Potential Solutions

The US Constitution gives Congress the power to determine what government will do for us, then it gives Congress the power to appropriate funds to do those things and determine income sources (taxes, tariffs, etc.) to fund the government.  Congress has been fighting incessantly for the last 75 years about what to fund and how to fund it – leaving us with $37 Trillion in Federal debt.  Since Congress has failed its primary job, which is to determine important federal programs and appropriate funds to fund the Federal government, now American citizens must resolve this major issue before the USA goes bankrupt.

This blog speaks only to half of that problem – how do we fund the government to do what we want it to do.  Join in and help fast track a discussion on how to fund our government. Another article on this blog will deal with what we want the Federal government to do for us. Watch for that post soon.

Before we start discussing government income strategies, here are some important terms we need everyone to understand.  Taxes can either be Progressive or Regressive.  No, Progressive taxes are not liberal taxes, they are taxes that progress (escalate) as individuals or corporations make more money. Here’s an AI Overview definition of progressive and regressive taxes:

“Progressive taxes take a larger percentage of income from high-income individuals than from low-income individuals, aiming to reduce inequality and provide funding for public services. In contrast, Regressive taxes take a larger percentage of income from low-income individuals than from high-income individuals, such as sales taxes or payroll taxes.”

In another blog, we’ll discuss what programs we want to fund, but right now let’s assume we continue with the USA programs already in our legislation and find solutions to bridge the gap between our income and our expenses.  We would need to find about $1 Trillion in annual income at least.  

Some potential solutions are:

• Return USA Income tax to a Progressive tax system – tax the highest income earners to pay a higher tax rate on their higher income tax brackets.
• Raise Corporate tax rates on their profits.  Perhaps tie lower corporate tax rates to those corporations that manufacture their products here in the USA or have a high percentage of their employees in the USA.
• Eliminate all tax deductions.  Simplify our tax code and then perhaps we can lower tax bracket rates and still generate more income.  One option of this strategy is a Flat Tax, forcing everyone to pay a Flat Tax or Minimum Tax.
• Increase Tariffs on imported goods.  This is a key strategy of the Trump Administration.  It will increase income, should we continue to do it?  At what rate will it detrimental impact GDP?
• Put a Value Added Tax on all goods sold in the USA – many European countries have VAT taxes which are like a federal sales tax.  Should we consider VATs as a new income source?
• Raise FICA tax rates – Increase Social Security and Medicare percentage deductions from employees’ salaries to a fund these programs.  This would be very regressive but would help close the income to expense gap on those programs.
• Legalize more drugs and tax their sales.  Americans have an insatiable appetite for drugs so what if we legalized them, regulated them to make them safer and taxed their sales?
• Tax wealth – set an annual tax rate on the Net Worth of wealthy individuals. Elizabeth Warren has proposed this idea.
• Other income ideas?

Join In.  Suggest solutions.

What do you think?  What could solve our income issue in the United States?  Remember, comments must stay on topic and not be defamatory of anyone.  Solutions to problems is what this UNSTUCK Blog seeks.

Additional information is provided below to guide this discussion – Current Situation, Historical and Constitutional context.  Given the increased influence of religion in our country at the present time, there is also information on religious perspective on this topic if applicable.

Current Situation

Today, American workers feel over-taxed – and they are right.  Since 1962 taxes in this country have shifted over 20% of federal income to regressive taxes from previously progressive taxation putting the tax burden on America’s middle class.

• In 2023, Income tax (our largest tax category) is 49% of USA income vs. 45.7% in 1962.  While it is true that wealthy individuals pay more in absolute numbers, the tax code has shifted from a very progressive income tax in the 1950s (taxing the top income tax bracket as much as 90% with few deductions) to a regressive income tax code burdening the middle class with higher effective tax rates while giving big tax deductions to the rich lowering their effective tax rate.
• Payroll taxes (aka FICA withdrawals from paychecks) now are 35.4% of federal income, whereas Payroll taxes were only 17% Federal income in 1962.  Workers are paying their Medicare and Social Security taxes out their paychecks as the only funding source for these programs while hearing constant threats about the solvency of these programs.
• Corporate taxes have declined 11% – from 20.5% of Federal income in 1962 to 9.5% in 2023 – due to tax breaks given to corporations by recent Republican tax legislation.
• Excise taxes (taxes paid by the manufacturer or retailer on certain products like fuel, alcohol and tobacco) has declined from 12.5% of federal income to 1.7%.  Taxation on these products has shifted to sales taxes (a regressive tax on individuals).
• In addition, Estate taxes have declined from 2% of Federal income in 1962 to less than 1% in 2023.

Trump Tariffs. In his first term, Trump’s campaign promise was: “The trade is so easy for me.  I am going to fix our trade.  I am going to bring jobs back to America.”  As the 45^th President he cancelled long-standing and new trade agreements – NAFTA with Mexico and Canada and The Trans-Pacific Partnership with 11 Asian countries.  Then Trump imposed tariffs on imported goods from most countries – shifting America’s trade policy from Free Trade to American protectionism. In his second term, Trump 47 has accelerated this Tariff strategy raising new tariff revenue on almost everything and every country.  He could generate $500 billion a year in Tariff revenue soon.  Americans are waiting to see the impact of this regressive tax strategy on their cost of living and our overall economy.  The outcome of Trump’s tariff policy is unclear.

History

The USA is no exception to all governments, who must impose and collect some form of taxes to fund their operations.  But it wasn’t until the Civil War that the USA in 1862 implemented its first version of Income Taxes – a very personal and therefore unpopular form of taxation.  That change was codified on February 13, 1913, with the 16^th Amendment to the Constitution formalizing a USA income tax. So those who claim US Income taxes are illegal are wrong, which is why Income taxes continue to this day.

Tariffs have had a more volatile history.  They have been imposed, then determined to be unconstitutional (1894 Wilson Tariff Act was outlawed in 1895 as one example).  During the Great Depression in the 1930s, tariffs were criticized as adding to the continued economic downturn.

In the years during and after WWII, Revenue acts were passed to increase US tax rates to pay down the huge deficit we generated to win WWII.  Our current FICA withholding from paychecks began with the 1943 Current Tax Payment Act to ensure these taxes were collected.  Standard Deductions were created in 1944 in the Individual Income Tax Act.

Then the Republican Party began it’s “no more new taxes” campaign and shifted American legislation to tax reduction laws – in 1964, 1981, 1986, 2017 and 2025 which widened the gap between USA expenses and USA income – generating more deficits and debt for our country. The promise of “Trickle Down Economics” – that these tax rate decreases on the rich and corporations would generate more taxable GDP/income didn’t materialize to close the gap.

US Constitution

Article I of the US Constitution puts the power to raise revenue and collect that revenue for the Federal government squarely on the shoulders of the US Congress.  

“All bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with Amendments as on other bills.” – Section 7

“The Congress shall have power to lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the debts and provide for the common Defense and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States.” – Section 8

“The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived without apportionment among the several states, and without regard to any census or enumeration.” – Amendment XVI

Bible

There are 120 references to taxation in the Bible, most of which describe each tax, complain about taxes and in some cases state that clergy is exempt from taxation.  

Solving Ballooning National Debt & Deficit Spending

Potential Solutions

At the end of 2024, the USA had a national debt of $35.5 Trillion, which is 118.3% of 2024 Gross Domestic Product (GDP).  This situation has been created by 4 major issues/policies since the year 2000: 1) 911 Attack on New York City for which we initiated the Iraq & Afghanistan wars; 2) 2008 major recession caused by financial de-regulation policy; 3) COVID-19 epidemic and its impact on our economy; and 4) major tax cuts in the 2017 tax bill.  It is not unusual for countries to be in this situation when crisis’s hit.  We were over 100% of GDP at the end of WWII, but the question is – what are we doing about it?

To put this in the language of family finances, the national debt is equivalent to how much the total of your loan balances you carry relative to your annual income.  For instance, your family may have a current debt total of $200K (home mortgage plus car loan) with an annual income of $100K, or 200% of your income.  In both the government and family situations, the ability to pay back that debt determines what interest you are charged to maintain that debt – as debt increases, so does the percentage increase – adding to the debt burden.  This issue is why some families declare bankruptcy, which is not an option for the federal government.

The issue of the USA national debt and its related annual deficits (annual government expenses exceed government income) is a major political issue that has been argued about since 2001 when President Clinton handed a balanced budget and annual government surpluses (government income above government expenses) to President GW Bush.  At that time our USA debt was over $5 Trillion but only 55% of our GDP.

Since 2015 the Office of Management and Budget has cautioned Congress that “the federal government continues to face an unsustainable long-term fiscal path” because our debt is growing faster than our GDP.  OMB has a target goal of 98% debt to GDP.

To add to the seriousness of this situation, at the end of 2024 the USA also has a future obligation for Veteran and Federal Employee benefits payable of $15 Trillion.  We cannot keep putting our children’s future at risk due to poor financial management by Congress and the Presidency.

And the Trump administration just passed it’s budget bill that will add $3.4 Trillion to our debt by 2034.

To solve this major policy issue impacting our children’s futures, here’s are a few ideas that could solve the problem:

• Since Social Security income nearly matches Social Security outlays, just adjust its program in each budget so it remains balanced.  Benefits could be cut, or taxes increased. There is a proposal to lift the cap on income (currently at $168K) and collect FICA taxes on all the income of all Americans, including the very wealthy.  Another option is to delay the age at which you can start Social Security payments (currently at 62 years of age, could be raised to 64).  
• Challenge “sacred cows” in our budget – Medicare/Medicaid, but also Defense.  Healthcare costs in this country are 2 to 3 times higher than what other countries pay.  We should ask “Why are our healthcare costs so high?”  “How do we lower our healthcare costs without degrading care?” We should also ask “Why are we increasing spending to $933 Billion on Defense when we are not at war?” “Why do we have nearly a million people in the military when drones seem increasingly effective without risking our soldiers’ lives?”
• Require the US Congress and the President to reduce deficits in their annual budget as well as raise revenue if the current percent of GDP debt is above the 98% goal.
• Withhold Congress’ salaries until Congress delivers a budget that meets the goal.  In other words, make them do their job or they don’t get paid. We can’t be under constant fear of a government shutdown.  
• Don’t elect or re-elect fiscally irresponsible people of either party to Congress.  
• For new programs, require any bill to also identifies the source(s) of revenue to pay for it. That’s how families balance their budgets.

Join In.  Suggest solutions.

What do you think?  What could solve our debt/deficit spending in the United States?  Remember, comments must stay on topic and not be defamatory of anyone.  Solutions to problems is what this UNSTUCK Blog seeks.

Additional information is provided below to guide this discussion – Current Situation, Historical and Constitutional context.  

Current Situation

The 2^nd Trump administration just passed H.R. 1 on July 1st, 2025 which projects that this budget will add another $3.4 Trillion debt during the budgetary period 2025-2034. To see the text of the bill, go to https://www.cbo.gov/publication/61537

In summary, the bill is consistent with Republican policies:

• Increased spending on Defense, Administration of Justice, Natural Resources (oil), Community & Regional Development, Transportation, and General/Science &Technology. Increasing outlays by $90 Billion
• Decreased spending on International Affairs, Energy (EV and solar credits), Education but also surprisingly on Commerce and Agriculture.
• Decreases in individual income taxes and corporate income taxes by extending the 2017 Tax Bill and adding additional tax credits (no tax on tips, etc). Decreasing revenues by $20 Billion.

The top four expense areas which account for 75% of this federal budget are:

• #1 – Health (primarily Medicare/Medicaid) $1.9 Trillion (offset by about $500 Billion income from employment taxes (FICA) taken out of worker’s paychecks)
• #2 – Social Security $1.6 Trillion (offset by $1.5 Trillion in income from employment taxes (FICA) taken out of worker’s paychecks)
• #3 – Net Interest on the National Debt $1 Trillion
• #4 – Defense – $933 Billion

To put this in perspective, if you zeroed out the other 25% of the budget (which isn’t possible), the USA would still have an annual deficit of $500 Billion in this budget!

History

Since its inception, the USA has periodically had deficits and national debt – starting with the Revolutionary War through today.  That isn’t new.  What is new is the “no more new taxes” campaign which started in the ‘70s and the debt ceiling battles of recent years when Congress shuts down government (or threatens to) rather than reach consensus or compromise on our budget.

In recent years Congress has passed the Financial Officers act of 1990 (CFO Act) and the Fiscal Responsibilities Act of 2023 attempting to improve the government’s financial responsibility. Progress has been made on audit comments since 2023, but today the Department of Defense still had 28 audit comments of the 52 US government wide.  The Government Accountability Office (GAO) stated there are “serious financial management problems at the Department of Defense (DOD).”

The USA government has struggled to keep up with computer technology and many of these problems are due to the governments’ continued use of antiquated systems.  

US Constitution

The Constitution of the United States clearly puts the responsibility for our budgets (revenue and payment of debts authorized by law) squarely on the shoulders of our Congress.  The President’s role is to either sign and approve budget bills or veto them.  If vetoed, a bill requires 2/3^rd votes in Congress to over-ride the President’s veto.

“All Bills for raising Revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with amendments as on other Bills.” – Article I, Section 7.

“The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defense and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States; To borrow Money on the credit of the United States; To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;” – Article I, Section 8

“The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned.” – Fourteenth Amendment to the US Constitution

If the 2^nd Trump Administration is a 2025 Confederacy, how do we resolve our disagreements without risking another Civil War?

Potential Solutions

How do we resolve our policy differences peacefully?  We seem to have forgotten how to compromise or collaborate on solutions to our problems – instead we either avoid the problems (aka “kick the can down the road”) or fight vehemently with one another, solving nothing. Many fear we are at risk of another Civil War or a dictatorial government to suppress dissent.

One idea is to educate Americans about the 14^th Amendment to the Constitution.   It made sedition illegal in the USA since the civil war and declared that insurrectionists will be prosecuted for taking up arms against the federal government.  Trump pardoned people convicted of sedition, so this is an open issue when it should not be debatable.

Some politicians are talking about requiring our military and government employees to take an oath to reaffirm their commitment to the US Constitution (not to any President) or be removed from their position.

Another potential solution is to hold an Article V Constitutional Convention which would work to resolve these disagreements with our Constitution and revise it into a 21^st Century governing document for America.  

Join In.  Suggest solutions.

What do you think?  What could solve our 2025 American Confederacy issue in the United States and keep us from a Civil War or repressive government?  Remember, comments must stay on topic and not be defamatory of anyone.  Solutions to problems is what this UNSTUCK Blog seeks.

Additional information is provided below to guide this discussion – Current situation, Historical and Constitutional context.  Given the increased influence of religion in our country at the present time, there is also information on religious perspectives on government.

Current Situation

About 25% of Americans are so dissatisfied with the American government that they feel the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capital was justified.  And the 2^nd Trump administration is aggressively doing things that resemble a Confederacy:

• Trump has pardoned the January 6^th rioters and members of armed militia groups convicted of sedition – even though those individuals had due process and were convicted by a jury of their peers. 
• Trump and Congress have recently changed gun laws to allow access to bump stocks, which make some guns into machine guns.  
• Pete Hegseth, Department of Defense, is reinstating names of Confederate generals on military facilities and battleships. 
• Trump has sent 2000 California National Guard and 700 Marines to the City of Los Angeles to put down an “insurrection” without requests from California’s Governor or the City of Los Angeles Mayor as they believe LAPD has the recent protests under control.
• The Department of Justice under Bondi is seeking vengeance against specific liberal people for opposing Trump, rather than focusing on identifying who has broken laws and apprehending law breakers.

Americans are more divided today than we were during the American Civil War (1861-1865). While slavery was the number one issue dividing Americans in the 1860s, today our divisions are over conservative vs liberal policies of how to govern our nation and our people. 

Conservatives want limited federal government, focused mainly on the Department of Defense, with less federal taxation and more government power residing with state Governors, Legislatures and Courts. Conservatives use the 10^th Amendment to the Constitution to support this policy perspective.

In contrast, Liberals want a strong federal government, focused on protecting human rights due to America’s history of discriminatory treatment of indigenous peoples, black slaves, women, Asian Americans during WWII and Latinos and other religious and ethnic minorities requesting asylum in the US. Liberals use many of the Amendments to the US Constitution to support this policy perspective.

Given the passions these political disagreements engender and the percentage of Americans believing that they can violently attack our government institutions, America’s domestic tranquility is at a tipping point.

History

Eleven states seceded from the United States from 1860 to 1861 forming the Confederate States of America, which began the American Civil War.  Over 600,000 Americans were killed in that war between the US Government and the Confederacy – 360,000 Union soldiers and 260,000 Confederate soldiers.  

The eleven Confederate states were Arkansas, North & South Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas, West Virginia and Virginia.

Following the Civil War, the US Congress passed the 13^th and 14^th Amendment to the US Constitution which officially freed and granted civil rights to formerly enslaved people, but these Amendments also established three important new provisions to our Constitution:

Fourteen Amendment, Section 2: Established penalties for states that infringe on the right to vote of its citizens.  States can lose representation in the US Congress by the same percentage as the percentage of people that they have disenfranchised.

Fourteen Amendment, Section 3: Established that any person engaging in insurrection or rebellion against the US government, after previously taking an oath to defend the US Constitution, loses the right to be a Senator or Representative, President or Vice President or hold any office, civil or military under the United States.

Fourteenth Amendment, Section 4: Established the validity of public debt of the United States, which shall not be questioned, and disapproves any debt to fund insurrection or rebellion against the United States.

The Civil War and the 13^th Amendment freed the slaves, and the 14^th Amendment was passed to protect these new citizens and the United States government against future insurrections.  However, for over 100 years until the Civil Rights Act of 1968, black citizens were continually discriminated against, and their freedoms infringed upon.  

Many Southerners today continue to idolize their Southern heritage including the Confederate flag and statues of Confederate generals.  Some people refer to this movement as American Nationalism, others refer to it as the 2025 Confederacy.

US Constitution

The States Rights argument of Conservatives is supported by the 10^th Amendment to the Constitution: The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

The powers of the Federal Government to protect citizens from State actions that are discriminatory is supported by the many Amendments to the Constitution.  For the complete text of the US Constitutional Amendments go tohttps://billofrightsinstitute.org/activities/handout-d-united-states-constitution-amendments-1-27?gad=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwjYKjBhB5EiwAiFdSfvWDA0Y0A0ISVcftEgLiGhJ9r2l11nk4-6XIjewY7faKjlou_gGdhRoC97gQAvD_BwE  Refer to Amendments I, IV, V, VI, IX, XIII, XIV, XV, XIX, XXIV and XXVI in particular.

Bible

According to Bible Concordances, there are 2344 verses with the word “King” in them, 6 that have the word “govern”, 5 that have the word “slave” and none (0) that have the word “rights” (or human rights or civil rights). Thousands of years ago, the concept of democracy had not yet been developed, let alone the idea of people having civil rights.  The world back then was governed by Kings who dominated people without their consent.  Slavery is not endorsed by the Bible, as the Israelites were slaves in Egypt and demanded that they be set free.  Freedom is only in 4 Bible verses, showing that at that time, people did not hold many freedoms.

Solving America’s Drug Policy

Potential Solutions

The War on Drugs is a failed US policy as it has not decreased drug abuse and criminal activity.  Instead, it has filled our prisons with generations of young Americans while also increasing the number of Americans dying of drug overdoses. America clearly has a problem with drugs, but we are STUCK doubling down on the same failed policy while our family members die in huge numbers and young lives are destroyed with criminal records for drug addiction even if they are not also involved in drug trafficking.

One option is to continue to wage the War on Drugs. However, given the results to date, that strategy doesn’t bode well for getting us UNSTUCK from our current situation.

Another option is to dramatically increase the penalties for sales and transportation of drugs.  Singapore has some of the strictest drug laws in the world and their justice system delivers swift penalties.  Possession is illegal, not just trafficking.  Consumption can be punished with 10 years imprisonment plus a $20,000 fine (or both) and may involve caning of 3 to 6 strokes.  Trafficking can be punished by the death penalty.  Drug rehabilitation programs are also provided.  Consequently, Singapore has a very low incidence of drug abuse.   https://www.thesingaporelawyer.com/blog/misuse-drugs-act/  

Another option is to de-criminalize, regulate and tax drugs, as we did alcohol by repealing Prohibition.  This option has been done in several countries successfully, including Czechia, the Netherlands, Switzerland and most recently Portugal.  Portugal’s legalization program has yielded excellent results: “In Portugal the drug-induced death rate has plummeted to five times lower than the E.U. average and stands at one-fiftieth of the United States’. Drug use has declined overall among the 15- to 24-year-old population, those most at risk of initiating drug use.”https://time.com/longform/portugal-drug-use-decriminalization/

Yale University has suggested that the USA should consider drug legalization in its article “Why Suppressing Drug Markets Endangers Society” but cautions that a policy to legalize drugs must include a major program to treat drug addiction.  For some reason, even though we know Alcoholic Anonymous and Mothers Against Drunk Driving have worked hard to mitigate the detrimental effects of alcoholism post-Prohibition, we haven’t yet accepted the need for strong drug treatment programs in the USA.  The Yale University article by Nick Werle, J.D, and Ernesto Zedillo, is an excellent read on this potential strategy to address our drug issues:

Or we could do a combination of the above strategies – decriminalize and treat illicit drug use but increase the penalties for drug trafficking, up to and including the death penalty.

Join in.  Suggest solutions.

What do you think?  What could solve our drug problem in the United States?  Remember, comments must stay on topic and not be defamatory of anyone.  Solutions to problems is what this UNSTUCK Blog seeks.

Additional information is provided below to guide this discussion – Current Situation, Historical and Constitutional context.  Given the increased influence of religion in our country at the present time, there is also information on religious perspectives on drugs.

Current Situation

America has spent more than a Trillion dollars on the War on Drugs, declared by President Nixon in 1971.  However; our current situation is worse than it was in the 1970s.

• 80,391 Americans died from drug overdose in 2024 per the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).   Fortunately, this is a decrease from 110,037 Americans who died of drug overdose in 2023; primarily due to the decrease in fentanyl related deaths (48,422 in 2024 vs 76,284 in 2023) due to both increased drug treatment and law enforcement.
• In 2024 Forty-three percent of federal prisoners are in for drug crimes which include individual drug users, continuing America’s record of imprisoning more of our people than any other country in the world.
• $41 billion was spent on drug enforcement in 2022 as we continue the War on Drugs, despite its failure.

History – Humans relationship with drugs

Humans have used substances that induce euphoria or hallucinations for thousands of years as these two interesting articles document:

• Historical and cultural aspects of man’s relationship with addictive drugs https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3202501/
• Israeli archaeologists uncover earliest known use of opium in the ancient world https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-archaeologist-uncovers-earliest-known-use-of-opium-in-the-ancient-world/

In the early colonial days, the USA didn’t regulate the use of drugs, but in the early 20^thcentury Americans became intolerant of drug use and abuse.  Consequently in 1914 Congress passed the Harrison Narcotics Act prohibiting non-medical opioid use.  In 1920 Congress passed and the states ratified the 18^th Amendment which made alcohol illegal in the United States.  https://www.history.com/topics/roaring-twenties/prohibition

Finally, the Marijuana Tax Act was passed in 1937 making cannabis illegal in the USA. 

We repealed Prohibition in 1933 when it failed miserably. In a CATO Institute article Four Decades and Counting: The Continued Failure of the War on Drugs (Coyne and Hall; April 12, 2017) the authors describe these failures of Prohibition: “Despite these noble intentions, alcohol prohibition was a failure on all fronts. Although alcohol consumption sharply decreased at the beginning of Prohibition, it quickly rebounded. The alcohol produced under Prohibition varied greatly in potency and quality, leading to disastrous health outcomes including deaths related to alcohol poisoning and overdoses. Criminal syndicates formed to manufacture and distribute illegal liquors, crime increased, and corruption flourished.”  

Sound familiar? But we didn’t learn our lesson from alcohol Prohibition since President Nixon declared a War on Drugs in 1971, as a reaction to use of illicit drugs in the 1960s.

President Ronald Reagan ramped up the War on Drugs in 1981 when he put the focus on criminal punishment over treatment. Incarcerations for drug use went up from 50,000 in 1980 to 400,000 in 1997. First lady Nancy Reagan began a “Just Say No” campaign to educate children on the dangers of drug use. Congress passed the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986, which allocated $1.7 billion to the War on Drugs and established “mandatory minimum” prison sentences for various drug offenses. Subsequently Congress poured more and more money into the War on Drugs.

US Constitution

There is no reference to illegal drugs in the US Constitution, but Amendment 18 and 21 deal with alcohol prohibition and its repeal:

Amendment XVIII: “After one year from the ratification of this article the manufacture, sale or transportation of intoxicating liquors within, the importation thereof into, or the exportation thereof from the United States and all territory subject to the jurisdiction thereof for beverage purposes is hereby prohibited.”

Amendment XXI: “The eighteenth article of amendment to the Constitution of the United States is hereby repealed.”

Bible

Biblically, drugs aren’t mentioned in the bible, but wine is often spoken of as a beverage and drunkenness is severely condemned.

Proverbs 20:1 “Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whoever is deceived thereby is not wise.

Ephesians 5:18 “And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;”

Solving Abortion Policy in the USA

Potential Solutions

Before we dive into potential solutions for this very controversial issue, let’s review societal, medical/technical and information access changes in the last 50 years impacting this public policy:

• Medical advances: Today, unlike the past, people can plan their families and know very quickly if they are pregnant. Multiple reliable and safe birth control options and over-the-counter pregnancy tests are readily available in stores and abortions can be done in the first trimester with non-invasive, safe medications.  In addition, women with infertility issues have options to increase their likelihood of parenting and premature births are more successful earlier than 20 weeks. 
• DNA advances: 50 years ago, fatherhood was not identifiable.  Unlike the past, fatherhood can now be specifically determined in the event a male partner wants to keep the child, but the woman does not. Today DNA testing can determine who the father is if he wants to claim his offspring.  
• Societal changes: In the past, an unmarried mother was considered shameful and often was ostracized from her family plus women often were forced to leave their job when pregnant. Unlike the past, today there is no stigma against unmarried women who have children and women often work up to the day of their delivery.
• Information access changes: Today information on sex, birth control, pregnancy, birthing and how to have safe sex to avoid sexually transmitted diseases is readily available online or through public health education.  Unlike the past, young people can be well informed about family planning options and parents of teens cannot restrict their children from finding these resources online forever.

Two extreme policy options have been total abortion bans or abortions on demand.  But, given the changes in our society, here are some viable new options we should consider:

• Legalize (de-criminalize) miscarriages and medically induced abortions prior to 16 weeks.  Women can know if they are pregnant by then and have time to have the safest type of abortion.  
• After 16 weeks, limit abortions to preserve the life of the mother, or end failed pregnancies safely. Require two doctors to approve these post 16-week abortions.
• Require public health (sex) education for 13–18-year-old students, without parental approval. Sex education is health education.
• In contested pregnancy cases, where the father wants the child, but the mother does not, require a DNA test, then a parental bond by the father and/or his family to fund the child’s living and healthcare expenses until the age of 18.  Require the mother in this case, to carry the baby to term if the pregnancy does not threaten her life and allow the father/family to legally adopt the baby. No bond or no adoption by the father/family, then the woman can decide what to do about her pregnancy.
• Once a revised USA abortion policy is determined, pass new federal laws to avoid the current patchwork of laws by different states.
• Improve and streamline adoption in the USA, so unwanted children aren’t forced into foster homes.

Join In.  Suggest solutions.

What do you think?  What other ideas could get us UNSTUCK on the issue of abortion?  Remember, comments must stay on topic and not be defamatory of anyone.  Solutions to problems is what this UNSTUCK Blog seeks.  

Additional information is provided below to guide this discussion – Current Situation, Historical and Constitution context.  Given the increased influence of religion in our country at the present time, there is also information on religious perspectives on abortion.

Current Situation in the USA

Conflict over abortion has gone on longer than the 50 years since the 1973 US Supreme Court decision Roe vs. Wade legalized abortion.  Prior to Roe, abortion was outlawed in all states since 1910.  

The 2022 Supreme Court Dobbs decision overturning Roe vs. Wade pushed this issue down to each of the 50 states to decide, which has made the situation chaotic.  In 2025, 28 states have either protected abortion or expanded it as a legal procedure while 22 states have either created more restrictions for abortion or outright banned the procedure (12 states).  Confusion has ensued with women and doctors trying to manage complicated pregnancy situations without being accused of a crime – forcing women with difficult pregnancies to travel to other states to get the healthcare they need and doctors to quit practicing in some states, leaving women without obstetric care. For more information on 2025 abortion rights by state go to https://www.kff.org/womens-health-policy/dashboard/abortion-in-the-u-s-dashboard/

Since miscarriage (“naturally occurring abortion”when the fetus is lost for various reasons) can occur in up to 10-20% of pregnancies in the first 20 weeks and is not easily differentiated from medically induced abortions, the current situation puts women and doctors at legal risk when they have not done anything to cause the loss of the fetus. 

Consequently, Americans need to face off on this difficult policy issue as the current situation is untenable.  It will lead to increased and unnecessary maternal deaths and tie up our courts with complex, hard-to-resolve legal cases such as did a woman miscarry (no fault) or get an illegal abortion?

History of Abortion in the USA

Throughout history women have taken actions to end pregnancies in various ways as this article in Find Law documents: https://supreme.findlaw.com/legal-commentary/an-important-study-of-the-history-and-law-of-the-abortion-rights-controversy.html Abortion is not a new concept, but an ancient one.

In the United States, abortion became controversial in the mid-19^th century so that by the 1880s all states had restricted abortion to some degree.  By 1910 abortion was outlawed in every state of the union.  Since 1910 women could only obtain “back-alley” abortions by unlicensed people, which led to the death of thousands of women each year due to botched abortions.

In the late 1950s and early 1960s the drug Thalidomide, which was prescribed for morning sickness and caused severe birth defects, raised visibility of a woman’s need to terminate a pregnancy if a severely impacted fetus had been identified.  Given that medical crisis, four states (Alaska, Hawaii, New York and Washington) legalized abortion by 1970.  This situation led to the 1973 Roe vs Wade decision which was based on a women’s right to privacy and an argument that women should have a right to control their own bodies without government intervention.

The Roe vs. Wade decision caused a backlash “Right to Life” movement, which resulted in the 1976 Hyde Amendment, outlawing federal funds to pay for abortions.  Since that time conservative Americans have pushed for a total abortion ban. 

While current polls show that most Americans support abortions with some restrictions, political parties have pushed us to two extremes – either “abortion on demand” or “abortion bans”.  Americans are STUCK oscillating between these two extremes on this very emotional policy issue.

US Constitution on abortion

There is no reference to abortion rights in the US Constitution because in the 1770s, women in the United States had no legal rights and were considered either their father’s or husband’s protectorate.  

The Fourth Amendment to the Constitution implies a “right to privacy” such that government interference between a woman and her doctor relative to essential healthcare may violate that right.  Many policy makers argue this is the basis of the Roe vs. Wade decision to legalize abortion.  

“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.” US Constitution, Amendment IV.

Religious dogma regarding abortion

Abortion specifically is not mentioned in the Bible either.  That said, the Bible is very clear about murder.  In Exodus 20:13 “Thou shalt not kill” and Matthew 19: 18-19 “Jesus said, ‘Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness.  Honor thy father and thy mother; and thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.’

While it is abundantly clear that killing a living, human being, is against the Bible’s teaching and against US law; what is less clear is if this prohibition applies to the unborn.  Debate over when life begins has settled into either a) life begins when the fetus can exist on its own outside the womb (viability) usually by the third trimester, or b) the “Right to Life” movement claim that life begins when the sperm fertilizes the egg (conception). 

In the Jewish faith, abortion is considered an option for women and is legal in Israel.  A recent Florida lawsuit claims that abortion bans violate Jewish religious freedom in the United States.  Brandeis University published an article describing the teachings of the Talmud relative to abortion and fetal rights: https://www.brandeis.edu/jewish-experience/social-justice/2022/june/abortion-judaism-joffe.html

In the Muslim faith, abortion is illegal after 20 weeks when their faith says the soul inhabits the fetus (except when the mother’s life is at risk, or the pregnancy is due to rape). Abortion is allowed prior to 20 weeks.

Solving Gun Policy in the USA

Potential Solutions

Given our Constitutional right to bear arms, how do we reduce gun deaths in America which now impact our children more than ever before? Some Americans think we need more guns.  That is one option – keep buying more guns.  Some want to take away Americans’ guns.  That’s another option – confiscate guns in the hands of civilians.

However, here’s another option – treat guns like we treat automobiles, which can also be dangerous in the hands of irresponsible people.  Allow people to buy any kind of gun, but require by law that:

• Gun owners pass a test to prove they can use guns safely before they can get a license to own a gun;
• Require gun owners to pass a universal background check before purchasing each gun to ensure they have not lost their gun license or have been convicted of a felony; 
• Document gun sales everywhere they occur (like we do with used car transfer of ownership);
• Require gun owners to have liability insurance specific to the type of guns they own;
• Require gun owners follow local gun safety regulations or lose their license;
• Gun licenses revokable if a gun owner is evaluated to be a risk to themselves or others – aka Red Flag laws – like the Veteran’s Department does to protect their Vets.

Or, per the Constitution, we could require that if someone wants to own an assault weapon, they must join the National Guard and serve within that regulated militia, their assault weapons secured in an armory.

Join in.  Suggest solutions

What do you think?  What could solve our argument over guns in the United States.  Remember, comments must stay on topic and not be defamatory of anyone.  Solutions to problems is what this UNSTUCK Blog seeks.

Additional information is provided below to guide this discussion – Current Situation, Historical and Constitution context.  Given the increased influence of religion in our country at the present time, there is also information on religious perspectives on guns.

Current situation

Today our gun laws have endangered our children where they should feel the safest – in their schools, neighborhoods and houses of worship. If the risk to our children doesn’t wake us up to the fact that America has a problem with guns, what will?  

• In 2024 the USA had 40,886 deaths caused by guns and 31,652-gun injuries (excluding suicides), according to Omnilert.com
• In 2020, gun deaths surpassed motor vehicle accidents as the leading cause of death for US children for the first time in our history. Today gun deaths rank #2 for US children.
• America’s gun deaths per 100,000 population at 4.31 in 2021 is much higher than our neighbor Canada (7 times higher than the Canadian rate of 0.57) even though Canadians share our high gun ownership rates.
• We have more guns than people in the USA.  Ammo.com’s self-reporting 2024 survey claims that Americans own over 500 million civilian owned guns, or 1.93 guns per person.  Only 6 million of these guns are registered and gun ownership is concentrated in the hands of a few. Every American doesn’t own a gun.  

History of Guns in America

America has a “gun culture.” Given our history of hacking out of the wilderness our farms and towns, plus our proud history of fighting for our liberty from a tyrannical monarchy and winning World War II, this isn’t surprising.

Until the early 20^th century, America was an agrarian society with over 90% of our people living on farms and ranches.  For the first several centuries in this nation, guns were a necessary tool and not a controversial issue.  However, today 90% of Americans live in cities and guns are not a necessary tool but are owned primarily for personal protection and recreation. 

University of California, Davis documents the history of gun development across the centuries, in this great article that establishes 1944 as the year the first “assault rifle” Sturmgewehr 44 was invented – https://library.ucdavis.edu/exhibit/firearms-history-and-the-technology-of-gun-violence/

“Gun control” began in the wild, wild west during the 19^th century by city and county sheriffs to protect citizens.  https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/gun-control-old-west-180968013/

However, it wasn’t until 1927 that the first Congressional gun control law was passed in America, followed by an increasing number of laws during the 20^th century, culminating in the recent Bipartisan Safer Communities Act signed into law June 25, 2022, by President Biden.  https://www.thoughtco.com/us-gun-control-timeline-3963620 

US Constitution

The 2^nd Amendment states: “A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”  Militia is defined as “a military force that is raised from the civil population to supplement a regular army in an emergency” and well regulated is defined as “controlled or supervised to conform to rules, regulations.” 

Gun safety advocates argue that conservatives have misinterpreted the intent of the 2^ndAmendment.  In the past, the Supreme Court decided more than once that the 2^nd Amendment does not preclude us from federal gun control laws (United States v. Miller, 1939).  Since that landmark case however, conservatives and the NRA have argued that the 2^nd Amendment is about individual gun ownership, disconnected from the words in the 2^nd Amendment about “A well-regulated Militia.”

Bible/Religious dogma

Biblically, weapons are not seen as the answer to disagreements – among nations or peoples.

Micah 4:3 “And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.”

Matthew 26:52 “Then Jesus said until him, ‘Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.’”