Let me point out they aren't alone. Our own Frank Lee Speaking of Occupy Dailykos has reached the second iteration of his Petition for Redress of Grievances which is itself based on the Philly document and deserves some review and comment by us here.
The medium term goal of the 99% Declaration appears to be to vote/select members from every state and congressional district, as well as Puerto Rico and other provinces, to attend a National General Assembly to finalize and consolidate these varying different Grievance Documents from around the nation.
WE, THE NINETY-NINE PERCENT OF THE PEOPLE of the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, in order to form a more perfect Union, by, for and of the PEOPLE, shall elect and convene a NATIONAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY the week of July 4, 2012 in the City Of Philadelphia to prepare and ratify a PETITION FOR A REDRESS OF GRIEVANCES on behalf of the Ninety-Nine Percent of United States citizens.
Broadly Stated and as shown in the 2nd Video the Grievances and Goals are thus:
1. Elimination of the Corporate State. The merger of the American political system of republican democracy with the economic system of capitalism has resulted in the establishment of a corporate government of, by and for the benefit of domestic and multinational corporations. Therefore, the 99% of the American People demand an immediate ban on all direct and indirect private contributions of anything of value, to all politicians serving in or running for federal office in the United States.
2. Abrogation of the "Citizens United" Case. The immediate abrogation, even if it requires a Constitutional Amendment, of the outrageous and anti-democratic Supreme Court holding in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission and its progeny. (Ed Note: There are at this time at least three separate Constitutional Amendment Proposals on this. Here from the Senate, Here from the House and A Third Here endorsed by Thom Hartmann that fixes some of the problems with the other two.)
3. Elimination of All Private Benefits and "Perks" to Public Servants. The 99% of the American People demand the immediate prohibition of special benefits to all federal elected officials, public employees, officers, public servants, officials or their immediate family members including a corrupt “revolving door” in and out of our government.
4. Term Limits. Members of the United States House of Representatives shall be limited to serving no more than four two-year terms in their lifetime. Members of the United States Senate shall be limited to serving no more than two six-year terms in their lifetime.
5. A Fair Tax Code. A complete reformation and simplification of the United States Tax Code to require ALL individuals and corporations to pay a fair share of a progressive, graduated income tax by eliminating loopholes, unfair tax breaks, exemptions and unfair deductions, subsidies and ending all other methods of evading taxes.
6. Healthcare for All. Medicare for all or adoption of a universal single-payer healthcare system.
7. Protection of the Planet. Human greed, exponentially magnified by corporations, is destroying the only habitable planet known to humanity.
8. Debt Reduction. Adoption of an immediate plan to reduce the national debt to a sustainable percentage of GDP by 2020.
9. Jobs for All Americans. Passage of a comprehensive job and job-training act like the American Jobs Act to employ our citizens in jobs that are available with specialized training.
10. Student Loan Debt Reduction. Our students are more than $1 trillion in debt from education loans and have fewer employment prospects due to the financial collapse directly caused by the unbridled and unregulated greed of Wall Street.
11. Immigration Reform and Improved Border Security. Immediate passage of the Dream Act and comprehensive immigration and border security reform including offering visas, lawful permanent resident status and citizenship
12. Ending of Perpetual War for Profit. Recalling all military personnel at all non-essential bases including but not limited to Europe, South Korea, Japan, Australia and Cuba and refocusing national defense goals to address threats posed by the geopolitics of the 21st century,
13. Emergency Reform of Public Education. The education system in the United States is a resounding failure. New educational goals to train the American public to perform jobs in a 21st century economy, particularly in the areas of technology, infrastructure repair, water and resource conservation and green energy must be mandated as national security issue.
14. End Outsourcing. Subject to the elimination of corporate tax loopholes and exploited exemptions and deductions as stated in point five, limited tax incentives will be permitted to entice businesses to hire our citizens rather than outsource jobs.
15. End Currency Manipulation. Implementing immediate legislation (see e.g. H.R. 639) to encourage China (which undervalues its currency by an estimated 25% to 40%) and our other trading partners to end currency manipulation, reduce the trade deficit and end clearly identified unfair trade practices.
16. Banking and Securities Reform. Immediate reenactment of the Glass-Steagall Act and increased regulation of Wall Street and the financial industry by the SEC, FINRA, CFTC, the Justice Department and the other financial regulators including the recently established Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
17. Foreclosure Moratorium. Adoption of a plan similar to President Clinton’s proposal to end the mortgage crisis. The privately owned Federal Reserve Bank shall not continue to lower interest rates for loans to banks that are refusing to loan to small businesses and consumers.
18. Ending the Fed. The immediate formation of a non-partisan commission, overseen by Congress, to audit and investigate the short-term and long-term economic risks in eliminating the privately-owned Federal Reserve Bank and transferring all its functions to the United States Treasury Department.
19. Abolish the Electoral College and Enact Uniform Election Reforms. The 99% demand the abolishment of the Electoral College in favor of the Popular Vote in presidential elections to avoid situations where the Electoral College elects a candidate who does not receive a majority of the popular vote.
20. Ending the War in Afghanistan and Care of Veterans. An immediate withdrawal of all combat troops from Afghanistan and a substantial increase in the amount of funding for veteran job training and placement.
21. Repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act ("DOMA"). Immediate passage of Senate bill, S. 598, and House bill, H.R. 1116, to repeal the Defense Of Marriage Act because all human beings have the right to love and marry another human being regardless of gender or sexual orientation.
22. No Censorship of the Internet. The Internet and its related technologies foster free speech, innovation, and a global human consciousness. We believe that the Internet and its related technologies are the joint property of humanity, and as such, it must not be censored or regulated in any manner without the consent of the people who utilize and contribute to its vitality. We therefore demand the immediate withdrawal of the Stop Online Piracy Act or "SOPA" (H.R. 3261) and the Protect IP Act (S. 968).
I think some of these ideas are better than others, some will take a long time to implement - some aren't entirely practical - but no one can say that the issues, grievances and "demands" haven't been listed, they have been.
Yet this, like the other various proposals, is but a draft, it's merely a suggestion, one that this proposed National General Assembly would finalize and ratify.
But once that is done, things get really serious.
V. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that IF the PETITION FOR A REDRESS OF GRIEVANCES approved by the 876 Delegates of the NATIONAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY in consultation with the NINETY-NINE PERCENT OF THE PEOPLE, is not acted upon within a reasonable time and to the satisfaction of the Delegates of the NATIONAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY, said Delegates shall reconvene to utilize the grassroots network established in the election of the NATIONAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY to organize a new INDEPENDENT POLITICAL PARTY to run candidates for every available Congressional seat in the mid-term election of 2014 and again in 2016 until all vestiges of the existing corrupt corporatocracy have been eradicated through the power of the ballot box.
I think waiting until 2014 might be giving our current politicians a little too much rope to hang themselves with - but it is moving to that next phase in a real way. Taking the grassroots and community connections that have been built via #Occupy and making them into a Permanent Political Force that will remain until every one of their grievances are addressed.
Everyone who looks at the above list has to know almost none of it will be enacted "immediately" The Anti-Choice Movement has been trying to slowly chip away at Roe V Wade for Decades. This is going to take some time, and going to take some commitment, it's going to take dealing with half-steps and half-measures that don't quite get us where we need to be - it may require a considerable amount of adjustment and tweeking to be practical - but this is beginning to show the #Occupy has plans to stay and the 99% will no longer be ignored, dismissed or trampled.
I'm thinking pretty soon, Bloomberg, Quan, Villaraigosa and others will have wished that they had simply let the Occupy protestors stay in the park(s) - because now they're just about everywhere.
They can stomp on them. Kettle Them. Beat them. Arrest them. Pepper Spray them. Use Fascist Intimidation Tactics on them. But still, #Occupy Grows.
Vyan
7:58 AM PT: CBS in Philly, the proposed site of the National General Assembly: has news on this:
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Mayor Michael Nutter was reacting cautiously on Wednesday to word that national organizers of “Occupy Wall Street” and similar protests across the country plan to gather in Philadelphia next summer.
The plans are found in a document posted online by an “Occupy Wall Street” working group, titled “The 99 Percent Declaration.” The document proposes a National General Assembly to be held in Philadelphia starting on July 4th, 2012 and running through next October.
The proposal says the Assembly would operate similarly to the original “Committees of Correspondence” — the Founding Fathers who met in Philadelphia prior to what the group refers to as “the first American Revolution.”
So it does seem to be confirmed, despite my initial concerns, and Occupy Philly is part of and/or directing it.
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