If you were a dictator, what would YOU do?

[the_lyniezian]

Or, if you prefer, what do you think TPTB ought to do in the light of peak oil and other relvant issues we discuss on this board.

Seeing as it is a pretty foregone conclusion amongst many here that either governments are not doing enouh, won't do much or already know about the issues relating to peak oil and are just protecting the interests of themselves and the "elite", or similar, and seeing there are limits to what elected politicians can achieve (they have to think of what will win votes, say...) I thought this would be an interesting exercise to see what, in people's views, ought to be the way we manage the decline in oil and other fossil fuels, climate change, the economic problems we're facing, and so on.

So, assume you'e somehow* been made absolute ruler of your country (or perhaps the EU or even the world), and given the task of managing the transition away from dependency on oil, reducing carbon emissions, and trying to fix the economy, &c. What policies would you implement?

A few of pointers:

1. Try not to get to much into peripheral issues (such as sexual morality...) unless you think it's relevant. Try to stay on topic. [EDIT: OK, you can mention them, but remember they're not really the point.]

2. Humour is welcome, though the idea is to try and make it a semi-serious discussion on what ought to be sone.

3. If you wouldn't want to be a dictator, and/or value freedom and democracy that much (by no means a bad thing) by all means say so, but try and offer your opinions on 'what ought to be done' too.


*It doesn't matter how- you could pretend the Alien Space Bats did it if you want to! (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alien_space_bats)

[UndercoverElephant]

1: Outlaw private banking and strip the existing assets of those bankers who have looted the system to enrich themselves.

2: Implement legislation demanding that all products manufactured in or imported into the UK are 100% recyclable. We must aim for nothing going into landfills.

3: Ban the production or import of any car with more than 2-litre engine.

4: Take from the monarchy and what is left of the aristocracy practically all of their land into state ownership. Use that land to establish sustainable eco-settlements for anybody who wishes to remove themself from the modern world and go back to some sort of sustainable, subsistence living.

5: Implement legislation banning any one person/company from owning more than one newspaper or TV station.

6: Halt practically all immigration and systematically deport anyone who is working in the UK illegaly.

7: Introduce compulsory sterilisation for anyone who already has three children and offer tax-breaks to people who have one or fewer children.

8: Make it illegal for any one person to own more than two houses, which will force property prices much lower. Take into state ownership any house which has remained unoccupied for more than 12 months (with certain exceptions like those stuck in probate.)

9: Introduce a 90% tax rate on earnings over £100K. Punitive taxing not just for bankers, but all the other parasites (e.g. solicitors.)

10: Make it compulsory for local councils to plant fruit trees instead of ornamenal trees.

11: Introduce a food-miles tax, with the intention of making it progressively harder and harder to make a profit out of moving food around the planet/country.

12: Introduce lessons in ecology in all schools from the age of 5. Teach them about ecology and holism RIGHT FROM THE START.

13: Smack a massive tax on aviation, ensuring that nobody flies anywhere unless they absolutely need to. No more package holidays to Ibiza. If you want to go Australia, go by boat.

14: Leave the EU and drastically change our fisheries policy. The new regime would be to establish no-take zones of ten square miles out of every hundred square miles of our coastal waters. The strategy will be to allow fish stocks not only to stabilise but eventually to return to the sort of levels that existed before the advent of industrialised fishing. In other words, the quotas would be increased at a slower rate than the amount of fish is increasing. Confiscate any foreign vessel caught fishing in UK waters.

I could go on like this all night...

[UndercoverElephant]

There is a concept in philosophy of politics called "The Social Contract." This is in effect a contract between government and people.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Social_Contract

The stated aim of the Social Contract is to determine whether there can be a legitimate political authority. In order to accomplish more and remove himself from the state of nature, man must enter into a Social Contract with others. In this social contract, everyone will be free because all forfeit the same amount of freedom and impose the same duties on all. Rousseau also argues that it is illogical for a man to surrender his freedom for slavery; and so, the participants must be free. Furthermore, although the contract imposes new laws, especially those safeguarding and regulating property, a person can exit it at any time (except in a time of need, for this is desertion), and is again as free as when he was born.

I believe the social contract in the western world has been broken by the governments of western countries. They have failed in their responsibilities by allowing power to be usurped by the banks and international corporations. They have failed to prepare the public for what is coming (i.e. peak oil and the whole sustainability issue.) They have allowed older generations to effectively steal the future of those following them. The net result of this breaking of the social contract is going to be some sort of legitimate revolution. The contract is going to have to be re-written, and various inequalities removed, which is what the non-ecological things on my list in the previous post was about. We do not just face an ecological crisis. We also face a massive political crisis because politics as we know it has also failed. We live in a society which has lost all sense of a moral compass. We have deified Mammon and this is at the root of both the sustainability/ecological crisis and the ever-growing inequality between rich and poor. Again, this ultimately ends in revolution - but a different sort of revolution to any that have previously occured because this revolution is going to overturn democracy as we know it. The people will rise up because democracy has failed them.

[RenewableCandy]

I'd prohibit the ownership of British land by anyone who doesn't live here and pay British taxes. That is, in addition to all Mobbsey's stuff. And in no particular order...

I'd keep the royals as an institution, but sans most of their loot of land. A lot of people like them as individuals and sometimes they're useful in inspiring social progress (e.g. Queen Vic using ether, Prince Chaz going organic).

I'd balk at the compulsory sterilisation: after all what do you count as "three children" if you're a bloke?

Hmm Government to issue its own money, via payment for public works (e.g. big Energy refit, beefing-up the rail network, etc)

Citizens' Income would start tomorrow, as would the clearing-away of the current bats'-nest of benefits because nobody understands it anyway.

Ken's insulationfest would start yesterday.

All consumer durables to have a 10-year guarantee.

Water fluoridation to stop.

Britain to count as part of Scandanavia.

Campaigning against wind turbines to remain legal as long as the campaigners don't use mains electricity.

All imported goods to conform to UK environment/safety/labour regs, so nobody can use the "other countries will under-cut us..." argument against said regs.

Friday to become part of the weekend, making for a 30-hour working week. Massive publicity campaign to get people to feel good about doing volunteering/gardening/learning stuff on Fridays (for people who'd otherwise feel guilty about not actually working).

The collecting of interest over "x" percentage points above base rate to be deemed extortion/blackmail and treated accordingly. The attempted collection of debts by third parties to be laughed at derisively and the said third parties sent off to Scotland to plant trees (which they'd probably enjoy more anyway).

20mph speed limits in town, 50 mph elsewhere. People who worked in the benefits offices to start a new career policing this, because it's more fun than being sat in an office all day. Rural dwellers offered local-tax reductions if they don't have flush bogs but use compost ones instead.

Car alarms to be banned, except on farm vehicles.

Lastly, I would stop all this pussyfooting about with euthanasia: it'd be on the statute books sharpish. Two doctors/lawyers' signatures, a long-ish cooling-off period, a written instruction and then anyone who wants out could be on their way. Cause of death to be recorded as whatever it was that made them ill in the first place, to spare relatives' feelings.

[biffvernon]

Adopt TEQs.
Remove all restrictions on cross border movement of people. Everywhere.


Pretty much everything else follows from these two. The rest can be left to people locally.

Oh, and killing other people is not allowed. Ever.

[SleeperService]

Vote for me I'd do nearly everything above tomorrow 09:00

Adopt the four day working week with four days off for everybody.

Remove all major Motorway and A road street lighting except at junctions

Turn all street lighting off a couple of days a year so people can see the stars properly

Take gas, electricity, phone, water (and sewerage) and refuse into public ownership run on a not for profit basis. They're too important to put at the whim of the market and vested interests.

Pull government out of areas that it shouldn't be in such as running sporting events, public transport, thought police

All local public transport to be free to UK resident taxpayers

The highest renumeration in a company to be 7 times the lowest ALL benefits included

Agency workers banned except in seasonal occupations companies limited to 3 months temp employment per year (only allowed to use temps August to October for example)

EU membership limited to trade agreement subject to referendum vote

Surrender permanent seat on UN security council and review continued adherence to ALL international treaties

Open all goverment archives local and national except for clearly defined security areas. Everything else to be public domain 30 days after conception

[biffvernon]

Adopt the four day working week with four days off for everybody.

Ah, so that will be an eight day week then. Personally, I prefer the idea of a six day week. Abolish Tuesday. We then get another half dozen weekends in the year.

[vtsnowedin]

Take gas, electricity, phone, water (and sewerage) and refuse into public ownership run on a not for profit basis. They're too important to put at the whim of the market and vested interests.

Pull government out of areas that it shouldn't be in such as running sporting events, public transport, thought police

I'm confused!! Or perhaps you are You want to take public transportation out of the hands of the government but give all the utilities. gas ,electricity etc. to the government. Do you really want all those services run as badly as the bus company?

[vtsnowedin]

OK a few ideas from the American side.
1. Raise the US gas tax to UK levels on a pre announced schedule to allow an orderly transition to fuel efficient vehicles. Perhaps 20 cents per gallon every six months for several years.
2. End subsidies for corn ethanol and requirements that auto fuel contain it.
3. Adjust subsidies for wind power and other renew ables to put them on a level playing field with conventional energy sources.
4. Stop all food aid to any country that has not adopted zero population growth policies.
5. Adjust import duties to counterbalance any subsidies foreign countries have given there producers. (Fair trade not free trade)
6. Rewrite the tax code so that everyone pays a fair share (actually pays it) but in no case have a tax rate higher then 35%.

[Snail]

Most of the above and among others:
Guaranteed Citizens wage covering the basics
smaller/no mimimum wage
so only work for luxuries and/or because you want to.
cuts link between employment and survival

Flexible and decentralised electronic-money whose aim is to make society function better.

Teqs
which should also help to reduce imported goods

Accounting system and GAAP built from the ground up from a social accounting perspective

Empty house tax. More than 1 house is just plain greedy
New houses should be small and simple. Affordable housing should be affordable: less than £10000 total.

Allow people to live in a tent if that's what they really want

Debt foregiveness and put at least some bankers in jail

Strong inheritance tax

Electric bicycle subsidies

No advertising to children and a school system with the aim of producing balanced individuals

Force universities to open up their libraries and lecture notes to the general public

Monopoly tax on Tesco and other supermarkets

Let Scotland become independent with a blessing and all the help she needs.

[vtsnowedin]

Most of the above and among others:
Guaranteed Citizens wage covering the basics
smaller/no mimimum wage
so only work for luxuries and/or because you want to.
cuts link between employment and survivalFlexible and decentralised electronic-money whose aim is to make society function better.

Teqs
which should also help to reduce imported goods

Accounting system and GAAP built from the ground up from a social accounting perspective

Empty house tax. More than 1 house is just plain greedy
New houses should be small and simple. Affordable housing should be affordable: less than £10000 total.

Allow people to live in a tent if that's what they really want

Debt foregiveness and put at least some bankers in jail

Strong inheritance tax

Electric bicycle subsidies

No advertising to children and a school system with the aim of producing balanced individuals

Force universities to open up their libraries and lecture notes to the general public

Monopoly tax on Tesco and other supermarkets

Let Scotland become independent with a blessing and all the help she needs.

Lots of points to shoot at, but not all. But that one about the link between employment and survival takes the cake. Just how are you going to achieve that? Unemployment insurance works fine if the paid beneficiaries are less the seven percent of the paying in employed but after that the math goes south.
To think that you could not work long term and survive comfortably is idiocy.

[Snail]

I think a person in this country should not have to face the possibility of starvation or homelessness. These minimum basics should be protected. People should not constantly be in survival mode.

Right now, people are unemployed long-term and are not only comfortable but living in relative luxury. They game the system. These people are so spoilt they don't even realise it. So when I say basic, i mean BASIC.

The reduction of the minimum wage should help increase employment. At the very least, the unemployed wouldn't be hurt financially for taking up a job offer. When the basics are covered, working for £2/hr isn't a bad deal. Additional income would be taxed obviously.

I'm not talking a £200/week Citz. Income - the mathematics would have to be carefully worked out. But just the basics. Also, housing costs would have to be reduced. Hence forcing more houses into use. Many villages all over the country are less than half-full thanks to 2nd holiday home ownership. 1960s style NHS, reduced military, public sector reduced wage etc.. Lots of costs to be reduced.

Obviously long-term, the economy must balance (which its not currently). But now, the QE money could be diverted directly to each citizen.

[vtsnowedin]

I think a person in this country should not have to face the possibility of starvation or homelessness. These minimum basics should be protected. People should not constantly be in survival mode.

.

Well certainly no one should be starving while the dude across the street is chowing down on prime rib paid for with taxpayer money. But with peak oil in mind I expect all of us to be constantly in survival mode from some time quite soon to as far out as we can see. It would be nice if the government could provide a safety net that removes all chance of deprivation but I expect that no government will still have the means to do so after "all liquids" starts to decline.

[adam2]

Reduce and then eliminate income tax, raising the money instead by taxes on consumption.

Increase sales taxes or duties on goods that are needlesly damaging to the enviroment. Examples include disposable goods for which re-useable alternatives are readily available, incandescent lamps, disposable batteries, vehicles that get less than 50MPG, TV sets and PCs that use more than 100 watts, anything that uses more than 1 watt on standby.

Abolish VAT on goods that are also subject to excise duty (booze, fags, petrol etc) and raise the excise duty accordingly so as to simplify and cheapen tax collection.

Remove the link between lots of illegitimate kids and free housing.

Build more wind turbines, and move towards variable electricity prices according to the supply/demand balance.

Shoot scrap metal thieves.

[ujoni08]

@ adam2, like it