Platform Discussion

[The Duke]

Foreign Affairs Rough Draft (Excluding the War on Terrorism)

Globalization- Globalization is a positive process that breeds peace and prosperity.  Nations that trade together rarely wage war together.  By advancing the process of globalization, we can make America and the world safer. more prosperous, and more free.

Africa- Africa is poor not because of western exploitation, but because of corrupt governance.  Only by supporting emerging democracies like those in Kenya and Botswana and opposing dictators like those in Zimbabwe and Sudan can we end this cycle of suppression of political freedom and economic opportunity.  Foreign aid to Africa needs to be icnreased through the USAID program.  For only $15 billion a year, according to studies by the UN, we could provide basic nutrition and medical care to every child in the third world.  We can and should do this.

Latin America- The first priority here should be to prepare for the inevitable demise of Fidel Castro and advance the cause of the opposition to Hugo Chavez in Venezuela.  Our second goal should be the globalize Latin America through advocating the FTAA.

Europe- A European superstate is not in America's interests.  Nor is it in Europe's interests.  Only a select few bureaucrats in Strasbourg benefit, while the real ails of Europe continue to erode away the home of western civilization.  European protectionism hurts American businesses and the third world, and it should be ended.  If Europe continues its unfair trade practices, we will work through the WTO to bring about an end to this practice.

India- India, the worlds largest democracy, is a potential long term US ally. We had ought to pursue expanded trade relations and military cooperation.  They understand the threat of radical Islam and the power of democracy.  They are a natural friend to America, and we should stop treating them like a second tier nation in terms of their importance to us.

Russia- Russia has become the arms dealer to the world.  We need to oppose Russian attempts to exert its influence over Eastern Europe, including their audacious moves in Ukraine and Georgia.  We should continue the Nunn-Lugar program to safeguard Russian nuclear materials.  We need to prepare our own military to deal with hostile nations that will arm themselves with top end Russian weapons and treat Vladmir Putin as someone not to be trusted.

China- China has become the single most hostile nation on Earth outside the Middle East.  We had ought to begin holding them accountable for their illegal occupations of Tibet, their beligerrence towards Taiwan, and there support for facist governments in North Korea and Burma.  They are not a free nation, we are.  We must oppose their anti-freedom agenda as we contained a similar agenda when espoused by the USSR.

[The Duke]

Latin America- The first priority here should be to prepare for the inevitable demise of Fidel Castro and advance the cause of the opposition to Hugo Chavez in Colombia.  Our second goal should be the globalize Latin America through advocating the FTAA.

Unless somehow the Republic of Gran Colombia has been revived while I wasn't paying attention, shouldn't that be Hugo Chavez of Venezuela?

Woops.  My bad.

Foreign Affairs Rough Draft (Excluding the War on Terrorism)

Africa- Africa is poor not because of western exploitation, but because of corrupt governance.  Only by supporting emerging democracies like those in Kenya and Nigeria and opposing dictators like those in Zimbabwe and Sudan can we end this cycle of suppression of political freedom and economic opportunity.  Foreign aid to Africa needs to be icnreased through the USAID program.  For only $15 billion a year, according to studies by the UN, we could provide basic nutrition and medical care to every child in the third world.  We can and should do this.

I know I'm not Freedom Party but you may want to exclude Nigeria from there. Nigeria has been becoming increasingly dictatorial in recent years and the dictator in that country only stepped down in 1998. This is not the type of Democracy Atlasia should back. I would say replace Nigeria with Botswana which has been a functioning Democracy for over 45 years and has been free of the corruption and rampant political turmoil that has plagued other African nations.

Noted.  While I still have great hopes for Nigeria, Botswana is the more clear cut choice.

[The Duke]

On abortion, we should endorse the measures Super suggested because our job is to make it easier for citizens to make responsible choices, but I agree with Gus that abortion should not be a central issue.  It tends to divide people.  We should welcome pro-life and pro-chocie members and do everything we can to discourage abortions.

We should not, however, shy away from parental notification and partial birth abortion laws.  Reasonable people can disagree about whether abortion is wrong, but I think some of the periphery questions related to abortion are not in doubt.

Agree with Gus 100% on taxes, agree that the death penalty should only be used in extreme cases like terrorism or treason.

[The Duke]

War on Terrorism

The Enemy- The enemy is ot the tactic of terrorism, its is its practitioners and their ideology.  The name "War on Terrorism" is a misnomer.  We are fighting the ideology of Jihadism.  Our enemy is groups that kill in the name of Islam and their state sponsors in Iran, Syria, Sudan, and elsewhere.  Both the terrorist groups and their state sponsors must be confronted if we are to prevail.

Our Allies- Our allies are many.  We are joined in this fight by the braver nations of Europe who have chosen to stand up for free men and women and those who desire to be.  They have made a difficult choice, and they should be rewarded for their bravery with an America that stands by them as they stand by us.  We are joined by nations like Israel, India, Australia, and Japan who have suffered terrorist attacks in recent years and understand our struggle.  Our most important allies however are the moderates in the Muslim world.  They understand that life for Muslims will be better if we succeed, and they risk their lives everyday to stand up to the fanatics.

The Strategy- We will use military action to topple terrorist spnsoring states, denying terrorist groups that ability to operate from those states and cutting them off from a major source of funding.  We will seize their financial assets wherever possibl, further cutting them off from their money.  We will use covert action to seek out and defeat terrorists around the world before they can strike us.  We will support reformers in their efforts to transform their own societies with whatever they need to prevail.  We will minimize relations with nations that pretend to be our friends, but aid our enemies while our back is turned.  We will end foreign aid to nations that do not democratize, even if that is inconvenient for us.  We will urge friendly arab nations to reform themselves.  We will open our trade policies to reward nations that reform on their own.  We will increase foreign aid to nations that democratize and we will spend more to build prosperous societies in Iraq and Afghanistan.  We will win this war not only by defeating the Jihadists, but by transcending them.  We will be their moral superiors, giving our nation's all to spread freedom over facism in Arabia and creating civil societies that have consensual governments, tolerant cultures, and open economies.

[The Duke]

Forum Issues

The Constitution- The current constitution has what are now universally recognized as major flaws.  We should hold a new constitutional convention to write a new, improved, constitution.  As our founders did after the Articles of Confederation failed, we should learn from our mistakes while keeping our founding principles intact.  The new Constitution should keep certain institutions like the Senate and Preisdency and Supreme Court intact, but should be altered in certain areas to clarify the various powers.

Forum Government- The lack of capable people to fill government positions is becoming noticeable.  New positions should not be created at any point inn the near future.  Fewer positions will mean better government.

Seperation of Powers- The Presidency has not produced great leaders.  Part of the problem is that President's have to deal with a disorganized Senate that moves at a snails pace.  The President had ought to have the power to introduce bills directly to the Senate with the power of refendum, meaning no amendments to the bill (like in the French system).  This will bring about a more effective institution of the Presidency and better governance for the Forum.  He had also ought to have the ower of Line Item Veto.  Any Line Item Veto would have to be overridden by 2/3s of the Senate, as with other bills.

The Budget- The government must establish a budget.  It must account for its spending every four months, with the new President submitting a budget to the Senate as his first official act.  The budget may not be subject to referendum because Senators should be able to amend it.  It will be, in the beginning, based on the actual US Federal Budget but obviously over time it will diverge from that beginning.

GM Reform- The GM should be reactive not proactive.  There are enough real-world crises like North Korea and Iraq to keep us all busy.  He had ought to replace his duty as scenario generator with one as the arbiter of the economy.  He will, on a monthly basis, generate based on government policy a GDP growth rate, an unemployment rate, and an inflation rate so the government may determine the state of the economy and make policy based on this.  In the beginning, this will be based on the actual numbers from real life, but will change according to government policy.

Senate Districts- Senators should be elected frm Regions, not districts.  Citizens are now numerous enough to allow this, whereas before there weren't enough voters in each region.  Voters should have the same pair of Senators and the same set of fellow constituents each time around.  Their Senators had also ought to represent something permament and with its own historic identity.  Re-districting has become increasingly convoluted, leading to charges of gerrymandering and undermining the process.  This can be rectified by electing Senators by region again.

[The Duke]

GM Reform- The GM should be reactive not proactive.  There are enough real-world crises like North Korea and Iraq to keep us all busy.  He had ought to replace his duty as scenario generator with one as the arbiter of the economy.  He will, on a monthly basis, generate based on government policy a GDP growth rate, an unemployment rate, and an inflation rate so the government may determine the state of the economy and make policy based on this.  In the beginning, this will be based on the actual numbers from real life, but will change according to government policy.

I disagree with the idea that the GM should be purely economic.  Our actions world-wide are going to be different from those of the acctual United States and thus will result in different outcomes.  Perhapes two GM's one for domestic and one for foriegn policy would be in order.

I didn't mean that the GM would purely economic, but that he'd add an economic component to his existing foreign policy role.

[The Duke]

Social Issues[/b]

Abortion- The Party does not condone abortion.  There should be restrictions placed on access to abortion, like parental notification for a minor seeking an abortion, and a ban on third term abortions.  The AFP dos not, however, seek to ban all abortions.

Gay Marriage- Gay Marriage is a settled issue in Atlasia.  It is legal, and the AFP does not seek to change this regardless of the feelings of individual members.

Affirmitive Action- Affirmitive Action is no longer necessary in a society where racial tolerance is becoming the norm.  It should be gotten rid of.

Capital Punishment- The death penalty should not be imposed for civilian crimes.  It should be reserved for those who commit war crimes like terrorism or treason.  There is no civilian crime that requires any more than life imprisonment.

Education- Education is the foundation of the future.  We will work for a more efficient education system.  We spend more per pupil than nearly any other western nation, yet we have the worst results of any such nation.  We must ensure that money is spent wisely, that teachers are competent, and that parents are more involved in their kids education.

Economic Issues

Health Care- We will work to do two things in health care.  The first is to modernize the way health care is regulated and distributed in an effort to reduce the cost of care and the rate at which that cost increases.  We will also work to expand health coverage to children and the poor.  We will do both in an incremental fashion over time, since there is no instant big bang solution to this problem.

Social Security- Social Security is going bankrupt.  The best way to fix this problem is to make a long term transition to a system based on private accounts, similar to 401K plans, rather than the current pay-as-you-go system.

Spending- The government spends neither too much or too little, but too wastefully.  We have vast bureacracies that waste money, programs designed by and for special interests that allocate public dollars for private designs, and antiquated organizations that badly need to be brought into the 21st Century.  Thorugh reform and anti-corruption measures we can do more by spending less, and have a government that works for citizens, not the other way around.

Trade- Free trade makes the world safer and more prosperous.  Nations that trade rarely wage war against one another.  Atlasia should advance the cause of free trade through both multilateral and bilateral agreements.  In the process, we should also ask that nations with whom we trade make their economies more just with environmental and worker protections, and we should oppose hidden tariffs in the first world, like subsidies, and grift in the third world, like monopsonies.

Taxes- Taxes are too high.  They should be incrementally reduced over time to a lower rate, and loopholes should be eliminated making the code more simple and more efficient.

[The Duke]

I've taken my propsals, put them together, and edited, sutracted, and added according to the comments and suggestions of other members.  I think I've gotten everything in here.  If anyone has further changes they want, or can think of an important issues that isn't addressed, please tell me.

Freedom Party Platform

Social Issues[/b]

Abortion- The Party does not condone abortion.  There should be restrictions placed on access to abortion, like parental notification for a minor seeking an abortion, and a ban on third term abortions.  Any restriction must provide exceptions for rape, incest, and the life/physical health of the mother.  The AFP dos not, however, seek to ban all abortions.  We do seek to reduce the number of abortions through funding for maternity care to poor women and the loosening of adoption restrictions.

Gay Marriage- Gay Marriage is a settled issue in Atlasia.  It is legal, and the AFP does not seek to change this regardless of the feelings of individual members.

Affirmative Action- Affirmative Action is no longer necessary in a society where racial tolerance is becoming the norm.  It should be gotten rid of.

Crime and Punishment- The death penalty should not be imposed for civilian crimes.  It should be reserved for those who commit war crimes like terrorism or treason.  There is no civilian crime that requires any more than life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.  Inmates in prisons should be put to use doing community service, training seeing eye dogs, and other activities that re-connect them with their community and humanity, this  will further their rehabilitation and further allow them to repay their debt to society.  We do not favor ending the drug war.  The flow of illegal narcotics into the US is trending downward because the drug war has been more successful than its critics can admit.  Chemical addiction is not a form of freedom, it is a form of slavery, and we oppose a policy that will lead to less freedom.

Education- Education is the foundation of the future.  We will work for a more efficient education system.  We spend more per pupil than nearly any other western nation, yet we have the worst results of any such nation.  We must ensure that money is spent wisely, that teachers are competent, and that parents are more involved in their kid’s education.

Economic Issues

Health Care- We will work to do two things in health care.  The first is to modernize the way health care is regulated and distributed in an effort to reduce the cost of care and the rate at which that cost increases.  We will also work to expand health coverage to children and the poor.  We will do both in an incremental fashion over time, since there is no instant big bang solution to this problem.

Social Security- Social Security is going bankrupt.  The best way to fix this problem is to make a long term transition to a system based on private accounts, similar to 401K plans, rather than the current pay-as-you-go system.  The government will not allow personal control of the assets in these accounts because we need to prevent citizens who aren’t savvy investors from losing out.  Instead, the personal accounts will be composed of market index funds and government bonds, ensuring a diverse portfolio with minimal management costs.  Poor seniors will also have access to the same anti-poverty programs available to non-seniors, in the hope that it will further minimize risk.

Spending- The government spends neither too much or too little, but too wastefully.  We have vast bureaucracies that waste money, programs designed by and for special interests that allocate public dollars for private designs, and antiquated organizations that badly need to be brought into the 21st Century.  Through reform and anti-corruption measures we can do more by spending less, and have a government that works for citizens, not the other way around.

Trade- Free trade makes the world safer and more prosperous.  Nations that trade rarely wage war against one another.  Atlasia should advance the cause of free trade through both multilateral and bilateral agreements.  In the process, we should also ask that nations with whom we trade make their economies more just with environmental and worker protections, and we should oppose hidden tariffs in the first world, like subsidies, and graft in the third world, like monopsonies.

Taxes- Taxes are too high.  They should be incrementally reduced over time to a lower rate, and loopholes should be eliminated making the code more simple and more efficient.

Foreign Affairs

Globalization- Globalization is a positive process that breeds peace and prosperity.  Nations that trade together rarely wage war together.  By advancing the process of globalization, we can make America and the world safer. more prosperous, and more free.

Africa- Africa is poor not because of western exploitation, but because of corrupt governance.  Only by supporting emerging democracies like those in Kenya and Botswana and opposing dictators like those in Zimbabwe and Sudan can we end this cycle of suppression of political freedom and economic opportunity.  Foreign aid to Africa needs to be increased through the USAID program.  For only $15 billion a year, according to studies by the UN, we could provide basic nutrition and medical care to every child in the third world.  We can and should do this.

Latin America- The first priority here should be to prepare for the inevitable demise of Fidel Castro and advance the cause of the opposition to Hugo Chavez in Venezuela.  Our second goal should be the globalize Latin America through advocating the FTAA.

Europe- A European Superstate is not in America's interests.  Nor is it in Europe's interests.  Only a select few bureaucrats in Strasbourg benefit, while the real ails of Europe continue to erode away the home of western civilization.  European protectionism hurts American businesses and the third world, and it should be ended.  If Europe continues its unfair trade practices, we will work through the WTO to bring about an end to this practice.

India- India, the world’s largest democracy, is a potential long term US ally. We ought to pursue expanded trade relations and military cooperation.  They understand the threat of radical Islam and the power of democracy.  They are a natural friend to America, and we should stop treating them like a second tier nation in terms of their importance to us.

Russia- Russia has become the arms dealer to the world.  We need to oppose Russian attempts to exert its influence over Eastern Europe, including their audacious moves in Ukraine and Georgia.  We should continue the Nunn-Lugar program to safeguard Russian nuclear materials.  We need to prepare our own military to deal with hostile nations that will arm themselves with top end Russian weapons and treat Vladimir Putin as someone not to be trusted.

China- China has become the single most hostile nation on Earth outside the Middle East.  We ought to begin holding them accountable for their illegal occupations of Tibet, their belligerence towards Taiwan, and there support for fascist governments in North Korea and Burma.  They are not a free nation, we are.  We must oppose their anti-freedom agenda as we contained a similar agenda when espoused by the USSR.

continued on next post...

[The Duke]

...continued

War on Terrorism

The Enemy- The enemy is not the tactic of terrorism, but its practitioners and their ideology.  The name "War on Terrorism" is a misnomer.  We are fighting the ideology of Jihadism.  Our enemy is groups that kill in the name of Islam and their state sponsors in Iran, Syria, Sudan, and elsewhere.  Both the terrorist groups and their state sponsors must be confronted if we are to prevail.  Our enemy is not the one billion plus Muslims around the world, and the millions right here in Atlasia, who want the same thing we do: Peace and Freedom.

Our Allies- Our allies are many.  We are joined in this fight by the braver nations of Europe who have chosen to stand up for free men and women and those who desire to be.  They have made a difficult choice, and they should be rewarded for their bravery with an America that stands by them as they stand by us.  We are joined by nations like Israel, India, Australia, and Japan who have suffered terrorist attacks in recent years and understand our struggle.  Our most important allies however are the moderates in the Muslim world.  They understand that life for Muslims will be better if we succeed, and they risk their lives everyday to stand up to the fanatics.

The Strategy- We will use military action to topple terrorist sponsoring states, denying terrorist groups that ability to operate from those states and cutting them off from a major source of funding.  We will seize their financial assets wherever possible, further cutting them off from their money.  We will use covert action to seek out and defeat terrorists around the world before they can strike us.  We will support reformers in their efforts to transform their own societies with whatever they need to prevail.  We will minimize relations with nations that pretend to be our friends, but aid our enemies while our back is turned.  We will end foreign aid to nations that do not democratize, even if that is inconvenient for us.  We will urge friendly Arab nations to reform themselves.  We will open our trade policies to reward nations that reform on their own.  We will increase foreign aid to nations that democratize and we will spend more to build prosperous societies in Iraq and Afghanistan.  We will win this war not only by defeating the Jihadists, but by transcending them.  We will be their moral superiors, giving our nation's all to spread freedom over fascism in Arabia and creating civil societies that have consensual governments, tolerant cultures, and open economies.

Forum Issues

The Constitution- The current constitution has what are now universally recognized as major flaws.  We should hold a new constitutional convention to write a new, improved, constitution.  As our founders did after the Articles of Confederation failed, we should learn from our mistakes while keeping our founding principles intact.  The new Constitution should keep certain institutions like the Senate and Preisdency and Supreme Court intact, but should be altered in certain areas to clarify the various powers.

Forum Government- The lack of capable people to fill government positions is becoming noticeable.  New positions should not be created at any point inn the near future.  Fewer positions will mean better government.

The Budget- The government must establish a budget.  It must account for its spending every four months, with the new President submitting a budget to the Senate as his first official act.  The budget may not be subject to referendum because Senators should be able to amend it.  It will be, in the beginning, based on the actual US Federal Budget but obviously over time it will diverge from that beginning.

GM Reform- The GM should be reactive not proactive.  There are enough real-world crises like North Korea and Iraq to keep us all busy.  He ought to replace his duty as scenario generator with one as the arbiter of the outcomes of government action.  He will also add an economic component to his job.  He will, on a monthly basis, generate based on government policy a GDP growth rate, an unemployment rate, and an inflation rate so the government may determine the state of the economy and make policy based on this.  In the beginning, this will be based on the actual numbers from real life, but will change according to government policy.

[The Duke]

Aye

[The Duke]

Supersoulty should be our chairman, as he is the founder of th party.

[The Duke]

I warn you all, I ran for president in the GOP primaries, and the Party dissolved immediately, I was picked as a UAC Councillor, and within a month the party dissolved.  I may be a kiss of death.  Remember Patrick Warburton?  He was on "Dave's World", and the show got cancelled, he was on "Seinfeld" and the show got cancelled, every show he was on he was great but the show got cancelled.  You have been warned.

[The Duke]

I accept.

[The Duke]

My proposal for our Europe policy:

Europe is the most important ally of Atlasia and we should continue to build strong partnership within NATO and within other organizations like G8 and WTO. The European integration has positive effect to the world community and Atlasia should encourage it. It's not interest of Atlasia or Europe that one or two countries have too dominate role in the integration process.

The peace process in Balkan has been succesful, but still many major war criminals like Radovan Karazic and Ratko Mladic are hiding. Freedom Party demands that those war criminals should be captured and sentenced.
 

We should add something about the Balkans, now that you mention it.  I'll wait on everyone's comments one the platform changes you suggest before we make anything official.

[The Duke]

How bout this?

Europe- A European Superstate dominated by France and Germany is not in America's interests.  Nor is it in Europe's interests.  An economically integrated Europe that favors no one nation, but rather opens European markets to international commerce should be the goal.  European protectionism hurts American businesses and the third world, and it should be ended.  If Europe continues its unfair trade practices, we will work through the WTO to bring about an end to this practice.  The Peace Process in the Balkans has been effective, but we need a more vigorous effort to locate and bring to justice the war criminals like Radko Mladic.

[The Duke]

Since obvioulsy members will disagree about specifics, I hope this thrid version is satisfactory to everyone.

Europe- America's alliances with the nations of Europe are among our most important parternships in the world.  We should build on our partnerships within NATO and welcome the nations of Eastern Europe into the Atlantic Alliance.  However, a European Superstate dominated by France and Germany is not in America's interests.  Nor is it in Europe's interests.  An economically integrated Europe that favors no one nation, but rather opens European markets to international commerce should be the goal.  European protectionism hurts American businesses and the third world, and it should be ended.  If Europe continues its unfair trade practices, we will work through the WTO to bring about an end to this practice.  The Peace Process in the Balkans has been effective, but we need a more vigorous effort to locate and bring to justice the war criminals like Radko Mladic and Radovan Karazic.

[The Duke]

Its settled then.  As Chairman I declare our paltform amended.  Thank you to Huck Finn for his suggestions and welcome to our Party.