I Am generally not a very political but this E-mail I got caught my attention. After being thru a lay-off, no insurance and all other things these past 13 months when I got this it really hit home. I have my doubts that anything will be done, but I think it would be a huge step in the right direction. I watched a program on TV a few weeks ago about all the perks our congress and senate members get and it really upsets me that our money is being spent on this while many of people in my situation are getting the boot, so to speak. Did you know that if a congress or senate member gets sick they can have any specialist in the country flown into DC to examine them AT NO CHARGE, this is all while a friend of mine can't work and has gone thru at least 6 docs can't figure out what the heck is wrong with her and they just pass her off to the next, saying "Oh itz not my prob anymore".
Again I'm not trying to start a riot but this is REALLY something to think about, Here's the email....
THIS IS HOW YOU FIX CONGRESS AND SENATE!!!
I am sending this to virtually everybody on my e-mail list and that includes conservatives, liberals, and everybody in between. Even though we disagree on a number of issues, I count all of you as friends.. My friend and neighbor wants to promote a "Congressional Reform Act of 2010". It would contain eight provisions, all of which would probably be strongly endorsed by those who drafted the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
I know many of you will say, "this is impossible". Let me remind you, Congress has the lowest approval of any entity in Government, now is the time when Americans will join together to reform Congress - the entity that represents us.
We need to get a Senator to introduce this bill in the US Senate and a Representative to introduce a similar bill in the US House. These people will become American heroes..
Thanks,
A Fellow American
.Congressional Reform Act of 2010
1. Term Limits: 12 years only, one of the possible options below.
A. Two Six year Senate terms
B. Six Two year House terms
C. One Six year Senate term and three Two Year House term
Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, serve your term(s), then go home and back to work.
2. No Tenure / No Pension:
Congressmen collect a salary while in office and receive no pay when they are out of office.
Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, serve your term(s), then go home and back to work.
3. Congress (past, present & future) participates in Social Security:
All funds in the Congressional retirement fund move to the Social Security system immediately. All future funds flow into the Social Security system, Congress participates with the American people.
Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, server your term(s), then go home and back to work.
4. Congress can purchase their own retirement plan just as all Americans.
Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, serve your term(s), then go home and back to work.
5. Congress will no longer vote themselves a pay raise. Congressional pay will rise by the lower of CPI or 3%.
Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, serve your term(s), then go home and back to work.
6. Congress lose their current health care system and participate in the same health care system as the American people.
Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, serve your term(s), then go home and back to work.
7. Congress must equally abide in all laws they impose on the American people.
Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, serve your term(s), then go home and back to work.
8. All contracts with past and present congressmen are void effective 1/1/11.
The American people did not make this contract with congressmen, congressmen made all these contracts for themselves.
Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career.. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, serve your term(s), then go home and back to work.
If you agree with the above, pass it on to all in your address list. If not, just delete..
Some friendly disagreements posted on FB, some here :) Now for the Blogger Half
ReplyDelete7) Congressmen do have to abide by the laws of the US. There are very few special legal protections for congressmen. There are 2 that are notable off the top of my head. The first is while on the floor of congress, congressmen are immune to slander. Which is generally reasonable and should be protected. There other is that congressmen do not have to abide by insider trading laws. Which I think is a farce, but that loop hole and others reasonable ones can be closed. But saying there can't be any laws that give congressmen immunity opens a pandora box of issues, of which some congressmen do need the extra protections to perform their duties.
8) I'm really not sure what this is referring to. But really such a blanket statement is troublesome. This statement does not address the difference between any particular type of contract, including any personal non-congressional-business contracts. Since it includes past congressmen that would even void any employment contracts they currently have. Really this could even void non-disclosure agreements that congressmen have signed. If there are any specific contracts the original author has intended they can be covered with a more specific laws / congressional rules.
Note) "Go home and work", is an odd statement. After someone has lived in DC for a number of years and has been a national, Federal representative where exactly is home is? If this is in the text of the law, the term home and work must be defined. What if a congressman wants to retire and play with the kids that grew up in DC and laid down their roots there? Do we expect that person to pack up, head back to where they were elected from and fulfill a term of 'work' for a number of years away from his/her family? Any number of scenarios are possible. This would be a terrible infringement on someone who has served their nation.
Good arguments from both sides. And good for you, Erin, for taking note of and questioning what's going on in DC. There are a lot of "interesting" choices being made by our leadership right now, and a lot of American citizens refuse to take notice because politics bore them and they're not interesting in taking a stand for what's right. Unfortunately, the only good thing about a person keeping his head in the sand is that he would be oblivious to his country deteriorating all around him.
ReplyDelete*interested
ReplyDelete@ mike- I know they have to abide by the laws but how many times do you think things are just brushed off?
ReplyDeleteI'm not trying to start a riot, I just wish that things were better and we could take notes from this, it could be the start of something amazing that could help this country back on itz feet. If everyone had to spend the last year in our shoes they would know... and not many people can. Let me give you a 40hr a week job that makes $12 an hr and try to raise 2 kids while your spouse can't work. We didn't plan for this to happen, it just did, we weren't living the rich life, just enough to keep us up and going and have a little fun once in a while. I want everyone to see what's happening, that was the point of this blog, to get people to understand
It's the job of prosecutors to bring charges against politicians who do break the law. Just having more laws will not clean up congress, We must demand that Federal and state prosecutors do their job and bring criminal charges against corrupt politicians.
ReplyDeleteBTW the living wage for your family is $23.46[1]. Times are tough, Thanks Greenspan. (Who said that Job Insecurity is a good thing, [2])
[1] http://www.livingwage.geog.psu.edu/counties/20203
[2] http://www.creators.com/opinion/alexander-cockburn/by-alexander-cockburn.html
That is kinda neat to know the living wage.
ReplyDeleteAnd I understand where you're coming from, and I'm not trying to "start" anything. So if that's what you're trying to do itz not working, but I totally think something needs to be done.
You have never been in my situation and until you have you will never truely understand my frustration...
But the whole point of a political discussion is a discussion. Part of the reason we have such an dysfunctional political discourse in this country is that people are too happy to drop a list of political platitudes and go on their merry way. If we want real change, then we also must have real discussions that are based on facts and informed opinions. Otherwise we will continue to remain dysfunctionally divided.
ReplyDeleteAnd there are alot of people who are walking in your shoes. 1.7 million[1] people earn only the less-than-living minimum wage. In Idaho in 2009, more than 88% of job openings were for salaries below the living wage. [2] The stories in both articles I'm citing depict people who are economically hurting as bad as you are. And I'm not saying this to lessen your burden, but to amplify your general point of the current political climate is for and of the wealthy.
But the key to reform for those of us who arn't the 10% richest people in America, is to understand it is not us. That we are not alone. That many, many people are hurting and as a group we can effect economic change. The general election is in less than 90 days. Imagine the change that would be possible if we sent the to the entire House and 1/3rd of the Senate a newly elected membership that cared about the people who earn less than a living wage.
[1] http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/07/25/minimum.wage.workers/index.html
[2] http://www.boiseweekly.com/boise/live-below-the-living-wage/Content?oid=1126957
[bonus] http://washingtonindependent.com/94680/99ers-rally-for-unemployment-extension