“How hypocritical is Liberty?
That BlindBitch ain’t never did shit for me!
My History----full of CASKETS and SCARS.
My own Black Nation at WAR.
Whole Family behind BARS.
And they wonder why we SCARRED?
Thirteen [years old] lookin’ HARD.
Sister had a baby as an adolescent where was GOD?"
---Tupac Shakur
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20500
Dear Mr. President,
Good Day, Good Sir.
We hope this letter finds you in Good Spirits.
But, We write with Great Urgency.
The People are POOR. The People are ANGRY. The People are INSECURE. With each passing day, We find it harder to trust GOVERNMENT or BIG BUSINESS. And for the record, We see little separation between Corporate Interests and Public Policy.
The citizens of this nation do not feel well, Mr. President.
Our purpose here is to speak to you, openly and honestly, regarding the current State of the Union. Above anything else, please know that this Letter was written in with a “solution-oriented” posture in mind.
Who are we?
[This letter is written by TWO individuals. ONE will remain anonymous.]
I, eRiC Durham, am a native of the Great State of Texas. I lived in the Washington, DC area for a period of seven years. I’ve traveled throughout various regions of our country. I love our country. Considering the troubled history between America and African- Americans--and the current social inequalities--I remain proud to be an American.
But....
I left the United States two years ago. I made, then, what seems like an increasingly popular decision now. I moved to South Korea as a “native-speaker” English language instructor. In the two years I lived here, my overall Quality of Life [QOL] has improved...significantly. The improvement in QOL was instantaneous. I haven’t had the money woes I had in America since the day I received my first Korean paycheck.
(I have spoken and written on the differences between South Korea and the U.S. on issues such as Education and HealthCare.)
It was through exiting America, and actually experiencing another system, I came to truly understand the level of influence a governmental system actually possesses. My time and experience in various countries has given me both visible and tangible material through which to observe differences in social order and social control. From my perspective, Law has become more Apparent as opposed to Invisible.
But, back to the issue at-hand: Life as an expatriate has granted me "benefits of citizenry" that were much more difficult to attain in the U.S. As a service to our countrymen, we would like to offer you domestic policy ideas that would benefit The People. That said, we outline our proposed policy agenda:
1.) GOVERNTMENT –ISSUED FIAT CURRENCY
We are proposing a FUNDAMENTAL change in the National Monetary System. The solution for our current fiscal woes resides in the idea of United States sovereignty. It is exactly that simple. As a sovereign nation, we have the right to decide we are no longer fiscally beholden to international Private-Banking Cartels.
As a country, We can decide the value of National Currency is not based on precious metals. We can decide to change to a FIAT system; whereby Currency is valued by the Government. The Government controls the VALUE of the currency by controlling the QUANTITY in circulation.
It should seem incomprehensible that a collection of banks yield more power than the Government. But, that is where we are today. As is, the Private-Banking Cartels are the Masters of the Universe.
In the Fiat system, the banks are forced to operate just like any other business or individual. Banks will no longer have the ability to practice Fractional Reserve Lending (FRL)—which basically means the ability to loan out money that they do not have. Using a fiat-system, coupled with fair and just governmental regulatory arm, might curtail other forms of fiscal trickery as well. The benefits of the fiat system have been displayed during three periods in history; 1.) ancient Rome; 2.) King Henry’s rule of England; and 3.) Abraham Lincoln’s introduction of the “greenback” during the American Civil War period.
For more information on this point, please refer to Bill Still’s “The Secret of Oz.”
2.) SIGNIFICANT INVESTMENT IN HONESTY
We must develop a Culture of Honesty.
--and that begins with exercising Honesty about the most BASIC national issues.
America is a nation whereby Hegemony has always ruled with an elusive yet strong hand. Historical American legal documents boast of equality, liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness; but a formidable argument can be made that speaks of an American history full of totalitarian, facist, and imperial undertones. A Culture of Honesty would lead to greater understanding of who "We" are.
America was founded on notions of racial inequality. But, no one dare mentions issues of race in polite conversation. A Culture of Honesty would lead us to a greater understanding.
Education: In absolute terms, money MUST be spent on Public Education. There’s no way to argue against the pragmatic benefit to a society where more children are educated well. The Nation can only stand to benefit from a well-educated populous.
Everyone KNOWS this. Korea knows it. Nigeria knows it. Japan knows it. China knows it. All nations understand the importance of Quality Education. America knows it. But, in this country, Public Education is under-prioritized and under-funded. A Culture of Honesty would lead us to the solution.
In order to take advantage of a significant investment in Education, we have to enact public policy that would provide RESPECTABLE and LIVABLE wages for families. Affordable housing, quality affordable healthcare, and an economic environment conducive to small businesses are things that compliment the education agenda—and benefit the People and the Nation. A Culture of Honesty would lead to readjusting the increasing debt burden that is piled on EveryDay-Working Americans.
In short, if we are HONEST with ourselves, we will know that a “redistribution of wealth” is NOT a bad thing—instead, it is the ingredient that would make a positive impact on the average American household….and the nation as a whole.
3.) GET RESPONSIBLE WITH DEFENSE SPENDING
Electronics Costs
Large flat screen televisions are wastefully littered throughout national and international US military instillations; the majority of which have cable access. Therefore, the government is stuck with a bill for the costs of the televisions, the necessary installation costs, and the monthly cable invoices. In order to reduce these costs, I suggest limited authorized cable television. Cable television should be reserved for operational use only; i.e., specific units who require monitoring CNN for real-time updates.
Korea Specific Costs
During my time in South Korea, I have witnessed exploitation of U.S. government funds in both minor and major fiscal amounts. Some Koreans entrepreneurs use government resources for personal profit; one example includes cleaning Service Members’ vehicles with government water. Local Korean entrepreneurs have taken advantage of ServiceMembers through inflating prices of goods and services based on the difference between the “cost- of- living” in Korea and the salaries for American military personnel.
There have been operational planning teams working to figure out how to reduce cost on bringing personnel and their families to Korea. In over 50% of the cases, personnel and/or family members arrive separately—this means the U.S. government incurs additional relocation cost. This is yet another issue which could be solved by placing more focus on the scheduling arrivals and departures; and communicating aims and fiscal goals with personnel.
End of year waste
End-of- year budget spending is outrageous. It is common practice throughout every branch of the U.S. military to expend the remainder of funds—in order to justify current budget allotments and request for future increases. These practices result in several wasteful purchases that are not essential to the successful completion of any mission. A common example of this is easily illustrated with core supplies; like that of munitions. Any, and all, ammunition not used during a particular fiscal year is spent. These practices have been in place much longer than you have been in office; but if you see fit, these are areas on which you can affect change and save the US “some cheese.”
CONCLUSION
During the 2008 campaign season, We believed you could help stimulate some type of meaningful change. We campaigned for you. Though our hope was rooted in things larger than you, We saw you a possible catalyst and conduit for Change. Though we have grown skeptical of the “American Dream” over the years, our hope is based on the possibility of America putting forth a sincere effort to move in a better direction. Before We lose total faith in the system, We send you our thoughts.
And thank you for your service.
Sincerely,
eRiC Durham, Ph.D.
OuttaBoundz
AnomaliesLiveOnPeripheries
WeBeGeekin'
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