At every level of government both individuals and groups, must have the rights to speech, conduct, and full expression of freedom, which do not impinge upon the same rights of other individuals and groups. No single person, nor class of society, shall be regarded as superior to any other. All individuals, and groups shall be considered as being equally valuable to society.
The primary function of government shall be the regulation & equitable distribution of certain essential functions of society. These being : the health, education, quality of life, commerce, agriculture, national resources, energy, a legal system, transportation, and the physical infrastructure. Decisions must be derived through a process of the general consensus of the electorate, with respect to the fundamental rights of all individuals and groups of citizenry.
In order for this to be possible, a high level of citizen involvement in the decision making processes is required. Thus, in addition to the activities of political parties, there needs to be a periodic National Caucus process, in which citizens beginning from the grassroots level of their neighborhoods, may voice their concerns, place binding Referendum measures for ratification or dismissal on ballots at elections, and also submit cantidates for Office, who will, (along with Incumbents, and political party cantidates), publicly debate issues thoroughly, immediately prior to elections.
The ancient Athenian democracy was actually a lottery system for land-owning men. Subsequent democracies enfranchized greater percentages of populations, but also had a basic flaw. Economics enabled the rich to essentially buy elections for cantidates who would represent their interests, and demogoguery would lead countries back toward dictatorship. In Communist countries the Party was supposed to represent the people, but once established, would represent itself. With the National Caucus the money political parties can spend on an election is limited, the debates of the entire field of cantidates are the main focus, and once the elections are concluded, the National Caucus is disbanded, to be built anew from the grassroots up when it is needed for the next election cycle.
The National Caucus is not a political party, and since it is rebuilt & disbanded with each election cycle, it is not a permanent political institution, which would give it an agenda of its own. The National Caucus is built up from the grass-roots level of people's actual neighborhoods, and thus it represents the major currents of political thought present in the general population. At each level of the National Caucus, each person who wishes to speak, must be heard. At each level of the National Caucus, three cantidates are selected to run for Office, which will ensure that the major themes of political thought present in the population will be represented. Thus, having heard in the public political debates, the views of all the political party cantidates, plus those cantidates selected by the National Caucus, the Electorate will then vote, and make its collective decision.
The multi-partizan, inclusive nature of the National Caucus arises from its structure, and selection process. Beginning with a neighborhood, one person is selected at random to be a neighborhood representative. Then each person who wishes to speak, has their say about politics, and after this, a vote is taken, and the top two also become neighborhood representatives. The result is that the neighborhood will be represented by two people who probably have different viewpoints, plus one person selected by chance. One will be the most articulate representative of the most prevalent point of view. One will be the best speaker of the next most prevalent point of view. The third will be the random selection, who usually will also represent the majority, but not always. Sometimes the random selection will represent an unusual point of view, and this is important, because in the Caucus, all points of view must have a hearing. It should also be noted that in different areas there will be large differences in what the prevalent points of view will be.
In small towns the neighborhood representatives will be all that are needed for the Town Caucus, but in large towns & cities a District level will be needed, or you will have so many representatives present that it would take forever to get anything done. Where District Caucuses are needed, the process is repeated. One person among the neighborhood representatives is selected at random. Then each neighborhood representative who wishes to speak will address the District Caucus, after which a vote is taken & the top two will become District Caucus representatives, along with the random selection from among the neighborhood representatives.
Now commences the Town Caucus. The Town Caucus will be televised on local TV. Again, one person is selected at random, but this person will be one of three Cantidates that the Town Caucus places on the ballot for Mayor. Then each person who wishes to speak will have their say, and may also propose a Ballot Measure. This is followed by voting. Ballot Measures that get at least 1/3 of the vote will be placed on the Election Ballot, where the voters will decide on them. Those who recieve the most votes will also be slated on the Ballot for Mayor or City Council or other local offices. A second vote will be taken for people who wish to participate in higher levels of the Caucus process, their number being proportionate to the number of people being represented by the town, plus one selected at random. With this business completed, the Town caucus is disbanded, until the next Election cycle.
The next step is the series of locally televised debates among the various Caucus cantidates, and any Political Party cantidates, plus the Incumbents. The townspeople will then vote, and decide which Ballot measures should be passed, who their Mayor ought to be, and who they want on their City Council, etc. This is a very citizen-intensive process, which ought to preclude any "buying of elections", or confusing of issues, since everything will be discussed at length in full view of the public.
Following the Town elections, those Caucus members who were selected for service in the higher levels of the caucus process, will gather together for the County Caucus. The entire process described for the televised Town Caucuses is repeated again, including the second vote, to select those representatives who will become Delegates of the State Caucus, their number being determined by the number of people being represented by their County in relationship with the population of the State, plus one selected at random. With this business completed, the County caucus is disbanded, until the next Election cycle. The next step is the series of televised debates among the various Caucus cantidates, and any Political Party cantidates, plus the Incumbents, which will be followed by a vote of the people of the County.
After County elections, the televised Caucus process is repeated at the State level, and following the State elections in which both Federal & State Reprsentatives & Senators will be elected, the State Caucuses will be disbanded. Those Delegates at the State level who were such articulate thinkers that they were able to convince the other Delegates that they were the most fit representatives, plus the random selection, will go on to the National Caucus itself. Each State shall have a minimum of three Delegates, plus a proportional number of Delegates representing the relative number of people in that State, as compared to the populations of the other States.
The National Caucus will be the major televised political event of the Election Season. The process described above will be repeated again. One Delegate will be selected at random as one of three National Caucus Cantidates for President. Each Delegate who wishes to speak will be given a turn to address the entire National Caucus, and may propose Laws to be placed upon the Ballot. There will be a vote, and two additional National Caucus Cantidates will be selected. Proposed Laws that get at least 1/3 of the votes of the National Caucus will be placed on the National Election Ballot. With this business concluded, the National Caucus will be disbanded, and will not exist until the next Election Season, when this entire exhaustive process will be repeated.
Immediately following the disolution of the National Caucus, there will be a series of televised debates among all of the Cantidates for President, including those of various Political Parties, and the three Cantidates from the National Caucus. Then comes Election Day, in which the Electorate will decide who will be President, and whether or not the proposed Laws on the Ballot shall be ratified. This system is most complicated, as befits a complicated society. It's advantages lies in these facts :
A) That it is more representative than any other version of Democracy,
B) That it totally involves the entire population in the political process,
C) That it will provide a selection of able & informed cantidates for office, who would otherwise be overlooked,
D) That it ends the domination of the political process by rich special interests.
All these things taken together ensure a stable government, of the People, by the People, and for the People.
