We the people and citizens of the United States of America want to return this country to responsible, ethical and efficient government. Over the years, inevitable creep has occurred in all branches of government leading to situations that are no longer consistent with the principles and values of our Founding Fathers. These “Ten Points for Effective and Efficient Government” would be a start to restoring the Democracy that this country was founded on. You do not have to believe in all of these points to sign this petition, but if you believe in at least seven of the points, we hope you will sign this petition for a Government that once again is By the People, For the People and of the People.
- Term Limits
Over the years, our population has increased in life expectancy. Term limits would help insure that new blood and vitality is injected into our political system. Ideally, two terms of six years each would help an elected official achieve their stated goals and aims. These term limits would apply to all elected officials holding seats in any legislative office of the country.
- Illegal Lobbying
Lobbying is legal bribery. An official is given campaign money if they support the lobbyists agenda. In other areas of business, this would be called bribery and would be illegal. We need to make lobbying illegal in all of the government and make those trying to use money to persuade politicians guilty of bribery.
- Limits on time in office for Supreme Court Justices
No one of the Founding Fathers ever thought that the average judge would live to 80 + years. We need to cap a Judges tenure at 20 years. Anything more than that puts our law in the hands of people who are no longer in touch with the average citizen.
- Non-Partisan selection of all Federal and State Justices
The system of allowing a politician to select our Judges distorts the law and puts a bias in courtroom decisions based on political affiliations. We need to have a non-partisan panel of legal experts who select our Federal and State Judges based on specific criteria related to professionalism, ethics and the ability to render judgements irrespective of political affiliations.
- Campaign Spending Limits
If campaigns can be won or lost based on monetary expenditures than we do not have a government of the people. We have a government where he or she who has the most money gets elected. It becomes the Golden Rule: “Whosoever has the most gold makes the rules.” We need to have campaign spending limits and get corporations out of the business of funding political campaigns.
- Limits to holding elected offices consecutively
It will not do any good to have term limits if elected officials can simply jump to another government position either elected or appointed. We need to insure a turnover of all elected and appointed government officials. This can only be assured my limiting the number of political offices that they can hold consecutively whether appointed or elected. We do not need lifers in Government but people who bring new visions and new skills. We should limit the number of combined elected or appointed political positions that can be held to no more than three positions for a total of no more than 18 years which would combine both appointments and elections.
- Funding for Elected Officials during Government Shutdowns
When Congress cannot do its duty by funding the government and employees can not receive a paycheck, than Congress should also have their paychecks suspended for the duration of the shutdown. As they say, “What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.”
- Compulsory National Service for all US Citizens
Every American Citizen at the age of 18 must elect for National Service of either two or four years. This obligation can be satisfied by either military or civilian service such as the Peace Corp or other civilian programs. Two years would be the minimum for compulsory service. Two years of National Service would earn two year of paid education benefits. Four years of National Service would earn four years of paid education benefits.
- Caps on all budgets including Military, Education, Health Care
Government cannot be fiscally responsible when politicians are free to print all the money they want to spend. We need mandatory caps on all budgets to insure that good financial policy is followed. It is too easy for money to be allocated when there is no ceiling to how much can be spent. Can you imagine what would happen in your home if you were free to just spend as much money as you wanted to?
- Campaign Communication Integrity
There is a myth that Free Speech means you can say anything you want to. This is not true. Our democracy depends on truth and respect. Today’s campaigns too often rely on misinformation, personal attacks, and division. We call for stronger accountability for knowingly false or defamatory statements and a return to fact-based, civil debate. This is not about limiting free speech—it is about restoring trust, honesty, and integrity in our elections. We need to restore civility and open mindedness to the campaign process. We have demonized other parties, slandered opponents, descended to lies and name calling to the extent that they have become commonplace in our elections. We need to restore human decency to elections.
Petition Summary
This petition represents a call from citizens who believe that the strength of the United States lies not only in its founding ideals, but in our willingness to renew them. Over time, the structures of government have evolved in ways that many feel no longer reflect the balance, accountability, and ethical standards envisioned at the nation’s founding. This proposal outlines ten practical reforms designed to restore trust, improve efficiency, and reestablish a government that truly serves its people.
These reforms focus on limiting excessive concentration of power, reducing the influence of money in politics, ensuring fairness and impartiality in the judicial system, and promoting shared civic responsibility. They are not intended to favor any political party or ideology, but rather to strengthen the integrity of the system itself.
If you support the majority of these principles, we invite you to sign this petition and join in a constructive effort to help guide our nation toward a more accountable, effective, and unified future—one that lives up to the enduring promise of government “of the people, by the people, and for the people.”
If you want to add your name to this petition. Send a copy to me at persico.john@gmail.com. I will compile as many names as I can to eventually send to media and elected officials.
If you are comfortable doing so and can support 70 percent of the ideas in this petition, than would you please help share this petition. Names can be sent back to me at Persico.john@gmail.com I will compile as many names as I can to use in contacting media and elected officials. I have no naïve beliefs that in the short term this will change anything. However, if over time we can all stand up for the things that really matter, we may eventually have a tidal wave that will sweep away the old system and usher in a new era of peace, justice and equality for all.
Donald Trump is not America. Donald Trump is a creation of a media empire that is out of control. A media that trends sensationalism, exploitation, fear and paranoia to feed a 24/7 system of so called news reports. A system of glitz, glamour, ads, sound bites, commercials, sex appeal and worthless trivia that has little or no educational or informational value. It is a system that neither informs nor educates. It is a system that thrives on the likes of Donald Trump. It is a system that thrives on the exotic, the unusual, the strange, the bizarre, the kinky, the outlandish and the far out. Donald Trump is all of these things but he is not America.
Donald Trump is not even a real Republican. The party he claims as his own is one he and his small band (less than 9 percent of the total registered voters in the USA)* has managed to co-opt. The Republicans that I have called friends over the years want nothing to do with him. They are as appalled as the Democrats are at Donald Trumps rise to popularity in the media polls. Americans however should not be surprised at this. It is not the first time that a fraud, demagogue and charlatan has captured the media stage. Looking back through US history, we can find similarities between Donald Trump and the likes of Aaron Burr, The Know Nothing Party, Huey Long, The Silver Shirts, and of course Joseph Mc McCarthy. None of my Republican friends would avow affiliation with any of these characters. They are not America and neither is Donald Trump.
Every country in the world has its right and left-wing extremists. It has been this way for hundreds of years. Fortunately, in the USA, our political system usually kicks out the extremists and the middle ground or centrists have always trumped the left and right-wing fanatics. Due to our political system, we have escaped such maniacs as General Franco, Benito Mussolini, Joseph Stalin and Adolf Hitler. There are many drawbacks to our political system and chaos often seems to be a major characteristic of it. There are many people who would discard such a system in favor of stability and security. These people would buy such a political system at the cost of freedom and liberty. In many nations throughout the world, citizens select benevolent dictators rather than trying to deal with the vagaries and uncertainties that are often characteristic of a US style democracy.
Donald Trump says that he will create the largest wall that the world has ever seen, but it won’t keep out immigrants. It will only keep out ideas and innovation. Donald Trump supporters include the misguided and fearful who believe that if we only had less poor people, less immigrants, less refugees, less minorities, less disabled people and less women in power that “America Would Be Great Again.” This is a delusion held by those who dream of a bygone era when “Father knew best, Blacks knew their place and women stayed in the kitchen.” The myth of “The Good Old Days” is almost impossible to kill in a population fed on media mediocrity and where real history is either not taught or understood. Donald Trump will not bring back the “good old days” because the good old days where not really that good. Donald Trump will not “Make America White Again.”
What all of Trump’s bombastic speeches fail to note is that America is still great. Unfortunately, the things that make America great are hidden behind the media pronouncements of Donald Trump and his ill-advised followers. The ceaseless stream of bad news, crime, bizarre and weird news that titillates so many also deprives us of being a well-informed populace. In addition, our outlandish media system simply serves to hide the many great values that the USA stands for.
The message of hatred and intolerance that spews daily from Trump is something that one could pity Trump for if it were not so dangerous and belligerent. It is hard to feel sorry for the bully that is kicking other people when they are down. Somewhere though, we know that such bullies are really cowards. Their intolerance and lack of compassion towards others is driven by fear and insecurity. No matter how big and bad the bully seems, they are the biggest cowards in the playground. It is time to put Donald Trump and his followers in their places. There is no room in America for bigots, sexists and racists who are intolerant of and lack compassion for others. We need to keep America great by letting the world see the true values that guide our nations and not the distorted hate filled messages that the media loves to display.
On Tuesday and Wednesday along with my good friend Vic Ward, I attended the 52nd Nobel Conference which was titled: “In Search of Economic Balance.” It featured many illustrious and highly respected economists such as: Dan Ariely, Orley Ashenfelter, Paul Collier, Deirdre McCloskey, John List and several other well-known economists. After every lecture, there was a panel discussion where the speaker and several of the other economists had a chance to discuss and interact. Following these discussions, my friend and I debated, discussed and summarized what we thought were the most important points of each lecture. I attended eight lectures, six panel discussions and numerous discussions each evening with Vic.
On the way back from St. Peter, we stopped Jim’s Apple Farm when we saw a sign that said “Next exit, Minnesota’s largest candy store.” I bought several treats for Karen and the guys at the library in Frederic. Jim’s lived up to its billing. It may just be the largest candy store in the US. It is certainly the largest candy store I have ever been in.
Karen having spent thirty years of her life in Home Health Care is much better grounded and infinitely more knowledgeable than I am in this area. Many of the ideas in the conference sessions were basic for her but for me the opposite was true. I had my eyes opened and many of my concepts about conditions such as Dementia have now been thrown out the window. I cannot begin to describe how much I learned at this conference and how valuable the ideas were for me.
Aging Capriciously 