Senators want to end ‘secret holds’ that let nominees languish - The Boston Globe

Senators want to end ‘secret holds’ that let nominees languish - The Boston Globe

This kind of nonsense happens all the time in Albany. Let's put a provision in the Long Island State Constitution to prevent this kind of behavior.

Corporate Pershonhood and the Gulf Oil Spill

I think the biggest problem here is that the US Supreme Court ruled years ago that corporations have the same rights as naturally occuring persons, the same Bill of Rights applies to "fictional persons" as to real persons.

I'm not sure what the State of Long Island could do about this issue, but I do believe it should be investigated thoroughly

Bill of Rights - Part 2

I believe that the soverign States can enhance the Bill of Rights. We should definitely look into the possibility of enhancing and enshrining greater rights for our citizens in the 21st Century. It is my understanding that the States can not abrogate or diminish the Bill of Rights, but they can enhance them. An example is the right to privacy. We could enhance the right of privacy on the internet, prevent "law enforcement" from snooping into our internet activity for the purpose of entrapment.

I hope that we will attract constitutional lawyers and scholars to look into the possibilities.

Bill of Rights - Our Birthright as Americans

I think all Americans should read the Bill of Rights periodically. This was one of the greatest documents ever created by the people who founded our Republic.

Bill of Rights

Amendment 1

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.



Amendment 2

A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.



Amendment 3

No soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.



Amendment 4

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.



Amendment 5

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a grand jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the militia, when in actual service in time of war or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.



Amendment 6

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the state and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense.



Amendment 7

In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise reexamined in any court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.



Amendment 8

Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.



Amendment 9

The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.



Amendment 10

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.

51 Star US Flag

Here is a link to a picture I found on wikipedia. It is in the public domain, but somehow I can't load the image. If  someone else can open the file and put the image on our homepage, that would be truly awesome. Check this one out:

US_51-star_alternate_flag.svg‎

Elected County Sherriffs

The State of Long Island should seriously look at the possibility that a county sherriff, elected by the people; could have great powers to keep State and Federal officials at bay when they try to encroach on local powers. I believe that the more power and control that can be delegated to the county, city and precinct levels the better. Here is a website of a guy named Richard Mack. He may be a bit on the "right-wing" side of things so I don't know how useful his material will be; be I think we owe it to ourselves to evaluate it. Here is the website:

http://sheriffmack.com/

Corporation Reform - Part 2

There are two new corporate forms that are beginning to be established. One is the B Corporation - http://www.bcorporation.net/

L3C Corporation

Here is a wikipedia entry that describes L3C's in some detail:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L3C
Here is part one of a series of videos on YouTube regarding L3C

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZ9uQmVvtjA&feature=player_embedded

I will post more on this topic and hope others will join in this thread.

Redistricting, Election Reforms

The State of Long Island has an incredible opportunity to re-engineer how electoral districts are established and how elections are conducted. Much of the way we do things around here is based on ideas that are 200 years old. The world has changed and the State of Long Island can be a leader in creating systems that work in the 21st century. Here are a few ideas:

Instant Runoff Voting and Proportional Representation

http://www.fairvote.org/

Citizens' Redistriction Commissions

Election "Day" should be spread out over a weekend. I propose that the polls be open starting the first Friday and end on the following Sunday and that the following schedule be maintained throughout the State of Long Island

(all times are Eastern)

First Friday - 2 pm - 11 pm
Saturday - 6 am - 11 pm
Sunday - 6 am - 11 pm

Election Processing Reform

There are several groups working on creating methods and means for being certain that ALL people who are eligible are able to vote and have their vote counted.

Hand Counted Paper Ballot Verification of all Ballots

Announcements of Results:
The State Board of Elections will announce all results on the Monday following the conclusion of the election.

I am sure other people have ideas to contribute to this thread. More resources and maybe even different ways of solving problems. I hope that there will be a lively discussion on this topic.

Sex Scandals

I have this crazy idea that what people do in the bedroom should be kept out of the political sphere. If the activities in question do not affect the ability of an office holder, public official or civil servant to perform their duties; then we should have a specific policy of Leave 'Em Alone." People can turn to many resources available to work through their difficulties, including psychologists, ministers, etc.

Tax Policy

Long Island, the 51st State has a real  opportunity to look seriously at the convoluted tax sytem at the level of state and municipal government. I'd like to suggest that we look at the philosophy of Henry George. A good short article about him and his work can be found on wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_george

The Henry George School of Social Sciences in Manhattan, NY is also an excellent source of information:

http://www.henrygeorgeschool.org/

Re-Engineer the Prison Industrial Complex

Like the rest of the governing structure of the State of New York, the "prison industrial complex" is a crazy quilt that had been added onto ever since the State entered the Union. There are jails, prisons, parole and probation departments just to name a few. Many people spend much of their lives caught up in this system; which has serious flaws and can be quite brutal. We end up with very angry people! The only beneficiaries of this set of boondogles are prison guards, jailors, district attorneys, defense attorneys, bail bondspeople and only God knows who else. The poor people who pay for this mess (that's most of us taxpayers) and the poor people who get caught up in this system are all the worse off. The State of Long Island has some real opportunities to humanize this system and end up paying a lot less in taxes for its maintenance.

Re-Engineering Taxation

One of the things that the 51st State of Long Island would have the opportunity to do is to re-engineer the entire plethora of schemes related to taxation. Since it entered the Union, the State of New York has had tributes and taxes of many kinds. Different schemes are simply added on top of what already exists, thus creating a monster tax code. As the first new State of the 21st Century; the State of Long Island could get the people together with the experts to figure out a taxation program that any sixth grader could read and understand. It would be a really simple system. People would have input and be able to submit their gripes about the current schemes. Once this were done, I truly believe there would be far few tax avoidance schemes. Tax avoidance is part of the entire taxation mess. Right now the only people who benefit are the tax accountants and the lawyers. The government and the people get ripped off.