By "Us" I mean ordinary people going about our ordinary lives, with little individual influence but enormous power when grouped together.
Populism a dirty word for many, is also a dangerous event for those that seek to maintain division. When asked to register their opinions on individual issues the results often go against party affiliation.
Bernie Sanders is out there campaigning on the issues so important to all of us.
Elizabeth Warren is out there campaigning on the issues so important to all of us.
Hillary Clinton is having to be out there campaigning on the issues so important to all of us.
When we get down to it what are the most important issues to most of us?
Having employment or the means to create our own.
Being paid a livable wage for the work we do.
Being able to afford good quality housing
Being able to afford educate our children as best as possible.
Being able to afford to have health care.
Being able to foresee a secure retirement.
The rest is a bonus. How can you ask everyone to concern themselves with climate change, foreign wars and domestic terrorism when they are struggling just to get by and juggle their debts.
It has never been the case of wanting government assistance to get by, the real knockdown is having to have government assistance to get by. When we see corporation abusing the system by not paying employees enough to live on so that they have to have government assistance to survive you know the system is morally bankrupt. When the owners of these businesses then turn around and buy the system than promotes the government assisted profits, you can understand how people lose faith in government. It's time for targeting the anger where it should be aimed.
Equal rights irrespective of race, gender and income bracket.
Equal pay for equal work irrespective of race or gender.
A fair days pay for the work we do and a livable minimum wage.
A safety net for when life throws a curve-ball.
Equal opportunities for the next generation by education and freedom from excessive debt.
If we can earn decent amounts of money then having to buy the cheapest goods made by people held in thrall oversees by our multinationals that is a bonus. The TPP/TTIP proposals would not be an issue, they would become meaningless. The drive for cheaper is purely profit driven and benefits only the oh so very few.
It's time to talk about the minimum wage, income inequality, social divisiveness and indebtedness. It's time to talk about equal opportunity, unity and the freedom that comes with earning enough to have something left over at the end of the week.
Then we can start really doing something about the issues that threaten us all effectively. When only the well off can have access to products that actually help them lower their energy costs, heat pumps, hybrid cars, electric cars, solar power, storage batteries, wind turbines etc etc etc then getting the renewable economy going is unnecessarily hard work.
It is also time to talk about taxes and how they actually work, how do you pay for an infrastructure worthy of the name, how do you educate everyone so that they at least have a chance to compete? How do you fund national and global research into solutions for the greatest challenge of our times, climate change. How do you make sure that businesses obey the rules that prevent further damage. How can you afford to retrain people properly when their industry becomes obsolete, rather than just propping them up with subsidies. How can we pay for the next banking crisis if we refuse to actually try and prevent one happening by legislation. How can we start to invest in preventing the reasons for global conflicts occurring rather than just bombing when things get beyond our comprehension? There is a reason for anger and terrorism I don't believe they are just spontaneous events of human nature. Treat the cause rather than the symptom and if climate change is not tackled we face a bleak future of violence.
My opinion of taxes is that I rarely wonder how much I pay, more what is actually done with the taxes I pay. It is time to have a real conversation. Quite frankly if you are paying taxes you are earning and the idea that those earning the least pay the least and those that are earning the most pay the most is normal. We all benefit from the society we build together, some however like to profit for free and get others to do the paying, re: the last financial crisis and unlivable wages. Then they come up with the bullshit of corporate free trade to maximize profits and protection of their wealth.
The GOP clown car may be as funny as hell on one level but it is a total distraction from the real issue that genuinely affect peoples lives. It's bought and paid for by some of the nastiest and meanest people on the planet.
Hence I welcome the Sanders-Warren-Clinton triangle as a real positive in a debate that really concerns everyone of us. It can do nothing but make us stronger. I want to attract usual non voters to vote and by proposing the solutions to populist issues that may actually happen.
Bring on 2016