Getting Involved (Political Thought Dump)

This is basically a dump of my philosophy, goals, and what I'm planning in the near future. Suggestions more than welcome!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Actions to Take
===============

 - Attend local Democratic party meetings, town halls.
 - Write Illinois state reps about gender change on birth certificates. (Currently surgery is required.)
 - Write and call local politicians often. Volunteer with them, maybe.
 - Start weepwith.us
   - Only truth. No agenda. Only stories.
   - "I'm here to cry with you."
 - Find ways to *encourage* personal expression.

Philosophy
==========

 - Kindness above all. Respect whenever possible.
 - Fear is the only true enemy.
 - We are all linked. Suffering in one part of the world echoes across all, eventually.
 - We must restore and preserve natural beauty for future generations as well as provide for the possible evolution of other species who have not yet appeared.
 - "If you build it, they will come" approach -> create a better society and let people see what it can do for them...

Philosophy, Applied
===================

 - Individual freedom is the foundation of everything I seek to accomplish.
   - This must apply to all sentients, a category that is to be more inclusive if there is to be error.
 - Mutual respect between individuals, groups, and nations.
 - Empathy with conflicting viewpoints.
 - Support for basic living standards
    - It is not ethical to have any job pay so little that working full time at that wage, you could not safely live.
      (We have built a country in which people may live, but their dreams may die.)
   - THIS IS DEMANDED BY THE RIGHT TO PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS
   - Food, water, electricty / gas, unfiltered internet, healthcare.
   - SAFETY
 - Revamped K-12 education
   - Much more focus on civics *and recent history.*
 - Promotion of a sense of awe at the beauty of the natural world.  Only by respecting it can we hope to preserve it.
 - End the following
   - War on Drugs
   - War on Terror
 - Government actions must be founded primarily on consent wherever possible, else they will run into resistance.

Challenges
==========

 - How do you kindle peace in the heart of someone who knows not what it is?  Everything requires background!
   - We need diversity, others, difference, to not be alone. Animals help this too.
 - How do you unite people in the absence of an external enemy?  Culture?
 - How do we handle the concept of honor?
 - Institutionalized racism / sexism.

Dangers
=======

 - Corrupt liberal and center vs. right wing.  Right wing wins *every time*. (Includes perceived corruption!)
 - Ethical myopia
 - Mindsets trapped within frameworks designed to keep them surpressed.  Realization of frameworks frees your mind.  How the hell do we do this?
 - Do not forget those who need help, or they will be your downfall.

Completely Random Ideas
=======================

 - Pursuit of new frontier (Case for Mars) to revitalize western civilization.
 - Have news agencies create textbooks for education. Gives them a reliable source of income and improves student knowledge.
 - What do we do if we can't educate people enough? What about while we're working on improving it?

Source documents
================

 - Bill of Rights
 - UN Declaration of Human Rights