-stop, nonviolent march around both "Houses of Government" until the will of the voters is accurately conveyed to the Electoral College count. If we work hard enough between now...and then...we may (with the boost of the new Millennials voting en mass) have a large enough progressive majority to pass laws to change the course that our country has been on for at least 4 decades--the "extortion, bribery, & propaganda".....yeh?
Glen, I was thinking of a more inclusive and strategic application of 4/5 of our 1st Amendment freedoms and rights (plus leveraging our unenumerated right to vote) to collaborate with our elected leaders and advise them how to meet their constitutional purpose. As far as the other 1/5 of our 1st Amendment freedoms and rights, the oligarchs have been leveraging the powers of religion for a long time to make our poorly educated toe the line, and I don’t expect that will change any time soon.
Glen, thank you for your comment and question. It’s nice to share a common understanding of our status quo especially concerning the "proven strategy and plan" for “turning America into the quality of democracy that we require..." I think the best way to answer your question about how to make this happen is by first answering the most basic questions, 1) What’s our government’s purpose?, 2) Is it on purpose?, and 3) If not, how do we compel our elected officials to meet their purpose (i.e., satisfy their Constitutional oaths)? As a thought experiment, let’s assume that the Preamble is the mission statement for our democracy and can be summarized (and contemporized) as follows, “to promote our general welfare using best practice-based solutions and protect us from those who would do us harm.” Or we can use Alexander Hamilton’s even pithier description, “to abolish factions and unite for the general welfare.” (If anyone has a better way to define our government’s purpose, please share it if only because it is the foundation of almost every disagreement). In addition, let’s assume that such a democracy would be considered a role model democracy and the kind of government we require because I also assume that it’s the kind of government we are entitled to, for it seems silly to argue that we are entitled to less than role model quality government. Because our oligarch-controlled public sector decision-makers are continually doing things adverse to our citizens’ rights and our communities’ interests, I also assume that we have to stop them before we can get on with building a role model democracy. And that’s where the strategy and plan come into play. Several years ago Professor Erica Chenoweth revealed some remarkable results in her studies of governments that did things adverse to their citizens’ rights and communities’ interests. Chenoweth put out a book about a year ago (Civil Resistance: What Everyone Needs to Know) that explains the strategy for how to make our elected officials collaborate with our citizens to promote our general and not that of the oligarchs. She discovered that we would need 3.5% of our population to engage in persistent nonviolent resistance, in order to elect enough progressives that will pledge to meet their Constitutional purpose. Obviously, the hard part of the plan is to inspire 12 million people to engage in the strategic application of persistent nonviolent resistance. However, with contemporary knowledge and technology, how hard can it be? The oligarchs use a version of persistent “nonviolent” resistance to get their elected officials to do their bidding, and have been doing it for years. They just use different modes of coercion to get their public sector toadies elected. Rather than peaceful assemblies, petitions, and expressing ideas in a free press, they just use extortion, bribery, and propaganda.
Well, Old Dave, I agree with your analysis once more....and note that you arrive at the remedy of "persistent nonviolent resistance" via a slightly different route than the one I have taken. Recently I contemplated what the democratic, progressive response should be if the MAGA crowd attempt to steal the 2024 Presidential election. Storm the Capitol like on Jan. 6th?
No. Encircle both Congress and the White House with a very persistent, non-stop, nonviolent march around both "Houses of Government" until the will of the voters is accurately conveyed to the Electoral College count. If we work hard enough between now...and then...we may (with the boost of the new Millennials voting en mass) have a large enough progressive majority to pass laws to change the course that our country has been on for at least 4 decades--the "extortion, bribery, & propaganda".....yeh?
Glen, I was thinking of a more inclusive and strategic application of 4/5 of our 1st Amendment freedoms and rights (plus leveraging our unenumerated right to vote) to collaborate with our elected leaders and advise them how to meet their constitutional purpose. As far as the other 1/5 of our 1st Amendment freedoms and rights, the oligarchs have been leveraging the powers of religion for a long time to make our poorly educated toe the line, and I don’t expect that will change any time soon.