If I Were King

Want to have a little fun? Here’s a game you can play with your friends. You can be as serious or as frivolous as you want with it, but being of a rather serious bent, I like to use it as a way of getting deeply held beliefs out on the table.

It is really very simple. All you have to do is list ten things you think would really improve “things”. In other words, ten things you would declare as law if you were named king of the USA.

Here’s my list:

1. The USA may never engage in pre-emptive or preventive war and must issue a formal apology to the rest of the world for having employed that doctrine in the past.

2. The USA must establish negotiations with all nations possessing nuclear arms with the goals of mutually verified reduction, ultimate complete destruction of existing nuclear weaponry, and totally banning future development of nuclear weaponry.

3. The USA must immediately establish negotiations with all nations possessing depleted uranium weaponry with the goals of achieving complete cessation of any and all uses of such weaponry, the destruction of all such existing weaponry, and banning any future production of such weaponry.

4. The national budget for defense shall be no more than 40% of the total budget except in the event of war waged upon the USA by a recognized nation.

5. No one campaigning for national office or anyone supporting or opposing anyone campaigning for national office may advertise in private media of any kind.

6. The only media that can be used for campaigns for national office are national public radio and public television.

7. Those campaigning for national office may notify constituents of scheduled appearances on allowed media via franked mail or in person, but not by any other means.

8. No proposed legislation may consider more than one issue, and proposed amendments must address only that issue.

9. No one employed by any corporation may earn more than 40 times the amount earned by the average employee of that corporation.

10. No species, whether flora or fauna, may be altered by the introduction of the genetic structure of any other species.

Okay, now I’ve laid out my list. If we were at a party, you would now be able to speak your piece as to why each of my items would or wouldn’t work.

So what’s your list?