OK, time to quit moping, suit up, it’s going to be Trump, enough with the incredulity routine, yeh it’s incredible but so? The addled Republicans will be nominating a two-headed calf for President – like your daughter bringing home Godzilla as her prom date – “You what?!!!!” – but there he is, the two-headed-calf/Godzilla grunting and farting in the TV room, awaiting your darling’s descent. Yes, we’ve got to stop this, but how? Catastrophe! But maybe not. Maybe we can make lemonade out of lemons, respell calamity opportunity. Here's how.
November 5, 2024 represents the greatest risk our newbie democracy has ever faced – less than 250 years: a toddler – and the greatest opportunity. One of our two major parties, goaded and funded by plutocrats, will promote democracy’s nemesis as its chief. How come is topic for another day, it’s happening, and has before – see Germany, 1933. Folks kill themselves too. It happens.
How can this be an opportunity, you ask?
The vileness of the candidate should – I say, should – assure his thrashing at the polls. A big majority of Americans don’t want this guy or what he represents; suddenly they’ll wake to the fact they’re about to get him. That will be the holy shit moment. Sleepy Joe may be stuttering and old, but two-headed-calf/Godzilla in his stead? Yikes – no way – to the barricades! Thrash the Republicans like nobody’s business, it’ll be another 1864 or 1932, and the victorious Dems will enjoy a once-in-a-century chance to repair their fledgling republic.
What will we do with our chance?
Here’s my wish list for Santa – you’ll have your own – expect plenty of overlap, debate. I sort mine into five categories:
1. Election reform
2. Equitable and ethical reform
3. Congressional reform
4. Level the playing field
5. Fortify the electorate
Fifteen subheads follow, which I’ve only space to tick off, but just as well. No time for disquisitions here. The point is, Opportunity! A big enough win and the reformers can go to town until, in true democratic fashion, they start devouring each other. Win this election 60/40 and the Dems will have two years to shore up our body politic.
How about…
1. Election reform
a. Abolish electoral college
b. End gerrymandering
c. Campaign finance reform; abolish PACs
2. Equitable and ethical reform
a. Statehood for Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C
b. Ethics code for all judges, Supremes included
c. Term limits for SCOTUS; age limits for candidates (75)
3. Congressional reform
a. End the filibuster
b. End the minority thwarting the majority
4. Level the playing field
a. Reduce income inequality (do we really need trillionaires?)
b. Pro-people regulatory policy (instead of pro-fatcat)
5. Fortify the electorate (these get controversial)
a. Mandatory government service for all
b. Mandatory civics and morals curricula
c. Licensing voters as we do drivers for minimal competence, to avoid crackups
d. Outlaw poisoning our information stream with malevolent deceit
e. Adequate healthcare, nutrition, and education for all
These all can’t be done, you say? Too hard?
You’re likely right – but with a big enough mandate, a lot can be done – and as our great demotic poet put it,
Happy talkin', talkin', happy talk
Talk about things you'd like to do
You've got to have a dream
If you don't have a dream
How you gonna have a dream come true
So there you have it – the stick and the carrot. The stick’s the end of roughly six centuries of experiments in self-government – and of civilization as we’ve known it. The carrot’s the chance to keep humanity operational until, one day, sure as shootin’, we extinguish ourselves.