Unity08. A people's movement to take our country back.

I think we should take a vote to "eliminate" or "retain" the Spanish Language version of this Web Site. In my view, if you can't speak English, the inherent language of our country, you are not qualified to participate in this movement.

I vote for "elimination"

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I have been a registered independent since 1968 and I welcome this opportunity to have a positive effect on our broken system.Your priorities are right on target and for those of us who have stopped voting another chance to make a difference.

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All the issues listed on Unity08 are important, however, immigration and illegal immigration need to be discussed. Mexico's informal invasion of the US will affect our security, public services, crime, and swell our disadvantaged population by the tens of millions if our borders are not secured. Our Senate is in full denial on this issue, and it will affect each and everyone of us. jlk

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I also watched the NewsHour. I was a bit surprised at the lack of knowledge the reporter expressed but, I was very glad to learn you had established Unity08.
As a reader of US History of the beginnings of this country I have been really appalled at the arrogance of the Bush Administration. As a child of two FDR Democrats, who discussed history and politics at the dinner table, I have not understood where the Congress has hid itself.
And, having grown up on the East Coast in the major large cities, with Immigrants on all side, I think we'd better look to the people who waved their hands to entice the immigrants here, in the first place.
The Right and Wings have aggravate many in the Center, and I do hope the discussions and decisions here will help to return our country to understand why it was started in the first place.
Thank You

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The American justice system represents the interests of wealth and power, prosecustion and punishment is based on the financial status of a defendent. Reform of our court system begins with regulating the practice of lawyers and profit for advantage in legal process. It is impossible for a trial to find the truth when the legal council for the defense and prosecution can be so dramatically unfare. I guess this expains why our prisons are full of poor people....

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It's time to take of the training wheels and completely replace the infra-structure with video conferencing systems. Replace the DMV, courthouse, schoolhouse and all institutional buildings with internet video conferencing systems. We currently maintain the old and the new, both costing us money. We must send our congressmen home, allow our teachers to teach 500 students instead of 30. We can save trillions and protect our infrastructure and government from terrorists. For more information visit www.appyp.com/fix_main.html

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The American family always has and always will strive for financial security for themselves and their children. Lives protected from financial despair based on natural human aging and eventual human illness. The people of this nation pray for a way of life that allows for higher education, financial progress and retirement without the constant fear of financial disaster from job loss or the illness of a loved one. Today the dream has turned into a nightmare for most American families as a result of the private healthcare bureaucracy raping every family of lifetime savings in the end. If the illness of a loved one has not destroyed you financially your own human aging surely will. It is wrong to profit off the sick and elderly as it is wrong to accept campaign contributions from foreign corporations! For more information visit www.appyp.com/fix_main.html

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This is way too difficult to read, having to manually navigate each post. Why was this changed from yesterday, when all the posts were visible and one could simply read the entire set in order?

Perhaps installing phpBB and setting up a true forum would be a more functional way to go than just blog comments?

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Yes Steve a unity movement involving either the Democrat or Republican party is doomed. Not because of me! But because of people like me both of these political parties are doomed because the American people will go down and change their political affiliation from Democract and Republican to Independent and deflate both parties. Because being registered as either a Democrat or Republican legitimizes two party control of our legislative process which is preventing the application of technology to reform our system before the terrorist take advantage of our outdated systems and destroy us. For more information visit www.appyp.com/fix_main.html

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Yes Steve, you are right, a unity movement involving either the Democrat or Republican party is doomed. Not because of me - but because of people like me - both of these political parties are doomed because the American people will go down and change their political affiliation from Democract or Republican to Independent and deflate both parties. As I advise them that being registered as either a Democrat or Republican legitimizes two party control of our legislative process which is preventing the application of technology with legislative gridlock, working as a team to prevent reform of our system before the terrorist take advantage of our weaknesses destroy us. For more information visit www.appyp.com/fix_main.html

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A recent college graduate? Doesn't it make you want to put a little more emphasis on public education or the lack thereof?

Sorry "We". Not picking on you. The education system is another one that isn't working.

I was reading about military academy graduates the other day. Some reports indicate that some of them can't read and write well enough to fill out standard report forms without help. Hmmm. Who would have thought that problem existed along with sexual harassment and even car theft rings run by military academy students?

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I was encouraged after I read the first few comments. However, after reading the next fifty or so, I can see that this isn;t going anywhere.

Someone made a good point. It seems that the only eople with any 'passion' anymore are just a useless as the people we currently have running this circus.

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A non aligned political site - what a relief. If all Americans lived in San Diego, I wonder how many would be for the current situation of looking the other way at the invasion on our southern border. Employers tell the public they cannot do the job of the INS but,as an employer, we all ask for Social Security numbers and many employers that deal with the public must ask for additional ID to satisfy Anti Money Laundering laws. Make it the law for employers to be the front line of defense and ask our Social Security Admin what they do with all the funds sent in under stolen or phoney Social Security numbers.

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Twain, Mark (Clemens, Samuel, Langhorne)
(1835-1910) b. Florida, Missouri
Man is the Reasoning Animal. Such is the claim. I think it is open to dispute. Indeed, my experiments have proven to me that he is the Unreasoning Animal... In truth, man is incurably foolish. Simple things which other animals easily learn, he is incapable of learning. Among my experiments was this. In an hour I taught a cat and a dog to be friends. I put them in a cage. In another hour I taught them to be friends with a rabbit. In the course of two days I was able to add a fox, a goose, a squirrel and some doves. Finally a monkey. They lived together in peace; even affectionately.

Next, in another cage I confined an Irish Catholic from Tipperary, and as soon as he seemed tame I added a Scotch Presbyterian from Aberdeen. Next a Turk from Constantinople; a Greek Christian from Crete; an Armenian; a Methodist from the wilds of Arkansas; a Buddhist from China; a Brahman from Benares. Finally, a Salvation Army Colonel from Wapping. Then I stayed away for two whole days. When I came back to note results, the cage of Higher Animals was all right, but in the other there was but a chaos of gory odds and ends of turbans and fezzes and plaids and bones and flesh--not a specimen left alive. These Reasoning Animals had disagreed on a theological detail and carried the matter to a Higher Court.

Mark Twain, Letters from the Earth, A Fawcett Crest Book, Greenwich, Conn., 1962, pp 180-181.

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The technology, in many forms, allows us to eliminate crime as we know it today. Applying GNS technology on a as needed basis can provide law enforcement with the location of any citizen at anytime in the past. In a way using it like we currently use recordings of phone conversations! Then just get rid of cash and go to electronic transactions and you have just eliminated crime, the out of control justice bureaucracy and the ability for organized crime to prosper and exist in a free society..... for more information visit www.appyp.com/fix_main.html

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The US democracy has become something of an illusion with people often voting against their own, and the country's, long term best interest because the spin doctors have found it more effective to address the voter's emotions rather than their reason. The game is about aquiring and keeping power not about being good stewards of the public interest.

Good luck to the Unty 08 effort i will be a willing participant if it begins to develop it what appears to a manner that will help the country. One of the questions that must be addressed is that - if elected - what will a Unity 08 President do with a congres that contiues to have their own agenda.

The day after a politician is elected his or her primary goal is to get reelected - even those who are good people and start out wanting to do right by the country face this dilema. Getting reelected means raising money - lot's of it. The special interests are there ready to ante up - and for that they get access.

Most voters do not understand how the system works. Access is what it is about - access with the unspoken promise of more funds. Politicians are seldom asked to do anything that sounds wrong - instead they are given plausible reasons to do what the donor would like. For example big pharma get's legislation protecting their fat margins by claiming that without them companies will not plow money into reseach to develop new drugs. So the politician can feel noble about protecting our healthcare while providing economic benfit to the donor.

I don't mean to single out big pharma - the scenario plays out similarly in industry after industry and with any union that can afford to play. Make no mistake about it we are not pursuing a better energy policy because of the influence of the oil & auto industries. We are not resolving the real problems of some who were hurt by asbestos while ending the lottery benefit for thousands who were not hurt because of the influence of the plaintiffs bar and the unions.

The current system by which we elect our government officials is the big problem and it underlies all the others. The answer is strict term limits and campaigns that are exclusively publically funded. Without the worry about raising funds and staying in office our politicians may be left with nothing but the real needs of the country to address.

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Experts seem to say the system prevents a reform politician from moving reform agenda forward because of the fraud and corruption in legislative process. I urge Americans to realize this is a propoganda deception to demoralize Americans into thinking change cannot take place. Simply change your political party to Independent and defuse the two parties which have turned legislative process into a auction block for foreign corporate interests.

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Does Unity '08 have a profile on Myspace.com, yet? There are about 82,000,000 young potential voters on that site, many who would be interested in what Unity '08 is proposing!

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MikeB says, "Party politics . . . are robust," and "polarization is a good thing . . ., forcing competition to produce the best ideas and attract support."

MikeB confuses passion for a problem with rational debate to solve the problem. Addressing important issues only at an emotional level has never been the right way to achieve results.

I respect MikeB's opinion because he strikes me as one who has the kind of passion that can be helpful. I hope he stays tuned in to us "sophomoric" people because I think he'll come around and see that we are problem-solvers. Many of our solutions will delight him, and many will not.

MikeB, if you are a person who feels he must win every issue and every debate... please tune us out. You're not wanted in Unity08.

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Tom3,

You say, "Until you can denounce the current policies of the Bush regime in the strongest possible language, you will get no support from me."

I'm sorry to see you resort to polemics at this early stage. I wish you'd join us in saying something more inclusive, like, "Excessive wealth disparities are bad for everyone, and policies increasing them should be resisted."

This kind of wording suggests we might find some common ground, say something between Ayn Rand's Objectivism and Karl Marx's communism/socialism.

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Hi to Guess Who: Your point is well-taken. And that's a risk, sure (i.e. voting to support a third party slate of candidates). But is it more of a risk to the nation if we all perpetuate a broken system by continuing to vote for and support it ? If we don't take the risk to force and support change, then there will be none. Instead we'll be committed to exacerbating the boken system until it ultimately fails completely. And what would that mean...? Anarchy ? Marshall Law ? A berserk Dep't. of Homeland Security that has adopted some rather frightening Orwellian characteristics to 'protect us from ourselves.? It's sure your decision to make; don't be queasy about it.

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Hi to Guess Who: Your point is well-taken. And that's a risk, sure (i.e. voting to support a third party slate of candidates). But is it more of a risk to the nation if we all perpetuate a broken system by continuing to vote for and support it ? If we don't take the risk to force and support change, then there will be none. Instead we'll be committed to exacerbating the broken system until it ultimately fails completely. And what would that mean...? Anarchy ? Marshall Law ? A berserk Dep't. of Homeland Security that has adopted some rather frightening Orwellian characteristics to 'protect us from ourselves.? It's sure your decision to make; don't be queasy about it.

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In order to move American democracy into the 21st century, we need to incorporate "best practices" of democracies around the world. We were the first modern democracy, but haven't kept up with the practices that have been invented and have succeeded elsewhere.

In particular, the notion of an "instant runoff" is simple: voters get to make both first and second choices (and sometimes third). If no candidate gets a majority with first choices, then the second choices of the lowest-ranking candidate get delivered, and so on until one candidate has a majority.

Importantly, this allows third parties not to be "spoilers." If you can vote for a Green Party first and a Democrat second (for example), you will be more likely to vote for a Green Party candidate. And of course, the same would be true for a Unity Party candidate.

Changing these laws in each state will take time, and probably even longer at the national level, but it seems to me essential for the success of the Unity movement long term - and essential for the resurgence of political participation in the U.S.

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I suggest as a way to stop the wars based on lies, to get the "Public" involved in the "war" current and future we bring back Draft... NO deferements and include women, at 18 TWO years service...addtional 2 years obligation after active time. THIS will finally allow the whole nation to see what happens and I feel strongly no more Iraq.NAM or such would happen if the flag wavers family was to get involved..And it will not doubt scare the hell out of most to actually have to do something for their nation other then talk.. I doubt most would support is as like cheney.."to busy" or to afraid to put self where mouth is at.

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At the inception I see there is already misunderstanding. Please, someone correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the idea of Unity08 that it is "not a party." I'm involved because my perception of this initiative is that it transcends political parties and incorporates party members as well as independents in an effort to put the best candidates forward, not just the candidate who gets the wealthiest base to support her/him. If we can't keep our eye on the ball at this fundamental level Unity08 will be doomed because the major parties (their contributors and their voters) will label Unity08 as a "third party" when what we are trying to accomplish is to get the candidates who best represent the body politic elected. Let's not confuse our enthusiasm for this new idea and new political concept with being a new party. Our efforts will be much more effective if we don't fall into this trap.

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What a great idea. Let's hope this movement doesn't turn into a war of words between opposing viewpoints,but rather takes Unity08's mission seriously,helps bring this country back together and solves these incredibly difficult problems our elected officials have chosen to ignore. I read something yesterday that jarred me. A writer said we have a group of elected rulers now and no more representatives of us, the people.

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Americans are NOT apathetic. We are all working way to hard these days to take the time to sit down as a family around the TV to watch the evening network news hour. Or even spend some time in the morning as mom fixes breakfast, to read the local newspaper. The current system to exercise our First Amendment Rights is obsolete and broken.

Hail to Unity 08’!!!

This is the dawn of a new age in political free speech. I am glad to be here with all of you.

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What Am I Missing Here?
While the concentration on the election of 2024 is noble idea, it seems to me that there is a golden opportunity here to test the process early by taking on a handful of the most egregious crooks and incompetents now in the House and Senate. By backing unity candidates in the 2024 races Unity08 could get its feet wet by supporting campaigns to oust the incumbents. I know the time is short but there is no better way to learn than to plunge in whole hog from the beginning and learn from your mistakes. Sure, you might lose a few here and there but the learning experience would be invaluable and would probably offer an opportunity to see what sort of dirty tricks the incumbents would conjure up. Further, it would give a leg up to the oval office candidate to have at least a few members of the Congress already in place in case he or she wins the 08 race. Otherwise, if a Unity candidate should happen to win, the only power he or she would have would be the power of the veto and that could work only if the winning candidate already has supporters in place from the beginning who could swing the votes to sustain Unity08’s position.

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Re: jofga on May 31, 2024 - 7:52pm.
"I like your first 3 simple rules... number 4 scares me a tad given the concentration of capital in this country (especially a concentration of the overwhelming amount of discretionary money to give to politics)."

(gg)Fear not, she said, for I am old and treacherous...that's why item 4 is worded exactly the way it is. Individual contributors _only_. And it all goes into one equally distributed pot. The influence-buyers will keep their cash in their pockets, because half of it will fund their opposition. Those who know their only chance is to out-scream the other guy will keep their cash in their pocket for the same reason. Those who really believe they make the best case will shell out, because they believe they've got the best case.

And pragmatically, funding there must be, if citizens are to know what candidates' positions are. Whether it's door flyers or TV time, money has to be spent. I would love to have 100% public financing of elections, but I think it's probably a longer term goal at this point.

I think of it as killing the gators first, and draining the swamp second.(gg)

On another note, I have an item 5 that I think needs to be addressed.

5. The practice of Presidential "signing statements" is deleterious to our democracy, in that it can, and has, constituted a veto over which there is no Congressional override mechanism.

As I understand it, the practice began when legislation left considerable doubt in the President's mind as to how it would be interpreted by the courts. I would submit that if the Congress submits legislation that does not clearly express its intention, the President should be required to return it for clarification, rather than being allowed to append some ancillary statement.

(gg)Can I get a "Yay!" from the English majors?

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Heard about this on CSpan and registered as a deligate. Timing couldn't be better. The public is sick of both parties and rightfully so. Internet participation is the right way to go. If we could vote online, the voting would be higher than ever. My concern is 3rd parties have never won and tend to just split parties so those you left to be in a 3rd lose as well. But it's time. I hope you have canidates who have not been tainted by Washington.

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I have been seeing a lot if info on Unity08 lately and it prompted some thoughts:
Many of the faces we have been seeing ( Hamilton Jordan, Gerry Rafshoun etc were the folks we met in the Carter for govenor campaign of 1966. This group formed bonds that resulted in the Carter Presidency of 1976. The lesson here is that these things take thme- A lot of time> .
The glue that held this group together was a good candidate( Jimmy Carter) and an idea("The way to beat the existing system is with better ideas and better technology)
As I recall we had no overriding Philosopy other than to make things better.We recuited folks from all spectrums and rejected no one. We had far right as well as far left. Meetings concentrated not on idealogy but how to get the job done. Issues discussed were more middle of the road while not turning off those who were not"middle of the road".
If Unity 08 can stick to its 1966 roots we "might suceed in 08. It is a long shot but then Jimmy Carter winning the 76 election was a longer shot.
Best wishes for a successful campaign!!!

Eunice and Bill Birdsong

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Unfortunitely our present people in public office are not concerned about whether the issue is good for the country. They are only interested in who started the issue, republican or Demorcrate. That's their only criteria to determine whether they are for or against the issue. This practice has ruined the policical process.

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Should there be a mandatory retirement age for members of Congress.

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THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE – LEVER FOR CHANGE

There is an argument to be made that the way the Electoral College is currently being used is not in accord with the US Constitution and is actually a tool to enforce the exclusionary dominance of the Two Parties that are currently holding power.

I have copied the actual amendment from the constitution below. In reading it carefully it seems to me that each of the Electors vote, make a list of ALL VOTES, seal and then send these lists and their votes to the president of the Senate ... and it is there that all the votes are counted !!!! It seems clear to me that the process of each state assigning ALL of it's Electoral votes to the candidate who receives the majority IN THAT SATE is a clear violation of the Constitution. The votes are not to be counted within each stage but at the Federal Level. Read the amendment and see if you agree with my assessment.

Amendment XII - Choosing the President, Vice-President. Ratified 6/15/1804.

“The Electors shall meet in their respective states, and vote by ballot for President and Vice-President, one of whom, at least, shall not be an inhabitant of the same state with themselves; they shall name in their ballots the person voted for as President, and in distinct ballots the person voted for as Vice-President, and they shall make DISTINCT LISTS OF ALL PERSONS VOTED FOR AS PRESIDENT, and of all persons voted for as Vice-President AND OF THE NUMBER OF VOTES FOR EACH, WHICH LISTS THEY SHALL SIGN AND CERTIFY, AND TRANSMIT SEALED to the seat of the government of the United States, directed to the President of the Senate;

THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE SHALL, IN THE PRESENCE OF THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, OPEN ALL THE CERTIFICATES AND THE VOTES SHALL THEN BE COUNTED;

The person having the greatest Number of votes for President, shall be the President,”

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I have signed up to be a delegate as I agree the present two party system is not working and is broken. The RNC and DNC have become primarily focused on getting their candidates reelected and undermining all confidence in any ideas presented by the opposition party. It has become all about the party and this system has served to divide our country almost in half. As a most wise person once stated, "A kingdom divided against itself cannot stand." In my opinion the best solution available is a totally new direction; one that involves candidates who are accountable to their constituents and not to some "party". Hopefully the Unity 08 movement is the beginning of the end to politics as usual.

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I very excitedly watched your representative on CSpan this morning and immediately logged on an asked to be a delegate. This was before I read any comments.

Having read some of the comments I find that Unity08 is heading the way of the Democrats and Republicans and other third party wannabes.

The concept of getting national attention is great. It will not work if we become Demopubs or Repucrats.

The founding assumption that we field a President and Vice President Slate consiting of mixed Democrats and Republicans is fallacious. We must find truly independent candidates who may be republican or democrat but are primarily running to Unify and take back our country.

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I agree about finding truly independent candidates.

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I applaud the Founders of Unity08. They have correctly assessed and expressed the current mood of America;are creatively and wisely using technology to reach out to Americans; allowing a democratic participative approach and hoping to create a groundswell from the grassroots to effect positive change, all long withheld by the stifeling two-party political system.

Unity08, in "their opinion" have identified a number of Crucial Issues. But in problem solving (or most anything else), we must look beyond the more obvious and seek the underlying cause(s) to assure we are not "treating the symptoms" rather than the underlyng and perhaps common fundamental(s). Because our society is heavily Capitalistic (with a capital "C") and democratic (with a "c", sometimes it is useful to "follow the money" and see who is benefiting from the status quo ("conservative") and who dosen't ("progressive").
The Critical Issues:
Global Terrorism: Who benefits from this "Threat"? How real is it? Is it a replacement for the "threat" of Global Communism"? Do the American people benefit?
National Debt: Who benefits from excessive National Debt? The American people who will be forced to pay it off? Wealthy investors? Whom?
Dependence on Foreign Oil? Who benefits from this? The American people? Wealthy investors through Big Oil corporations? Who?
Washington Corruption: Who benefits from this? Well, obviously the career politicians and those behind the lobbyists, but how do the American people benefit when their "representatives" are corrupted by these monies (expenditures)? Who is providing and benefiting from this corruption?
India/China: Both are considered by some to be Economic "threats" (because of their cheap, exploited labor populations), while China is now being hyped as the next big "Military" threat. Who benefits from these "threats"? Must America always have an "enemy"? If so, why?
Nuclear Proliferation: Clearly nuclear weapons could be a threat (although it seems alright if just "our guys" have them), but what about nuclear power for "economic purposes"? Nuclear weapons "can" be a direct threat (in the wrong hands), but aren't BOTH a threat to the enviornment because of process and indisposable waste? Are citizens of a nation with nuclear uses trading off a "perceived benefit" for a real long-term loss in terms indisposable waste? (Shipping it to another "place" or country is hardly the answer, in the light of day) So who really benefits from the use of nuclear energy in the short term - and long term?
Global Climate Change: Certainly Nature will do its "own thing", but man may well be contributing to changes in climate. If so who benefits from careless exploitation of the Planet? Ordinary people around the world? Or just a few?

Do you see any connection here between these Issues? Is there a common denominator?

Education (or Lack of Readily Available): Who benefits here? Well, certainly the citizens lose as individuals, but also the entire Nation for Lack of or restricted (costs of) Education limits the Potential of the human resource of the nation as well as the individual to develop him/herself in their "pursuit of happiness. If that is obvious, then who benefits? Is it because monies invested in Education do not provide high enough short term gain for capitalist investors so that national monies are diverted elsewhere?
Health Care: A first obligation of any civilized nation is to take care of its young, disabled and older population, because they are all one of us and we have been or will be one of them for we are a community. Why would a nation Not invest in our own community? Is it because of the reasons outlined in the above paragraph - there are more profitable investments elsewhere?

Again, do you seen any connect between the Issues? A common thread?

"Disappearance" of the American Dream: First, what IS the American Dream? I'm sure it means different things to different people. I hope it is not "a nice house, two cars and lots of toys" for that is a Commercial "dream", but each must decide for him/herself

Finally, for those who are serious and interested, I recommend two sites:
http://www.guerrilanews.com - American Capitalism and the Moral Poverty of Nations, and
http://www.freedomtofacism.com/

So now: What do YOU think?

PS - It is interesting to note that the massive concentration and control of the national wealth in the hands of a tiny minority nor the power of corporations which affect our daily lives and our National Policies is considered among the Crucial Issues.

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My main concern is how a political movement views the 1st Amendment. If any group delares that America is a Christian Nation then I am not interested in going further in that group. It introduces a load of legislation dealing with the rights of Americans and I want no involvement in that subject.

As a long time Secularist, I will not be looked down on by any religious group, when I know that we are all equal in the eyes of the law.

Is there any way we can get these blogs in some kind or order so we debate our issues without plowing through all of them?

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Does “Unity08” really think it can get the Republican and the Democratic conventions to go along with a unity ticket instead of "business as usual"? I doubt it, even with a big internet following. What Washington needs is a real “wake up call” like and a viable third party. I believe, for the first time in decades, the people are ready for one. If it also had the power of 10’s of millions of internet members that the current “Unity08” organisation could easily get, the voter would feel that this time, his vote would not be a "wasted vote" and that he really did have a choice.
You can be sure someone will get a popular third party rolling on the internet so I say let's go all the way with a "Unity party" and not “Unity08”. Let’s switch to a band wagon that the people really want and are ready to jump on to.

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Follow the Money. Deep Throat had it right. JUST FOLLOW THE MONEY!!!!

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The recent exposure of the Abramoff affair has shed light on how deep corruption has permeated our political system. The Ross Perot candidacy demonstrated how disenchanted millions of Americans were back then with the current status quo of American politics. I have to believe that by now with the knowledge that the corruption is continuing on a much larger scale within BOTH political parties, the time is ripe for another entrance of a third party. It will be a major effort, however I am hopeful it will be successful and intend on supporting the effort.

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Come on, folks. Unity08 Founders have offered us an opportunity to speak out (or Shout Out)in the hopes we will reach agreement on the "Critical Issues" for this Nation. We need to seek agreement on the PRIORITIES for America and in Unity influence/change the power bases in our Country.
We shouldn't seek to "destroy the village in order to save it"; nor offer solutions without agreement on what are the Needs; nor just throw our momentary opinion into the discussion.
Otherwise we lose the opportunity and this will just turn into another Tower of Babel.
The obligation we have as citizens is to retain respect for each other and their ideas; think constructively and seek to reach agreement on Priorities.
If we don't, those now in power, due to politics and/or wealth, continue to win over us. We must Unite.

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I did not notice the omission & agree corruption is the single biggest contributing factor to many of the stated critical issues!

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When our founding fathers created this country it was an honor to serve a term and then return to your old job.
When did politics become a profession? Once it became a profession the country has gone down hill and taxes have gone up. I think it is time we took back the control of our country by voting out all of the professional politicans in office.

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To replace a failed system you need a functional one. Great idea but I fear that Unity08 may be fundamentally flawed as it currently seems structured. You seem to be taking simple polls to gain consensus. This cannot work. We need correct solutions, not just popular/vocal ones.

The mechanism needs to create an opportunity for critical thinking, build a virtual informed electorate needed for the American system to work. Basically you'd need to present thorough arguments for both sides of issues. You'd only get to vote if you read all of the information. Your vote could only happen once. How to do all of this is the tricky part. I think that it can be done but I see little mention of any of that on Unity08. I suppose you could track clicks responding to each point, agree/disagree. Once the voter clicks through they'd be offered the opportunity for a one-time vote.

Another tricky part is creating a good mechanism for defining issues and solutions to vote upon. Who decides all of that? Newbies need to be able to understand all of this and track issues/stances as they mature.

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Response to post that only certain issues are being considered...

Luckily, Unity08 started the Shoutbox as a forum to think/write critically about issues – from all sides. Check it out: http://unity08.com/forum

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A Need For More Qualified Presidential Candidates

Once again we are being asked to consider presidential candidates. Wouldn’t it be great to have some assurance that candidates for president are true statesmen? Men wise and skillful in conducting state affairs and treating public issues, and experienced in all phases of the business of government. How can we look beyond the physical presence and superficial rhetoric and identify a true statesman?
People have to demonstrate their qualifications for college, employment, or military service. It seems that all a presidential candidate needs is some political background and experience, sufficient financial backing, and the ability to pontificate on the issues. Perhaps we should subject candidates to a qualification test. See how they would score against the following - which in my judgement define a statesman.

Honesty and Integrity
Commitment to the needs of all the people (Not just wealthy campaign contributors and special interest groups)
Openness and honesty in relating their background and accomplishments
Willingness to share knowledge of the good and the bad with the people
Tell it like it is, with no divisiveness.

Demonstrated Skills, Knowledge, and Experience
Skilled in organizing and selecting effective people to assist in government
Logic and flexibility in dealing with complex problems and issues.
A working knowledge of our business, financial and judicial systems
Knowledge of the political, economic, religious and military customs and practices of the major countries of the world
Sufficient technical knowledge to assess the need for, and capabilities of, complex military systems

Humanitarianism
A real concern for the rights and spiritual needs of individuals
Compassion for the less fortunate
A real commitment to protecting the environment
Respect for the rights of world cultures to pursue their own aspirations and politics - provided the human rights of individuals are respected

Communication
Openness in sharing policies, goals, objectives and plans to resolve major issues
Listens with an open mind, and has the courage to change direction when the situation warrants
Willingness to embrace new ideas and innovative solutions
Promotes dialog among all members of society, and enlists the counsel from leaders in all walks of life

Decisiveness
Takes action when clearly warranted

Wouldn’t be great if each candidate had to provide evidence that demonstrates their background, experience, and past performance in meeting the above attributes; or provide rationale for why they consider them unnecessary. We would then have some reasonable basis from which to question, debate, make a judgement, and choose.

Herbert J. Hayes

Tequesta, FL

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We are supposed to live in a free society and our deficit is way more then people can handle. Social Security is in Trouble. and many more problems. The Government runs the Country and the people have little to no say so what happens. This country needs to chang lots of things but i feel that we should be the only country to legalize marijuana we have millions of people in this country smoke it and the immigrants are dieing to bring it into the country. Our President and his daughters have done drugs at one time or another. If this country was to legalize it, we could tax it heavily and use the money to pay all the debt off and fix Social Security and even try to provide Health care for our people. We could use it to help our Immigration problems by having the Mexican People or any other Illegal Alien in this country to Work On the plantations Run by Our Major Tabacoo Companies Here in the United States and the Government Regulate it. Lets Face it There are a lot of Americans already smoking it Illegally why shouldnt the government let the people do what makes them happy. Alcohol is much more dangerous then marijuana and that is legale mostly everywhere. It would also help our tourism Industry.http://www.realchange.org/bushjr.htm#cocaine...........http://archive.salon.com/politics/feature/2001/03/23/jenna_bush/...........The 2 sights show that what im saying is all true so that should be the major thing done in the USA fix the problems instead of putting a band aide on it for later. Marijuana is no worse for you then cigerettes or alcohol which also destroys brain cells

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