Musings on the New Year

A new year, a new administration and perhaps new opportunities. With luck, 2009 will represent a seed change in foreign policy, regulatory indifference and the trampling of the civil rights of US residents and citizens.

It is impossible to fix the military and tactical errors of this administration. Partially as a result of a "war" instigated as a result of poor intelligence, a war carried out without foresight, and a conflict that has spread corruption in a manner as insidious and widespread as drugs this Country's military is over extended, the economy is as bad as it has been since the depression. and the population has lost faith in our political, economic and social leaders. Clearly, we all need a clean break from the incompetence of the past eight years.



On a micro level the North Carolina economy is struggling. First Union is gone, Nortel is gone, and Freightliner is on edge. The government tells us that small business are the engine of the economy but we are allowing small businesses to disappear by the thousands. The foundation of the economy is being eroded with any complaint, fight or complaint.

The Banking industry pushed through bankruptcy "reform" now know as BARF. After the Banking industry spent thousands to undermine our bankruptcy law we are left with a banking industry weighing on the back of the taxpayers and a poorly drafted, consumer unfriendly bankruptcy law. We need to return to the bankruptcy court the power to strip unsecured loans, we must end the means test and return the "cram down" power. The banks and credit card companies should not be the only entities that can force new interest rates and debts on the consumer.

We must address issues of health care, housing and an exploding budge shortfall. Now we must find ways to reform government spending and modernize our economy. Who will be our Patrick Henry? Who will find the forum and utilize that forum to mobilize the public behind real economic reform? Perhaps this modest forum can be the home for a lively, intelligent and open discussion of ideas. The chiweenies will keep to their niche; I hope that others will contribute to the dispersion of new ideas.

RADICAL IDEA ONE: Consider for the moment the consequences of states setting a constitutional limit on percentage of the population that can be incarcerated at any point in time. The US has one of the highest percentages of incarceration in the world. This is a reflection of the failure of churches, families, courts and the government. Like the Mullahs of Iran certain portions of our society have convinced the Legislatures that long fixed sentences are a solution for the problem of crime. No one is allowed to question the value or merit of long sentences with out being ostracised as "soft on crime" or indifferent to victims. The effects of Structured Sentencing and other self righteous reform of our criminal lase have turned our society away from concepts of reform, restitution and non-penal control. At great expense we build new prisons and stockpile a large percentage of our society in these kennels we call correctional institutions.

If we force a prisoner limit on our legislator we can force reform and turn away from the idiocy of the current system. Consider the following:

A local lawyer was sentenced to more then 16 years in prison after being snared in an unwise, inappropriate and criminal computer discussion with a person posing as an underage male. This lawyer never touched anyone and there is no evidence that he ever maintained an illegal physical relationship with anyone. Who can really justify 16 years for this type of activity.

In contrast. In a highly publicised case a local woman accepted a plea in case where she had murdered her husband and indirectly caused the death of another person. This woman will serve less time behind bars then the lawyer that corresponded with the faux minor.

To make things worse, when the lawyer gets out of prison he will have to register as a sex offender, he will be excluded from malls, parks and churches. On the other hand the murderess can live next door to you, date your relatives, sing in your choir and she need not tell anyone that she is a convicted killer.

Is it not time to open your window and shout out that the system is broken and that we will not take it anymore? We must Reform the system, force the legislature to value our human assets and help create a modern society that recognize that our sentencing system must value more then punishment and restraint.