The WoundUp Platform

Well, now that I got that out of my system, let me turn to politics ... We all remember the 2004 election and how many in the Left were wringing their hands, calling it "the most important election ever." If you consider the president's re-election the sole cause of all our current domestic and foreign problems, than perhaps it ranks up there on the list. But I believe the 2008 race is much, much more important, as we are now seeing a culmination of decades (even a century's) worth of bad practices come to a head. I believe this truly is the first 21st Century American election -- one in which the candidates involved no longer can ignore the challenges we must face for the next 100 years.

If I had my way, the country would have socialized medicine, drastic reductions in defense spending, jobs for all, ethical distribution of wealth, limits on advertising, pluralization of media, tolerance of dissenting viewpoints, environmental responsibility and cultivation of reusable energy, less trash, gun control, revision of jail-able offenses, legalization of drugs, investment in economically moribund urban areas and the inclusion of ghettoized minorities in the national mainstream, mixed-use urban development, mixed-income neighborhoods, more locally focused economies, more small businesses, more vacation days for workers, equal pay for women, an end to the car's dominance, better public transportation including inter-city light rail, funding for the arts with a place for them and physical education in all schools, teaching methods that do not rely heavily on form tests, free college, access to information technology for all, shuttering of overseas military bases and better treatment for the elderly.

I know none of the major candidates will give me all of this, or even any of it, but if there's one who can at least put our collective foot on the very first cobblestone of the road to embracing what man is truly capable of -- an end to our old violent, exclusionary and wasteful practices -- that will make me happier.