If you were in charge of your country, what would you do?

[Murkrow]

What the title says. At least, what would your top priorities be?

UK

• Change the voting system to a form of proportional representation (most important issue, I mean that unironically)
• Undo all of the authoritarian stuff that's been pushed through in the last couple of decades (erosion of the right to protest, mass surveillance and opt-out censorship of the internet, allowing undercover police to break the law / have relationships under false pretenses, etc.)
• Close tax loopholes and pressure overseas territories and crown dependencies to stop being tax havens, so that megacorporations pay what they owe
• Reform government departments to operate based on what is practical rather than ideology. By which I mean, don't make claiming unemployment benefits difficult just because of the ideology that poor people somehow don't "deserve" it; look at whether being needlessly cruel actually costs more money through bureaucracy than it would save by preventing fraudulent claims. Same thing for prisons - being "tough on crime" isn't useful if it doesn't reduce the amount of crime.
• Houses are to be lived in, not an "investment". Furthermore, any time it looks like house prices might fall, landlords go crying to the government to do something about it. Investments can decrease in value, it's always a risk. I will build new houses and tax second-homes and I don't care if prices crash.
• Collaborate with devolved administrations to have a "British studies" class in the school curriculum. In addition to history and English literature. This would be focused on the history of the empire (including the bad stuff), and about the history of non-England parts of the UK. (Everyone in the UK already learns Shakespeare and the names of Henry VIII's wives. How many English people know anything at all about Welsh or Scottish history and culture?) It would also teach people about how the government works and the how it got to where it is today (magna carta, chartists, suffragettes, etc). I feel like this would boost support for the union more than the current attempt by waving the union jack around and naming bridges after Prince Charles.
• Hold citizens' assemblies in England to gauge support for devolved English parliament(s)
• Decentralise from the south-east (this applies to both the UK as a whole and Wales)
• Referendums are incredibly divisive, especially when it comes to massive things like membership in a union. I'd want to make sure there is understanding that it's not undemocratic to overturn the result of one by holding another. On the other hand, recognise that the non-status quo option has an advantage since they only have to win once if there are multiple referendums. I'd probably pass a law that says matters of constitutional importance can EITHER be "once in a generation" and only require a simple majority of >50% OR be voted on as often as people want but require a >66% supermajority to overturn the status quo.
• Invest in wind, tidal, and nuclear energy
• Don't just try to replace fossil fuel cars with electric ones, try to encourage alternate forms of transport as much as possible too.
• Modernise the railways in Wales and build a north/south connection

 

[IndigoClaudia]

america: steal from jeff bezos and give to the poor

/hj

 

[Bluwiikoon]

What the title says. At least, what would your top priorities be?

UK

• Change the voting system to a form of proportional representation (most important issue, I mean that unironically)
• Undo all of the authoritarian stuff that's been pushed through in the last couple of decades (erosion of the right to protest, mass surveillance and opt-out censorship of the internet, allowing undercover police to break the law / have relationships under false pretenses, etc.)
• Close tax loopholes and pressure overseas territories and crown dependencies to stop being tax havens, so that megacorporations pay what they owe
• Reform government departments to operate based on what is practical rather than ideology. By which I mean, don't make claiming unemployment benefits difficult just because of the ideology that poor people somehow don't "deserve" it; look at whether being needlessly cruel actually costs more money through bureaucracy than it would save by preventing fraudulent claims. Same thing for prisons - being "tough on crime" isn't useful if it doesn't reduce the amount of crime.
• Houses are to be lived in, not an "investment". Furthermore, any time it looks like house prices might fall, landlords go crying to the government to do something about it. Investments can decrease in value, it's always a risk. I will build new houses and tax second-homes and I don't care if prices crash.
• Collaborate with devolved administrations to have a "British studies" class in the school curriculum. In addition to history and English literature. This would be focused on the history of the empire (including the bad stuff), and about the history of non-England parts of the UK. (Everyone in the UK already learns Shakespeare and the names of Henry VIII's wives. How many English people know anything at all about Welsh or Scottish history and culture?) It would also teach people about how the government works and the how it got to where it is today (magna carta, chartists, suffragettes, etc). I feel like this would boost support for the union more than the current attempt by waving the union jack around and naming bridges after Prince Charles.
• Hold citizens' assemblies in England to gauge support for devolved English parliament(s)
• Decentralise from the south-east (this applies to both the UK as a whole and Wales)
• Referendums are incredibly divisive, especially when it comes to massive things like membership in a union. I'd want to make sure there is understanding that it's not undemocratic to overturn the result of one by holding another. On the other hand, recognise that the non-status quo option has an advantage since they only have to win once if there are multiple referendums. I'd probably pass a law that says matters of constitutional importance can EITHER be "once in a generation" and only require a simple majority of >50% OR be voted on as often as people want but require a >66% supermajority to overturn the status quo.
• Invest in wind, tidal, and nuclear energy
• Don't just try to replace fossil fuel cars with electric ones, try to encourage alternate forms of transport as much as possible too.
• Modernise the railways in Wales and build a north/south connection

All this but also trans rights

Decrease politician pay and actually give significant funding to the NHS, especially mental health care and trans health care divisions. The restrictions and waiting lists are ridiculous and life-threatening.

Also a very comfortable living wage for Everyone (ESPECIALLY disabled and non-working folks)

 

[Zoroark]

The first thing I'd do is listen to my advisors if they're telling me how to implement a policy.

It is frankly astonishing to me how many political leaders refuse to listen to the very people who have been hired and put in place to inform them about policy decisions.

 

[Frostk1]

What the title says. At least, what would your top priorities be?

UK

• Change the voting system to a form of proportional representation (most important issue, I mean that unironically)
• Undo all of the authoritarian stuff that's been pushed through in the last couple of decades (erosion of the right to protest, mass surveillance and opt-out censorship of the internet, allowing undercover police to break the law / have relationships under false pretenses, etc.)
• Close tax loopholes and pressure overseas territories and crown dependencies to stop being tax havens, so that megacorporations pay what they owe
• Reform government departments to operate based on what is practical rather than ideology. By which I mean, don't make claiming unemployment benefits difficult just because of the ideology that poor people somehow don't "deserve" it; look at whether being needlessly cruel actually costs more money through bureaucracy than it would save by preventing fraudulent claims. Same thing for prisons - being "tough on crime" isn't useful if it doesn't reduce the amount of crime.
• Houses are to be lived in, not an "investment". Furthermore, any time it looks like house prices might fall, landlords go crying to the government to do something about it. Investments can decrease in value, it's always a risk. I will build new houses and tax second-homes and I don't care if prices crash.
• Collaborate with devolved administrations to have a "British studies" class in the school curriculum. In addition to history and English literature. This would be focused on the history of the empire (including the bad stuff), and about the history of non-England parts of the UK. (Everyone in the UK already learns Shakespeare and the names of Henry VIII's wives. How many English people know anything at all about Welsh or Scottish history and culture?) It would also teach people about how the government works and the how it got to where it is today (magna carta, chartists, suffragettes, etc). I feel like this would boost support for the union more than the current attempt by waving the union jack around and naming bridges after Prince Charles.
• Hold citizens' assemblies in England to gauge support for devolved English parliament(s)
• Decentralise from the south-east (this applies to both the UK as a whole and Wales)
• Referendums are incredibly divisive, especially when it comes to massive things like membership in a union. I'd want to make sure there is understanding that it's not undemocratic to overturn the result of one by holding another. On the other hand, recognise that the non-status quo option has an advantage since they only have to win once if there are multiple referendums. I'd probably pass a law that says matters of constitutional importance can EITHER be "once in a generation" and only require a simple majority of >50% OR be voted on as often as people want but require a >66% supermajority to overturn the status quo.
• Invest in wind, tidal, and nuclear energy
• Don't just try to replace fossil fuel cars with electric ones, try to encourage alternate forms of transport as much as possible too.
• Modernise the railways in Wales and build a north/south connection

we should not only focus on replacing fossil fuel cars with electric ones but also encourage alternate forms of transportation. While electric vehicles can play a crucial role in reducing carbon emissions and air pollution, they may not be a viable option for everyone due to factors such as cost, access to charging infrastructure, and driving range limitations.

Encouraging alternate forms of transportation, such as walking, biking, public transportation, and carpooling, can also help reduce carbon emissions and promote sustainable mobility. These options can also provide health benefits, such as increased physical activity and reduced stress from driving.

 

[Kung Fu Ferret]

Where do I even begin?! Abolish the electoral college, ban the rigging of primaries in elections, repeal the Patriot Act, legalize Marijuana, fix the public transit system, crack down on distracted driving, Medicare For All, making abortion a constitutional right, demolish Trump's border wall, build a different (metaphorical) border wall between church and state, defund the police, outlaw the KKK, ban the unironic use of symbols used by the Confederacy and the Third Reich, fix the education system, sanction the fuck out of Saudi Arabia and Israel, and gradually eradicate unbridled capitalism.

 

[Murkrow]

I certainly hope you're not being serious with half of those.

 

[Kung Fu Ferret]

I certainly hope you're not being serious with half of those.

I can't tell if they're shitposting or not

 

[Paul Zook]

I would:

• Outlaw procreating children and strict parenting under penalty of death
• Permanently outlaw pornography, again under penalty of death
• Decriminalize game piracy
• Order the Department of Justice to close Reddit down
• Force Travis Ryan (from Cattle Decapitation) to give me all his money to pay for what he has done to me
• Paint all instances of white on the American flag black
• Outlaw use of antidepressants
• Decrease legal drinking age to 13 and legal smoking age to 17
• Combine the G and PG ratings into an "All Ages" rating, and legally enforce the R-rating to 17 and up
• Outlaw production and sale of M-rated video games, as well as games with sexual content
• Exterminate confederates, Nazis, pornographers, Redditors, family value extremists, and other people who cannot be improved

I certainly hope you're not being serious with half of those.

While I agree with some of Marioipod13's ideas in that pornography is damaging, I think she takes it too far liberally throwing death penalty around.

However, the user who posted above:

I would:

• Outlaw procreating children and strict parenting under penalty of death
• Permanently outlaw pornography, again under penalty of death
• Decriminalize game piracy
• Order the Department of Justice to close Reddit down
• Force Travis Ryan (from Cattle Decapitation) to give me all his money to pay for what he has done to me
• Paint all instances of white on the American flag black
• Outlaw use of antidepressants
• Decrease legal drinking age to 13 and legal smoking age to 17
• Combine the G and PG ratings into an "All Ages" rating, and legally enforce the R-rating to 17 and up
• Outlaw production and sale of M-rated video games, as well as games with sexual content
• Exterminate confederates, Nazis, pornographers, Redditors, family value extremists, and other people who cannot be improved

I already reported him, definitely a potential extremist Catholic. I was almost thinking he was part of Westboro Baptist Church but he probably isn't considering he doesn't fit with thier gender norms.

I think that's also too extreme claiming she is a member of the WBC--those guys are another level of bigots. We need a moderator to look at this thread because I feel like it's going to get out of control fast.

 

[Butterfree]

Marioipod13's ideas are bizarre and extremist; proposing that people ought to be "exterminated" for being Redditors is way over the line. You're welcome to have unusual opinions, but wanting categories of people killed is not welcome here.

That said, also please don't post to comment insultingly on someone, even if they were over the line. Report and move on.