[Arabesque]

Salaamz,

Hypothetically, if you were elected President of your country (and I don't mean your country of residence, or the one whose citizenship you hold, but your ancestral homeland - a Muslim country), what changes will you make? What laws will you introduce? How will you tackle issues such as poverty, illiteracy, bribery ... etc.?

I'm not asking this for fun. Please give serious answers. And please don't ask why I'm asking

[MossadConspiracy]

hypothetically speaking, as some omnipotent president who can change everything on a whim, the minimal changes that i would introduce to improve the country would be to reduce corruption, modernize the economy, and greatly reduce the profile (or the specter) of the military in politics. Those are fundamental changes that would make everything better, each of which would include many sub-goals, and all of which would be aimed at the overall ideals that most modern states are founded on like democracy, equality of citizens, human rights, prosperity, etc

of course a real president would most likely be some corrupt general or some corrupt civilian associated with many powerful generals and the other septuagenarians who run the country, and if he tried to do this stuff anyway he would probably get overthrown, so a radical shift like this is very unlikely.

ws

[Arabesque]

Originally Posted by MossadConspiracy

hypothetically speaking, as some omnipotent president who can change everything on a whim, the minimal changes that i would introduce to improve the country would be to reduce corruption, modernize the economy, and greatly reduce the profile (or the specter) of the military in politics. Those are fundamental changes that would make everything better, each of which would include many sub-goals, and all of which would be aimed at the overall ideals that most modern states are founded on like democracy, equality of citizens, human rights, prosperity, etc

Thank you! See, what I'm asking really is how. How will you reduce corruption; modernise the economy; reduce the influence of the military .... etc, you know? If you can answer that, it would be great

of course a real president would most likely be some corrupt general or some corrupt civilian associated with many powerful generals and the other septuagenarians who run the country, and if he tried to do this stuff anyway he would probably get overthrown, so a radical shift like this is very unlikely.

Hypothetical story is much nicer.

[Ilikemyscarf]

Originally Posted by MossadConspiracy

hypothetically speaking, as some omnipotent president who can change everything on a whim, the minimal changes that i would introduce to improve the country would be to reduce corruption, modernize the economy, and greatly reduce the profile (or the specter) of the military in politics. Those are fundamental changes that would make everything better, each of which would include many sub-goals, and all of which would be aimed at the overall ideals that most modern states are founded on like democracy, equality of citizens, human rights, prosperity, etc

of course a real president would most likely be some corrupt general or some corrupt civilian associated with many powerful generals and the other septuagenarians who run the country, and if he tried to do this stuff anyway he would probably get overthrown, so a radical shift like this is very unlikely.

ws

what?

ten characters

[shsh]

Originally Posted by Ilikemyscarf

what?

ten characters

google is your friend

[MossadConspiracy]

Originally Posted by Arabesque

Thank you! See, what I'm asking really is how. How will you reduce corruption; modernise the economy; reduce the influence of the military .... etc, you know? If you can answer that, it would be great

oh, i thought you meant a 'snap of the fingers' kind of thing. Major reform like that probably couldnt be done by one government, it would take many decades. But basically, I guess getting rid of corruption and the culture of impunity would take constitutional amendments to weaken the presidency, and independent oversight on all levels that can be conducted by institutions that answer to the judiciary which is the only somewhat independent branch of the government. That would require institution building from the ground up, starting locally, first stamping out corruption on the bottom- in post offices and public hospitals and so on, points of access. It can move up from there.

Getting the military out of government is hard because the foundation of our government was built by the ringleaders of a military coup. Tighter oversight over military funds would be a start, since personal fiefdoms are pretty common because nobody is watching the money. But the military is the country's most powerful institution, so its probably unrealistic to expect its profile in the political realm to diminish

The economy needs private investment and gutting the bureaucracy which now employs about 40-50% of the people (many of whom barely do any work). The two would have to be carefully choreographed so we dont have millions of people being fired and sitting around doing nothing, plotting to blow themselves up and beheading people and burning churches and mosques. Maybe a strong private sector could be subsidized for a while and foreign investment encouraged, while a slow downsizing of the government speeds up. I dunno, not an economist..

[Sea_of_Roses]

My Fathers Pakistani
so if I took over Pakistan I would give life sentences to all who commit "Honor killings".....I would make schools secular, I would build more schools and hospitals using money from celebs and sports players cuz I'll tax them heavy (for 3 years at least)
Ill put down more info later

[Judicata]

Elected? I don't think so! Why would you wait for others to realise your fabulous qualities? Got to take action yourself! I want to be a dictator of a small third world country. I think I'll be called The Magnificent Empress and my coat of arms will read "Suaviter in Modo, Fortiter in Re". And the key policy will be good public transport because "Happy Commuters Make Happy Communities".

...now to pick a country

[ChotooMotoo]

Well... and this is going back a few generations... if I was elected President of France I would repeal the hijab ban. I would start an innitiative to integrate immigrants into mainstream French society though job and language training centers. I would innitiate an accountablility campeign, possibly with a short term quota program, to increase the diversity of the French job market. It could look something like Title 9 in the USA, with a quota system dictating that a certain percentage of jobs must be held by women, minorities, and incentives for hiring dissabled people as well. Since French in the langua franka of France, it would be mandatory, but other non-European languages should also be taught in schools.

That's a start anyway.

[Arabesque]

Originally Posted by ChotooMotoo

Well... and this is going back a few generations...

That's exactly what it is ... a long-term plan. One of the reasons our Muslim countries are lagging behind is because most rulers are only thinking of profit that they could make within their lifetime. And if they could have their sons inherit the rule, even better. But still, wealth is only for them to enjoy, and for them to buy off the loyalties of their immediate employees.

I want to read long-term, effective plans.

If you ever stand for elections, I'll vote for you. Promise

[ChotooMotoo]

Originally Posted by Arabesque

That's exactly what it is ... a long-term plan. One of the reasons our Muslim countries are lagging behind is because most rulers are only thinking of profit that they could make within their lifetime. And if they could have their sons inherit the rule, even better. But still, wealth is only for them to enjoy, and for them to buy off the loyalties of their immediate employees.

I want to read long-term, effective plans.

If you ever stand for elections, I'll vote for you. Promise

actually, the going back a few generations refered to the fact that long long ago some of my ancestors came from France, among other countries. I just said that becasue someone else mentioned that their father was Pakistani. My immigrant ancestry is a little older than that.

[Arabesque]

Originally Posted by ChotooMotoo

actually, the going back a few generations refered to the fact that long long ago some of my ancestors came from France, among other countries. I just said that becasue someone else mentioned that their father was Pakistani. My immigrant ancestry is a little older than that.

But then how far back do you want to go?

Let's stick to where our parents' are originally from. If yours were born and raised in the US, then that's where you'll hypothetically be elected president.

It's easier, coz some peoples' parents have different ancestry. And going back too far might complicate matters :P

[ChotooMotoo]

what would I do if I was elected President of the USA.... probably check myself into a psych ward or something. That job totally sucks.

But, if they certified me not crazy, I might start by balancing the budget. No more deficits. I might also require that for Israel to recieve the amount of foreign aid they do, they must contribute a fair amount to the US economy... which they don't. Spend more for AIDS prevention worldwide...spend more for education, expand pell grants to cover the entire cost of average tuition and fees, reduce military spending, fix social security. That's more than enough for one term.

[Arabesque]

Originally Posted by ChotooMotoo

what would I do if I was elected President of the USA.... probably check myself into a psych ward or something. That job totally sucks.

But, if they certified me not crazy, I might start by balancing the budget. No more deficits. I might also require that for Israel to recieve the amount of foreign aid they do, they must contribute a fair amount to the US economy... which they don't. Spend more for AIDS prevention worldwide...spend more for education, expand pell grants to cover the entire cost of average tuition and fees, reduce military spending, fix social security. That's more than enough for one term.

Sounds like an excellent plan.

You know you can always leave unfinished business behind. If it's for the good of the people, the next elected president should finish it for you. It's not about who takes credit for what. It's more about long-term plans, and collective effort to achieve them asap.

I admire Theodor Herzl for thinking up the Jewish homeland, which 50 years later resulted in the establishment of a terrorist, rogue, pariah state called Israel. But hey! He didn't live long to see his dream materialise, and he didn't care. He laid down the foundations, hoping that others will finish up the business for him. He was right to put his faith in others.

[ChotooMotoo]

So, what would you do if you were president?