The beginning …

As I write the Star Spangled Banner is being sung, awaiting Barack’s victory speech. I have just returned from working a dozen polling locations in central Los Angeles, documenting machine malfunctions, and first time voters forced to vote provisional for not being on the rolls — even when they had a sample ballot in hand, with their name on it, and had come to the correct precinct, here in one of the blu-est areas of one of the blue-est states.

So am I elated? No time for that, because this is not a victory, yet. It is said our nation was formed to be a nation of laws, not of men. Though we have been led for eight years by men who have done their best to destroy laws that were formed to make us one society, and now are poised to believe they have ultimately failed in this attempt, we are far from fulfilling this promise.

So to our leaders elect, this new Congress and administration, who have successfully performed the balancing act between the majority of the people and the wealthy powerful elites whose influence has put them on the stage before us, here then is the marching orders, my personal mandate, a reassessment of priorities on which I must be uncompromising:

Electoral reform:
—Instant Run-off Voting
—Proportional representation
—Elimination of the electoral college, to make one person one vote a reality
—remove our elections from the hands of unelected corporate partisans, and return to hand counted paper ballots
—elimination of the Presidential Debate Commission; why should partisans of the two major parties decide whose ideas are worthy of consideration by the public — is not a vigorous debate by all candidates the best avenue for voters to appraise the issues before us and determine the most appropriate reaction? Is this not what the founders of our nation intended?

Media reform:
—Divestiture of multinational corporations from ownership of the vast majority of what we see, hear, or read — return to local ownership. A population incapable of discerning truth from falsehood because the media only reflects the views of its billionaire owners can no longer be considered a democracy. Garbage in garbage out.

Economic reform:
—Withdrawal from the WTO
—Reigning in of those who would monopolize our food and water supply
—reinvest in infrastructure —rebuild America

Energy reform:
— regardless of what you have said on the campaign trail, “clean coal” and nuclear are no solution to the global energy crisis or global climate change. We need major investment in geothermal, tidal and wave power, in addition to wind and solar energy. The entry of many small players is healthier for the economy than a few major ones.

Reaffirmation of Civil Liberties:
— The act of a real patriot would be to ensure that our civil liberties are restored and apply to all this time; all classes, all colors, all races, all religions, all tribes, all gender definitions.

Pullback from empire:
— Okay, so the thirst for revenge on the part of American vanity will necessitate a pursuit of Ben Laden, but can we pull back from our global approach of world policeman, if for no other reason than we can no longer afford a thousand overseas bases and the military to keep the whole thing running. Our worst enemy in the world is ourselves.

President-elect Obama, I believe you understand this. From what you have said, I believe you know I must hold you and the new Congress accountable to this agenda, in order to give you the fortitude to push back against established interests that must sacrifice if the country and the world are to move in a positive direction. I believe you are counting on it.

I declare I will do my utmost to fulfill my end of the bargain called democracy. I hope I can count on you. For us to have small d democracy in a small r republic, it is essential that we all deliver. I believe this is what is meant by the expression “freedom isn’t free.”