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

One of the reasons why Congress keeps reelecting the same people is that we let the politicians draw the voting districts. Each side uses that power, along with sophisticated software, to draw as many "safe seats" for their own party as they can.

In other words, the politicians are allowed to choose the voters, rather than the other way around. It's astonishing to see our elected leaders kicking out one of the fundamental underpinnings of democracy -- free elections that let the people choose.

I'd love to see Unity08, and all the folks gathered in this effort, make a serious pitch for fair elections. There are reform efforts in the states, some of them successful (Iowa, Arizona), and there's a national reform introduced...

Polls always show that people rate education as one of their most important concerns, yet there is so little voter support for actually funding education improvement initiatives. Why the apparent contradiction here? The resounding defeat of Proposition 82 in CA yesterday seems like a great example - a proposal to provide universal pre-school (a program almost universally considered effective) by adding a very small tax increase on the very highest of earners ($400k+ individuals, $800k+ couples). The proposal was trounced in polls, with 60% of voters (and all but two counties) voting against it. And 53% voted against a bond initiative to improve the public libraries.

Many people in the country believe that America's schools are in trouble. Census data shows that only about 85% of Americans over 25 have a high school diploma. That's a big number but it also means that 15% do not and that represents 45M people without even a rudimentary education.

With campaigns costing millions of dollars, it's not surprising that candidates are beholden to the special interests and corporate PACs that finance their campaigns. Do you think campaigns should be publicly funded, and, if so, how would the funds be allocated?

Online is good. Offline is key.

What things can we do in meat-space to help people find and connect with Unity in the meta-verse?

"Are you better off now than you were four years ago?" is a cliche in American politics. It refers to economic well-being, but what if it refers to security?

-Is the U.S. safer?
-Are Americans safer?
-Is the world safer?
-What are the threats to safety?
-What are some solutions?

What do you think? And why?

I know it's a catchy phrase (Take 5 to Tell 5), but don't stop at telling 5 friends about Unity08. I sent an email to all of my friends, family and colleagues urging them to check out Unity08 and to sign-up. Many have replied that they appreciated getting a personal heads up about this movement.

Do you think immigration is among the most crucial issues facing America or is it a "hot" issue given the attention it has recently received by Congress and the media?

Why not team up with orgs that already have a presence--Rock the Vote, etc. Others I'm not thinking of?

If we want people to participate in the democratic process (small-d), it's crucial that we spend resources to educate them so they can make smart choices about who to vote for and what issues to care about, as opposed to just listening to politicians tell them what they SHOULD care about.