timothyshepard

America has been heads down and focused in one direction for 40 years. Reaganism has its place as a short term medicine, but the manic adoption and diligence of how we’ve applied it has led to unsustainable imbalances in our economic system not seen in the United States since before the Great Depression. We need to transform our economy back into a healthy expression of capitalism. We’ve transformed from a healthy capitalist system to a system that heavily subsidizes corporate shareholders, otherwise known primarily as the 1%.

But, we aren’t stuck with this kind of financial folly in our social contract. This century is America’s for the taking, including the bottom 90% of the population. With our nation’s energy independence, food independence, a diverse and vibrantly, and growing population. We aren’t without some of the most significant challenges we’ve ever faced, not just as Americans, but as humans. These challenges are going to require us to transform our economy.

Transform Our Economy

The good thing about transforming our economy is that it creates vast new opportunities for wealth creation and innovation. So, rather than adopting a protectionist rear looking plan preferred by Republicans in government. It’s my firm belief that we should practice a core tenant of capitalism and embrace the change! One has to ask what exactly it is they’re trying to protect with all their worker facing rhetoric. Have they been able to save working-class American jobs? Or is the real result that they hand trillions of dollars to industry incumbents and billionaires who have no desire to use their profits to push this transformation themselves. We have a word for that kind of behavior in America, monopoly! We break those up. Doing so creates new jobs, distributes power, and ensures that innovation is able to take root rather than being stifled by incumbants.

When we have policy like the Green New Deal on the table, there’s no reason for us to lean into protecting elites with taxpayer subsidy. Instead we can lead the world in innovation and job creation once again.

We should bring an end to this new Gilded Age we’ve entered and re-ignite growth for the working classes. We can transform our economy to be more dynamic equitable for all Americans.

With economic transformation we can bring household savings in line with corporate savings with policies and new legislation aimed at bring equality to all American’s in our tax code, stimulus, and other social programs.

We need to create an America that actually belongs to all of us, not just the wealthy and well-connected few.

Third Reconstruction

We have never completed the project of Reconstruction. The First Reconstruction was stymied by violent terrorism in the 19th century. The Second Reconstruction was stopped by the white backlash to the civil rights movement. America must reconcile with our past by creating a national Truth and Reconciliation Commission to lead our nation through a process that investigates the generational harms caused by slavery and Jim Crow and propose necessary reparations.

Justice Reform

We have the largest prison population in the world. We must end the War on Drugs, end mandatory minimum sentencing and cash bail, end solitary confinement, end private prisons, and move toward a system based in redemption, not punishment.

Law enforcement spends a fifth of its time responding to people with mental illnesses. Many of those cases are not something the police should be involved in at all. Reforming police and social civil policy is about naming budget priorities and supporting public health programs that truly make our communities safer. We must reallocate resources and invest in education, housing, healthcare, jobs, and other programs that address the root of crime. We must also end qualified immunity, create stronger civilian review boards, demilitarize the police, and support violence interruption programs that have a track record of helping our communities.