Our Manifesto
GREEN = Government Revitalization of Economies, Environments, Neighborhoods
Below you will find:
- 5 GREEN Tea Party principles
- 5 GREEN Tea Party de-funding priorities
- 5 GREEN Tea Party re-funding priorities
So as a start you can see what we want to create, what we think we need to get rid of, and what we need to support.
For the United States to become a world leader in the 21st Century we of the GREEN Tea Party submit a platform of guidelines and principles that will:
- Reduce the tax burden on every American
- Promote a true free market economy
- Protect and restore valuable ecosystems
- Allow the Federal government to provide the core services and protections required for every citizen to realize a secure and prosperous life
- Increase our internal and international security
These goals can be accomplished through a series of changes that will reshape the way the government and the entire country do business.
THESE ARE DRASTIC CHANGES AND NEED TO BE IMPLEMENTED GRADUALLY, THOUGHTFULLY, AND IMMEDIATELY.
We of the GREEN Tea Party invasion a world where everyone can be healthy, educated, safe, and free. To get there we have to stop doing things that are counterproductive to that vision so that we can use those resources in ways that support that vision. And the GREEN Tea Party agrees with those other Tea Party wackos that our Federal Government is just too big. Therefore we propose that half the savings from the cuts below be redirected to more constructive uses, and the other half returned to the pockets of tax payers.
Cut the CRAP! (Corporations Rally Around Profits)
- No Weapons of Mass Destruction. Annual savings: Priceless
This should be a no brainer. It will take some work internationally, but come on, the cold war is over. We need to stop all production, maintenance, trade in, and use of nuclear weapons, land mines and cluster bombs. When we stop being disingenuous bullies and start to be partners in peace maybe we can create partnerships with people instead of just being the kid on the playground with the biggest stick. While the financial savings from this is not huge, the change in emphasis makes the final (and largest) plank in this platform of reductions possible. (See #5 below.)
- End all subsidies for fossil energy. Annual cost savings $10 Billion from crazy oil company tax credits, , $12 Billion dollars in general funds for roads , and others?
A few brave souls are already talking about taking a nibble into this one, but we at the GREEN Tea Party are driving (tee hee) for a complete elimination of direct and indirect subsidies of all forms of fossil fuel. The Federal Highway system of the Eisenhower era is an indirect subsidy of the oil companies. Bail outs of car companies are an indirect subsidy of the oil companies. No more general funds for roads. Let those who use the roads and bridges pay for them.
And the whole re-branded domestic oil industry that is promoting the marvels of “clean coal”, “natural” gas, and hydrofracking is a farce. Tax them. Tax their wastes, make them clean up after themselves. Period.
- End all subsidies for nuclear energy. Annual savings: Priceless/ $15 billion+
Without the government insurance guaranteed by Price Anderson Act, the nuclear power inductry as we know it would not exist. And when you factor in government support of mining, enrichment, and waste storage (should THAT ever happen), then frost that cake with tax credits, it becomes clear that this is not a workable solution. We do not care what the nuclear industry, or his pawn- Barak Obama say, nuclear energy is not clean energy.
- End agribusiness subsidies. Annual savings $20 billion
Why are we supporting the production of high fructose corn syrup when it is clearly killing us? Why do we subsidize the pesticides and herbicides that cover the grain belt, only so that they can wash down the Mississippi River and create a dead zone in the Gulf the size of Delaware?
You want to support small farmers? Give people credits they can use in a farmer’s market, or something. Agribusiness is killing us with their products and by products. And the current subsidy system is not working. Small organic farms that do not qualify for price supports are the ones that are actually making a profit. Level the playing field and Monsanto and the rest will no longer be relevant.
- Reduce military spending by 50%. Annual cost savings $343,552,500,000 (That 343 BILLION dollars!) Impact on the economy
We all know that the US spends twice as much of its Gross Domestic Product on “defense” as any other country in the free world.
To support our vision the GREEN Tea Party must address the following needs:
- Education
Whereas there are direct links between education, poverty and incarceration… Whereas every person in this country has the right and responsibility to contribute to his or her greatest potential and desire…
Every resident of the United States should have guaranteed access to a quality primary and secondary education. This means greatly increasing federal funding to schools, college loans and grants, and work-study programs. Back to school programs for parents, tailored and accessible education for people of all abilities, and more.
- Health Care not Medical Care
Whereas prescription drugs are now the 4th leading cause of death in the United States… Whereas by measuring rates of infant mortality, diabetes, and many others diseases, we are not a very healthy lot…
Fully funded evidence-based treatment for addiction and mental health services for anyone who needs them is just one example of the humane priorities of the GREEN Tea Party. We can pay for the crimes, the damage done to families and neighborhoods, and make up for the lost productivity of addicts as we do now. Or we can treat addicts in ways that proven to work. We can’t afford to NOT do it!
Reform the legalized drug dealers by requiring pharmaceutical companies that participate in Medicare or other government insurance programs agree to controlling their advertising practices. With the power of the GREEN Tea Party we can tackle the special interests that not only benefit from illness, but also cause it.
This topic is way to complicated to address in this brief summary of the entire GREEN Tea Party platform, but lets just say that we can (and must) do more with less. By addressing prevention by removing toxins from the environment, and by controlling corporate excesses we can take a bigger view of this topic.
Bottom line vision… Health care is a right. GIVE it to everyone. Other countries do.
- Energy/Transportation
When we reduce the size of the military we will also be addressing the largest user of fossil fuel in this country. (Hmm, the military uses more oil than any other sector in the country, and its primary mission is to secure our access to oil. Does this make sense to ANYONE?) Our second biggest use of oil is transportation. We need to rethink everything. What does a local, walkable, community look like? What if we never or rarely needed cars to get around? What could we do with all the resources we are currently using for automobiles? The GREEN Tea Party in-visions a future where energy is clean, abundant, and cheap. By using some of the resources we were using to pollute our neighborhoods to research and develop new wind and solar resources we can make the US an energy exporter. When we make the Middle East irrelevant we will improve our security, our trade balance, and even the air we breathe.
- Food
By redesigning the Farm Bill the Federal government can promote what we call “positive impact” practices. Remember the camp ground rule of leaving the camp ground cleaner than when you got there? The same principle needs to apply to every industry, including agriculture. If your practices are carbon-neutral, do not create, leave or spread chemicals and other wastes, and do not harm soil, water and air then you will find the GREEN Tea Party very supportive. If your CAFO pollutes the Bay, you use toxins that find their way into downstream or downwind ecosystems, or otherwise fail to clean up after yourself you may find that the GREEN Tea party will ask you to pay for the clean up.
- Justice
Whereas the United States has the highest per capita prison population in the world, with just 4% of the world’s population, and 25% of the world’s prisoners… Whereas the opportunity cost of removing these potentially productive individuals from the economy represents 3% of the potential of our workforce, 7 million people who could be paying taxes instead of paying a debt to society… at a cost of $68 billion a year
The war on drugs is a farce. We already talked about full treatment funding. And educational opportunities. Come on people. Look at the trends. We keep spending less and less on education and more and more on incarceration. Lets turn some of those jailors into teachers. Oh wait, the don’t have enough education to be teachers? Then teach them! See how this works?
Conclusion
Does this resonate with you? Share it with someone.
Have something to add? Leave a comment.
Think this is just a bunch of crazy hippy crap from liberal idealists and you want to rant against it? Go back to Fox.com and hang out with your own people.
Peace.
