October 27, 2020

From Gerald R. Lucas

Do We Still Live in a Representational Democracy? covid-19: day 220 | US: GA | info | act

Did we ever? Or, maybe the system is not broken, but works just fine for the people it was created for. I’m so tired of that. Kip seems to think that Barrett will be a strong addition to the Supreme Court: that she’ll be fair and mature, not letting partisan politics inform her decisions too much. I called her a religious zealot. I hope Kip is correct, but I have my doubts.

I really do hope we get Democrat majorities in both chambers of Congress, and I hope they railroad though some progressive legislation. New Civil Rights and police reform. Tax reforms that make the wealthy pay their fair share—maybe more for a while. Education reform that pays educators what they're worth. Universal basic income, so we can begin to reassess what it is we value—not what we’re forced to or told we should value. Single-payer healthcare, or Medicare for all. Along with that, we need more members to the Supreme Court (Republicans, or should we just call them the “Radical Right,” only have themselves to blame for this one) and term limits all around (for congress, too). Oh, and let’s get rid of the racist electoral college while we’re at it, and make ranked choice voting the law of the land. Let’s get the Green New Deal going, as well as election reform: our politicians should be allowed one month to campaign—they should not perpetually be running for office.

These are not radical ideas. We’ve tried it the other way, and it does not work for everyone—hardly anyone. If the ’Rump years have shown us anything, it’s that the US is in desperate need of change if it’s going to survive.