Radical Remake Blueprint Living Document

8/3/2019 Radical Remake Blueprint Living Document

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By and for the 99%, a visionary Blueprint for a Radical Remake of America(or any country) – DRAFT 3cThird Draft-mod C, November 14, 2011

Where do the Occupy and other progressive movements go from here? The

grievances and the villains have been clearly identified, the philosophy and theoperational principals established and there is a sense of optimism in the air thatchange is possible. I respectfully ask you to roll forward your clock to a day nottoo far in the future when, by some set of amazing and unforeseen events, theideal outcome has arrived. Hold this thought for a moment. So, what would thisideal world look like? Anything you can imagine, so let’s put it together! To get usstarted I have penned a modest Blueprint for a Radical Remake below. Why dothis kind of exercise you might ask? Having a vision for the best possibleoutcome is essential as it gives you a point in space to aim at. And we have allexperienced that when a shared, clear vision is held and actively pursued, the

universe always seems to provide all of the steps to reach it.

So, assume that all of this, by hook or (in spite) of crook, has come to pass and itis going on all across America and on your street...

It’s the wonderful spring of 20XX and this is what is going on? How about this...

A) A radical remaking of our political system:Change can only really come from the Top, or in this case, from the Bottomchanging the Top. Through the persistence, intelligence, argument and

effective collective action of “the 99%” it should be possible to bring about the“quiet revolution” we seek. Ten million people committing to press for thischange over many years will bring it about. History is on our side on this one.More about this later. One day it will therefore be apparent that our future hasbeen handed back to us. We must be ready for that day with a solid set of steps to build a new Top we can trust and that works for the benefit of all of society . This therefore is the first priority and the first part of the blueprint.1. As dawn breaks on that great day in our ideal future the Constitutional

Convention is just about to get underway with an open registration of delegates representing a true plurality of American society.

2. After some pressure and by eventual consensus all sitting politicians havetaken leave of their offices, including the president and cabinet. The peoplehave spoken and have finally been heard, making it clear that the systemof powerful interests that gave these politicians their offices was notrepresentative and not legitimate, so it was time for all of them to leave.These leaders had become utterly untrusted by the people they weresupposed to be serving, warped by the demons of money corruptionpolitics, dangerously ineffective and tied up in endless partisan gridlock,



and therefore no longer performing their fiduciary duties.Trained career professional civil servants were nominated to form interim directorships of agencies and the executive branch under short term contracts and thingsare running just fine.

3. None of the departing politicians are offered any entitlements beyond

those available to ordinary citizens. These and past politicians are subjectto a ten year prohibition of involvement in politics which can only beforgiven through sizable citizen sponsored write-in campaigns not fundedby the politician or wealthy interests. No politician convicted of criminaloffenses while in office or having access to significant wealth is permittedinvolvement in politics unless supported by a sufficient write-in campaign.Entitlements for past politicians are being reviewed and many are subjectto immediate cuts. Entitlements for all retired government workers arehonored unless they became wealthy through clear cases of corruption or the "revolving door" with industry in which case they will fail a means test

and no longer qualify for the entitlement.4. Next, the duopoly parties (Democrats and Republicans) are dissolved,

similar to Boris Yeltsin’s 1991 decree dissolving the communist party of theformer USSR, and new parties are being energetically put together for theupcoming Convention. These parties will represent the true groupings of national citizen interests. The Tea Party now has its own party. TheGreens have theirs. Veterans and retirees have theirs. MoveOn has theirs.Flat taxers have theirs. Occupy may have theirs or Occupiers may simplywork within many parties. There may be fifty parties formed by the time of the Convention. This happened when democracy came to Eastern Europe

and now in the Arab world. This is democracy booting up and it’s abeautiful, messy, creative and organic thing to watch. The stage is set for the Convention.

5. The Convention opens both physically in multiple locations around thenation and online and the first set of laws are put forth and enacted bydirect citizen simple majority vote over the Internet or through local votingplaces connected to the net. The crucial first law to pass makes lobbyingand contribution of private money to politicians or their campaigns illegal.This cuts the umbilical cord between the “1%” and the body politic.Campaigns will now be funded solely by direct, capped individual

donations, Lawrence Lessig’s “democracy vouchers”, and some supportfrom a public fund.6. The Convention runs for 60 days in which time a new Constitution is

drafted which contains and preserves the original US Constitution, butmodernizes it at its outer edges. This process was supported by hardworking delegates, but also through extensive citizen input through theInternet and social media.



7. The new constitution finally provides for Jefferson's originally proposedperiodic constitutional conventions every 20-30 years to support its further evolution. The amendment system is therefore no longer necessary asthese conventions allow society to amend the document directly. Drawingfrom Wikileaks’ philosophy a declaration of the right of the citizen for an

open, transparent society, government and business environment isenshrined in a newly expanded bill of rights.

8. Elections are then called and from that point the electoral system isoperated as it is in democratic countries around the world: short 30 daycampaigns on unpredictable general election dates but within a set periodof years kicked off either by votes of no confidence or at the governingparties' option. Primaries and other resource-wasting electioneering are athing of the past. Party leaders are simply chosen by delegate votes attheir own conventions. Citizens then directly vote for their executive branchand the Electoral College is dispatched to the dustbin of history.

9. The election is wildly successful with an 85% turnout. Hanging chads are athing of the past as a non-profit independent election grid operator supports secure online voting just as has been deployed in many other countries such as India. The elections are also overseen by anindependent Electoral Commission which includes international observersas a backup and an example for the rest of humanity. This commission hasthe power, after an independent arbitration, to nullify and recall anyelection, even for president, so no court needs to become involved andspectacularly fail in this role as happened in 2000. America will show theworld how a “democracy 3.0” can be exceptionally executed, no longer

running its archaic 18th Century 1.0 version.10. As a bit of a shocker to older Americans but a fresh breeze for the rest of

us, the first true national government in the history of the US will be formedthrough an unwieldy coalition of parties, some of whom have vastlydifferent philosophies. Everyone would agree that this is preferable to oneparty carrying 50% or more of the vote and the return of the stagnation of the past. The parties would then push and shove and compromise, sortingit out over time and forging an effective and the first truly representativegovernment in the history of the nation.

11. Before the election gets underway, all appointees to major posts and those

seeking office including state governors, justices, cabinet members andthe president and vice president would be subject to psychologicalscreening similar to that required of airline pilots. Failing such a screeningwould disqualify the individual from their appointment or from running.Looking back years in the future, we will see that this has done wonders toprevent individuals with serious psychological disorders includingdiagnosed psychopathy, addictions, extremist religious or other closed-



belief fanaticism, and other maladies from inflicting damage on the nationand the world.

Having reached this point we now have a brand new Top with top people,

chosen by the people. Now our next work can begin: the task of radically remaking America. The following sections of this blueprint propose thelargest of the structural changes in this makeover. Much detail remains but this is a sincere effort to patch the biggest holes that are sinking the shipof our state.

B) Reassuming control of the messages we say to ourselves:A human society is defined by the stories it tells itself and by the things it thencomes to believe. Ideas are our most powerful tools and when encapsulated

in mass messages they become our greatest hope for renewal and awonderful, sustainable civilization or our greatest danger and threat to our health and survival. In our ideal world of the (near) future, humanity wouldhave learned to treat messaging seriously and developed the best practicesaround them. An experienced balance would have been struck between theright to freely express and the right for protection from from clearly damagingmessaging.1. Another measure passed by directly at the Convention is that the rule

abandoned in the 1980s which prohibited media outlets from lying on theair is reinstated. A newly formed, independent Truth and Health in Media

Commission would shortlist broadcasters and online media companieswhich have built up a record of unfair, untruthful and damaging coverageand their licenses would be pulled. These outlets would have a year toadjust their approach apply for new licenses. Canada still enforces this ruleand recently denied a license to one US broadcaster. There is no reasonfor us to live without this kind of public proection any longer. As oneexample, the severely damaging practice of modern “attack ads” in politicalcampaigns was only invented by Lee Atwater in 1988, about the time of the rule change. Before he died, Mr. Atwater publicly expressed regretabout his creation and attempted to apologize to every person these ads

may have hurt. This strongly suggests to us now this type of messagingcrosses the line of societal acceptability and would be a candicate to berolled back by the Commission.

2. This same Commission would also shortlist commercial media content andadvertising deemed a threat to public health (mental and physical) byindependent and corroborated scientific research and order the carriers topull this content or risk losing their licenses. Common sense protection of



adult and children’s psychological health found in other countries wouldfinally come to America.

3. Media monopolies which would have been deemed illegal under old lawswould be pursued and broken up. Percentage ownership in media outletsby one entity would then strictly enforced. Public and new alternative

independent media would then be given expanded access to airwaves.4. “Memetic” (idea messaging) protection laws would be put into place for an

experimental trial period. These statutes would establish liability for clearlydemonstrated psychological trauma perpetrated by media, commercialentities, religions, cults or any entity messaging the public. It becomes aprosecutable offence for a group or individual to repeatedly and clearlypsychologically traumatize a child or an adult and to radicalize anyindividual or group to violence or other harmful acts. The same protectionwould be applied to groups or individuals negatively affecting an adult or child’s human rights as defined in the charter in the updated constitution.

This would also apply to groups who seek to restrict the rights of their ownmembers or others in society.

5. In the ideal outcome, strict separation of Church and State would havebeen been re-asserted in law and in educational policies. No public fundswould be allowed for religious organizations and organizations operatingreligious schools would be subject to compliance with childhood memeticprotection laws and human rights (no Christian hell and brimstone and noTalibanization). A traumtized child is a lifelong sufferer and great loss tosociety, as has been recently born out so vividly.

C) End of war mongering and state sponsored terrorism:In our ideal future, virtually all US troops would have been called home,leaving forces in place solely where humanitarian assistance is requestedspecifically by the local authorities and/or citizens. Should an evidence-backed threat to the US or its interests and citizens at home or abroad beidentified, appropriate action will be taken once duly authorized by the electedbranches of government. Whenever possible and when all other avenues,including diplomatic, economic and grievance-hearing have been exhausted,small operations rather than oversized land invasions would be undertaken to

minimize trauma on local civilian and US personnel. Lastly, the military wouldbe constitutionally guaranteed a public voice and a vote in the committing of its forces in any operation. Major actions would be authorized only thoughunanimous support by the elected and military branches.1. A new charter would be written for the US military which would include

community and national infrastructure projects, border protection, disaster and humanitarian relief, peace keeping as invited by the internationalcommunity, and threat reduction as discussed in C.1. The US would then



have largely eliminated its “global policing” role which previously oftenresulted in its own commission of crimes against humanity and statesponsored terrorism. Local and foreign interests or governments would nolonger be permitted to lobby and steer US national policy toward disaster.All of these measures should interrupt the cycle of the radicalization of

youth to commit their own acts of terror in response to US violence. Tofurther support this true counter-terrorism strategy the US could then adoptthe Lebanese model, which deradicalized and demilitarized groups bydirectly supportig lifestyle changes through financing and family supportalternatives.

2. The US military budget would be taken through a rapid "build down" first to50% of its currently inflated level with a goal of reaching 20%, or a levelappropriate for a role for a peaceful world. The US currently has noidentifiable enemies posessing standing armies and weaponry to match itso can afford to back off from Cold War era outlays. A similar build down

last occured in the early 1990s and helped produce the first budget surplusin generations. The enormous savings this time around would be used toradically improve the now dire balance of national accounts and providemuch needed funding to benefit the whole nation by supporting many of the initiatives we will list later in the blueprint.

3. With some of these savings, veterans would be able to receive greatlyimproved benefits, training and direct entrepreneurial grants going waybeyond the GI bill of WWII to ensure that they are not abandoned to a lifeof poverty and can become prosperous citizens of the new society. Thepeople and causes that sent them to war may have been suspect but their

service and their sacrifices were real.4. All "black ops" (government and private) organizations would be subject to

severe cutbacks, and enter a period of transparent, public review with theopening of all secret documents as was done in the former Eastern Bloc inthe 1990s. This new transparency will then expose their record of failureand crimes causing the public and elected officials to determine that someof these organizations must simply be eliminated outright. Individuals whounder the auspices of these organizations have committed Crimes AgainstHumanity (CAH) or facilitated state sponsored terrorism for previous USclient regimes would be offered amnesty if they admitted their crimes

before a Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) modeled on the TRCwhich helped rebuild South Africa. Individuals who did not come before theUS TRC would be subject to prosecution in the US and would be pursuedif abroad. Senior officials or officers who created policies or ordered othersto commit crimes would be prosecuted first and most severely. Thoseordered to commit crimes would be offered the most protection under theTRC.



5. As a result of a full remaking of foreign policy, nations and regimes thatuse US aid to engage in terrorism of their own populations or those of neighboring countries would have an immediate termination of all support.This would imply immediate termination of support for both Israel and thePalestinian Authority. Countries could after a one year review re-apply for

support under the new restrictions.6. The US would spearhead a global effort to not only continue to contain the

spread of nuclear weapons but also seek severe cutbacks in allarmaments production. The US would no longer fund other countries toarm themselves and even offer programs to replace arms sales andcurrent arms in place with funding for productive programs. Thus the trendof disarmament which started with the reduction of nuclear arsenals wouldcontinue into conventional weapons. To make real progress the US couldbuy the assets of armaments producers and simply shut them down,thereby saving the enormous damage and costs that result from their

business activities. The US would severly throttle back the majority of itsown arms production efforts, and further reduce its own arsenals of nuclear and conventional weapons. Advanced weapons research anddevelopment, which has had a poor track record of high costs and failurerates, will also be cut back and then carefully audited. PresidentEisenhower’s prescient 1961 warning about the dangers of the military-industrial complex would finally be acted upon with full public transparencyand objective auditing which will reign in the power and costs of thiscomplex.

7. As spelled out by Amory Lovins, by returning to strict fuel economy

standards abandoned in the 1980’s, as well as the mandating of hybridvehicle fleets and a major national investment in renewable energy, theproportion of imported petroleum will drop steadily until there is no longer any dependency on sources outside of the Western Hemisphere.Therefore, there will no longer be any justification for military involvementin these regions outside of invited humanitarian efforts.

8. Proven, non-military, non-religious global assistance programs such as thePeace Corps would be expanded and would help to transition those withmilitary careers into other areas of needed, humanitarian service.

D) Prosecution for economic crimes and a return to healthy markets:The ideal future outcome woud have us truly put our economic and regulatoryhouse in order and return the very ill patient that is our national and globaleconomy to health. Due to the extreme emergency nature of the situation,radical triage is necessary to avoid this patient’s further deterioration.1. To facilitate this the US Truth and Reconcilliation Commission would also

be open to the hearing of Economic Crimes Against Humanity (ECAH)



committed by rich elites and others. Forfeiture of gains as well as fulldisclosure of crimes would prevent prison terms that these individualswould normally be subject to under current US laws and the laws of other countries.

2. Funds donated by supportive wealthy individuals (e.g. Warren Buffett),

plus forfeiture funds from the TRC, would be placed into a fund toprosecute other criminal elites and to support public institutions to enforcereinstated laws that previously protected the public interest from economic.Criminal elites and their assets would be pursued on US soil andinternationally, regardless of citizenship.

3. Laws regulating banks and securities firms established during andfollowing the 1930s would be re-instated. New laws regulating the power of securities and currency trading organizations would be developed and theemploying of automated trading software would be severely restricted,reducing much of their damaging dynamics on markets.

4. Liability for executives and directors of corporations for economic crimes,some of which include the theft embodied in large payouts not backed bybeneficial performance, would be clearly established. Executivecompensation would be tied to an established multiple of collectiveindividual worker's benefits and company profits. Deviation from thesenorms would expose executives to scrutiny and liability.

5. Monopoly laws are reinstated and reinforced by strong regulatory agencieswhich then dictate the immediate breaking up of large banks and bankinggroups as well as corporations which monopolize critical segments of society. Energy companies represent one such segment and oil producers,

just like electric power companies, would now be regulated as a publicutility with strict price and profit controls, as they are in other countries.These companies could be granted approval for rate hikes on fuel prices if the majority of their increased profits are sunk into renewable energyresearch and development.

6. All manufactured goods which resulted from the off-shoring of US jobswould be subject to a mandatory import duty. The collected import dutieswould be provided to a fund making grants available to companiesdeveloping new manufacturing in the US as well as returning previouslyoff-shored jobs to the US.

E) National priority of a healthy civil society:If a time machine was invented and you could step back decades or longer,you might find the people you meet on the street to be far happier, healthier and less burdened than today. Over several decades but increasingly sincethe events of 9/11 the US population has been put into an ever increasingstate of trauma, both mental and physical. Objective studies of this trauma



would be carried out to determine the state of the patient. There is no reasonwe should have to live with this trauma and in our ideal future, we wouldinvest in policies and programs to restore a sense of health to society.1. National priorities would be set which place the health, well being, and

education of ordinary people first. Government and private institutions

which work for the public good would be strengthened beyond anyprevious levels, drawing on resources saved from the build-down of the USwar machine. The quality of care of children through adulthood isconsidered the national priority. University and trade school educationreceive investment not seen since the days after Sputnik and all currentstudent debt is paid down through direct grants while federal assistance ismade to lower fees and other barriers to obtaining a higher education.

2. Food and nutrition are made priorities and stringent regulations are placedon the fast food industry based upon scientific studies. Fats and foodadditives such as high fructose corn syrup and other sweeteners are

regulated as controlled substances and their excess inclusion in foodswould subject the producer to a sliding scale of product liability. Anyperson in a state of ill health would be able to qualify for community fundedhealth and well being programs. These programs would be extended into anational universal health care system which would bring the US up to thepar of many other nations. A parallel private payer system and expandedresearch grants would fund world class medical research and encourage itto extend to the national healthcare system.

3. Control of firearms would be instituted for the public good to radicallyreduce gunshot fatalities and injuries. Weapons would be repurchased

during an amnesty period by the government working with independententities which would then oversee their destruction much in the waynuclear weapons were handled after the end of the Cold War. Just as inCanada, private ownership of handguns, assault weapons and other typesof weapons is a prosecutable offence unless these are registered bylegitimate collectors or for hunting.

4. The "war on drugs" would immediately stand down and be replaced by anew drug policy derived in a depoliticized environment and which wouldprescribe harm reduction, treatment and education. Medically prescribedand non-addictive sacramental substances used for personal and spiritual

growth would be decriminalized and protected under healthcare accessrights and freedom of religion laws if taken under guidance of qualifiedpractitioners.

5. A goal of the reduction of the size of the prison population by one half totwo thirds would be set and a review of all cases undertaken. Nonviolentoffenders would be released into well funded community re-integrationprograms.



There is more to be added here, and much to be refined and most importantly,more voices to be heard, can we ask you to make one of them yours? Become adrafter!

A statement from the first drafter:

How would we “get there from here” and make this Blueprint a reality? I believe it comes down to ten million Americans signing a pledge to joinand support a movement that aims to achieve this reality. Ten Million

people can accomplish a lot. The Ten Million would build on the foundationof Occupy and adopt its philosophy and strategies. The Ten Million would accept nothing less than the full radical remake of American society. Year after year the Ten Million would get their message of positive change out,blockade political offices, businesses and media outlets. They would make

donations, boycott businesses, file lawsuits, hold general assemblies,festivals and celebrations, create beautiful works and online gatherings of

people and ideas until the old system gives up the ghost and this dream isrealized.

What is the world we will leave to our children? Without a radical remake like the one evolving in this blueprint, pretty grim. With the will and the means to enact such a makeover we will leave to our children a world of wondrous possibilities, a healthy, happy, safe, learned, caring and forward thinking people, and very likely, a survivable civilization. We will

get the world we all thought the 21st Century would be about, not thedystopian nightmare we are being driven into.

Join us in discussing this blueprint on Facebook at our Radical Remake page:https :// www .facebook .com / pages /Radical - Remake /186433428108187 On the open Web you will (soon) find our hosted and editable/votablediscussion around this blueprint at:http :// www .RadicalRemake .org .

PS: There will be many more drafters!

-Bruce Damer, Cedar Lake, New Jersey, November 14, 2011

About the first drafter:

Bruce Damer is a Canadian who emigrated to the US in 1985. When Bruce was swornin as a US citizen in 2000 the federal judge presiding over the ceremony explained that

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there is no democracy at the national level but you still have a chance for somerepresentation at the local level so please fill out your voter registration card . Bruce hasspent much of the last decade pondering this statement, wondering if America has ever actually been a democracy in the sense that Canada, Denmark and other countries are(no, as it has always disenfranchised large segments of its population). He then went on

to investigate how America might one day become a functioning democracy, civil society and good member of the global community of nations .

This blueprint for the Radical Remaking of America resulted from this thinking and hisinteraction with a wide range of American society from Pentagon generals to NASAastronauts, Silicon Valley billionaires, activists and burners, Big Bankers, Nobelists,Christian home schoolers, off the gridders, cultural creatives, and just plain andwonderful ordinary folks. He has worked around the world, in the early 1990s helpingdevelop one of the first software labs in Eastern Europe right after the fall of Communism, later speaking in South Africa during the transition from white rule, doingpioneering work in Internet virtual worlds and simulation for NASA, and is currently

working in a progressive team in high tech to better lives around the world from the USto the Middle East, Pakistan and China and elsewhere.

If you are curious about Bruce and the team around the RadicalRemake Blueprint effortfind Bruce and our page “Radical Remake” on Facebook or reach Bruce directly on theweb at:http ://www .damer .com

References (TBD)

Lawrence Lessig, book

Amory Lovins, energyEisenhower, 1961 speechYeltsin, decree banning Communist PartyLebanese de-radicalization techniqueSouth African TRCCzechoslovak ElectionDick Cheney’s build-downJefferson’s proposal for constitutional conventionsJulian Assange’s blueprint for the Govt of Iceland for a transparent societyRick Doblin’s writings on sane drug policyLee Atwater’s apologyChange in law governing lying by broadcastersAndrew Marshall’s proposals on energy, opposition to Iraq war Pete Worden’s opposition to Iraq war and consequencesIndia’s online electoral systemElixir, projects in Prague, Pakistan

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Radical Remake Blueprint Living Document