Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - If you could change your country or start your own, what would you do?

Willravel · 03-26-2007, 10:36 AM

I could write 10 books that wouldn't even begin to cover what I'd do, so I'll try to sumamrize:
I'd like to have nation-states on hundreds of islands, the democratically elected leader of each would make up a parliament with no head. Each island would have strict limits on population growth, that would be supported by state funded science programs that measure exactly how large a population could survive on the resources of the whole nation of islands. The idea would be to never run out of resources by maintaining a healthy population level.

State-islands could trade freely, and taxation between states would be minimal. Exporting would be taxed minimally, and importing would be taxed a bit more. The idea would be to promote self sufficiency and interdependence between islands instead of dependence on trade from other countries.

We would have strong and friendly relations with all neighbors by providing humanitarian aid free of charge when and if needed and by defending them if they were ever invaded without provocation or by providing safe neutral grounds for multilateral peace talks.

We would have a very, very strong volunteer defensive military force and a very weak offensive force. Drafts would be unconstitutional. Military-only corporations would be illegal. Civilian manufacturers would be asked (not forced) to provide services in time of need only. War could only be declared in specific cases of necessity and would require a 3/4 vote from the entire parliament.

Health care would be federally funded and state run.

Education would be Montessori method through the end of High School and colleges would be required to meet high state standards that were competitive with the top colleges in the world. College tuition would have a cap, be they private or public. No one will ever have to drop $300,000 for a degree no matter what.

Economics would hopefully play to strengths and work to compensate for any weaknesses (for example, if tech was well represented and agriculture were lacking, technology would be gently persuaded to assist agriculture). Incorporating would be illegal. Banks would be federal and only would hold money, no investments, and no interest. Credit and loans would be illegal. Money would be backed 100% with gold.

One night a month, members of every community would be asked to attend community or town hall meetings to discuss local issues that may not be addressed by the county, state or federal levels in order to ensure adequate representation. Each community leader would meet with the town leader, that would meet with the county leader, that would sit on a state board and speak to the head of each state. Any leader not adequately thought to be representing his or her constituents can be put to a vote of no confidence and removed by a vote of 55% or more. This goes all the way from community leaders to state leaders. It would be in the constitution that all government is there to serve at the pleasure of the people, and that the populace is responsible for maintaining the entire country.

Campaigns would be maintained by the state. A minimum of 6 and maximum of 12 political parties would be able to choose one representative, which would be given state allotted time for debate with the other people running. TV, radio and print would be allotted, not bought. Campaign contributions would be illegal. Each representative, be they community, town, county, or state, would be paid the mean income of their constituents. Each representative will need to have lived in the area they are representing for several years.

Criminality would be addressed in childhood. The idea would be to absolutely curtail criminal behavioral patterns early on so as to prevent crime instead of react to it. There would be a federal prison system in place, but the idea would be to find out what led to the criminality and seek to always adjust the school system to help prevent future crime.

The justice system would place justice above the law. Lawyers would be charged with finding the truth, not just defending or prosecuting. The system would be less adversarial than the system I'm familiar with here in the US. Judges would be required to monitor cases only, and the jury would preside. Jury duty would be mandatory and the jury would be completely chosen at random a year ahead of the case (ex. March 2007 a jury is chosen and put on notice "March 2008 you will be required to serve", then as a case would come up they'd be assigned). 12 people would be chosen and swear to uphold justice, and then the law. Jury selection is unnecessary, as all people would be required to put any bias out of their mind. Monetary compensation would only be allowed in cases where money was lost and the money could only replace that money. One could not sue a company because one fell and get $100,000. One could get all their physical therapy and psychology bills paid by the company, but no monetary winnings.

More to come.

03-26-2007, 10:36 AM	#4 (permalink)
Willravel ... a sort of licensed troubleshooter.	I could write 10 books that wouldn't even begin to cover what I'd do, so I'll try to sumamrize: I'd like to have nation-states on hundreds of islands, the democratically elected leader of each would make up a parliament with no head. Each island would have strict limits on population growth, that would be supported by state funded science programs that measure exactly how large a population could survive on the resources of the whole nation of islands. The idea would be to never run out of resources by maintaining a healthy population level. State-islands could trade freely, and taxation between states would be minimal. Exporting would be taxed minimally, and importing would be taxed a bit more. The idea would be to promote self sufficiency and interdependence between islands instead of dependence on trade from other countries. We would have strong and friendly relations with all neighbors by providing humanitarian aid free of charge when and if needed and by defending them if they were ever invaded without provocation or by providing safe neutral grounds for multilateral peace talks. We would have a very, very strong volunteer defensive military force and a very weak offensive force. Drafts would be unconstitutional. Military-only corporations would be illegal. Civilian manufacturers would be asked (not forced) to provide services in time of need only. War could only be declared in specific cases of necessity and would require a 3/4 vote from the entire parliament. Health care would be federally funded and state run. Education would be Montessori method through the end of High School and colleges would be required to meet high state standards that were competitive with the top colleges in the world. College tuition would have a cap, be they private or public. No one will ever have to drop $300,000 for a degree no matter what. Economics would hopefully play to strengths and work to compensate for any weaknesses (for example, if tech was well represented and agriculture were lacking, technology would be gently persuaded to assist agriculture). Incorporating would be illegal. Banks would be federal and only would hold money, no investments, and no interest. Credit and loans would be illegal. Money would be backed 100% with gold. One night a month, members of every community would be asked to attend community or town hall meetings to discuss local issues that may not be addressed by the county, state or federal levels in order to ensure adequate representation. Each community leader would meet with the town leader, that would meet with the county leader, that would sit on a state board and speak to the head of each state. Any leader not adequately thought to be representing his or her constituents can be put to a vote of no confidence and removed by a vote of 55% or more. This goes all the way from community leaders to state leaders. It would be in the constitution that all government is there to serve at the pleasure of the people, and that the populace is responsible for maintaining the entire country. Campaigns would be maintained by the state. A minimum of 6 and maximum of 12 political parties would be able to choose one representative, which would be given state allotted time for debate with the other people running. TV, radio and print would be allotted, not bought. Campaign contributions would be illegal. Each representative, be they community, town, county, or state, would be paid the mean income of their constituents. Each representative will need to have lived in the area they are representing for several years. Criminality would be addressed in childhood. The idea would be to absolutely curtail criminal behavioral patterns early on so as to prevent crime instead of react to it. There would be a federal prison system in place, but the idea would be to find out what led to the criminality and seek to always adjust the school system to help prevent future crime. The justice system would place justice above the law. Lawyers would be charged with finding the truth, not just defending or prosecuting. The system would be less adversarial than the system I'm familiar with here in the US. Judges would be required to monitor cases only, and the jury would preside. Jury duty would be mandatory and the jury would be completely chosen at random a year ahead of the case (ex. March 2007 a jury is chosen and put on notice "March 2008 you will be required to serve", then as a case would come up they'd be assigned). 12 people would be chosen and swear to uphold justice, and then the law. Jury selection is unnecessary, as all people would be required to put any bias out of their mind. Monetary compensation would only be allowed in cases where money was lost and the money could only replace that money. One could not sue a company because one fell and get $100,000. One could get all their physical therapy and psychology bills paid by the company, but no monetary winnings. More to come.