You may say I'm a dreamer......

But am I the only one? We have created this monster, two parties with a stranglehold on the political process, two philosophies of governing that have grown so opposed to each other that any spirit of bipartisanship seems an exercise in futility. More and more Americans are abandoning the ballot box, convinced that their vote is meaningless in the face of special interest money and influence, some even because the electoral college has made a mockery of the popular vote. We know that to continue electing candidates put forth by either party will only give us more of the same, yet we give precious little credence to the idea that perhaps we need to start giving a third party or totally independent candidate a chance to turn things around. Are we so damned determined to keep trusting politicians who are so removed from the realities of everyday life that we will NEVER give one of US the benefit of the doubt? People, just keep sending people with perfect hair, perfect height, perfect smiles, talented speech writers, and illogical promises to Capital Hill, and you can only blame yourselves for the perfect mess they are making of our country. I can imagine the following scenario, but can anyone else?

"Ladies and Gentlemen of the Congress, I present to you the President of the United States!"

Tentative applause greets the diminutive figure as he walks down the aisle, not stopping to shake hands, but staring straight ahead as he heads towards the podium. Nervous murmuring give way to silence as he patiently awaits them to sit down. The lawmakers are about to hear an address, one that has not been circulated amongst them for preview, that promises to be like none ever heard in these chambers before. They are all facing well founded fears.
He remains silent until the quiet descends and you can hear a pen drop. Then he scans the chambers as if he intends to make contact with each and every Congressman, glances down at his notes, and begins....

"Vice President Morgan, Speaker of the House, Senate Majority and Minority Leaders, distinguished Congressmen, and last, but certainly not least, my employers, the American people. I come to you today from the same common, ordinary background that most Americans spring from, and these days, have endured. I was an unknown everyman, who made all of you only one promise, that I would do whatever I could as your humble servant to dismantle the yoke of power, greed, and indifference that has all but destroyed the amazing spirit of this great land. I spoke to you man to fellow man, using plain english, never inflicting you with speeches necessitating the employment of someone talented in spin and empty promises. I told you what I thought was wrong with this government, and although I could not expect you to see eye to eye on everything I believed, I felt that at least I could expect you to care enough about yourself and your families to accept that yes, something has gone terribly wrong with what we all thought the American dream was supposed to stand for. You were all finally driven to be open to new ideas, to not ignore undeniable truths, and to risk giving me the benefit of the doubt, despite the fact that I had no prior experience in politics, that I have the same rough edges that most of us share, and that I have not nor can ever claim to be a perfect man. You read my resume and saw something worthy of your trust, and you gave me this job, the hardest and most honorable job a person could ever wish to have. For this I am both grateful, and quite frankly, amazed, for I honestly did not think that a common man with good intentions would have a rats chance in hell of winning an election to the highest office in the land. I promised you a climate shift, and that shift begins here, tonight, and may God, whoever you believe him, her, or it to be, be kind to us all.
I now turn my attention to this august body of representatives, those individuals who are most responsible for representing your best interests as a people of this great nation. Each one of you were elected to your individual offices based on promises that you all made to your select constituencies, and although I cannot judge you each independently as to your motivations as lawmakers, I can, at the risk of much acrimony, tell you that I and many of my fellow Americans believe you have as a body failed miserably."

The President pauses for the expected uproar as the Senators rise up and begin shouting, clapping, or sitting, shaking heads, some nodding, all a scene of barely controlled bedlam. His expression never changes as the Speaker of the House bangs his gavel, somewhat offended himself, in an attempt to restore order. It takes a full ten minutes to restore order, but the throng of irate politicians soon quiets down and he resumes.

"Thus, in order to fulfill my promise to the people who elected me, as well as those who didn't, I am going to recite to you the list of demands that I told the American people I would lay before you, to which they all agreed to by their vote, which I must remind you, was the highest margin ever garnered by a candidate in American History. These demands, which I am sure you are all already aware of and certainly will find distasteful, are as follows:

Number one, Since it seems that two separate and diametrically opposed philosophies of governance has proven to be so miserably unworkable when it comes to representing the interests of Americans as a whole, I hereby declare the elimination of both the Republican and Democratic Parties, to be replaced by no other mindset than that of plain, ordinary common sense. Each and every one of you will hereby reject any loyalty to either party and dedicate yourselves from this moment forward to representing the wishes and best interests of the people who elect you, giving your loyalties and your devotion only to them and this nation as a whole."

Grumbles, thru which he continues.......

" Number two, there shall from this day forward be no contact between you and special interest groups, lobbyists, or any other entity that cannot lay claim to be your direct employer, which by definition is the people who elected you. You will accept no monies, no gratuities, no favors or anything from any corporation, any organization, any political group who's interests lay strictly with their own narrow motivations. You will host the common citizen, you will represent the electorate, and only the electorate, making your legislative efforts only on their behalf and no one else's. You are REPRESENTATIVES, for God's sake, and for once you are going to act like representatives, of the people, elected BY the people, and acting only FOR the people."

Tentative claps, which are shushed down rapidly.......

"Third, this government is going to perform it's duties in the same manner that every citizen in this country is expected to. We will not spend money we don't have, we will raise whatever monies are required to do the job we are tasked to do, and this budget will remain balanced, just as we expect the checking accounts of the common man to be, or by God, we will pay the price just like the common man must! Taxes will not be garnered based on incomes but on spending, spending which is above and beyond what is required to live our lives in a just and comfortable fashion. The government has no business taking money people need to feed their children and putting roofs over their heads. The financially blessed amongst us can share their good fortunes for the common good when they exercise those fortunes. We need not tax investment that provides jobs, improves working conditions, preserves the environment, or supports the common good in direct, tangible ways. Bad behaviors can be heavily taxed to such an extent that such behaviors show no profit whatsoever. The oppression of the yearly tax return and tax bills will be eliminated forever, and the IRS will be tasked only with accounting for sales taxes. And in case you were wondering, those charged with selling any item without collecting the appropriate tax will face MAJOR prison time, so think hard about it.

Fourth. Health care for profit is an oxymoron. Basic health care should not be a luxury reserved for the lucky and the rich, but for all citizens. Conversely, despite all our advanced technology, we can no more provide for a quality of life after nature has had it's way than we ever have been, thus we need to be realistic about these expectations and ask every citizen to accept the harsh reality that death is part of the circle of life and quit expecting medical science to save them from it when life is for all practical purposes, over. Thus, I will propose that universal health coverage be provided for all citizens with the understanding that after age 70, or any major health disaster that results in total disability such that a person has no hope of any reasonable claim to a life, that those persons be subject to a refusal of extraordinary measures to prolong their lives, such as a "Do not resuscitate" order. And we can no longer deny our citizens the right to death with dignity when they are faced with debilitating diseases or conditions that make living nothing more than agony, and no hope can be offered them. All the resources we waste on these efforts battling the inevitable can best be used towards finding cures for diseases and offering victims of ill health some quality of life. We need to start showing compassion for our loved ones instead of making them suffer for some misguided and selfish inability to let them go when their time comes. And further, Medicine needs to be a calling that is for helping people, not our pocket books, so I will call for the nationalization of the health care field, including physicians, nurses, and all related health care occupations, with suitable remuneration for the level of sacrifice and training required. And with the pharmaceutical industry marketing to the United States Government, the whole dynamics of that industry will return to it's intended mission, to help people, to ease their pain and cure them in a cost effective manner rather than a vehicle for obscene profit.

Fifth. The United States has always been that shining city on the hill, the society for all on this planet to emulate, but we have not always held ourselves to the very principles we are most admired for. Yes, we are now, according to common understanding, the last "Superpower", both economically and militarily, but we have taken that position with a certain amount of arrogance and have risked becoming the latest version of the roman empire. That is NOT what we are about. We are all about freedom, justice, rule of law, opportunity, freedom of and from religion, and all other such things that make us the destination of refugees from oppression the world over. We have a higher standard to uphold, not by lip service, but by example. Thus, I hereby declare that the United States Military will never again be used as an instrument of projecting our interests totally at odds with the interests of the world community. We are PART of this community of nations, not the owner of it. We WILL defend our security interests, at any cost, but we will NOT tolerate the outright manipulation of the men and women we ask to defend us for purposes of the pursuit of some personal agendas every four years. We will defend ourselves when we are attacked, but we are NOT in the business of unilateral judgment of threats that are not recognized as moral or legal in the eyes of the world community. We will stand by our friends when called upon, we will intervene in clear cut, common sense occurrences of genocide, or the unprovoked attack of one nation against another, but never again must this nation be accused of being so arrogant as to be declared a loose canon when it comes to the world stage. The united nations may not be an easy stamp of approval when we wish it to be, but it is all we have when it comes to respecting the sovereignty of our neighbors around the world who do not walk lockstep with us in the world view.
When the evil of the axis spread across the globe and attacked us, we did not start it, but we damn well finished it. Teddy Roosevelt said it best; "Walk softly and carry a big stick." It's time to remember who we are and be proud to hold ourselves to that standard, and thus let all that would wish us ill will know with certainty that to do so is a losing proposition. It is time, my fellow Americans, to put a stop to the need to build any more black walls dedicated to the memories of wasted american youth.

Sixth; What has become the most contentious subject amongst us is the very thing that is supposed to make us strong, and that is our faith. Faith has always and will continue to be a personal, dearly held right that can never be given over to a governmental entity to legislate. Our forefathers understood more than anyone that for a government to adopt and enforce the tenants of any one style of religion was to the threaten the most precious thing a man can hold dear, his faith. In order to protect our rights to believe in and worship our God as we see him, we cannot give preferential treatment to ANY religion at the detriment of another. Thus, we have a secular form of government that guarantees it's citizens the right to believe anything they wish that does not intrude upon the beliefs of their neighbors. You only need look at the theocracies of the world and see what a state sponsored belief system does to the rights of women, minorities, and those that believe in something other than what the State presumes they should. That, my friend, is the one thing we cannot allow to happen here if we truly believe that all men and women were created equal. Thus, I intend to reaffirm the intent of our founding fathers by declaring that faith belongs in the home, the church, the synagogue, the mosque, or any other place that people gather to worship, but not in the public forum or the institutions of government. The public schools have no business interfering in the practice and freedom of religion by attempting to teach religious articles of faith, which are the tenants and responsibility of their places of worship and their families. Our educational facilities are there to promote the common good of all citizens no matter their backgrounds and belief systems, by teaching secular subjects that are of value to everybody that expects to function in a free and modern society. Faith and science are two completely different things, and cannot be blended or confused with each other because something presented and taught according to secular science might conflict with religious beliefs. If you wish to believe that the world was created in six days, you may do so, but when you're faith as you understand it tells you it is God's desire that you murder innocent unbelievers or oppress women, then you have crossed the line and you cannot be expected to live in peace with your fellow man, Thus, I declare that this discussion ends here and now. Freedom OF religion demands that we have freedom FROM religion when it comes to government, or we can have neither.

Seventh; It has been said that the human being is the only creature on this planet that soils his own nest. Our impact on the environment has been to such a detrimental degree that we have altered the climate of our Earth, poisoned our oceans and lakes, and threaten to actually invite an ecological catastrophe from which we cannot recover. We have had the technologies for decades to minimize our impact on the environment, yet we have not had the will. What if I told you that you threaten the very existence of the human race, your children, your grandchildren? Can you actually sit there and tell me that your creature comforts, your monster SUV's, your unyielding appetite for goods and services is more important to you than the survival of your children? We cannot continue to ignore this, endless studies will not make it go away, putting spin on the truth is no more a moral position than an outright lie, and the time for denial is over. We must act NOW, before it is too late. Yes, initially, the cost of such programs as outfitting all government buildings and all new construction with solar panels would be challenging, as would weaning the American public off the internal combustion engine, but then again, when you consider the the new employment opportunities this will generate, as well as the fact that the costs will drop significantly with mass production, not to mention all the free power flowing BACK into the power grid, you end up with a win-win situation. Thus, I am tasking this congress to ratify the Kyoto Accords, which I will sign in a heartbeat, and we can get on with the job of saving our necks from utter environmental catastrophe. I, for one, my fellow Americans, am fed up with being held hostage to millions of barrels of foreign oil.

And last, my fellow Americans and those elected to represent them, I must bring into the harsh light of reality the truth concerning our free market system, the fact being that it relies on the exploitation of the poor amongst us in order to operate, and in fact is designed to keep them there. As much as we all appreciate the standard of living that this system has afforded many of us, the fact remains that our free market system, free of any constraint, guarantees that a larger and larger percentage of our fellow citizens never truly get to enjoy the fruits of their labors. Someone has to have the guts to stand up and call a spade a spade, and I stand before you this night and do just that. This ridiculous "poverty line" that we have created needs to be erased once and for all. Thus, at the risk of sounding like a socialist, I hereby propose and will fight for to my last breath, a complete overhaul of this system so that hard working yet less fortunate Americans can all share in the American Dream. This will require that we set minimum standards for wages that guarantee that all Americans with jobs can actually afford to live on those wages. This will also require, for equity's sake, that salaries, perks, and benefits paid out to executive level workers be brought down more in line with reality, another words, we must put an end to this good-old boys network of leaches that hand each other outrageous salaries for their services while their workers suffer layoffs, wage and benefit cuts, and other outrageous behaviors that cause so much suffering. There will be no more "golden parachutes" for executives who leave their positions for any reason, while workers are lucky to get their last paychecks. The design and function of the Corporation as it exists today will undergo a complete overhaul, with boards of directors being replaced by boards of workers, investors, and customers, so that the interests of all effected parties will more realistically be honored. And, along with this, we will for once make investments what they were meant to be, a vehicle for savings over the long haul, with the value of those stocks more directly linked to the actual value of those companies, rather than what a collection of day traders make it out to be. All of these proposals will cause a quantum shift in the dynamics of the free enterprise system, and will all be a direct threat to those who have relied upon it to amass personal fortunes at the expense of all others. They, my fellow citizens, will scream and protest and predict all manner of doom and gloom, but I can assure you, the doom they fear most is that of their obscenely large bank accounts."


" My fellow Americans, we have an epic battle on our hands, one that with bravery and commitment we can, and must win, if we are to truly become the nation we always thought we were, but never quite became. I have but four, or maybe eight years to repay you for the trust you engendered in me by your vote. I can only promise you that I will fight the good fight, in your behalf, and together, we can once and for all lend truth to the declaration, "I am proud to be an American!"

" Thank you all, and may providence smile upon us and all who we love."

In a rush to appear to be onboard the new train, the Senators all rise and begin a thunderous applause, as the new boss shakes the hands of those surrounding the podium and heads back down the aisle to begin leading one of the most unique administrations ever to occupy the white house.