When I read about banks and people being robbed of their money and people are killed or wounded, how drugs are sold for large sums of cash, how people work for cash and don’t pay their fair share of income taxes, I decided to write this article about money.
I propose that congress vote a recall period of six months to cancel all paper money in the U.S.A. Of course those people that have, on hand legitimate sums of money will receive a government check for said sums. Which must be deposited into a banking institute or spent on goods in the open market, during this period.
1. In this day and age of checks, credit and debit cards, money orders and American express or other travelers checks, there is no practical need for cash in our economy, except coins for machines.
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2. The very act of a money recall will cancel out all lost, destroyed and all the ill-gotten money in the hands of the wrong people. I estimate this act alone may save the government a few trillion dollars to help reduce the national debt.
3. We can save additional billions of dollars engraving, producing and circulating paper money, which in reality is nothing but a government promissory note, the Constitution, under section 8, gives the power to Congress, under PARA. b “to borrow money, and under PARA. e., the power “to coin money, regulate the value thereof—“ once the U.S.A. went off the gold and silver standard, paper money was reduced to a mere Government promissory note and has no extrinsic value, anyway, except the credit of the U.S.A. as a result, under my plan, we can reduce the function of the Treasury Department to making and distributing coins, exclusively for the principal use in coin-operated machines. The elimination of paper money is not a Constitutional issue.
4. The Treasury Department anti counterfeiting section, will be eliminated or drastically reduced to prevent the counterfeiting of our coins of course all counterfeiters will go out of business and be unemployed.
5. Banks will rest easy and require almost no security since they will handle only U.S.A. coins, a very small quantity as usual. They will not need to worry about holdups for paper money since none will be available. This will eliminate injuries and deaths connected with robberies for cash at banks, businesses and homes.
6. The need to collect and destroy old worn paper money will also be eliminated, as well as the attending cost.
7. State and Federal jails would not be needed to house those who are convicted of robberies for cash, or counterfeiting. So the costs will be eliminated.
8. The Federal and State court system will be spared the time and money in prosecuting counterfeiters, robbers, and thieves who steal paper money. Law enforcement units will be freed to fight other crimes.
9. All, so-called “under the table work”, transactions and sales for cash would be eliminated and as a result they would be forced to the surface, be recorded and taxed.
10. So called drug dealers would be deprived of their cash and non traceable transactions, all drug deals by check, credit card or other means would be traceable and easily identified and dealt with to the full extent of the law. Money laundering will be eliminated, because there will be no money to launder.
11. Paper money has always posed a real health problem, because of handling by thousands of people, many of whom may have infectious diseases. All these dangers will be eliminated.
12. The use of paper money as a traditional means of untraceable bribery of public employees, officials and politicians will stop. If you see a politician walk out of City Hall with a refrigerator on his back you can bet it is a bribe, or he is a common thief. Only dishonest politicians and people will oppose this plan.
13. Banks and credit card companies will obviously experience a surge in business and resulting profits, and interest rates charged would drop in this lucrative field. They will find tamper proof credit cards and checks, and, eliminate identity theft, which is necessary.
14. People will have peace of mind from robberies for paper money and from kidnapping for money ransom, since only traceable assets will be available.
15. Paper money will still be available to collectors as souvenirs, and many collectors will want to buy this redeemed paper money. There by paying the price and offsetting the Government’s cost of the recall and redemption process. Of course redeemed money will be marked “redeemed” to avoid problems.
In conclusion, the time has come for the elimination of paper money. We will win the fight against such cash crimes and criminals. And hurt them where it really counts, in their pocketbooks. We will eliminate the business of stealing cash and the death, injury and costs of defending these thefts and prosecuting offenders. We will be fighting terrorism since all U.S. money and illegal transactions will be traceable. We will all be required to pay our fair share of taxes, thereby, reducing taxes for honest people. Our lives will be safer, less costly in this area and we would be assured that every one in the U.S.A will be treated equally as the Constitution requires. Everyone but thieves will be happy and thieves will be made more honest as a consequence of this plan or move overseas to greener (paper money) pastures.
Now is the time to remove this root of all-evil, paper money.
Friday, March 14, 2008
Saturday, March 8, 2008
THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN IN AMERICA
As a husband and father of two grown daughters (and four grown sons), I write this with the belief that all men and women are equal.
The women that came to this country with their husbands in 1620, landing in what is now Plymouth, Massachusetts, had no legal or political rights. Their place was relegated to the home to bear children and care for their husbands and family. Their status was the same as they endured in Europe, the man was the head of the family, made all the important decisions and the women were expected to obey as was stated in the wedding vows to “…love, honor and obey”, their husband. This had been the fate of women for thousands of years, all over the world since the cave man days. The irony is that women accepted this role sometimes, drudgingly and usually, with silent complaint and resentment.
For the next one hundred and fifty years in America, nothing really changed. Of course, women could not vote, could not hold political office and had little if any property rights. The fact is that men were in control of women, legally, physically, emotionally and economically and this was exactly the way men wanted it to remain.
The Declaration of Independence against English Rule was signed in 1776 and one might think some change in a woman’s status to their benefit. After the strong words and rights claimed by the thirteen Colonies under this document, such as “All men are created equal” and “endowed with certain inalienable rights,” none of these words were meant to apply to women. None of the signers of said Declaration of Independence were women, only men and obviously no blacks and no Native Americans. During the long struggle for independence, battle after battle, women stood beside their men, gave them aid and provided comfort, dressed their wounds and kept the home fires burning. Their loyalty and dedication never faltered, even in the face of defeat, which their men experienced for many years until the English were finally vanquished and the war was won.
After eleven long years of the struggle for freedom from England, women rightfully, had high hopes for some recognition as the Continental Congress met in Philadelphia. The legislatures of twelve states named 74 delegates in total, all men and most property owners. Of the fifty-five delegates that showed up in May 1787, some had even signed the Declaration of Independence. No women were in attendance, since they had no rights. Throughout the long hot summer the men delegates met and argued but finally by compromise reached agreement, which was signed by 38 delegates, a bare majority of the delegates, again, all men.
When the Constitution was ratified by the legislatures of all the thirteen states in 1788, its most inspiring preamble stated, “We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”
The “We the people…” part however referred only to men, the source of all power in the government, including about 50,000 free blacks and no native Indians. Women were intentionally and automatically left out simply because, they had no legal rights, not one man, at this most important convention, lifted a finger or raised a voice to change woman’s status, all this, in spite of the fact they used the words “…in order to form a more perfect union…” “…establish justice…” “…insure domestic tranquility…” “…promote the general welfare…” and “…secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity…”. It is just unbelievable that these famous and talented men, considered the best the country had at the time, could keep a straight face and steady hand when signing this most important document. This was the first democratic Republic in this world, but at the same time, they confirmed that woman had no rights and could not take part in it, by vote or in any other way.
In Article 1, the Legislative Branch, under this new Constitution, was to be “…composed of members chosen by the people of the several States.” That word “people” did not include women at that time and there were no women in the various State Legislatures and, the plan was the same, under the new Federal Constitution.
Woman, were never explicitly denied office and it was not until 1917 that a woman, Jeanette Rankin, from Montana was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.
The U.S. Senate provided that “…no person…” shall be a Senator unless they were at least thirty years of age. Since only men were qualified to vote at this time, this, obviously excluded women.
Under Article 2, the Executive Department all references to the President are in the masculine sense, i.e. “He shall hold his office during the term of four years.”
Throughout the remaining parts of Article 2, citing the qualifications, salary, oath of office, powers and duties enumerated, all refer to the President and Vice President as “He”. This fact rightly raises the question whether a woman constitutionally qualifies to be President of the U.S.
The third Branch of the U.S. Government, under, Article 3 of the Constitution was vested in the Judicial Department, the Federal Court system. Ironically, this Article gives no hint of the gender of any of the Justices. The sad fact however, is that it was not until 1900 that first woman was appointed to the Supreme Court. Of course, the lower Federal and Circuit Court of Appeals, were not required to wait that long.
It is interesting to observe that, in all of the first 10 Amendments to this U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1791, there is no specific reference to women, but the words employed are “people”, “person”, “against himself” and “in his favor” found in the 6th Amendment.
The 11th Amendment ratified in 1791, speaks only of “citizens”.
The 13th Amendment, proposed by President Lincoln ratified in 1865, abolished slavery and involuntary servitude in the U.S. was meant to free the blacks, both men and women from servitude in the south but did not free white women from the defacto servitude they were enduring.
The 14th Amendment, ratified in 1868, under Section 1, defined citizenship as all persons born or naturalized in the U.S., as citizen of the U.S. and of their States. It added, “…no State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges and immunities of citizens, nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; or deprive any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the law.” Susan B. Anthony tested this law by voting in 1872 for President Ulysses S Grant.
Section 2, of this Amendment, betrays the specific intent of the U.S. Congress to deny women voting rights in both State and National election by enunciating the rights of the defined Citizens, as male inhabitants of such State, and “excluding Indians not taxed”, being twenty-one years of age. This is the only instance when the words “male” is used in the Constitution.
Almost one hundred years after the adoption of the U.S. Constitution, Congress had the opportunity, once and for all time, to define the right to suffrage (vote) in their quest to reiterate the rights of blacks to vote they completely ignored the equal rights of woman to also vote. Instead, they and the ratifying States deliberately limited the 15 Amendment’s application to “The right of citizens of the U.S. to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the U.S. or any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.” Again, Congress and the ratifying States, slammed the door to this right to vote in the faces of women, while unabashedly, granting such rights to black men and women, giving them superior rights to that of white women.
While the 17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution amended the manner in which U.S. Senators were elected, by a popular vote of the “people” of each State, women were yet to be defined as people; only men were allowed to vote. That is not to say that women have only had the right to vote since 1920. Many States had previously passed suffrage laws. In the 1880’s Bella A. Lockwood, a Lawyer who had practiced before the U.S. Supreme Court ran for President twice (and failed).
Finally, it took the efforts of the women’s suffrage movement after World War I for Congress to enact and the States to ratify the 19th Amendment of 1920, in a very oblique way by stating “The right of citizens of the U.S. to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the U.S. or any State on account of sex”.
Thus, after one hundred and thirty-two years of deprivation, women were grudgingly granted the right to vote, a right they should have had from the beginning in a true democracy.
Still, women, in the eyes of the Constitution and under various State laws, are not equal to men, eighty-eight years and counting after gaining the right to vote.
The very concerted effort made in the 1960’s resulted in failure of the proposed EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT passed by Congress, but failed to be ratified by enough States.
Today, two hundred and twenty years after the adoption of the U.S. Constitution women are deliberately denied the equal rights men have enjoyed for the same period, especially in the work place. One must look at our State and Federal officials, still a majority of men and the mess they have made and the state of affairs we are presently in to realize that it is time for a change. The best solution, as always should be a mix of the two sexes to have a true balance of ideas and protection for our people. Women do not need the physical protection of men. The cave man days are over.
Gradually, over the last eighty-eight years, since the passage of the 19th Amendment, women have made steady progress toward equality of the sexes in the various political fields. However, during that time, although a few woman have run for Vice-President, no one woman has seriously sought the office of the President of the U.S. until now (Hillary Clinton). This is not to say that women are not as qualified as men to hold this exalted office. Women have almost equal opportunity to be elected to all offices in this country and world wide these days, some were elected as Prime Minister (Margaret Thatcher of England) and recently a woman (U Maru Yar’Adua) was elected President of Nigeria in Africa. I do not know of a woman who has failed at the task to which she has been elected, but I also know that many men have failed at their tasks and many have been sent to jail for their illegal deeds while in office.
The time has come for women to break the yoke of servitude to men and stand on their own two feet as independent as men. The time has come for men to recognize the equal value and status of woman and to break the yoke of inequality for women in seeking the office of President of the U.S. We will have our chance to make things right with women in the Presidential nomination and the election in November 2008.
The time has come for all women to come to the aid of their sex counterparts and to prove they are really equal to men and the task of being President of the U.S.A.
So, I write this not only to my wife and my daughters but also to all women, you don’t need good luck; you need only establish you are equal to men.
You have my best wishes and conviction that, you always have been and always will be, equal to men, even though you have been denied that equality to date.
The women that came to this country with their husbands in 1620, landing in what is now Plymouth, Massachusetts, had no legal or political rights. Their place was relegated to the home to bear children and care for their husbands and family. Their status was the same as they endured in Europe, the man was the head of the family, made all the important decisions and the women were expected to obey as was stated in the wedding vows to “…love, honor and obey”, their husband. This had been the fate of women for thousands of years, all over the world since the cave man days. The irony is that women accepted this role sometimes, drudgingly and usually, with silent complaint and resentment.
For the next one hundred and fifty years in America, nothing really changed. Of course, women could not vote, could not hold political office and had little if any property rights. The fact is that men were in control of women, legally, physically, emotionally and economically and this was exactly the way men wanted it to remain.
The Declaration of Independence against English Rule was signed in 1776 and one might think some change in a woman’s status to their benefit. After the strong words and rights claimed by the thirteen Colonies under this document, such as “All men are created equal” and “endowed with certain inalienable rights,” none of these words were meant to apply to women. None of the signers of said Declaration of Independence were women, only men and obviously no blacks and no Native Americans. During the long struggle for independence, battle after battle, women stood beside their men, gave them aid and provided comfort, dressed their wounds and kept the home fires burning. Their loyalty and dedication never faltered, even in the face of defeat, which their men experienced for many years until the English were finally vanquished and the war was won.
After eleven long years of the struggle for freedom from England, women rightfully, had high hopes for some recognition as the Continental Congress met in Philadelphia. The legislatures of twelve states named 74 delegates in total, all men and most property owners. Of the fifty-five delegates that showed up in May 1787, some had even signed the Declaration of Independence. No women were in attendance, since they had no rights. Throughout the long hot summer the men delegates met and argued but finally by compromise reached agreement, which was signed by 38 delegates, a bare majority of the delegates, again, all men.
When the Constitution was ratified by the legislatures of all the thirteen states in 1788, its most inspiring preamble stated, “We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”
The “We the people…” part however referred only to men, the source of all power in the government, including about 50,000 free blacks and no native Indians. Women were intentionally and automatically left out simply because, they had no legal rights, not one man, at this most important convention, lifted a finger or raised a voice to change woman’s status, all this, in spite of the fact they used the words “…in order to form a more perfect union…” “…establish justice…” “…insure domestic tranquility…” “…promote the general welfare…” and “…secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity…”. It is just unbelievable that these famous and talented men, considered the best the country had at the time, could keep a straight face and steady hand when signing this most important document. This was the first democratic Republic in this world, but at the same time, they confirmed that woman had no rights and could not take part in it, by vote or in any other way.
In Article 1, the Legislative Branch, under this new Constitution, was to be “…composed of members chosen by the people of the several States.” That word “people” did not include women at that time and there were no women in the various State Legislatures and, the plan was the same, under the new Federal Constitution.
Woman, were never explicitly denied office and it was not until 1917 that a woman, Jeanette Rankin, from Montana was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.
The U.S. Senate provided that “…no person…” shall be a Senator unless they were at least thirty years of age. Since only men were qualified to vote at this time, this, obviously excluded women.
Under Article 2, the Executive Department all references to the President are in the masculine sense, i.e. “He shall hold his office during the term of four years.”
Throughout the remaining parts of Article 2, citing the qualifications, salary, oath of office, powers and duties enumerated, all refer to the President and Vice President as “He”. This fact rightly raises the question whether a woman constitutionally qualifies to be President of the U.S.
The third Branch of the U.S. Government, under, Article 3 of the Constitution was vested in the Judicial Department, the Federal Court system. Ironically, this Article gives no hint of the gender of any of the Justices. The sad fact however, is that it was not until 1900 that first woman was appointed to the Supreme Court. Of course, the lower Federal and Circuit Court of Appeals, were not required to wait that long.
It is interesting to observe that, in all of the first 10 Amendments to this U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1791, there is no specific reference to women, but the words employed are “people”, “person”, “against himself” and “in his favor” found in the 6th Amendment.
The 11th Amendment ratified in 1791, speaks only of “citizens”.
The 13th Amendment, proposed by President Lincoln ratified in 1865, abolished slavery and involuntary servitude in the U.S. was meant to free the blacks, both men and women from servitude in the south but did not free white women from the defacto servitude they were enduring.
The 14th Amendment, ratified in 1868, under Section 1, defined citizenship as all persons born or naturalized in the U.S., as citizen of the U.S. and of their States. It added, “…no State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges and immunities of citizens, nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; or deprive any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the law.” Susan B. Anthony tested this law by voting in 1872 for President Ulysses S Grant.
Section 2, of this Amendment, betrays the specific intent of the U.S. Congress to deny women voting rights in both State and National election by enunciating the rights of the defined Citizens, as male inhabitants of such State, and “excluding Indians not taxed”, being twenty-one years of age. This is the only instance when the words “male” is used in the Constitution.
Almost one hundred years after the adoption of the U.S. Constitution, Congress had the opportunity, once and for all time, to define the right to suffrage (vote) in their quest to reiterate the rights of blacks to vote they completely ignored the equal rights of woman to also vote. Instead, they and the ratifying States deliberately limited the 15 Amendment’s application to “The right of citizens of the U.S. to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the U.S. or any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.” Again, Congress and the ratifying States, slammed the door to this right to vote in the faces of women, while unabashedly, granting such rights to black men and women, giving them superior rights to that of white women.
While the 17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution amended the manner in which U.S. Senators were elected, by a popular vote of the “people” of each State, women were yet to be defined as people; only men were allowed to vote. That is not to say that women have only had the right to vote since 1920. Many States had previously passed suffrage laws. In the 1880’s Bella A. Lockwood, a Lawyer who had practiced before the U.S. Supreme Court ran for President twice (and failed).
Finally, it took the efforts of the women’s suffrage movement after World War I for Congress to enact and the States to ratify the 19th Amendment of 1920, in a very oblique way by stating “The right of citizens of the U.S. to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the U.S. or any State on account of sex”.
Thus, after one hundred and thirty-two years of deprivation, women were grudgingly granted the right to vote, a right they should have had from the beginning in a true democracy.
Still, women, in the eyes of the Constitution and under various State laws, are not equal to men, eighty-eight years and counting after gaining the right to vote.
The very concerted effort made in the 1960’s resulted in failure of the proposed EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT passed by Congress, but failed to be ratified by enough States.
Today, two hundred and twenty years after the adoption of the U.S. Constitution women are deliberately denied the equal rights men have enjoyed for the same period, especially in the work place. One must look at our State and Federal officials, still a majority of men and the mess they have made and the state of affairs we are presently in to realize that it is time for a change. The best solution, as always should be a mix of the two sexes to have a true balance of ideas and protection for our people. Women do not need the physical protection of men. The cave man days are over.
Gradually, over the last eighty-eight years, since the passage of the 19th Amendment, women have made steady progress toward equality of the sexes in the various political fields. However, during that time, although a few woman have run for Vice-President, no one woman has seriously sought the office of the President of the U.S. until now (Hillary Clinton). This is not to say that women are not as qualified as men to hold this exalted office. Women have almost equal opportunity to be elected to all offices in this country and world wide these days, some were elected as Prime Minister (Margaret Thatcher of England) and recently a woman (U Maru Yar’Adua) was elected President of Nigeria in Africa. I do not know of a woman who has failed at the task to which she has been elected, but I also know that many men have failed at their tasks and many have been sent to jail for their illegal deeds while in office.
The time has come for women to break the yoke of servitude to men and stand on their own two feet as independent as men. The time has come for men to recognize the equal value and status of woman and to break the yoke of inequality for women in seeking the office of President of the U.S. We will have our chance to make things right with women in the Presidential nomination and the election in November 2008.
The time has come for all women to come to the aid of their sex counterparts and to prove they are really equal to men and the task of being President of the U.S.A.
So, I write this not only to my wife and my daughters but also to all women, you don’t need good luck; you need only establish you are equal to men.
You have my best wishes and conviction that, you always have been and always will be, equal to men, even though you have been denied that equality to date.
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