I very much would like the public to engage in a debate on these suggestions – which are a beginning and food for thought – help me develop these ideas! Send a comment – by clicking comments at the end of the post. I have sent all these questions to the Obama-Biden Transition team.
ENDING CORPORATE CONTROL AND PERSONHOOD – RESTORING POWER TO THE PEOPLE
“Would you support a 28th Amendment proposed by famed author, advocate, marine biologist, public speaker, Riki Ott, who wrote the Book about the Exxon Valdez disaster consequences to end “corporate personhood”, and return the government to the people?”
“Will you hire/ appoint as advisors civil rights activists, dissidents, ex-cons especially someone who has been wrongfully convicted, whistle blowers, and others in the trenches and not just use professional politicians, lobbyists and political hacks?”
TRANSITIONING FROM THE PAPER AGE TO THE DIGITAL AGE – MODERNIZING AMERICA
“Communications a new frontier – money wasted; no standardization of bills & records; difficult finding data; privacy & security concerns; elderly/disabled concerns; education concerns. Do you support new Cabinet position for Communications Secretary?”
FIXING HEALTH CARE
“50% or so of health care dollars is spent on advertising. What will you do to stop this waste. Health care providers should be like the police and fire departments, a necessary public service that does not advertise.”
“Would you support a steeply progressive and very high tax on advertising of drugs to discourage this practice? This would quickly reduce the cost of drugs as presently 50 % of drug company budgets are advertising costs. Or would you ban advertising?”
“Whether to do Phase 3 clinical trials of new drugs is decided by drug companies – encourages excessive costs by testing unnecessary “me too” drugs with no benefit. Would you support FDA taking over this decision analagous to IL hosp plan commission?”
“Our veterans in chronic pain are thrown narcotics in high doses making them nonfunctional addicts instead of treating pain properly with multiple modalities (TENS units, therapy, muscle relaxants, meditation). Will you help them reclaim their lives?”
“Medical care at Cook Co. Jail & IL prison system is so inadequate inmates have had their leg amputated for lack of antibiotics & prisoners who were disabled lay on the floor in diarrhea for days unable to obtain water/care. Will DOJ investigate?”
“In Illinois Atty Gen Lisa Madigan, several Governors, and their corrupt accomplices fraudulently deny mental health care to those on Medicaid and wrongfully prosecute health care providers who are trying to provide this service. Will you investigate?”
ENDING CORRUPTION
“Truth commissions worked in S Africa to encourage confession, transparency, healing, accountability, and reconciliation. Couldn’t they work in the U.S to save money, increase openness, and allow us to get beyond corruption and move on constructively?”
FIXING GOVERNMENT CORRUPTION
“AAG Patrick Fitzgerald doesn’t have half the manpower he needs to prosecute all the corruption in Illinois. Will you remedy this and make stamping out corruption a priority along with prosecuting felony civil rights violations?”
CIVIL RIGHTS ISSUES IN JUSTICE SYSTEM
“Prosecution of felony civil rights violations – been stopped by Bush. Will you prosecute systemic intentional civil rights violations in prisons and jails that have led to death and loss of limb by intentional withholding of medical care and meds?”
“In Illinois 1 prison law librarian handles ALL requests from all 40,000 prisoners for legal research, legal documents, etc. This cannot be considered access to the courts. Will the DOJ investigate and prosecute such systemic civil rights violations?”
FIXING [IN]JUSTICE SYSTEM – HELPING CIZITENS TO REACH THEIR POTENTIAL AND JOIN THE WORK FORCE – FIXING THE ECONOMY
“Torture, medical neglect, abuse, denial of access to courts is routine in American prisons. What will you do to fix this and reduce the prison population which is 40 X greater than in any civilized country and is tearing down our economy?”
“Excess incarceration is killing our economy. Will you lead the battle to replace incarceration with restorative justice for non-violent offenses. Skilling should be working and paying 99.9% of his salary to those he harmed!”
“Torture, medical neglect, forced drugging, withholding of medical diets, falsification of records by guards, beatings resulting in death is standard practice in US jails and prisons. Will you hold Congressional hearings on this topic to expose it?”
“Rural areas have attracted for profit prisons. The prison/industrial complex now employes 1/10 Americans. This is not productive – guards and prisoners don’t contribute to the economy – they suck the wind out of it. What will you do to fix this?”
“Brain surgeons go to medical school for 4 years then do internships and residencies to learn this skill for another 7 years. I don’t want a family doc doing brain surgery. Shouldn’t judges be required more education than 3 years of law school?”
“All sorts of roadblocks are put up to prevent pro se litigants from defending themselves and litigating in courts. Will you see that pro se manuals are written, judicial education is improved, and citizens can have access and fairness in the courts?”
“Judges are arrogant, incompetent, corrupt, and they routinely deny civil rights – right to self-representation, right to access courts, introduce evidence, etc. They abuse orders for fitness exams. Will you hold hearings and change this?”
“Corrupt politicians and police illegally use fraudulent charges of disorderly conduct, trespass, resisting arrest, etc., as retaliatory tools against whistle blowers and dissidents. Will you hold Congressional hearings on this and stop this practice?”
FIXING TORTURE, ABUSE, MEDICAL NEGLECT IN JAILS AND PRISONS
“US Atty Fitzgerald found systemic medical neglect and violence by guards against inmates at Cook Co. Jail. YET NO INDICTMENTS for this intentional battery resulting in many deaths have occurred. Will you prosecute these criminal officers/officials?”
PRESERVING OUR CULTURE AND THE ARTS
“Japan preserves its crafts by funding “living national treasures” – top craftsmen and artists. They are given a govnt salary to maintain and teach their skill like swordmaking, flower arranging, Samari skills. Should we do this?”
Dr Linda Shelton 