Children Also Have Universal Human Rights!

I am an 80-year-old grandfather of 10 grandchildren. I need to say several things about what is happening to children of asylum-seekers and other immigrants (whether illegal or legal) at our southern borders. 

1)  Separating immigrant children from their parents, without legal justification, and subjecting them to detention (a form of imprisonment) is a clear denial of fundamental and universal human rights.

The United Nations Declaration on Human Rights, signed and accepted almost 70 years ago by the United Nations General Assembly on 10 December 1948 (including the United States of America), contains a common standard of achievements for all peoples and all nations, setting out fundamental human rights to be universally protected.  It declares the following:

In the Preamble:

“recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world
“disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind…
“it is essential… that human rights should be protected by the rule of law.”

Some Pertinent Articles:

I Article 1.  All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

Article 2. Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, color, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs,

Article 3. Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.

Article 5. No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

Article 6. Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.

Article 7. All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law.

Article 8.  Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the competent national tribunals for acts violating the fundamental rights granted him by the constitution or by law.

Article 9. No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.

Article 10.  Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him.

Article 11.  (1) Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which he has had all the guarantees necessary for his defense.

Article 12.  No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honor and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.

Article 14.  (1) Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.

Article 15.  (1) Everyone has the right to a nationality.
(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality.

Article 16.  (3) The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State.

Article 25.  (2) Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection.

Article 28.  Everyone is entitled to a social and international order in which the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration can be fully realized.
The USA signed on to the Declaration on Human Rights in 1948, and to the Children’s Convention on Child Rights (CRC) in 1989.  To “undertake the obligations of the CRC (by ratifying or acceding to it), national governments have committed themselves to protecting and ensuring children's rights – and they have agreed to hold themselves accountable for this commitment before the international community. State parties to the Convention are obliged to develop and undertake all actions and policies in the light of the best interests of the child”.  Moreover, “the Convention sets out these rights in 54 articles and two Optional Protocols. It spells out the basic human rights that children everywhere have:

• the right to survival;
• to develop to the fullest;
• to protection from harmful influences, abuse and exploitation; and to participate fully in family, cultural and social life (emphasis mine). 
• The four core principles of the Convention are non-discrimination; devotion to the best interests of the child; the right to life, survival and development; and respect for the views of the child.”

2)  There is no law requiring or instituting such actions against children of immigrants on our southern border (or anywhere else).  This egregious action is nothing other than a policy of this Trump regime, made under the guise of maintaining national security by setting a strong example that will somehow “discourage” illegal border-crossing.  And yet, our democratic and human rights principles call us as a nation to a quite different mission as outlined in the DHR and in our own Constitution:  equal justice, freedom, peace and protection; acting toward one another in a spirit of brother- and sister-hood. Humanitarian leadership and efforts used to define us as a nation.  Now we are seen by many around the world as brutish, dictatorial, narrowly nationalistic, violent and destructive of international cooperation.  No wonder we have been and continue to be under attack by forces bent on our destruction. 

3)  While the separation of children from their parents, and the detention in inadequate facilities, is clearly a violation of universal human rights and our own principles (like Japanese internment camps were during WWII) it is also clearly a violation of our rule of law.  We have enshrined within out Constitution, and our laws of justice, the fundamental principles of:

• Due process - legal requirement that the state must respect all legal rights that are owed to a person
• The right to be charged or to be freed from questioning by police authorities; plus the right to be silent
• Innocent until proven guilty
• Right to habeas corpus (a recourse in law challenging the reasons or conditions of a person's confinement) so that containment can be limited and justice un-delayed. It is an independent civil action and a form of collateral attack to determine not the guilt or innocence of the person held in custody, but whether the custody is unlawful under the U.S. Constitution.” (Merriam-Webster)
• The right to a speedy trial by a jury of one’s peers, or perhaps at least a hearing by a panel of jurists or a court-ordered arbitrator.
• The right to equal protection under law

So, it is incumbent upon us to ask: What laws have been broken by these children?  What are the charges?  Why has there been no legal defense offered on behalf of these children?  No action to get them released?  No writ of habeas corpus? Why can’t the public be admitted to the detention centers?  Is seeking asylum now a crime?  Is illegal immigration not a resolvable issue?  Why has the independent branch of Congress not acted? Have we abandoned our principles and our protection of human beings and their universal rights? 

The unfortunate answer must be a resounding YES, and every brain-washed Trump supporter should take note: this policy is not making America great; it will destroy us and our unique democracy because it ultimately will transform us into a nation based on individualized protections, discriminatory policies and laws that grant power, privilege and protection only to those deemed worthy – all ruled over by a despot and despotic cabal.

4)  Finally, it is time to stop equivocating about what these actions and behaviors constitute.  THIS IS CHILD ABUSE, pure and simple.  And, child abuse or neglect is punishable by legal means, at least in a normal civil society.  It is time for Donald J. Trump, and many members of Congress to receive the consequences for their actions, and mainly their non-action or neglect. Because they are ultimately “caretakers” or “protectors” of children, they bear a special responsibility to avoid doing harm to children, and even to avoid the possible threat of harm coming upon children. Moreover, they cannot avoid the charge of abusing children based on their neglect of the well-being, protections, rights, nourishment and overall development that children should have been provided by our elected caretakers who are uniquely responsible for their welfare.

Yes, I have written about this before in another context, and I refer you to that posting on 10/10/2017.  Let me just quote a few thoughts about which I spoke in that piece:

“if the definition of caregiver or caretaker is expanded to reflect the care given by others in the social network... then anyone paid to be responsible for domestic tranquility, the general welfare, and to secure the blessings of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, might well be considered a caretaker in a very broad sense, but also in a very real sense.”

““The Republican Radicals in Congress have decided …(to) cut funding for almost every program that benefits, encourages, nurtures and promotes children and their development:  research, universal pre-K education, housing for the homeless and the poor, adequate funding for all schools and the resources necessary to bring about a world-class education for all; they cut Head Start, Aid to children and families, food stamps, and housing subsidies, and ultimate repeal of the entire Affordable Care Act, having already gutted important parts of it.  They have neglected children with special needs; have cut Pell grants and neglected to cut back on interest rates for student loans.  They neglect entirely the special needs of homeless children, children with disabilities, children who will not go to college, and of those who drop out of school.  They have done nothing to reform the juvenile justice system or the over-incarceration of drug-abusers.  They have neglected the potential of minority children and have instead laid the groundwork for them to be labeled as perpetual felons with no vote, no rights and no jobs.  I call this abuse and neglect of children who are our most valuable resource.  The congressional naysayers are child abusers and for that they must be called to account.  Impeachment for them is too mild.”

“And let’s not forget, voters who continuously return abusive politicians to office are themselves abettors of abuse, neglecting their duty to protect their own children and grandchildren.  I speak directly to those many seniors who supported Donald Trump, and who, by so doing, have unleashed a child abuser upon their own grandchildren and on my grandchildren.  Shame on you!  You, and others, can perhaps redeem yourselves by never ever voting again for politicians who willfully or neglectfully support cutting back on programs that benefit our children and grandchildren. It’s time to stand up and challenge the child abusers in the White House and in the Congress.”

However, a majority of Republicans support the Trump administration's policy of separating migrant children from their parents when they are caught illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border, an April 2018 Quinnipiac University poll found.  Republican voters support the policy 55 to 35 percent, according to the poll.  They are the only listed party, gender, education, age or racial group to support the policy, according to Quinnipiac.  Sixty-six percent of American voters oppose the policy, according to the poll.

We all need to push back against the Trumpian tactic of calling questionable behavior, hate speech, or factual detail by something other than what it is.  Lying, distraction, word manipulation, realignment of acceptable and reasonable definitions of words and behaviors, as well as the twisting of moral and ethical principles, serves to blind us to what is really happening to our basic and fundamental beliefs and values. Trump has disemboweled truth.  He has made us the victims of blurred reality and is embarked upon a path of creating a society and a form of government that cannot maintain a set of values or principles because those values and principles are seen as ‘fake’ or no one’s responsibility, or politically expedient.  Bad, even evil or illegal behavior that does harm, or has the potential to harm others, is made allowable because everybody does it, or because it can be attributed to someone else or because it is a necessary means to an end or outcome that is defined as a necessity by an elected official, a designated office-holder, a Fuhrer, or a would-be dictator.   

The plain truth is that these actions laid on the backs of small children are acts of violence, aggression, unmitigated abuse with virulent aspects of illegality attached to them. Trump, child abuser and prejudiced nationalist, is using the most precious resource available to make it rough on asylum-seekers and immigrants from cultures and countries that he despises.  Separation of families seeking asylum is an act of aggression against those children and families which serves to undermine the universal values of which the UN Declaration on Human Rights speaks.  This so-called 'policy' must not stand.  Determine now to do all you can to rid our White House, our Congress (and tangentially, our Judiciary) from these de-constructionists of democratic values and institutions, these violent fascists, these child abusers; these destroyers of democracy and universal human rights.  The child abusers and abettors, who support this policy, must be voted out-of-power everywhere in November 2018! 

UPDATE:  What a difference a day makes!  Donald Trump recognizes when bad publicity and bad policy are slamming him, personally and politically, and (according to news reports) his wife and daughter got on his case in deep background. But, here's the question: does his signing of an Executive Order that essentially calls for maintaining unity for immigrant children and their parents while they are detained really solve anything? 

Are we being BAMBOOZLED?  Of course we are.  First, an Executive Order is not necessarily a problem-solver; it can be more like a symbol, a publicity stunt, a politically-motivated promoter of good feelings, compassion and "heart."  They are sometimes so devoid of detail that issues and problems are exacerbated instead of being resolved.
That is the case here.  First, the E.O. will provoke Court cases, not only on behalf of the children and their families, but because there is a court order based on a Consent Decree between the Court and the Executive, that impinges upon this E.O. by asserting that detention of migrant children can be no longer than 20 days, and the E.O. does not address that issue. That will have to be resolved in court and it will take time to do so. 

Then, there are a few more matters it doesn't address, like:  where are the (estimated) 2,500 children who have already been separated from parents?  How will they be re-united with parents who may have been deported to their home countries? No one has an answer -- there is no defined process in the Order.

On top of that, even before he signed this order, Trump and his minions began a policy of transporting unattended children to other parts of the country (even to NY!).  And how will private and public agencies who care for children get ready for that onslaught if they have no guidance, no direction, no training and no monetary support for the inevitable  increase of services for these traumatized kids? 

He also wants to start placing families and children in tents or temporary fabricated shelters on military bases! WOW! a brilliant Plan.  I wonder just how excited those commanders and their troops are about doing social work instead of being on a military mission?  It says to me that Trump is still just trying to discourage illegal immigration; he still sees his mission as that of providing discouragement to other potential border-crossers about seeking asylum or immigrating to this country, if they have nothing to offer us, or are not the right "kind."

This mess isn't over by a long shot!  That Executive Order is the Trumpian response to something that got out-of-hand and smacked him right in the face.  His "compassionate, heartfelt" response was, of course, to fly off to Minnesota where he will address a rally and attempt to blame Obama and the Democrats for a policy that was discussed by leaders of the Trump administration early-on in his term.  They knew what they wanted to do -- promote zero-tolerance no matter what.  As usual, the Donald and his cow-towing under-lords just didn't see the public reaction being as troubled and as deeply felt as it was. 

So, don't stop reacting just because a 'fake' E.O. was signed.  Watch the process; watch for more abuse; watch for long delays in re-uniting families; watch for detention that is nothing more than imprisonment.  Watch for what a tyrant uses to get his way and to derive more power over his government and his people.  Watch for those Republican representatives and what they will settle for and trade off in order to lick the boots of their authoritarian leader.  And finally, you might want to peruse my postings on the points that characterize authoritarian leaders -- take a look at: 11/16 and 11/21/2015; 8/6 and 8/14/2017.

Trump is getting closer and closer to being a full-blown tyrant, and this debacle about zero tolerance on illegal immigration is a real clear demonstration of the path he is on. 

   

The Worst Is Yet-to-Come!

Mounting scandals.  Ethical misbehavior. Corruption. Nepotism rampant. Money being scattered around by companies for access and pay-to-play. People unqualified for local dogcatcher nominated (and often approved) to head large and complicated agencies of government.  Torture is OK.  Unwarranted Death of Palestinians, innocent Black men and school children is all OK.  Evangelical Trump supporters all-too-willing to overlook adultery, lying, the worship of mammon and harmful treatment of human beings in need.  The swamp grows and grows because there are those willing to live in that environment. 

Leaks, strange tweets, and lies abound as part of a chaotic approach to governing.   As do attacks on individuals, the media, the FBI and the CIA, and now our closest Allies. 

Add to that something called the “turkey farm.”  It is reported that career civil servants are being assigned to that farm.  That is, they are being removed from meaningful jobs and placed in jobs that interns might do, in hopes that they will leave -- retire or just quit.  That’s right.  Not only is Trump isolating and diminishing the role of citizen advocacy councils, appeal boards and watchdogs, but he is now implementing one of the favorite moves of dictators – getting rid of civil service career people.  They know too much and want too much of that which Trump opposes. 

And then, there is the Budget.  Finally, perhaps, blue collar and misguided senior followers of this fascist-like leader, will begin to get their reward for supporting a man who ‘fakes’ his concern for his mainly right-wing “base voters.”  His true base is really the 1% of this country who are wealthy and powerful, not the nearly 40% of foolish followers who believe or pardon his lies (fact-checkers recently estimated that Trump tells at least 20 whopping lies within one hour!). 

So, you asked for it, Trumpsters – no Medicare for you; no food stamps (SNAP) for you; no Medicaid for you.  And here’s a sobering statistic: the people who most use government programs like the three just named are people in the working class and senior citizens who also mainly support this pretend President.  Just wait until you don’t qualify for Medicare, can’t get Medicaid from overburdened states, and your poor nutrition starts to require a better diet and more health care, not less.  YOU are going to be in a personal situation that has nothing but restriction, harm and hurt attached.  

Who will be able to help?  I guess you will find out rather quickly.  It is then you will recall who is benefiting from your difficulty – you will be left with the haunting truth -- those cuts in Medicare and Medicaid went toward funding the big tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires, and left you abandoned.

Remember, Trumpettes – you asked for this – it’s coming and sooner than you think.  Congress turned down a short-term Farm Bill recently, but you can still start waving good-by to your food cards (SNAP) because 80% of the funding in that bill is related to SNAP, which was not the issue around which the bill failed.  It will come back around.

So, let’s look again: cuts to food stamps that will affect many millions of people  over 10 years; cuts of $1.2 billion to Medicare and over a trillion dollars taken from Medicaid (over a decade) to fund a tax break for the richest among us; 35 million people left without any health care coverage;  plus an attack upon Social Security still pending.  And, there’s more coming.

You thought you bought a Champion for your concerns and needs.  What you got is a Chumpion who is despised around the Globe (and particularly by the G-7) and who is slowly, but surely, diminishing the unique position of our representative democracy in the world.  But mostly, you got an advocate for the rich and powerful, who will not ever support YOU against the (less than) 1% who already control and manipulate your lives and are acting right now – this moment – to change our whole economy to a robot-based efficiency that will make your job vulnerable to elimination, along with millions more.

The economy is great, you say.  Trump is already benefitting you by what’s happening in the stock market, and by his (miniscule) temporary tax cuts for the middle class, and some cheaper prices at stores and food markets, you say.  Oh Wow!  Tell that to the potato farmers in Idaho, former autol workers in Tennessee or the former employees of closed department stores (like Sears and J.C. Penney); ask those who can’t get loans or mortgages and have to depend on rentals.  Ask some of those farmers who are waiting for subsidies they may never see again.

 

Ask yourself – what happens if all those countries start retaliating against us with higher tariffs, cuts in certain items being shipped and boycotts of certain goods?  You start paying higher prices for food, clothing, shelter and everyday necessities. China alone could make your shopping a nightmare – just look at the labels on things you now buy.  If they say “made in China,” you could be seeing price increases for many of those items next time you shop!

And BTW, how’s your pension shaping up?  Don’t have one from your company or Union; or has it been reduced to a pittance?  Just how is a rich man’s economy going to get you through your retirement years?  Not only are you the recipient of attacks against the costs of American Labor, including the loss of private pension support and protection, you are the target of attacks of this regime against Social Security and Medicare. 

So, tell us please – how is your retirement shaping up?  Probably a lot like the over 60% who simply do not have enough retirement funds to meet their needs for 10-20 years beyond retirement. Attention! -- Seniors looking to retire – look around you.  Why are so many people in their 60’s and 70’s working at menial jobs in variety stores, fast food emporiums and other service jobs either part-time or full-time?  You may soon  find out for yourself if you don’t have enough set aside to cover your retirement needs.

And, maybe you haven’t heard, but drug prices and healthcare costs are going to eat you up if you or any one of your dependents become quite ill or develops a chronic condition.  Here’s how it really is. 

Say, your teenager develops cancer.  The usual treatments will cost you a large sum in co-pays and out-of-pocket costs; your insurance premiums will undoubtedly escalate, and then there are those costs that are uncovered by insurance companies.  With the attacks upon Obamacare and Medicaid also comes the fact that government subsidies are not available.  Oh! – and now there is talk of returning to the times when insurance companies will be able to  withhold coverage – or increase their costs – for pre-existing conditions and conditions that cost them a lot in payable benefits, so they cap the coverage.

And, don’t forget, if you have to pay for some treatments that are extra special, or experimental, or too new for insurance company attention, well let’s just say that to save a child’s life may cost you the equivalent of the rest of your life.  $50,000-$100,000-a-month is not unusual for such treatments.  For those who say this is a rarity, you may want to know that childhood cancers of extreme proportions are on the rise!

• What else might you want to consider while the cyclical stock market and employment rate look so good to you?  Well, there is:
• 
  
•  that pesky problem of the national debt which will increase by tens of trillions of dollars because Trump, as usual, hasn’t planned for how to off-set those huge increases in your tax money flowing into the coffers of the rich and powerful.  Funny isn’t it that Republicans could find it so important to talk about during the Obama administration but seem now to have brushed aside the effects of their additions to the deficit and our national debt? 
•  that problem of trade deficits and trade wars because of new tariffs: never mind the fact that our massive trading partners like Canada and the rest of our European allies are being alienated by He-who-would-be-King Trump.  They will push back….
• that kingly complex seems to extend to more than just our best trade partners;  after all there is something called a global economy.  We don’t exist in a vacuum, and if Trump persists in his misadventures with other nations (particularly in Asia and the Middle East) we will be faced with a war economy that will limit everyone (except the monied few who will benefit from such a horrendous event). 
•  and what is this policy of withdrawing from agreements like the Paris Accords and the G-7 conclusion, thus alienating and threatening not only the good-will of allied countries, but destroying partnerships, coalitions, and associations that are critical to world order?  Is he preparing this nation to accept a world disorder that includes Russia and countries with dictators?  Are you aware of what will happen to you and your family if there are no allies of strength and common values to work with us in times of world crisis, such as war, or humanitarian crises?  
• and BTW – your support of Trump may become equivalent to supporting someone who gives “aid and comfort to our enemies” (Constitution’s definition of Treason); that makes you a co-conspirator (possibly a “traitor”), and how will that play in your hometown?
• perhaps we should also stress what few will tell you:  we are on course to a future that is much different from the present, and it is impinging on us in the present.  I have written about it before, so check out my most recent Blog posting in May, because not preparing for a technological, robotic, and jobless future is a disaster in-the-making, and Trump doesn’t believe in preparation.

The question is: will you be better off when:

·        harmful and hurtful Trump budgets begin to take effect?

·        tax cuts for the rich have to be paid and you have to sacrifice to pay them?

·        alienation of many nations rebounds to raise our prices on imported goods?

·        the lack of adequate healthcare puts ordinary folks like you and me into bankruptcy?

·        you lose your children (our children) to unnecessary and illegitimate violence or wars?

·        You have to face cut-backs in food, clothing and every necessity to pay for the military might needed to defeat the enemy on multiple fronts (and no great coalition like NATO comes to our side to help)?

·        you can’t afford a house, a first or second car, your child’s healthcare, college education or your mother’s (or father’s) long-term care?

·        the list goes on forever, and the consequences will be felt most severely by those who follow without questioning or preparation!

It is indeed a travesty of our democratic system that this president practices policies and attitudes that harm, even abuse, children. How else can we interpret the treatment of immigrant children being separated from their parents and then detained in facilities from which legislators and press are barred?   Is this any different from a presidential budget that cuts or zeros out necessary programs for families by which tens of millions of vulnerable children are left without health care, housing, nutritional meals, public education, activities after-school, assistance for college attendance, or protection from physical and mental abuse?  See my Blog posting of 10/10/2017 and decide for yourself if Donald J. Trump  fits the definition of a child abuser!  And then, look around – is there a child with whom you are acquainted who is being harmed or hurt (abused) by Trump policies?  That child could be your child… and, what affects one will eventually affect all! 

The worst president in our history (according to many) is about to hand you consequences and problems that could devastate you and your family (as well as millions of other families).  And yet, because the stock market is up and unemployment down, you think you are living in Roseland?  Talk about being BAMBOOZLED! 

The consequences of a King Donald regime will show its real effects in your near future!   So, Trump-supporters – just keep on supporting this pretend president, and you will face the consequences just like the rest of us!  Don’t be fooled by this up-turn cycle in our economy (probably generated by Obama’s policies and actions, not just Trump's ascent to the oval office). 

The worst is yet to come, and your view of it will be from under a bus somewhere compliments of King Donald the Trump.

TRANSFORMATION and OPPORTUNITY ASSURANCE

The time has come to shake-up the somnambulant Democratic Party and to bury the moribund Republican Party.  Here we are with a fantastic opportunity before us to take over the Congress, and Democratic Party leaders and office-holders have gone silent except perhaps for a few boring declarations by their exalted leaders, Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi.  What kind of strategy is that – keep quiet in case you say something wrong?  It’s a shame that too many in the Democratic Party are content to sit and wait – for what, another defeat at the polls?  The Democratic Party needs new passionate voices and we need them quickly. 

As you may have surmised by recent postings, I have been reading a book titled “How Democracies Die” by Levitsky and Ziblatt.  Besides recommending a different approach to the loss of democracy’s guardrails and norms -- that demands a willingness to build coalitions with those who may differ in political philosophy -- the authors toss us one further challenge:  we must go beyond current terms and categories of policies and programs and offer new ways of looking at government programs.  

They suggest, for instance, that the Party must offer-- and advocate for – a social policy that sets aside stiff means-testing in favor of more universal models that lock into place social supports for more durable policies to reduce income inequality.  I must admit that I find this intriguing and tend to agree that we have remained on a questionable track, down which we have moved with singular caution lest we stray off the rails.  But, in 2016, we were shown the result of such unquestioning loyalty to old categories, out-moded programs and tiresome (and questionable) candidates.  We need re-vitalization and re-invigoration.  We need desperately to change the narrative.

So, after due contemplation, here is something of how I see that happening.

Foremost perhaps, we need to change the narrative that defines governmental social welfare programs.  They are not hand-outs, or a safety net, or welfare for the unfortunate, or budget-busters.  Most of all, they are not rip-offs or causes  of laziness, greediness or something-for-nothing. Although every government program needs a critical look on an annual or biannual basis, government programs like Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and SNAP for instance, are more than welfare, more than safety, even more than hand-outs.  They are more like the staples of public education, the military, first responders and homeland security.  They are not simply government programs.  They are programs that offer both assurance and opportunity.

  

We are not in the business of providing handouts, or welfare ‘goodies.’  This is serious business the government is embarked upon, and important enough to be included in the Preamble to the Constitution of these United States.  For it is there that we find the elements of a Mission statement for this Republic’s governance.  We are embarked upon caring for the General Welfare of our society and providing the means by which we can broadly extend the experience of happiness and safety. 
 

The Republic is responsible for the insuring of these matters.  That is why the Constitution contains the mechanisms by which welfare is assured, protection and safety are provided,  and the pursuit of happiness is uninterrupted. We are in the business by which we assure that we provide equal opportunities to pursue those ends.

We Democrats strayed badly when we allowed the Republican Party under Reagan to stoop to equating such government insurance with “welfare queens” and “young bucks” buying steaks with food stamps. “Opponents of social policy have commonly used racially-charged rhetoric against means-tested programs.  'Welfare' became a pejorative term in America because of a perception of recipients as undeserving.”  It is past time to remove the stigma of ‘welfare’ and to concentrate on ‘opportunity’ and ‘insurance’.  It is time to equate the health of this nation with the ability (or lack thereof) to provide those opportunities and insurances.  Individual initiative is an empty vessel without opportunity and some assurance of support. 

  

Perhaps, we need to change the prevailing narrative by concentrating first on social policies that benefit everyone, namely, Social Security and Medicare.  Let us commence the narrative that these governmental insurance benefits have already accomplished something that nothing else has approached, certainly not the private philanthropy of days past.  These two programs have dramatically increased the opportunity for Senior Citizens to live later years without the automatic poverty that previously prevailed. 

It is time to move Social Security and Medicare away from being undermined by those who fabricate and falsify the conditions under which both programs operate.  It is time to move Social Security to a status that is protected from predators disguised as congressmen.  This program should be protected from borrowing for regular operational budget deficits; or, for any use except that for which it is intended: to offer basic insurance for old age protection from poverty, providing opportunity for the pursuit of happiness even at later age levels.  Social Security works!  Protect it from any attack by destroyers or de-constructionists.

It is even more critical perhaps to change the narrative regarding Medicare.  We must take on the issue of health care for all and make 'Medicare for All' the watchword of that movement.  There must be a reversal of the Trump destruction of Obamacare (and heathcare generally).  It is past time for the rise of the only option that makes sense for covering all under one single payer - the national government  -  thereby saving millions of dollars immediately in administrative costs and providing one source that can be held accountable. (I have written before on this topic and refer you to my Blog dated  4/17/2017).

Part of changing the narrative is the importance of preparing for a future that is already impinging upon us but has yet to change our lives as drastically as it will within the next generation.  The Trump administration seems to have an overwhelming inability to deal with anything but unreality.  The reality is that our lives are about to run smack into the changes that the future will stream upon us.  Drone technology, Nano-technology, robotics, 3-D printing, are just a few of the many technologies that are about to change work, leisure, wages, salary and retirement pensions.  (I have also written about this subject before and call your attention to the blog dated  9/4/2016).

We are about to enter a world that we may have dreamt about, but rarely thought possible to ever experience.  Now, here it comes, and we are lagging so far behind in our understanding that it may just overwhelm our ability to deal with it.  Partial blame falls upon those politicians who have done nothing – absolutely nothing – to prepare for such change.  Another partial blame falls upon schools and teachers who plod along with the same old subjects and modes of teaching them.  A large part of blame must fall upon the leaders of industry and finance.  They know what’s happening; they understand what is coming; they are part of making it happen, but they fail to share such knowledge with the ordinary consumer.  Why? because they don’t want informed consumers; they prefer customers who simply consume, but do not question any part of industry’s use of these new technologies.    

Moreover, a major part of the blame falls directly upon those of us who have failed to look ahead, to look beyond the moment, and to critically appraise the situation.  Including those who have failed to defend the tenets of  science; failed to accept critical thinking; failed to look beyond ourselves and our small everyday worlds.  We are mired in the present and have failed to include the effect of future change in our living or thinking or planning.  But that impending future is upon us in the varied activity of drones, the use of robotics in surgery and manufacturing, the building of driverless autos, and so much more.  Big Business is already planning for the day when human employment is secondary to use of robots, while we mortals continue to fuss and worry about minimum wage and full employment, which we will never see again (unless we re-define “employment” and “work” and “wages”).

Our authors of “How Democracies Die” suggest that we may need to consider a universal basic income as insurance against the inevitable unemployment coming our way.  I have suggested that we need to also consider national and community service as equivalent to work, or to re-define work in terms of service to others (see blogs dated 2/8/2016 and 10/27/2017).  In any case, we must begin to talk in terms that make sense in this new world.  The authors also suggest that another example of this may be “family policy” or programs that provide paid leave for parents, subsidized day care for children with “working” parents, and pre-kindergarten education, as well as free college for nearly everyone. 

But, there is so much more that deserves our attention.  I offer the following list as entirely incomplete, but as basic fodder for consideration and critical thought

Universal housing assured for all, available to all, and perhaps maintained by those who take advantage of the opportunity to live in government-subsidized or otherwise-provided housing who also desire a job by which is fair-traded for rent, healthcare and food allowances.   

Universal community or national service required of all US residents as pay-back for the advantages of living in this country – waivers for no one; everyone can perform a service of worth.  Creativity to be required from sponsors and facilitators in finding ways for people to serve, and perhaps to be compensated with trade-offs as just mentioned above.

Universal requirement of pay-back in community service or work for every person convicted and serving time for harming another person or family; possibly make some violent offenders repay the victim or victim’s family directly when that makes good sense.  Punishment is a waste of time and money. 

Universal return on state and local investment in business and industries; all businesses or industries receiving tax breaks for establishment incentives in communities shall be required to return a percentage of that investment annually in cash and in-kind donations, and in lump sum whenever they choose to vacate the area.

Universal removal of money from election processes with public funding only allowed; no PACs; no third-party donations, no paid lobbyists, no buying of votes in any manner.

Universal rejection of tax rebates, subsidies, special treatment or any other payment made to any individual or group directly from tax revenues.  All receipt of taxes must be processed as part of a budget with oversight by the Congress.

Universal broadband and net neutrality along with safety against hackers needs to be made available to all.  Access to the 'cloud' and the internet are not privileges -- they must be universal in order to address the opportunities thereby made available as life-enhancing insurance.  We must see ourselves in the business of providing insurances and opportunities, not welfare that is means-tested. Without universality, there will be greater divisions of inequality in the world of the future.  

 

However, beyond the policies and programs lies one of the great failings of both Parties: the neglect of procedure and administration (see blog on Brass Tacks dated 4/22/2016).
  

It is shameful that many offices of government are still operating with hardware and software that belongs to another era.  

It is shameful that attention to universal upgrading of all such systems has been ignored and even rejected.  

It is a shame when separate offices of the same department, located at some distance from one another, cannot communicate by electronic systems common to both (see Blog on Garret’s Passport dated 7/19/2015).  

It is despicable when different units of first responders cannot communicate during events that are volatile and even explosive.  

It is inexcusable that foreign agencies, agents and surrogates are able to hack into election systems of this country without adequate protection available or usable.  

It is inexcusable that there is not a universal system of Mission and Purpose Statements that serve to guide the goal achievements of every office of government; and that there is little or no broad-based non-partisan evaluation or audit of accomplishments and achievements (or lack thereof) measured against the overall Mission and Purpose. Shameful that budgets are not assigned according to accomplishments and outcomes rather than according to someone’s estimate or made-up reasons for those budgets. 

It is, finally, a malevolent situation when the ordinary people affected by legislation are rarely or never called to testify before Congress, but that only those special interests affected are invited to testify because of the paid lobbying that such groups employ to gain such access.  It is time to control lobbyists, big money and lack of access of ordinary citizens to their elected representatives (see blog on Representation, dated 3/7/2017). 

There is so much we must do to prepare.  There is so much we must re-define in order to cope with changing circumstances, categories, policies and programs that make sense for a new technological revolution.  Our approach to education will have to be re-defined; the importance of re-training will be immense; the place of personal pensions, allowances, subsidies will be enormous. 

The final thread is that the new future will demand of us a whole new approach to governance.  The threats to well-being for ourselves and our society alone will demand teamwork and coalitions that will be able to overcome philosophical, ideological, regional, racial and ethnic differences.  The re-alignment of party politics will be essential to the survival of our democratic values, and not without cost and loss.  We will be called upon to address with vigor the great inequalities – especially in income and spending – that prevent us today from offering the insurance and opportunities that we will have to provide in the new world. Thank goodness that we have a generation rising to leadership that may be able to eschew the past and build coalitions and teams that we shall require. 

Let 2018 mid-term elections mark the beginning of the end for the two major Parties as they stand right now. The Republican Party is organized to belittle, ignore and deny the future impinging upon us.  The GOP is thus worthless in its present form. 
The Democratic Party stands at a crossroads.  It must give up its old tired categories of reform and embark on the path toward TRANSFORMATION – we cannot face a transformative future with outdated reforms that should have been enacted years ago.  Both parties are so unprepared and uninformed that neither can lead us into the future as currently constituted. We must look for leaders in both major parties (and minor Parties) who will be enthusiastically willing to work on building collaborative teams that can lead us across the bridge to the future with new unity of Purpose.

We must also move beyond the imperial representative system we possess today to involve citizens from all walks of life inside our governmental structures.  We must prepare ourselves by making citizen input, evaluation, audit, and advice integral to every governmental structure at every level – local, state, regional and national.  The People must become the foundation-stone of our governance, not elected representatives who cow-tow to special interests.  Those special interests will be pushing the profit motive of high unemployment in order to robotize more and more of their workforce.  Those special interests will oppose every move to universalize health care, family well-being or a guaranteed minimum income.

Like it or not, The FUTURE IS NOW!  It is in our present.  We must not – we cannot – depend upon outmoded party politics to prepare us to face its consequences and its opportunities.  We must transform our thinking, our ideological restrictions, and our governance in order to cope with this unique technological Revolution.  The petty politics of our pitifully prepared politicians, and many of their purposeless paleolithic partisans, portends potential putrefaction for us all!  

De-Constructing Consumer Protection

This story may (or may not) be familiar to you.  It concerns a man who was not an experienced politician, but who was elected President of his country.  He emerged out of a background that produces its own heroes and celebrities, in a broad sense of those terms.  Early on, he probably didn’t even plan to be president of his country. He did have thoughts of running for office, but, was not taken seriously by a major party and was somewhat content on attracting publicity.

However, following a crisis of a collapsed economy, a growing fear of continued recession and some messy situations involving killings of innocent students, threat of increased terrorism, and the disgust of many people with established parties, new possibilities for “outsiders” was growing.  With a political slogan that captured some imaginations and growing support, our subject threw his hat into the presidential pool, deciding to run for President.  In his case, this act may have contained a plethora of factors and personal reasons, but one thing was clear.  Support in polls was beginning to surge.  Against several candidates, and one already well-known and prominent, our man emerged as the candidate of his chosen party, although many of the established leadership of his chosen party came out against his candidacy. 

With a message of being on the outside, wanting to clean up the inside, this candidate tapped into the anger and disgust of many with a clearly populous message, appearing to many as the only real option for change.  Unexpectedly, he won.

In his inaugural address (following on his previous discourse) he painted a picture of a profound crisis; of an economy on the brink of collapse, a society wracked by violence, corruption, terrorism and drug trafficking.  He pledged to bring the country out of the (miserable) state it was in by means of drastic reforms an d measures, and to step-up the fight against terrorism of many forms.  Unfortunately, he was quite vague in terms of how this would all be accomplished.  The traditional media distrusted him and he them.  He was unsparing in his attacks upon the political elite, describing it as a corrupt oligarchy that was ruining the country. 

The newly elected President got off to a rocky start.  Congress failed to pass any significant legislation in his first months.  He did not seem up to the task of responding specifically to threats of nature or of political origin, or to terrorism for that matter.  ‘He not only lacked the experience with the intricacies of legislative politics, he also lacked the patience for it.  He preferred, as he often bragged, ‘to govern alone from his laptop.’ 

 Instead of working with the leaders of Congress, he lashed out at them, calling them ‘unproductive.’  He even attacked some judges.  Perhaps most troubling, he often bypassed Congress turning instead to executive decrees (orders).  His commitment to democratic values and institutions became weak.  At some points, the courts began to push back, declaring parts of some of his decrees as unconstitutional.  

Soon many of his critics, including establishment politicians, judges and the media, began routinely denouncing him as ‘authoritarian.’  There was some talk of impeachment.  But our subject doubled down and declared that he would overcome the walls that separated his country from progress toward greatness.  “Less than two years after his surprising election the long-shot outsider had become a tyrant.”

Except for that last sentence, you probably thought you were reading about Donald J. Trump.  In a way you were, but the actual story as told in the book titled:” How Democracies Die” by Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt, is about: Peru’s Alberto Fujimori, who probably didn’t plan to be a dictator or tyrant.

There are points related to this story that need to be identified.  One is that there are some commonalities that tend to exist among the personalities that are inexperienced populist outsiders, often at one or the other far side on the political spectrum.  They tend to be anti-establishment, and claim to represent the Voice of the People, asserting that others do not.  They tend as well to be involved in some way in waging a war against a corrupt, entrenched, and conspiratorial ‘elite.’  They also tend to promise to get rid of the elite (‘drain the swamp”) or minimize their power, status and standing, while returning Power to the People.  They often get involved in an assault, attack or minimization of democratic institutions (intelligence services, other parties, and the Press, for instance). 

From the experiences of other democracies around the world and throughout history, the authors found enough data to provide something to help identify would--be autocrats and their “remarkably similar strategies for subverting democratic institutions, constituting a sort of ‘litmus test’ for emerging politicians who want to hold office, but probably should never be allowed to do so.  They identify four “behavioral warning signs” to especially notice, claiming that a politician who meets just one criterion is a cause for concern; and Donald Trump meets the profile of all four!

1)    the candidate rejects in words or behaviors the democratic rules of the game

2)    the candidate denies the legitimacy of opponents

3)    (s)he tolerates or encourages violence as legitimate

4)    (s)he is willing to curtail civil liberties of opponents (including the freedom of the Press to criticize, investigate or to call to account the words or actions of the candidate; or, to jail “crooked” opponents!)

Another major point.  We usually think of democracies dying at the hands of men with guns. In fact, such coup d’états accounted for nearly three out of every four democratic breakdowns during the Cold War (and there were at least 14 of them).  The authors make the very important point that “there is another way to break a democracy; less dramatic but equally destructive, carried out by those brought to power in the first place.  Some of these dismantle democracy very quickly, as did Hitler.  More often, though, democracies erode slowly, in barely visible steps. 

Across our world, there has been a change.  “Military coups and other violent seizures of power are rare.”  Since the end of the Cold War, most democratic breakdowns have been caused by elected governments themselves subverting democratic institutions.  And that backsliding begins at the ballot box, according to the authors. But its invisibility is hidden under a veneer of democracy while its substance is being “eviscerated.”

Moreover, the authors make the telling point that many such efforts to subvert democracy are “legal” in the sense that “they are approved by the legislature or accepted by the courts.  According to the authors, they may even be portrayed as efforts to improve democracy – making the judiciary more efficient, combating corruption, or cleaning up the electoral process.  Media continues but under duress and pressures that lead to self-censorship.  Citizens continue to criticize government and to bring their grievances forward, but not always without negative consequences such as individual tax audits.

People do not always realize what is happening, and therefore continue to believe that they are living under democratic values and institutions.  They ignore warning signs and denounce those who protest democracy’s erosion and who denounce government abuse.  For many, Democracy’s erosion is almost imperceptible.  This leads the authors to ask the question: “how vulnerable is American democracy to this form of backsliding?” 

They claim that the major political parties are democracy’s filters, which makes them the gatekeepers as to who is admitted and receives party legitimacy, and who remains out of the running because they are too radical for democracy to survive their policies and their actions.  They point out some failures for both parties, but, emphasize that the GOP began a recent pattern of failure to be such gatekeepers beginning with their support of tea party candidates.  The results have visited upon us a constitutional crisis in the form of an authoritarian leader who despises many democratic values (such as equality and justice for all), compliant followers who ignore the ethical values necessary to a democracy’s survival (such as truth-telling and accountability), and captured branches of government (legislators and judges) cow-towing to the leader (Fuhrer?).

 “This is how elected autocrats subvert democracy – packing and ‘weaponizing’ the courts and other neutral agencies, buying off the media and the private sector (or bullying them into silence) and rewriting the rules of politics to tilt the playing field against opponents.  The tragic paradox of the electoral route to authoritarianism is that democracy’s assassins use the very institutions of democracy – gradually, subtly, and even legally – to kill it.”

Let us conclude this somewhat sad commentary by pointing to what is happening in one area of government to which we rarely give enough attention, but which is of major import in terms of the well-being and protection of our citizens. Slowly but surely under the authoritarian Trump regime, this major function of government is being attacked, assaulted, de-constructed, and perhaps destroyed. Allow me to alert you to its minimalization and warn you of its demise.

It is referred to variously as Consumer Protection, Citizen advocacy, a process for bringing grievances and appeals against government mis-behavior, abuse and neglect.  It falls under the protection of Citizens (and others) within the purview of the General Welfare, and certainly falls neatly under equal opportunity to pursue happiness.  It encompasses much that government should be doing faithfully and completely, but often fails (or is obstructed from doing so).

Let us be quite clear that authoritarian attack on consumer advocacy can take many forms in terms of tactics.  It can involve the appointment of a certain type of leader, deregulation, budget-cutting, denigration in terms of descriptions and references, as well as the turning of its constituencies against its actions and nature.  Nor can we dismiss the less obvious tactics of privatization, or devolvement to state control. There are many ways to de-construct, and the authoritarian Trump knows and uses them all.

Rich sponsors, donors and lobbyists not only want freedom from regulatory restrictions, they want citizen advocacy entities destroyed because oligarchs do not favor citizen groups (or government) telling them how to run their enterprises, how to treat their customers, or how they must manufacture and market their products and services.

 Nor do those captains of industry want ordinary citizens telling government what it ought to do to sustain a constitutionally-mandated mission of citizen protection, the opportunity for well-being, and pursuit of equal opportunity and equal justice for all. 

Finally, here is one 'huge' example of quiet undermining of democratic institutions that few are giving much attention:  The Trump regime is intent on undermining citizen advocacy groups, consumer appeal/grievance boards (and even whole departments!) that enable ordinary citizens to have access to grievance mechanisms within government. In fact, it has long been a desired outcome for the Republican Party along with the deconstruction of government’s regulatory power.

The Consumer Financial Protection Board (CFPB) -- created as part of the Dodd-Frank financial reform legislation of 2010, which was passed in response to the unscrupulous behavior of many companies on Wall Street. (Washington Post).  Before the CFPB existed, there was no single government entity tasked with protecting American consumers from predatory practices in the financial industry. Financial entities such as mortgage lenders, credit card companies, debt collectors, credit reporting firms, and payday lenders faced few rules and scant oversight.

“The CFPB has been under attack since its inception mostly by Republicans who have argued that the financial services industry is already heavily regulated.  We don’t even have to go back as far as the Great Recession to see that financial companies need more, not less, oversight.

A few months ago, the CFPB fined Wells Fargo $100 million for — unbeknown to its customers — opening hundreds of thousands of unauthorized bank and credit-card accounts.  In its short existence, the watchdog agency has forced corporations to return more than $11.7 billion to consumers who had been ripped off by greedy banks and lenders.  The CFPB has a complaint portal that works with consumers to get a response from companies. It has handled more than 1 million complaints involving financial products and services. The agency is also using its database to identify trends in unfair financial practices (which is) a great service to consumers.

In its short existence, It’s netted nearly $12 billion from financial firms to provide relief for 29 million consumers, including about $3.8 billion in direct compensation. Almost $400 million of that came without consumers having to lift a finger, thanks instead to its supervisory actions. Firms have also been made to pay $600 million in penalties. (Michelle Singletary Columnist November 15, 2016)

How would you reward that agency?

If you're President Trump, the answer is to slash its funding by 23%, get rid of rules "that unduly burden the financial industry” and support the weakening of its organization by making it less independent (like limiting its enforcement powers and making its director able to be removed by the President for “cause.”)

By November of 2017, here is some of what happened to the CFPB:

·       Trump brought in his budget director, the ultra–fiscal conservative Mick Mulvaney, who has called the CFPB a “sad, sick” joke, to lead the agency.

·       His budget zeroed out its funding completely over time, and proposed other ways to significantly change it.

·       His Treasury Department released a report arguing that the CFPB’s “unaccountable structure and unduly broad regulatory powers” have “hindered consumer choice and access to credit, limited innovation, and imposed undue compliance burdens, particularly on small institutions.”

·       The House passed the CHOICE Act in June (2017), which would strip the CFPB of its authority to supervise, police, and examine financial institutions; bar it from overseeing payday loans; and let the president fire its director at whim.  Once enforcement powers are removed, the agency is essentially gutted.

By February 2018, the Washington Post was reporting this:  “Over the past few weeks, the administration has dismissed enforcement actions, delayed the payday lending rule and halted the investigation of Equifax. Calling for the CFPB to act with more “humility,” Mulvaney has taken up the cause of financial industry cheaters who have done — and continue to do — great harm to the American people.”

Shifting the burden of regulation and citizen advocacy back onto citizens hardly makes them freer. Far from a recipe for liberty this is, instead, a prescription for chaos. An underregulated market for consumer goods and services will lead to inefficiencies, as individuals and groups scramble for assurances of quality; greater inequality will result, as only those with the requisite resources can acquire those assurances; and acute bouts of economic paralysis, as diminished confidence will dampen consumer demand.

“The White House’s insistence that deregulation is liberty enhancing just goes to show how warped today’s political discourse is. Deregulation and de-construction of consumer protection agencies “privileges the worst products, producers, and service providers over consumers, workers, and responsible businesses. All of these latter individuals benefit from clear, evidence-based regulations enforced by capable and conscientious public servants. Deregulation is inefficient, too, as the government is uniquely positioned to realize economies of scale in regulating for all us.” (Slate - Jon D. Michaels is professor of law at the UCLA School of Law; Rajesh D. Nayak is deputy director at the National Employment Law Project).

“It's been clear since our businessman-in-chief took office that he had no love for federal consumer watchdogs — and that his administration was more than happy to dance to the tune of financial-services industry lobbyists who wanted the CFPB dead.

"It's open season on consumers," said Sally Greenberg, executive director of the National Consumers League. "The most predatory actors — payday lenders, student loan companies, the debt collection industry — can operate with virtual impunity from federal regulators at the bureau."

Recently, banks and other companies falling under the CFPB's oversight were asked to assess "the overall efficiency and effectiveness of its supervision program and whether any changes to the program would be appropriate." (We’re not talking about consumer input here!)

Mulvaney is already off to a great start in terms of emptying the bureau's coffers by requesting no new funds for the current quarter. Instead, he'll deplete a "reserve fund" intended to help pay for investigative work, which the bureau won't be doing much of anymore.

By 2020, the Trump administration wants the CFPB to no longer be funded by the Federal Reserve. It wants funding to be controlled by Congress, which would mean more influence by industry lobbyists.

Christine Hines, legislative director for the National Association of Consumer Advocates, said Trump's budget and Mulvaney's strategic plan make clear their aim "is to hamstring the CFPB and make it impossible for it to fulfill its mission to protect consumers from financial rip-offs." (By David Lazarus Feb 20, 2018—LA Times)

And that, my friends are two stories in one Blog: 1) a tyrant-in-waiting, just like others, is eating away at our democracy, and 2) it may look like we are functioning as we always have, but quietly, almost imperceptibly, Trump is de-constructing consumer protections.  You will soon find yourself with no place to lodge a complaint, bring a grievance, or appeal a case of government abuse or neglect. Look much deeper, at the EPA, the FTC, the Veterans’ Administration, the Education Department.  Be aware of the consumer boards that are under attack under the ACA (Obamacare), Housing, and HHS.

This is NOT OK.  It is a WAR on agencies and norms meant to protect the People.  YOU are NOT being PROTECTED!