Time for a Third (and more) Party
Mar 2012
Tony E Hansen
For most of the post-World War era, a two-party frame has
plagued our political system with useless politics and posturing. Yet as the
comic, Lewis Black, explains, the system “is a bowl of sh!t looking in the
mirror at itself.” Democrats and Republicans are slivers of the same mold that
cater to the corporate elite that have little interest in preserving middle
class integrity. We are accosted during election cycles by political
pundits and parties with tired, worn, and partisan rhetoric that do nothing to
solve the real issues. Anyone brave enough to try to run against this
machine will be squashed by these powerful interests and disregarded as
inconsequential (or unworthy to be on the same stage as the party clones). Neither
party has proposed
serious and substantial policy directions in Congress, yet they keep getting to
go back to office. The time has come to rid us of this outdated framework that
inhibits innovative and productive public policy.
The current political debate is more about personality, the
tired rhetoric, and being able to drink with someone rather than substantive
policy questions. Rhetoric is a
nice-to-have feature, but we need to focus upon the issues if we mean to solve
crisis. Otherwise, we continue to kick the proverbial can as has been done for
the past few decades. Whether we have President Romney or President
Obama, we need voices from the middle class that are tired of rhetoric and more
interested in solutions. (In municipal elections for Des Moines,
the parties are not declared as part of the election process and the policies
that are instituted are far more constructive than the policies and regulations
coming from Washington or the statehouse.)
Democrats and Republicans claim to have enough room in their
“Big Tops” without actually representing anyone. The primary elections of the past
Presidential elections prove there are vast differences between factions within
the parties. Why do these factions have
to conform to a “big top” while masking their real intentions? Lewis Black is
correct in that the two parties tend to be mirrors of each other because they
have big powers in both pockets, and thus, the two parties have a vested
interested in keeping the current power structure intact. As long as we maintain this ridiculous system, we may never
see real progress in favor of maintaining the status quo politics.
A coalition (similar to European parliamentary systems) has
the potential to yield the actual voices of people without masking those real
and innovative opinions. Progressives, libertarians, socialists, greens, social
conservatives, and others have distinct and interesting opinions that easily
get ignored by the establishment as “irrelevant.”
Consider the television series Star Trek: Deep Space 9 where there is a fictional race called
Ferengi (FER-en-gee) whose motives are
the acquisition of wealth and profit. They
often quote set of “Rules of Acquisition” (ROA). For one, ROA 239 is quoted,
“Never be afraid to mislabel a product.”
This is marketing to customers to buy inflated values or outright false
claims. That is what the Democrats and
Republicans do to Americans about their brand of politics “being good for
America.”
Just think of the real issues here. We must rid ourselves of
the foreign oil dependency or major shockwaves will hit our economy. Until
then, our military and economic security will be tied to hostile supply chains.
We need to build and to revitalize infrastructure that supports this
goal. We should not be rewarding companies for shipping jobs overseas,
but instead reward business for creating local jobs by building locally. We
need to promote local businesses rather than the big-box chains because they
are the cornerstones to thriving communities. They are likely to keep their
products, services, and jobs here.
We need to recognize the worth of all individuals in America
(e.g. white, black, Latino, gay, or non-Christian). We need a responsible
immigration policy that does not reward illegal immigration or company
recruitment of illegal workers and punish the firms that do. For
immigration, do not reward those who came here illegally, but of those who did
not, give them a fair path to citizenship equivalent to the many people have paid the price to be
here legally.
We need a tax structure that is simpler and fair. Ensure
that Social Security and Medicare are available for the next generations.
Protect the rights of workers and their savings by limiting how much
destruction the upper elite can impose upon us with their reckless investing
mechanisms. Stabilize the market by putting a moratorium on trading for a
period of 30 days because the current reckless volatility is destroying savings
and retirement accounts.
Put the focus back on science and math rather than athletics,
and reward the teachers that show progress in their classes. Buy back
federal student loans and reduce cost of college educations instead of giving
the banks bailout money.
All of these are real substantive policy issues that require
tackling hard issues. For these, I would vote and like to see the votes for the
interests of Iowans rather than party line vote. We must focus upon the policy issues
rather than towing rhetoric that serves to stalemate progress or promotes a
popularity contest. I know what it is like
to live paycheck-to-paycheck, and I know what it is like to save money in
investments to watch the fickle Wall Street bozos ruin nest eggs. I know what
it is like to lose precious people in life and have government intervene where
it should not. I have studied political science for years, and we need
something better than this antiquated system of corrupt politics in America
that shows the wealth of American interests and American innovation.
