Website Launch - The 99 Percent Votes
I've just launched http://the99percentvotes.com - I hope that it will help get government working for the people.It's a platform in which: (1) people submit, discuss, and vote on public policy ideas...
View ArticleGetting more out of the HAMP program
The Homeowner Assistance Modification Program (HAMP) has kept over 1 million homeowners in their homes through permanent mortgage modifications. These modifications have performed very well, with over...
View Articlethe99vote.com - The Future of Democracy
I want to talk a bit about a new tool for democracy that I've launched. It's called http://the99percentvotes.com or http://the99vote.com for short.It's a social platform for proposing, discussing, and...
View ArticleCongress should require corporations to pay for negative effects of their...
If corporations are made to pay for the negative effects of their business, these negatives will factor into their bottom line and thus their decision-making. They will have to manage and minimize...
View ArticleLevy a tariff on Chinese-produced goods in order to encourage manufacturers...
US49 - Tariff on Chinese-produced goodsBy: mhuttmanWe have lost too many jobs to Chinese sweat shops, which undercut American businesses with obscenely low labor conditions and lax workplace...
View ArticleTax capital gains the same as earned income
US1 - Eliminate Capital Gains Tax AdvantagesDescription: Put capital gains into the same pot as other personal income, and tax it all according to one set of progressive marginal tax rates."Long-term"...
View Articlethe99vote.com: Voting Should Be Mandatory
US4 - Voting Should Be MandatoryWe need to look at voting as a responsibility, as an obligation, as a civic duty! We all must devote time to jury duty and paying taxes as our civic duty. This is...
View ArticleHospitals shouldn't be able to charge individuals without insurance 5X what...
US38 - Fairness in Hospital PricingHospitals quote an outrageously high sticker price that is negotiated down by insurance companies and Medicare but is actually charged to individuals without...
View ArticleThe federal government should build a national public wireless network to...
US109 - National Public WirelessBy: golyadkinWe need a big public works project to provide good jobs and stimulate the economy. Like we built the interstate highway system in the 50s, I think in this...
View ArticleAward $50mm in funding annually to the best social programs proposed through...
US44 - Public Wiki For Social ProgramsOne of Obama’s change messages is that solutions have to come from the bottom up. He wants the general public to be more involved in government and points to the...
View ArticleWe should hire 250-500k federal workers to stimulate development and regulate...
US110 - Increase Federal HiringThere are fewer federal government jobs under Obama (2.65 million in 2010) than under Reagan in the 80s (2.77 million in 1982) despite 35% population growth in that...
View ArticleLegalize marijuana but regulate it to be mild
US121 - Weak WeedWidely available marijuana that gets you just a little high would be pretty safe and soak up most American demand for the product. With a mediocre legal product, most people would not...
View ArticleInstitute a state operated bank for each state with the mission of investing...
US68 - A Financial Public OptionBy: invientDescription: Similar to the Bank of North Dakota, extended to all states. That way citizens can put their money in the state bank and the fractional reserve...
View ArticleUS467 - Compensation Limits for Bank Executives
US467 - Compensation Limits for Bank ExecutivesThe opportunity to get especially rich in the financial sector has lured smart minds away from more useful endeavors. It's led the sector to grow too...
View ArticleRequire that political ads be approved by a public fact checking organization
US466 - Public Organization to Fact-Check Political AdsPolitical candidates should not be able to broadcast lies to the American public. Rather than sifting through this meretricious propapanda...
View ArticleMake Election Day a National Holiday
US28 - National Voting DayVoting should be a national holiday to expand access and give people less of an excuse to not vote. It's absurd that people have to decide between working an extra two hours...
View ArticleWe should have internet voting to expand access
US469 - Internet VotingSet up an R&D program on internet voting with every expectation that it'll be implemented once it's ready to go. It's probably provably more accurate than other forms of...
View ArticleIf you're too big to fail, you're too big
US17 - End Too Big To FailIf the government determines that a financial institution is Too Big To Fail (TBTF), they should require the institution to break up into smaller pieces. This determination...
View ArticleRemove the "wage cap" from Social Security taxes
US123 - Remove the Social Security Wage CapBy: angelarhodesCurrently, only the first $110,000 of wages are subject to Social Security taxes; removing that "wage cap" would fund Social Security for...
View ArticleStates should have neutral organizations do their redistricting, rather than...
US13 - Neutral Organizations for RedistrictingBy: saritapWhen state legislatures make redistricting decisions, the party in power works hard to optimize their party's chances, often creating bizarrely...
View ArticleMake it illegal for members of Congress to join the lobbying industry after...
US73 - No lobbying after Congressional serviceBy: PamelaSCongress has become a career stepping stone into lucrative private sector lobbying industry jobs. Stop our government from becoming a training...
View ArticleGuarantee equal access to the ballot and to the debates to all qualified...
US282 - Let Us Hear From All CandidatesBy: Jill SteinWe don't need a third candidate in the debates, we need at least two.Neither Barack nor Mitt's platforms address: (1) Reinstating Glass-Steagall (2)...
View ArticleAmend the constitution to explicitly say corporations are not people
US82 - End Corporate PersonhoodCorporations are NOT people.Corporations donate huge sums of money to get people elected to government. Elected officials from both parties depend on corporate donations...
View ArticleLegalize gay marriage by federal statute
US41 - Gay Marriage by Federal StatutePeople should be free to marry whomever they want. It is meaningful symbolically and it also entails access to numerous benefits, e.g., ownership and inheritance,...
View ArticleGovernment hiring should be counter-cyclical to the private sector
US112 - Government Hiring Cushions UnemploymentGovernment should hire when it has sufficiently productive things for people to do given labor costs. When people are unemployed or underemployed,...
View ArticleThere is no longer any risk from Cuba, so why are we still embargoing them?
US3 - End the Embargo on Cuba!The only counterargument we have, submitted by golyadkin, is: "Fidel's regime oppresses its people and once brought us to the brink of nuclear armageddon. We should follow...
View ArticleReview and vote on the presidential candidates' policy platforms at...
Please review and vote on the policy ideas of the presidential candidates at policyvote.com/elections. Good preparation for the debate tonight!33 ideas from Barack Obama99 ideas from Mitt Romney45...
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