Part
1: Why a New Constitution is Our Best Hope
Having the longest-lasting constitution that is the
hardest to change is a negative, not a positive. Personally I advocate radical egalitarianism, democratic
world government, and nuclear disarmament.
The constitutional-convention process that I propose maximizes democracy,
and it will completely level the playing field by removing the influence of
money. But what can people like me do if
the American people under a new constitution desire laissez-faire capitalism, a
flat tax, and a neo-conservative foreign policy? We can try a new approach in popularizing our
preferences, but our plight will be less dismal than it is now because future
constitutions will be easier to amend
and easier to abolish.
In my ideal constitution, I would empower the 7
largest national political parties, create proportional representation in a
unicameral national legislature, and abolish the US Senate and the Electoral
College. I also would advocate single-payer health insurance, with the government as the single payer, and a public
banking system that abolishes the Federal Reserve. For some types of elections, I would
recommend instant runoff voting.
Since I am still listing my personal preferences, I
would change state governments as well: I would empower them from the
bottom-up, from the neighborhood block club, to the precinct, township, county,
and ultimately to the state legislative council that would make judicial and
executive-branch appointments, as the lower levels would also be able to
do.
Regarding the public schools (as a retired teacher),
I would let the residents, who live within the geographical districts of every
elementary, middle, and high school, use public funds to develop their own
educational philosophy and curriculum--with neither federal, state, county, nor
township school superintendent hierarchical control. This feature can bring back neighborhood
togetherness and community solidarity, as neighbors get to know one another
better and form common dreams.
But why is a new constitution needed? The world and the nation have changed since
the constitution was written in 1787 and since the current government was first
implemented with the presidency of George Washington in 1789. There have been 27 amendments to the
constitution for repairs and updates from time to time, but an entirely new
supreme civil document is now long overdue.
Dialogue and careful consideration is needed with full participation
from every citizen.
Some libertarians and original constitutionalists
believe it was wrong to allow average citizens, rather than state legislators,
to elect the US Senate (Amendment 17).
Others oppose the income tax altogether or the unfair way that the
wealthy and poor are now taxed (Amendment 16).
Both conservatives and liberals would like to clarify the wording of the
Second Amendment regarding the "right to bear arms" and whether the Federal Reserve, a private
organization, should have been formed in 1913 when the constitution says that
Congress shall "coin money, [and] regulate the power thereof" (Article I,
Section 8).
Many people resent the fact that our supreme
document makes reference to how slaves are counted (Article I, Section 2) and
how slavery is to be allowed until 1808 (Article V). Article V tells how the constitution can be
amended, and it is more difficult to amend than any other constitution on
earth. Moreover, there is absolutely no
place in the constitution that tells how it can be totally abolished, which
Jefferson recommended doing with every new generation.
Article I, Section 8, says that Congress has the
ability to declare war, but current presidents start wars too freely. It would also seem that the National Security
Administration (NSA), the Pentagon, the CIA, FBI, Homeland Security, and
transnational corporations--the military-industrial complex--pretty much do whatever they want in regards to foreign policy and domestic surveillance. "If voting could change anything [significantly],
it would be abolished," is one of my favorite quotes. John
Perkins, author of the book Confessions
of an Economic Hitman also expresses my sentiments: "We cannot have homeland security until the
whole earth is our homeland."
In a world that is changing fast, any new constitution must show how it can
be amended and also abolished easily in a fair, orderly, and nonviolent
way. To make it easier to amend and to
abolish our current constitution--a
constitutional amendment must be passed.
Constitutional amendments are difficult to pass when
the issues are polarized. The
Twenty-Sixth Amendment, which reduced the voting age to 18, was passed in a few
months. But if a new Twenty-Eighth
Amendment proposal could show how a constitutional convention could be held
that totally levels the playing field among Republicans, Democrats, and the 5
major political third parties, this idea could pick up momentum. Here is one way the proposal could be
written:
Proposal for a Twenty-Eighth Amendment to
Revise Article V: How to Amend and to Abolish the Constitution More Easily
The
United States government can be changed through new amendments added to the
constitution. It can also be modified
when Congress passes new federal laws or statutes. But to
change the federal government completely by abolishing the constitution, there
has to be a Constitutional Convention to rewrite a new constitution.
How to Add Amendments to the Current
Constitution More Easily
To
change or modify the federal government by merely adding amendments to the
Constitution, the United States Congress (including both the House and the
Senate) must pass any proposed amendment to the Constitution with at least a
67% majority in both Houses. The
previous, additional ratification by 3/4 of the state legislatures, is no longer
required.
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