7. What single word would you stick to the cause of Rome's fall? Decadence? Stupidity? Corruption? Christianity? Then and there, here and now. Stick ‘efficiency' to the collapse of America and the Western culture it once championed. Roads for cars not people, food made by machines, children taught to a punch card time-table . . . these are only the most obvious examples.
6. No one likes the nanny state, least of all those living in the mommy state. That's one lesson of going to Amsterdam. But the mommy state rocks the daddy state, at least now, while dad's a bully or a doof.
5.Can anyone actually justify owning a Land Rover? And if they tried, could you really stand to listen? The bosses can do both.
4. Its fine not to believe the facts. Its a dis-qualifier to deny facts google makes google-able. Don't believe in global warming? Fine. Cool. But to claim scientists don't believe it either? You can pretty much ask them all. And pretty much they all do.
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Why does any politician need an estate the size of Joe Biden's?
3. Rank every school in America, top to bottom. Come up with a goofy amount of money and hire an absurd number of people to work at these schools. Plumbers, roofers, bankers, carpenters, lawyers, weavers–whatever. Money allotments to be scaled in inverse order to school ranking such that worst schools get most cash. Headline: Worst school in America hires 10,000 workers: Second worst, 9,999. Now you have crappy schools lousy with people looking to do something. Need someone to fix your house? Improve the pipes? Make sweaters? Sure, someone can do that. And they can take a few kids with them, or not, as they do. Of those hired, 10% must live between a thirty-forty minute commute from school, 50% must live within two miles, 10% must live within 2000 yards and the rest can live wherever. Those living closest to the worst 2500 schools are given bonuses: $10,000 to spend however they deem fit. Those living furthest away get public transportation passes (and free coffee) for life. Anyone riding a bike to and from gets a big thank you. All hires should be approved by 55% of ninth graders and two-thirds of some three-person committee the locals elect. The kid labeled funniest in school by both peers and adults gets to pick who runs the school for the first month. After that, everyone can just get to work doing stuff or showing people how to do what they are doing. Crazy? Sure, but not compared to what we do now.
2. You can't keep saying the problem with the system is the people you don't like. People are the only certain resource. If you get rid of people, you get rid of you.
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How about this? A fifty-first star. Just an outline. Call it a reminder that the U.S. of A needs a little re-branding, a tad of re-focus on governance and giving. Uber-gargantua flags at football stadiums or the bling trotted out on talk show lapels, what you see on 9/11 remembrance days or as accouterment to the scoundrel class, can wait a beat. Collective pride is not always mass delusion, but a tweak in the symbol is due. Life. Liberty. Happiness. Right? Well, right now we are a few stars short.