Planks of a Platform

Below are items that I believe need to be part of a radical platform for governing the United States into the next century.  Everybody will probably think I'm crazy, but these spring from my belief that a society is judged by the condition of the great mass of its citizens, that each citizen has a responsibility to assist in providing for the needs of all, that liberty is paramount and that in the U.S. personal liberty is oppressed by the corporate/capitalist elite, not by the government.  The government is used to assist the oppression, but the government can be a powerful tool for ending corporate oppression, which the elite knows.

Planks:

"Socialist Capitalism" - A specific repudiation of the market as panacea.  The market is superb at what it does, producing the goods and services necessary for supporting a prosperous life, and generally at distributing those goods and services.  It is not suitable for taking care of "the commons", or the general welfare.  Economic efficiency is not the sole or primary virtue, and government exists to care for those other virtues, and to keep economic efficiency in line with those other virtues.  Socialist Capitalism demands that the market work for the benefit of society, that the basic needs of every productive citizen -- past, present or potential -- be met, with "basic needs" being defined by the contemporary polity.

The above demands are met primarily by subjecting limited liability entities to the control of society.  Currently, limited liability entities enable capitalists to shift much of the risk of investment onto others while appropriating all the rewards to themselves.  The confiscators are the owners in entities where they have the effective control of the entity, and the managers where ownership is so diluted as to deprive it of effective control.  Every limited liability entity doing business in the U.S. would be required to grant 10% of its ownership interest to the federal state.  Entities would be required to pay out at least a certain percentage of net revenue to the owners, with the U.S. share going into a trust fund to be used for social welfare.  Employee compensation would be limited to a certain ratio with dividends, and "executive" or "managerial" employee compensation would be limited to a certain ratio with "labor" employee compensation.  No more paying the CEO more than all the labor employees combined.

With the U.S. holding 10% of each limited liability in trust for the general population, the corporate ethic that the corporation exists solely to maximize the earnings of the shareholders can be allowed to survive, because by following that ethic corporations naturally increase their contribution to the public welfare.

Another reform that would help return corporations to their rightful place as tools of mankind rather than owners of men would be removing their status as legal "persons" with constitutional rights.  Only individual human beings should be considered "persons" with constitutional rights.  Constitutional rights are derived from our natural rights.  A corporation is not a man born with natural rights.  It is a creation of government.  It has no rights other than those granted to it by the government.

Tax Overhaul - Abolition of the income tax.

A Non-Imperialist Foreign Policy - American foreign policy since World War II has been directed toward opening all the world's markets to American dominance, subjecting the globe to American mores and cultural dominance, and obtaining military access in all regions.  This imperialist foreign policy requires a military with global offensive capabilities.  It demands a huge military-industrial complex out of all proportion with what would be needed for the defense of the United States.

Non-imperialist is not to be confused with "neo-isolationist."  The United States should participate fully in the world, but as one citizen within a self-governing community of citizens, not as a "policeman" or enforcer.  No longer would the United States enforce the power to subject foreign citizens within their own lands to American criminal jurisdiction.

Fundamental Military Reform - The Founding Fathers were opposed to a standing army for good reason.  A standing army is not needed for the defense of the United States.  It is a tool of oppression and a toy of empire.  The U.S. Army would be demobilized, with only training cadres maintained for training and mobilization of the National Guard.  The Navy and Air Force would continue to be independent commands with standing forces, but would be prohibited from having ground forces other than for the defense of their bases.  The Navy would be a two-ocean force, and the carrier fleets would be unnecessary.

Universal National Service - Every individual of 18 would be drafted into national service.  All receive basic military training and are slotted to a unit for two years.  During those two years, they would maintain military training, while providing public service such as maintenance and cleaning, road-building, etc.  A primary function of the National Service would be infrastructure maintenance and development.  After two years, volunteers could stay in the National Guard as at present.

More later...