#occupywallstreet

Someone has finally published a list of 11 demands from the Occupy Wall Street protest. They're not demands in the strict sense of the word. No one represents the Anonymous group that called for the occupation of Wall Street. Their list is more like a Quaker resolution, meant to represent only those people in attendance and only at that one moment in time. Even so, it's good to see that the effort is being documented and gaining momentum.

Their ideas show to me that they didn't have any people there who understand that American dollars are created by debt. That's okay. The majority of American have no understanding of that fact either, so they're in fine company. It's a very important limitation to our existing economy. If I were there to speak with them, I would argue for these points as appropriate concessions before ending the occupation of Wall Street.

1. Add a new law by Congress which immediately returns to the tax brackets of 1982 (or here for more detail).  If it was good enough for "the gipper" (Reagan), then today's Republicans should just learn to cope with the burden of their own former ideas.  Additional changes can wait until later when we change the whole monetary system.
2. Add a new law by Congress which taxes financial transactions.
3. Add a new law by Congress which reimplements the Glass-Steagall act.
4. Add a new law by Congress which nullifies all existing "golden parachute" clauses and forbids all bonus payments within any corporation that receives any government bailout money until the loaned money is repaid.
5. Add a new amendment to the constitution which changes campaign finance.
   1. Only persons who can vote are allowed to contribute to any political campaign, thereby removing corporate and other hidden political influence.
   2. Voting rights can be removed from people only when they commit crimes against humanity (even against a single human), unlike now when many Americans are forbidden because of felony drug conviction.
   3. People can contribute a maximum of 1/10 of the previous year's income for the median American worker. As more people become wealthy, then more money can be given to campaigns.
   4. Individuals may self-finance with the limitation that their contribution cannot exceed the total contributions from other people, so no rich people can simply buy their way into office by outspending their opponents on advertising.
6. Add a new amendment to the constitution which changes war finance.
   1. Wars must be paid without incurring debt.
   2. War debt can be incurred and maintained only as long as conscription (military draft) is enforced. Conscription may end when the debt is paid. You can sacrifice the next generation for your war, if it's really necessary. You can't hide what you're doing, though, so you have to convince everyone that it's worth the heavy cost.
7. Add a new amendment to the constitution which changes money creation. Money must begin with an assumption of zero growth. Our current debt-creation of money must be entirely abandoned.  A Panoply framework would suffice for immediate change.  We can use gold as the standard if no other suitable non-expanding foundation becomes apparent.
8. Add a new amendment to the constitution which decriminalizes poverty.  If any government forbids freely providing food, shelter, or healthcare to any person in one jurisdiction, then the government must pay to provide free equivalent food, shelter, or healthcare in another area within the same jurisdiction.  Government must not be allowed to ignore what it wishes to forget.

I have many other changes that I think are important and useful for America to make, but they seem less relevant to the Wall Street environment so they can wait for another social movement to begin. :)