Warren Buffett, in a recent interview with CNBC, offers one of the best quotes about the debt ceiling:

"I could end the deficit in 5 minutes," he told CNBC. "You just
pass a law that says that anytime there is a deficit of more
than 3% of GDP, all sitting members of Congress are ineligible
for re-election.

The 26th amendment (granting the right to vote for 18 year-olds)
took only 3 months & 8 days to be ratified! Why? Simple!
The people demanded it. That was in 1971 - before computers, e-mail,
cell phones, etc.

Of the 27 amendments to the Constitution, seven (7) took one (1) year
or less to become the law of the land - all because of public pressure.

Warren Buffet is asking each addressee to forward this email to
a minimum of twenty people on their address list; in turn ask
each of those to do likewise.

In three days, most people in The United States of America will
have the message. This is one idea that really should be passed
around.

Congressional Reform Act of 2012

1. No Tenure / No Pension.

A Congressman/woman collects a salary while in office and receives no
pay when they're out of office.

2. Congress (past, present & future) participates in Social
Security.

All funds in the Congressional retirement fund move to the
Social Security system immediately. All future funds flow into
the Social Security system, and Congress participates with the
American people. It may not be used for any other purpose.

3. Congress can purchase their own retirement plan, just as all
Americans do.

4. Congress will no longer vote themselves a pay raise.
Congressional pay will rise by the lower of CPI or 3%.

5. Congress loses their current health care system and
participates in the same health care system as the American people.

6. Congress must equally abide by all laws they impose on the
American people.

7. All contracts with past and present Congressmen/women are void
effective 12/1/12. The American people did not make this
contract with Congressmen/women.
Congress made all these contracts for themselves. Serving in
Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers
envisioned citizen legislators, so ours should serve their
term(s), then go home and back to work.

Shale wrote:Thanx Tony, that makes so much sense that I e-mailed it to everyone and later will send it to my leeches in Congress.

Sent my own message with it:

You know I don't send the chain e-mails often but this one makes so much sense, I had to share. One of the biggest problems/complaints I have with our do-noting politicians in Washington is their elitist sense of privilege that they have acquired over the years. $174K a year for not working while in office then continues after they leave office and still don't work for us? That is ludicrous! My catch phrase these days is "Oil up the Guillotine!" Srsly, we have a privileged monarchy that lives in wealth while we serfs try to survive in the chaos of their making. IDK how to get the Royal Leeches to cut off their blood supply that is draining us, (outside of that Guillotine plan) but somehow we 99% must unite to take back our 'democracy'

I'm fine with all 7 of those.

CeCe wrote:I'm fine with all 7 of those.

Same here, tho I shoulda checked Snopes first (which is always good when receiving "new" or "recent" info on the Net. (I had to go back and e-mail the corrected info)

Buffet actually only made the first quote in an interview on CNBC on July 7, 2011.
The rest, the fine seven points to which I agree is a hypothetical 28th Amendment that has been running around the Net since maybe 2009.

Still, wish it would happen!

Shale wrote:

Same here, tho I shoulda checked Snopes first (which is always good when receiving "new" or "recent" info on the Net. (I had to go back and e-mail the corrected info)

Buffet actually only made the first quote in an interview on CNBC on July 7, 2011.
The rest, the fine seven points to which I agree is a hypothetical 28th Amendment that has been running around the Net since maybe 2009.

Still, wish it would happen!

Now aren't you glad I didn't have to tell you that it was less than a half truth (although Mr. Buffett made the statement about the deficit he was being facetious.) But yes, reforms are needed. A reinstatement of an Ancient Greek law might be in order.

if any one wishes to enact a new statute, he proposes it with his neck in a noose, and if the statute is judged to be good and useful, the proposer goes away alive, but, if not, the noose is drawn and he dies.