Health care and corporations

I participated in a MoveOn sponsored rally for health care today in Port Angeles, WA. This, of course, just after the Democrats lost Kennedy's seat in Massachusetts and the Supreme Court ruled that corporations need no limits in exercising their free speech rights as "individuals".

I thought the rally was a little disappointing. Only about twenty people showed up at Congressman Norm Dick's office to urge the Democrats to "have a backbone" and stick with the program. Dicks wasn't even there. Nice people begging for help and fairness but we had no plan that I could see to seize power and accomplish anything.

Here's what I would do and it takes considering the following, seemingly disparate, elements:

1) Tim Eiman has scared the bejesus out of Washington politicians by his referendums.

2) This week there is a referendum in Oregon to tax the rich and tax corporations.

3) The news is full of outrage about the size of corporate salaries and benefits.

4) I just donated $10 to Haiti simply by texting a few numbers into my iPhone.

5) Americans, from the Tea Party radicals to those who wish the Obama Administration would stick to the program of ending the wars, reforming health care and regulating the banks, insurance, drug and auto companies are "mad as hell'.

Okay, that's enough. All the above are tied together and I have a solution ....

Mount a referendum - or many state-level referendums - proposing a simple progressive income tax on both corporations and individuals - something like 30% on all income above $200,000, 50% on that above $500,000 and 75% above that - no loopholes. Make it expensive to be "too big to fail". Give the local hardware store a chance to compete with Home Depo. End insurance and drug company control of the health care system. Promote competition, favor American enterprise. Put a dent in corruption and corporate control of our government at all levels.

And pay for it, $10 at a time, by clicking on our cell phones. We the people have the votes and the power to control our own lives, even if the corporations and political parties they own don't like it.