ancona
Praying Mantis
Proposed Constitutional Amendment
I was asked if I would go back in time [I borrowed Mr. Peabody's Way-Back Machine] so I found it. This is Just as relevant now, if not more so, than when I posted it several years ago, and agreed with the requestor that it deserved more discussion with so many newer members.
It occurs to me that there is always a pundit available to propound on some insignificant subject or another, yet there is never a voice that rises above the din when there are hard choices to be made. I continue to be amazed with the legislative decisions endorsed by our Congress that go counter to popular opinion on every front, but are paraded before the public as the only and just answer to a particular problem. Witness this ridiculous “stimulus” bill, derided by the People, yet shoved through the Congress on the fear that was mongered by our President. A government by the People, and for the People has lost its flavor for me. Our Legislators are in Congress for one reason; money, exposure and the post legislative perks that come with having been a Legislator. Congress is perpetually paralyzed by the plethora of special interest groups and highly paid lobbyists demanding that their position be recognized. Partisan politics has reduced our once proud Congress to a bunch of squabbling school children whining back and forth about he-said-she-said. It is time to reclaim the legislative process from the rich and return it to the People.
Witness the current financial Armageddon we are experiencing. The entire financial system has been turned into a casino for the mega wealthy, through the political machinations of our Congress. Who decided it would be a good idea to repeal Glass-Steagall, then lobbied actively for it to happen?? That’s right, our old bankster pal Alan Greenspan and Co. Then along came Graham-Leach-Bliley, another genius piece of legislation, whose purposes included eliminating the restrictions keeping banks from expanding into investment banking, stock brokerage and insurance. The reason behind limiting bank size and composition were very simple and sound. These limits insured the Federal Government that if a bank failed, the total liability to the taxpayer would be limited. These protections were put into place to eliminate the “too big to fail” potential that mega banks and financial institutions have become [Bear Stearns ring a bell?].
All of this because a couple of legislators were able to round up enough powerful lobbyists, on behalf of the wealthy elite, greedy banksters and financial institutions to convince a large enough of a majority of sitting legislators, that either this was a great idea, or that a vote in the negative would result in this being their last term in Congress. To say the very least, none of these legislative changes were done in the best interests of the People of the United States of America. These changes can and do benefit only a very elite and select few people in the top quintile of the top one percent of the income food chain. Remember the good old days? I sure do! Remember going into your neighborhood bank branch and depositing your pay-check, and the teller knew your name? Remember going into your employers bank, and having a live person cash your paycheck free of any charges? Remember when the only fees assessed at any bank, anywhere, was for having a checking account with less than 100 dollars in it?
What happens if we remove the primary [financial] motivations behind the run for Congress??
I Mark Ancona, have drafted an amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which if enacted, would change the fundamentals of governance in this Nation. I have set forth in this amendment, ten articles to govern the activities of United States Legislators, that would remove the financial rewards currently associated with this office, and replace them with the originally intended reward; civic pride and a desire to ensure the enforcement of the Constitution by and for the People. With a return of the common man to the houses of Congress, perhaps we could return our government to something resembling that which the authors of our Constitution intended.
We the People of the United States of America, do now place before the Houses of the United States Congress for consideration, the following amendment to the United States Constitution:
That the spirit and intent of the United States Constitution has been debased and debauched for the personal gains of the privileged few and wealthy elite, and for the benefit of the American People for whom this Amendment to the Constitution of the United States has been drafted, and for the reform of the solemn office of United States Legislator, and for a return of self governance to the people, and after due deliberation and much intercourse, the People of the United States of America demand the following amendment be considered by the two venerable Houses for adoption and affirmative vote, and the signature of the President of the United States:
We the People of the United States of America have grown weary of continued abuse of our system of governance and therefore propose the following amendment for consideration and enactment:
Amendment 28 – Responsibilities and limitations for United States Legislators
1. Whereas, it is in the best interest of the People of the United States that State Legislators act exclusively in the interests of the People,
2. Whereas, Legislators have been elected to act in the exclusive interests of their constituencies, but have consistently usurped the voice of the People as a means to justify an end benefiting themselves,
3. Whereas, Legislators cannot function effectively when their legislative performance is prefaced upon the continuous solicitation of campaign contributions in anticipation, and far in advance of approaching elections, and the degradation those activities cause their general performance, and in light of the significant potential for said contributions to influence, skew and pervert the purity of said Legislators decisions,
4. Whereas, After six years of work, NO citizen has earned the right to perpetual health care and the receipt of a pension, equal to their previous salary for the balance of their natural lives,
5. Whereas, No Legislator should be compensated with an amount of monies exceeding that which is computed to be the median income of their particular constituency,
6. Whereas, It is the duty of United States Legislators to work toward the achievement of economic growth within their constituencies, said Legislator should only continue to receive aforementioned compensation at the same or higher level as a result of continued or increased prosperity within said constituency,
7. Whereas, Legislators should realize an equivalent loss of renumeration on and with the event of a decrease of the mean average salary of their constituents,
8. Whereas, No Legislator should be permitted to accept employment with any company, consultancy, financial entity or constituent, in whose interest they have acted, or who was affected in any way by or through legislation voted upon by said Legislator, irrespective of a vote in the affirmative or negative, during their legislative tenure for a period not to exceed 8 years after completion of their legislative term,
9. Whereas, The United States Congress has been hijacked by an elite group of wealthy and privileged country club socialites, governed by their mega-corporate masters, no Legislator should be permitted to raise or accept in money, deeds or services an amount greater than one hundred thousand dollars from any or all of their constituents, supporters or self , as a grand total of all monies received or used for purposes of initiating, perpetuating or completing a campaign for any political office or government position,
10. Whereas, The Federal Government shall as a result of this decree, make available in specific and rotating generic availability, time slots in 15 minute increments for use by the general candidacy, on a television channel for their exclusive use and for the express purposes of campaign activities,
Let It Therefore Be Resolved That
I
No Legislator may act or vote in any manner other than that so decreed by their constituencies and, failure to act in good faith on behalf of said legislators constituents behalf shall result in immediate removal from the office of Legislator and removal of said legislators right to vote or hold political office at any level for the balance of their natural life,
II
Any Legislator, having been found to have misrepresented their constituency, either through illegitimate fraud or other intercourse, shall be guilty of a felony of the first degree and shall be punishable by no less than ten years imprisonment and forfeiture of all tangible goods owned by said legislator,
III
No Legislator may benefit from legislative activities beyond that stipend guaranteed by their constituencies, and no Legislator may perform campaign duties, delegate campaign duties or solicit contributions while actively performing in the paid service of their constituents,
IV
Acceptance of more than one hundred thousand dollars during any one legislative term for purposes of campaign efforts, and if donation solicitation activities result in a missed vote on the floor of the House of Representatives or Senate, shall be considered a felony in the first degree and shall be punishable by no less than ten years imprisonment and forfeiture of all tangible goods owned by said Legislator.
V
Upon completion of said legislative duties, all Legislators will remain eligible for receipt of social security benefits, as guaranteed by the United States Government, in particular, the Social Security Administration, and no other health insurance nor retirement benefits other than those available to the Legislators constituents be the Federal Government forced to avail.
VI
No Legislator shall be permitted to retain as renumeration, an amount exceeding that average income, as computed by the state within which their constituency resides, in any calendar year during which said Legislator holds office. The level of compensation shall be determined to be the net average household salary for the head of the household, within said constituency, and that said measurements be undertaken on the first day of January each calendar year, utilizing a random household poll, entirely within the Legislators constituency, and shall encompass no less than 1 percent of verifiable constituents by count of voters registered within said legislators political party.
VII
Upon measured decrease of the average income of said Legislators constituency, The level of compensation shall be decreased to a level which is equal or less than the mean income of said constituency, and such determinations be undertaken on the first day of January each calendar year, utilizing a random household poll, entirely within the Legislators constituency, and shall encompass no less than 1 percent of verifiable and randomly chosen constituents by count of heads.
VIII
No Legislator may accept employment or consultancy, nor shall said Legislator act as advisor or confidant, renumerated or not, for and to any party involved with any legislation at any level throughout the tenure of said Legislator. Violations of this article shall be considered a felony in the first degree and punishable by no less than ten years imprisonment and forfeiture of all tangible goods owned by said Legislator.
IX
All Legislators will perform their perfunctory campaign duties utilizing the government established and maintained television broadcast channel, during a fifteen minute time slot to be chosen through random lottery.
X
Any legislator found to have accepted renumeration in any amount greater than one legal tender cent by any foreign government, agent of a foreign government, terrorist organization, corporate entity, financial institution, religious organization or private individual will be guilty of a felony in the first degree which shall be punishable by no less than ten years, and not more than fifty years imprisonment, and forfeiture of all tangible goods owned by the legislator.
And let it be further resolved that,
This amendment be decreed to be the prevailing law of the land, and shall be honored by all men without regard to race, creed, religion or personal ideals. Let it be known heretofore, that we make and hold these articles, in answer to many years of abuse and perversion of existing legislation for the benefit of the privileged few. We further expound that said abuses have been rampant and prevalent, such that renewed vigilance is hereby commanded of the responsible citizenry for this proud nation, to forestall and quash further obtuse and illegal actions by and from our Legislators. Let it be further known that the will of the People so dictate the furtherance of these measures whose design envelopes the protection of the very liberties and freedoms under attack from within this day.
I was asked if I would go back in time [I borrowed Mr. Peabody's Way-Back Machine] so I found it. This is Just as relevant now, if not more so, than when I posted it several years ago, and agreed with the requestor that it deserved more discussion with so many newer members.
It occurs to me that there is always a pundit available to propound on some insignificant subject or another, yet there is never a voice that rises above the din when there are hard choices to be made. I continue to be amazed with the legislative decisions endorsed by our Congress that go counter to popular opinion on every front, but are paraded before the public as the only and just answer to a particular problem. Witness this ridiculous “stimulus” bill, derided by the People, yet shoved through the Congress on the fear that was mongered by our President. A government by the People, and for the People has lost its flavor for me. Our Legislators are in Congress for one reason; money, exposure and the post legislative perks that come with having been a Legislator. Congress is perpetually paralyzed by the plethora of special interest groups and highly paid lobbyists demanding that their position be recognized. Partisan politics has reduced our once proud Congress to a bunch of squabbling school children whining back and forth about he-said-she-said. It is time to reclaim the legislative process from the rich and return it to the People.
Witness the current financial Armageddon we are experiencing. The entire financial system has been turned into a casino for the mega wealthy, through the political machinations of our Congress. Who decided it would be a good idea to repeal Glass-Steagall, then lobbied actively for it to happen?? That’s right, our old bankster pal Alan Greenspan and Co. Then along came Graham-Leach-Bliley, another genius piece of legislation, whose purposes included eliminating the restrictions keeping banks from expanding into investment banking, stock brokerage and insurance. The reason behind limiting bank size and composition were very simple and sound. These limits insured the Federal Government that if a bank failed, the total liability to the taxpayer would be limited. These protections were put into place to eliminate the “too big to fail” potential that mega banks and financial institutions have become [Bear Stearns ring a bell?].
All of this because a couple of legislators were able to round up enough powerful lobbyists, on behalf of the wealthy elite, greedy banksters and financial institutions to convince a large enough of a majority of sitting legislators, that either this was a great idea, or that a vote in the negative would result in this being their last term in Congress. To say the very least, none of these legislative changes were done in the best interests of the People of the United States of America. These changes can and do benefit only a very elite and select few people in the top quintile of the top one percent of the income food chain. Remember the good old days? I sure do! Remember going into your neighborhood bank branch and depositing your pay-check, and the teller knew your name? Remember going into your employers bank, and having a live person cash your paycheck free of any charges? Remember when the only fees assessed at any bank, anywhere, was for having a checking account with less than 100 dollars in it?
What happens if we remove the primary [financial] motivations behind the run for Congress??
I Mark Ancona, have drafted an amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which if enacted, would change the fundamentals of governance in this Nation. I have set forth in this amendment, ten articles to govern the activities of United States Legislators, that would remove the financial rewards currently associated with this office, and replace them with the originally intended reward; civic pride and a desire to ensure the enforcement of the Constitution by and for the People. With a return of the common man to the houses of Congress, perhaps we could return our government to something resembling that which the authors of our Constitution intended.
We the People of the United States of America, do now place before the Houses of the United States Congress for consideration, the following amendment to the United States Constitution:
That the spirit and intent of the United States Constitution has been debased and debauched for the personal gains of the privileged few and wealthy elite, and for the benefit of the American People for whom this Amendment to the Constitution of the United States has been drafted, and for the reform of the solemn office of United States Legislator, and for a return of self governance to the people, and after due deliberation and much intercourse, the People of the United States of America demand the following amendment be considered by the two venerable Houses for adoption and affirmative vote, and the signature of the President of the United States:
We the People of the United States of America have grown weary of continued abuse of our system of governance and therefore propose the following amendment for consideration and enactment:
Amendment 28 – Responsibilities and limitations for United States Legislators
1. Whereas, it is in the best interest of the People of the United States that State Legislators act exclusively in the interests of the People,
2. Whereas, Legislators have been elected to act in the exclusive interests of their constituencies, but have consistently usurped the voice of the People as a means to justify an end benefiting themselves,
3. Whereas, Legislators cannot function effectively when their legislative performance is prefaced upon the continuous solicitation of campaign contributions in anticipation, and far in advance of approaching elections, and the degradation those activities cause their general performance, and in light of the significant potential for said contributions to influence, skew and pervert the purity of said Legislators decisions,
4. Whereas, After six years of work, NO citizen has earned the right to perpetual health care and the receipt of a pension, equal to their previous salary for the balance of their natural lives,
5. Whereas, No Legislator should be compensated with an amount of monies exceeding that which is computed to be the median income of their particular constituency,
6. Whereas, It is the duty of United States Legislators to work toward the achievement of economic growth within their constituencies, said Legislator should only continue to receive aforementioned compensation at the same or higher level as a result of continued or increased prosperity within said constituency,
7. Whereas, Legislators should realize an equivalent loss of renumeration on and with the event of a decrease of the mean average salary of their constituents,
8. Whereas, No Legislator should be permitted to accept employment with any company, consultancy, financial entity or constituent, in whose interest
9. Whereas, The United States Congress has been hijacked by an elite group of wealthy and privileged country club socialites, governed by their mega-corporate masters, no Legislator should be permitted to raise or accept in money, deeds or services an amount greater than one hundred thousand dollars from any or all of their constituents, supporters or self , as a grand total of all monies received or used for purposes of initiating, perpetuating or completing a campaign for any political office or government position,
10. Whereas, The Federal Government shall as a result of this decree, make available in specific and rotating generic availability, time slots in 15 minute increments for use by the general candidacy, on a television channel for their exclusive use and for the express purposes of campaign activities,
Let It Therefore Be Resolved That
I
No Legislator may act or vote in any manner other than that so decreed by their constituencies and, failure to act in good faith on behalf of said legislators constituents behalf shall result in immediate removal from the office of Legislator and removal of said legislators right to vote or hold political office at any level for the balance of their natural life,
II
Any Legislator, having been found to have misrepresented their constituency, either through illegitimate fraud or other intercourse, shall be guilty of a felony of the first degree and shall be punishable by no less than ten years imprisonment and forfeiture of all tangible goods owned by said legislator,
III
No Legislator may benefit from legislative activities beyond that stipend guaranteed by their constituencies, and no Legislator may perform campaign duties, delegate campaign duties or solicit contributions while actively performing in the paid service of their constituents,
IV
Acceptance of more than one hundred thousand dollars during any one legislative term for purposes of campaign efforts, and if donation solicitation activities result in a missed vote on the floor
V
Upon completion of said legislative duties, all Legislators will remain eligible for receipt of social security benefits, as guaranteed by the United States Government, in particular, the Social Security Administration, and no other health insurance nor retirement benefits other than those available to the Legislators constituents be the Federal Government forced to avail.
VI
No Legislator shall be permitted to retain as renumeration, an amount exceeding that average income, as computed by the state within which their constituency resides, in any calendar year during which said Legislator holds office. The level of compensation shall be determined to be the net average household salary for the head of the household, within said constituency, and that said measurements be undertaken on the first day of January each calendar year, utilizing a random household poll, entirely within the Legislators constituency, and shall encompass no less than 1 percent of verifiable constituents by count of voters registered within said legislators political party.
VII
Upon measured decrease of the average income of said Legislators constituency, The level of compensation shall be decreased to a level which is equal or less than the mean income of said constituency, and such determinations be undertaken on the first day of January each calendar year, utilizing a random household poll, entirely within the Legislators constituency, and shall encompass no less than 1 percent of verifiable and randomly chosen constituents by count of heads.
VIII
No Legislator may accept employment or consultancy, nor shall said Legislator act as advisor or confidant, renumerated or not, for and to any party involved with any legislation at any level throughout the tenure of said Legislator. Violations of this article shall be considered a felony in the first degree and punishable by no less than ten years imprisonment and forfeiture of all tangible goods owned by said Legislator.
IX
All Legislators will perform their perfunctory campaign duties utilizing the government established and maintained television broadcast channel, during a fifteen minute time slot to be chosen through random lottery.
X
Any legislator found to have accepted renumeration in any amount greater than one legal tender cent by any foreign government, agent
And let it be further resolved that,
This amendment be decreed to be the prevailing law of the land, and shall be honored by all men without regard to race, creed, religion or personal ideals. Let it be known heretofore, that we make and hold these articles, in answer to many years of abuse and perversion of existing legislation for the benefit of the privileged few. We further expound that said abuses have been rampant and prevalent, such that renewed vigilance is hereby commanded of the responsible citizenry for this proud nation, to forestall and quash further obtuse and illegal actions by and from our Legislators. Let it be further known that the will of the People so dictate the furtherance of these measures whose design envelopes the protection of the very liberties and freedoms under attack from within this day.