Political Parties are the major roadblock to true Democracy. Political Parties in ALL their many strips serve only to divide the citizens of the country. ALL of the Parties have their own focus that is to promote their own philosophy and objectives. None are concerned with the GREATER GOOD of the country and the citizens. This is not knew or of a revelation as one can observe their behavior in the HOUSE and how DISRESPECTFUL they are to each other, their is no attempt at UNITY.
A true Democracy UNITIES the citizens in a manner that focuses on the GREATER GOOD of the country and the individual citizen. The different philosophies and objectives are able to find common ground where everyone can unite behind. We occasionally see the possibility of working in a common manner when we have a minority government.
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
We Want Democracy!
We want a Democracy that is TRUE REPRESENTATION. The last Federal Election the Conservative Party won 39.6% of the votes BUT received 54.2% of the House Seats - HOW IS THAT ANY SORT OF REPRESENTATION? This is what has to STOP.
As long as we continue to have the MINORITY of the population GOVERNING the MAJORITY we will continue to have inequity in the system.This inequity is even more pronounced when we look further into the last Election. The 39.6% that the Conservatives received was of the number of Votes cast and only 61% of the eligible voters actually voted. This means the Conservative Government is only supported by 25 - 30% of the population. The question is - How can this in any way be considered DEMOCRACY and it certainly is not any sort of REPRESENTATION.
As long as we continue to have the MINORITY of the population GOVERNING the MAJORITY we will continue to have inequity in the system.This inequity is even more pronounced when we look further into the last Election. The 39.6% that the Conservatives received was of the number of Votes cast and only 61% of the eligible voters actually voted. This means the Conservative Government is only supported by 25 - 30% of the population. The question is - How can this in any way be considered DEMOCRACY and it certainly is not any sort of REPRESENTATION.
Monday, October 17, 2011
What we Want?
I have asked coworkers if they have been to the Demo and they have ALL said what Demo? When I tell them Occupy Vancouver there response is - Oh...the ones who do not know what they want!
It is the BEGINNING that is important here. We are so conditioned that we MUST KNOW EXACTLY WHAT WE WANT. We know what we want - Freedom, Fairness, Security, Health and Representation. How do we get these desires and how we define them needs to be discussed in a open form - Occupation Vancouver.
The O-V is the beginning in defining these desires and how to achieve them. It is the first time I have seen or participated in such a process. The NEWNESS of this opportunity is EXCITING. With no single AGENDA to control or direct the process.
It is the BEGINNING that is important here. We are so conditioned that we MUST KNOW EXACTLY WHAT WE WANT. We know what we want - Freedom, Fairness, Security, Health and Representation. How do we get these desires and how we define them needs to be discussed in a open form - Occupation Vancouver.
The O-V is the beginning in defining these desires and how to achieve them. It is the first time I have seen or participated in such a process. The NEWNESS of this opportunity is EXCITING. With no single AGENDA to control or direct the process.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Occupy Vancouver
I was at the Demo on Saturday and was inspired by the turnout (5000) and hope that the Occupation continues. It was like walking down memory lane, with the same sort of speeches and the same mentality of "Us vs Them". In some way it is very Limiting and Dis-empowering, as we blame the Capitalists, Governments and other Powers as the source of our problems and very little in the way of resolving the problems except to battle each other. This keeps us divided as US against THEM and what we need to do is to UNITE.
Capitalism vs Communism/Socialism is a old concept dating back to the 1800s. We need to bring our Mind-set to the 21 Century and out of this constant struggle that has no end. This is why we need something NEW. A method where the Capitalist and the Socialist can unite to build a community that respects all views, with a set of STANDARDS that everyone can respect and live and prosper from.
I do not have the answers but I am searching for possibilities. This blog will be for discussions on how we search for the answers we need.
Capitalism vs Communism/Socialism is a old concept dating back to the 1800s. We need to bring our Mind-set to the 21 Century and out of this constant struggle that has no end. This is why we need something NEW. A method where the Capitalist and the Socialist can unite to build a community that respects all views, with a set of STANDARDS that everyone can respect and live and prosper from.
I do not have the answers but I am searching for possibilities. This blog will be for discussions on how we search for the answers we need.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
WAR
This economical time we are in, I have to worry about another World War on the horizon. With the countries in Europe on the verge of bankruptcy and the USA not far behind them it is a worry time. In the past such world troubles have lead to World Wars. It was World War 2 that brought the Great Depression to an end. With China and India the developing powers and the West on the verge of collapse. This is a scary time and with China the major holder of the USA debts.
Can we find our way through these times without falling back on our past solutions of WAR?
Can we find our way through these times without falling back on our past solutions of WAR?
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Taxes, taxes and more taxes
The HST or PST & GST and now they are talking about adding another .02 on the price of gas to pay for some more rapid transit. When does the taxation stop? We are now paying more in taxes than we have ever paid and we are getting less in services than we ever have, this does not compute. The teachers are now bargaining and are wanting more, next the health care workers will be bargaining and wanting more.
Our whole taxation system needs a desperate restructuring. We need to restructure our Income Tax, Property Tax, Sales Tax and all the government fees and licenses. The different levels of taxation is also in need of restructure, Municipal, Provincial and Federal. Without a restructure of our Taxation system there is no end in how much we will be paying in Taxes. We already pay half our income to some form of Taxation, it is not until June each year that we reach the point of paying our taxes. At this rate it will not be long until we will be paying taxes until August each year.
Most of the argument of the increase in Taxes is that we need to pay for all the government services that we demand of government. We continue to pay more but the education system is worse than it has been, the health system is also worse than it has been, we pay more but we do not see any improvements. It is time to understand that throwing more money (more taxes) at the government does not mean that we have better government or better services. Money is not the issue here.
In the old days the individual taxes were allocated to specific services - Gas Tax was dedicated to Transportation, road maintenance, bridges, new roads, etc. - Tobacco and Alcohol Taxes was dedicated to the Health system - Income Tax was to general revenue. Now everything goes to General Revenue and there is no accounting for any section of government. Every section of government has to fight for a share of the General Revenue if they need it or not. Whatever section of government is better at getting a bigger share of the pie, if they need it or not, robes another section that may need the funds more. This leads to some sections of the government being over funded and others under funded. The under funded yells about needing more tax dollars that is passed onto to us. This system does not work!
In order to begin to restructure our Taxation system we need to come to terms with what we demand of the Government and the services the government provides. The first thing to evaluate is the general 'universality' of the major government services. In order to explain what I mean by 'universality' of these services lets look at the government's pension services - CPP and Old Age Security plans.
Everyone who has worked in Canada has paid into the CPP funds, as it is a government retirement payment program that is universal to all individual's working in Canada. When the individual reaches 65 years old they can retire and collect a pension from CPP, this includes EVERYONE. This pension is not that much as it maxis to about $12,000 per year or just under. However, EVERYONE is entitled to this even if they do not need this income. Recently in the news there is a report of a top government corporation executive was given a pension of $300,000 per year. This I find to be high, but the real crime comes when the executive reaches 65 and starts to collect $312,000 per year. There is no reason for this executive to draw upon the funds of the CPP, to do so is pure GREED.
CPP was set up to create a minimum base for retirees, so individuals that reach the retire age can have a minimum to support their elder years. I am setting a arbitrary rate of $60,000 per year, anyone with a pension of $60,000 or more should not be entitled to the CPP plan, it is not needed. Most individuals in our society do not make enough income in their working life to create a pension plan, this is what CPP was created for. It is this that the plan should be used for.
This is just an example of what I mean of the 'universality' of the majority of the government services and the whole concept of 'universality' needs to be re-evaluated before we can start to restructure our Taxation system. We also need to re-define what we expect of Government and what is the responsibility of the individual. The question is - do we have the courage to do what is needed? Or are we going to continue on the path we are on until it completely fails (Greece and other countries that are close to bankruptcy).
Our whole taxation system needs a desperate restructuring. We need to restructure our Income Tax, Property Tax, Sales Tax and all the government fees and licenses. The different levels of taxation is also in need of restructure, Municipal, Provincial and Federal. Without a restructure of our Taxation system there is no end in how much we will be paying in Taxes. We already pay half our income to some form of Taxation, it is not until June each year that we reach the point of paying our taxes. At this rate it will not be long until we will be paying taxes until August each year.
Most of the argument of the increase in Taxes is that we need to pay for all the government services that we demand of government. We continue to pay more but the education system is worse than it has been, the health system is also worse than it has been, we pay more but we do not see any improvements. It is time to understand that throwing more money (more taxes) at the government does not mean that we have better government or better services. Money is not the issue here.
In the old days the individual taxes were allocated to specific services - Gas Tax was dedicated to Transportation, road maintenance, bridges, new roads, etc. - Tobacco and Alcohol Taxes was dedicated to the Health system - Income Tax was to general revenue. Now everything goes to General Revenue and there is no accounting for any section of government. Every section of government has to fight for a share of the General Revenue if they need it or not. Whatever section of government is better at getting a bigger share of the pie, if they need it or not, robes another section that may need the funds more. This leads to some sections of the government being over funded and others under funded. The under funded yells about needing more tax dollars that is passed onto to us. This system does not work!
In order to begin to restructure our Taxation system we need to come to terms with what we demand of the Government and the services the government provides. The first thing to evaluate is the general 'universality' of the major government services. In order to explain what I mean by 'universality' of these services lets look at the government's pension services - CPP and Old Age Security plans.
Everyone who has worked in Canada has paid into the CPP funds, as it is a government retirement payment program that is universal to all individual's working in Canada. When the individual reaches 65 years old they can retire and collect a pension from CPP, this includes EVERYONE. This pension is not that much as it maxis to about $12,000 per year or just under. However, EVERYONE is entitled to this even if they do not need this income. Recently in the news there is a report of a top government corporation executive was given a pension of $300,000 per year. This I find to be high, but the real crime comes when the executive reaches 65 and starts to collect $312,000 per year. There is no reason for this executive to draw upon the funds of the CPP, to do so is pure GREED.
CPP was set up to create a minimum base for retirees, so individuals that reach the retire age can have a minimum to support their elder years. I am setting a arbitrary rate of $60,000 per year, anyone with a pension of $60,000 or more should not be entitled to the CPP plan, it is not needed. Most individuals in our society do not make enough income in their working life to create a pension plan, this is what CPP was created for. It is this that the plan should be used for.
This is just an example of what I mean of the 'universality' of the majority of the government services and the whole concept of 'universality' needs to be re-evaluated before we can start to restructure our Taxation system. We also need to re-define what we expect of Government and what is the responsibility of the individual. The question is - do we have the courage to do what is needed? Or are we going to continue on the path we are on until it completely fails (Greece and other countries that are close to bankruptcy).
Friday, May 27, 2011
Laws
The first thing to make clear is the difference between Laws & Rules. Laws are somewhat more fundamental and not easily manipulated. Rules are much more flexible and manipulated. We can see this issue of Laws when we apply them to the area of Science – Law of Gravity, Cause & Effect, and other Laws that govern our Physical Reality. These Laws that govern our Physical Reality are Laws that we ALL know and knowing these Laws allow us to function in this Physical Reality safely and effectively. These Laws define our Physical Reality.
The Laws of Society need to be at this same fundamental level. The Laws of Society need to define the Society. This definition of Society can only be established by the MEMBERS of the Society, not from the LEADERS. It is the INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS of Society that need to establish these Laws, in order for the LEADERS to have their Leadership defined. Once these basic Laws are set they can only be changed or altered by a LARGE MAJORITY of the Members of Society (at least 80%). The reason for such a large majority is that the Laws define the Society and EVERYONE in the Society. Such a fundamental change to the Society needs to be supported by a LARGE majority or the society may splinter and become fractured.
Laws of Society:
The Society is built by the INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS of the Society. It is with this understanding that a strong and productive Society is only possible with strong and empowered INDIVIDUALS.
Normally when we talk about Laws we think of the Laws that the police enforce and the courts enforce. These are NOT the true Laws of our Society. In Canada the Laws of our Society are found in our Charter of Rights & Freedoms, in the USA it is the Bill of Rights. The reason I refer to these documents as the Laws of our Society is the fact that these documents override any Laws passed by the politicians. Any Law that is passed by the politicians that violates the Charter of Rights & Freedoms the Law is NULL AND VOID AND HAS NO AUTHORITY.
The Laws that the police and courts deal with are more associated with the RULES of Society and will be blogged about in the next blog topic. This blog topic on LAWS is more associated with the issues of our Charter of Rights & Freedoms. Our Charter of Rights & Freedoms is a good place to start but it needs more work and to be more prominent in our Society.
Canadian Charter of Rights & Freedom:
This is a good starting point as it outlines the INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS & FREEDOMS within Canadian Society. It deals with – Fundamental Freedoms, Democratic Rights, Mobility Rights, Legal Rights and Equality Rights – for ALL CANADIANS (MALE AND FEMALE). The major defect resides in the RESPONSIBILITY of each CANADIAN to the Society.
In order for the INDIVIDUAL to feel a part of the Society there needs to be some RESPONSIBILITY of the Individual in active participation within the Society. This is where the Charter of Rights & Freedoms is silent.
In order for the INDIVIDUAL MEMBER of Society to actually take a level of ownership in the Society there needs to be a level of RESPONSIBILITY on the MEMBER for the Society. The Members’ Responsibility is in how the Society is Governed.
Every Society needs a mechanism for operating as a united group with a common interest and intention, this we call GOVERNING (GOVERNMENT). Each Member of the Society NEEDS to have a level of direct involvement and responsible for this GOVERNANCE. This is how the MEMBERS define their OWNERSHIP of the Society. Without this OWNERSHIP the member begins to feel disenfranchised from the Society and the Society becomes fractured.
The LAWS of Society is not just the Rights & Freedoms of the Individual, but also the DUTY that is required by the Individual to the Society. There is another document that speaks a little on such DUTY.
Declaration of Independence – states in part “...it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government ...” in another part of the same document “...Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed- ...” In the first quote it refers to “their duty” their – referring to the members of the society and duty – as their responsibility. In the second quote it talks about how it is only with the “consent” of the members of society that authorizes the Governing Powers the power to govern. Without the approval of the Members of Society the Governing Power has no Power. This document also mentions some of the basic rights of all the Members of Society – “...Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness...” – for ALL MEMBERS and balanced with the MEMBERS’ DUTY.
Purpose of these LAWS:
There are many different TYPES of Societies. These LAWS define the TYPE of Society the MEMBERS want to CREATE. These LAWS address the RIGHTS & FREEDOMS of the Individual within the Society PLUS the DUTY of the Individual to the Society.
The next subject is RULES...
The Laws of Society need to be at this same fundamental level. The Laws of Society need to define the Society. This definition of Society can only be established by the MEMBERS of the Society, not from the LEADERS. It is the INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS of Society that need to establish these Laws, in order for the LEADERS to have their Leadership defined. Once these basic Laws are set they can only be changed or altered by a LARGE MAJORITY of the Members of Society (at least 80%). The reason for such a large majority is that the Laws define the Society and EVERYONE in the Society. Such a fundamental change to the Society needs to be supported by a LARGE majority or the society may splinter and become fractured.
Laws of Society:
The Society is built by the INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS of the Society. It is with this understanding that a strong and productive Society is only possible with strong and empowered INDIVIDUALS.
Normally when we talk about Laws we think of the Laws that the police enforce and the courts enforce. These are NOT the true Laws of our Society. In Canada the Laws of our Society are found in our Charter of Rights & Freedoms, in the USA it is the Bill of Rights. The reason I refer to these documents as the Laws of our Society is the fact that these documents override any Laws passed by the politicians. Any Law that is passed by the politicians that violates the Charter of Rights & Freedoms the Law is NULL AND VOID AND HAS NO AUTHORITY.
The Laws that the police and courts deal with are more associated with the RULES of Society and will be blogged about in the next blog topic. This blog topic on LAWS is more associated with the issues of our Charter of Rights & Freedoms. Our Charter of Rights & Freedoms is a good place to start but it needs more work and to be more prominent in our Society.
Canadian Charter of Rights & Freedom:
This is a good starting point as it outlines the INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS & FREEDOMS within Canadian Society. It deals with – Fundamental Freedoms, Democratic Rights, Mobility Rights, Legal Rights and Equality Rights – for ALL CANADIANS (MALE AND FEMALE). The major defect resides in the RESPONSIBILITY of each CANADIAN to the Society.
In order for the INDIVIDUAL to feel a part of the Society there needs to be some RESPONSIBILITY of the Individual in active participation within the Society. This is where the Charter of Rights & Freedoms is silent.
In order for the INDIVIDUAL MEMBER of Society to actually take a level of ownership in the Society there needs to be a level of RESPONSIBILITY on the MEMBER for the Society. The Members’ Responsibility is in how the Society is Governed.
Every Society needs a mechanism for operating as a united group with a common interest and intention, this we call GOVERNING (GOVERNMENT). Each Member of the Society NEEDS to have a level of direct involvement and responsible for this GOVERNANCE. This is how the MEMBERS define their OWNERSHIP of the Society. Without this OWNERSHIP the member begins to feel disenfranchised from the Society and the Society becomes fractured.
The LAWS of Society is not just the Rights & Freedoms of the Individual, but also the DUTY that is required by the Individual to the Society. There is another document that speaks a little on such DUTY.
Declaration of Independence – states in part “...it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government ...” in another part of the same document “...Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed- ...” In the first quote it refers to “their duty” their – referring to the members of the society and duty – as their responsibility. In the second quote it talks about how it is only with the “consent” of the members of society that authorizes the Governing Powers the power to govern. Without the approval of the Members of Society the Governing Power has no Power. This document also mentions some of the basic rights of all the Members of Society – “...Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness...” – for ALL MEMBERS and balanced with the MEMBERS’ DUTY.
Purpose of these LAWS:
There are many different TYPES of Societies. These LAWS define the TYPE of Society the MEMBERS want to CREATE. These LAWS address the RIGHTS & FREEDOMS of the Individual within the Society PLUS the DUTY of the Individual to the Society.
The next subject is RULES...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)