DeMon's America (If I were president)

If I were president this is what my agenda would look like.

T. DeMon Spencer's Ideal America

1. Legalize gay marriage in all 50 states. 

2. Abolish the death penalty (state and federal).

3. Reverse “Citizens United” that gives corporations permission to anonymously funnel unlimited amounts of money into the election process.

4. Create a nonpartisan federal commission to construct and implement guidelines to standardize all elections. No matter what state you live in, your voting process will be identical.

5. Disallow private money in presidential elections. Each candidate will have a federally funded campaign budget. This can be funded by a small tax added to everyone’s driver’s license fees (2 or 3 percent should be enough).

6. Attach the federal minimum wage to the fluctuation of the living wage. (Minimum wage = living wage + 20%)

7. Free health care for all Americans.

8. Create new restrictive regulation on Wall Street to protect our financial system.

        a. 2% tax on every stock trade

        b. Reinstate the capital gains tax 
        c. Sever the ties between banks brokerages and hedge funds 
        d. Limit high speed stock transactions (add another 1% tax for these types of trades) 
        e. Reinstate the “Glass Stiegel” act and the good parts of “Dodd Frank” 

9. Legalize marijuana.

10. Limit prison sentences for non-violent offenders and offer rehabilitation programs for first-time offenders instead of prison.

11. End elections for district attorneys and county sheriffs. These positions will be appointed by county commission boards with input from the town’s mayor and the state Attorney General.

12. Close all privately owned prisons.

13. Divert a majority of resources away from the failed war on drugs and use it to improve low income neighborhoods.

14. Restore voting rights to nonviolent felons.

15. End district attorney job promotions that are based solely on conviction rates.

16. Create legislation that says the government cannot regulate the internet in any way under any circumstances. 100% off limits for the FCC

17. Create a program that offers zero percent interest for student loans.

18. Increase salaries for all teachers and give them performance based bonuses.

19. Legalize work unions in all states.

20. Corporate CEO’s cannot give themselves bonuses if the company did not meet projected earnings for that year. (every time the CEO gets a bonus all workers get one as well).

21. End all drone attacks and reduce the number of American military bases in other countries.

22. Fund a huge government program to encourage organic farming.

23. Heavily invest government funds into legitimate energy alternative research and implementation.

24. Create a program that gives unemployed workers an opportunity to get their unemployment benefits in a lump-sum to start a cooperative with 9 other unemployed workers to start their own company.

25. Ban former senators, legislators, and congressmen from becoming lobbyist after they leave public office.

26. Rebuild America’s crumbling infrastructure which will create a lot of jobs in every state.

27. Make it easier for the poor to get low income housing in nice neighborhoods.

28. Undo tort reform laws and remove judgment compensation limits.

29. Allow illegal immigrants a pathway to citizenship after completing and meeting certain criteria.

30. Ban all assault weapons and extended clip ammunition and require extensive background checks for every weapon sold, given, or traded.

31. Abolish ALL stand your ground laws in every state.

32. Give employers tax incentives for implementing a pension plan for their employees instead of a 401k plan.

33. End the anonymous silent filibuster in the senate.

34. Close tax avoidance loopholes for corporations.

35. End predatory lending in poor neighborhoods (pay-day loans, pawn shop check cashing, title loans), and make it easier to repair and/or maintain a positive credit score.

36. Fund a program that gives start-up capital to entrepreneur who wants to open a business in their neighborhood (to lessen the amount of outside people who have no ties to the community from owning every store and restaurant.)

37. Make all textbooks digital and give the students a free ipad or laptop in the 9th grade.

38. Offer free high-speed internet for low-income families.

39. Legalize gay adoption in ever state. Gay couples will have to meet the same requirements as straight couples.

40. Implement a 10 year term limit for Supreme Court appointees.

41. Make contraceptives available for all high school students who ask for it (from a guidance counselor who will also give them information about and talk one on one with them about pregnancy, sex and STD’s.)

42. Every public high school must have a gay straight student alliance club.

43. Give tax break incentives for those who register as an organ donor.

44. Break up huge media conglomerates into smaller companies to create a less bias corporate driven media industry.

45. Create a new government office under the FEC whose sole purpose is to monitor the fluctuation in income disparity, and report their findings once a year along with suggested courses of action to return it to a reasonable position.

46. Remove the legislation that protects gun manufactures from being sued for wrongdoing.

47. Ban lobbyist from writing bills and legislation.

48. Close ALL American prisons and detention centers in other countries.

49. Lessen time limits for drug patents and make life-saving drugs obtainable for 3rd world countries.

50. Take a much firmer stance with Israel and strongly push for a two state deal giving Palestinians the land they were forced away from.

Illicit: The Dark Trade

As most of you already know, I love to watch documentaries. Mostly documentaries dealing with something political, criminal, or world history related. Last night I couldn't sleep (like always), and so I decided to look for something to watch online. I have netflix, and a couple of other sites that I like to use to find movies and television shows that might be interesting. So after about 10 minutes of searching, I found this documentary about the business of illegal trade (aka illegal knockoffs) and it's effects on the global market, tilted "Illicit: The Dark Trade". The description of it's content peaked my interest, so I decided to watch it. I was thinking it was going to be about how different designers and companies track down knockoffs and what they are doing to prevent this illegal enterprise from growing even larger. When most people hear the word “knockoff” they immediately think of fake Gucci bags, rip off Ed Hardy t-shirts, phony Versace sunglasses, counterfeit D&G jeans, etc. etc. etc. But to my surprise, that aspect of illicit trade is minuscule compared to the big picture. I understand why different labels and designers want to do whatever they can to end this illegal practice, on the basis that it infringes upon their brand, and allows others to steal and profit from their ideas and their hard work. I totally get that. . . but I find it really hard to feel sympathetic for them when they are a multi million dollar company who over inflates their prices, and then they want to lock up your corner hustle/barbershop hook up guy who has next to nothing in his bank account, living in the projects, and he's only selling this knock off stuff to feed his family and pay the rent. And if you really think about it, the people who buy this designer knock off stuff, are people who can't afford “the real thing” anyway. So it would be stupid for a designer to think that the corner hustle man is taking away some of their business or stealing some of their customers. That argument is absurd, ignorant, and down right ludicrous. From my perspective, I think the whole “high-end” haute couture fashion industry are victims of their own making (and I use the word “victim” very very lightly). When it comes to marketing and promoting their clothes, and building a strong recognizable brand, they are the absolute best at it. Too good for their own good. These companies were among the first to recognize and exploit the power of the media, and the importance of name recognition. When they blanket an area with an explosion of ads, knowing that the average family income of that area is below $25,000, and the cost of their cheapest handbag is $8,000 , you have to wonder why are they doing this. They bombard magazines and television with ads that makes the consumer think that they are nothing unless they can have that designer bag. So eventually the consumer starts to see the bag as a status symbol, and part of their self worth. These companies know exactly how to use and manipulate consumers. They feed off of people's insecurities, in exchange for millions in profits that pad these fat cats wallets and contribute to their lavish and extravagant lifestyles. Everyone wants the “American Dream”, and they have convinced a large portion of Americans that the American Dream is for sell. And that's why I have no sympathy for designers, when it comes to buying and selling knock-offs of their products. I mean, just think about that 12 year old boy out there somewhere, living in the projects, with a single mother, and very little money for anything other than the basic necessities. He watches TV and sees the rappers and movie stars flashing all kinds of expensive stuff, their big diamonds, and constantly referencing different designer names. They look like they are the happiest most fortunate people he's ever seen. And he goes to school and see his classmates with the latest $150 sneakers and shirts and pants with visible designer logos, and he's wearing old hand-me-downs from his older brother. All of this gradually eats away at his self esteem. So when he becomes an adult, he connects happiness and self worth with having expensive material things. There are a lot of young girls and boys that are going through similar situations right now, all over this country. If they are too poor to buy those Versace sunglasses, they go out and get the next best thing, a knock-off.
This blog entry is a lot longer than I expected, so I'm going to have to write the second half half sometime tonight or tomorrow. Just wait and see how it all ties together. I break down the documentary and explain what caught my attention and got me fired up enough to blog about it. I will also post a link to the documentary so you can watch it free streaming right on your desktop.

TO BE CONTINUED:

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