Yahoo Finance 'Eliminate hunger once and for all': nine Guardian readers on how they'd fix America
Give everyone a Snap food stamp card that is refreshed to contain $50 every Sunday morning. This will eliminate hunger once and for all. In addition, no one ever need feel degraded or inferior as it will be treated like any other credit or debit card in stores and food to the hungry will be distributed through the existing, efficient system – the supermarket. Those that don’t need the extra bucks to eat should not use their card. – Robert G
Pass HR 1 [an anti-corruption and voting bill passed by the House in 2019]. The reasons for a lot of gridlock in Washington and rampant corruption have not been addressed properly, which in part allowed the rise of Donald Trump and his rampant abuses of power. Just like with Watergate, the new Congress should take steps to reform and strengthen our institutions. The act will combat voter suppression across the country by increasing access and stopping partisan gerrymandering, and it creates more oversight over executive and judicial institutions. – Joseph A
A mandatory youth public service corps to rebuild our infrastructure and tackle climate change. Every American citizen should do one year of public service when they turn 18, far away from where they live, so that they have to work side by side with people who are different from them. Our country has become so divided – working together will remind us what we have in common. People with family obligations could be exempted, but no one should be able to buy their way out. –Justine Q
I support implementing ranked-choice voting (RCV) throughout the USA. By allowing voters to rank more than a single candidate, voters have a more powerful, nuanced voice. They can vote their true preferences without worrying about vote-splitting. RCV allows for the fullest expression of voter will. RCV also incentivizes candidates to keep their campaigns civil and issues-based, whereas our current plurality method of voting incentivizes divisiveness. – Jessie P
Severely limit corporate ownership of mass media. For instance, no corporation would be permitted to own more than three TV or radio stations or with similar restrictions on books and magazines. We need to return to local ownership to stop the fascist propaganda that swamps what we can know about what is happening around us. This is supported by the vast majority of Americans, both conservative and liberal. Break up the monopoly of mass media! – Charles R
A basic income of $10,000/year (adjusted annually for inflation) for all persons 18 years and older whose annual income is under $50,000 and assets (with no exclusions) less than $100,000. These remittances would surely stimulate the economy while providing a supportive and often essential safety net for all low-income and impoverished people regardless of race, religion, nationality or political affiliation. – Michele M
Walk more. – Jaime
We need to implement progressive tax rates for businesses. Small businesses who are actively growing and hiring should pay lower taxes than large businesses who shoot all of their profit up to the shareholders often at the expense of their employees and the local economies they operate in. Our current flat tax rate for corporations works to sweep value away from our poorest communities who are literally producing the wealth the shareholders enjoy. – Ben L
Dietary guidelines need to be more inclusive of America’s population and our diverse food traditions. Research from the Tufts Friedman School suggests that poor eating causes nearly 1,000 deaths each day from heart disease, stroke or diabetes. The US dietary guidelines reflect Eurocentric foods and cuisines, and 81% of dietitians are white Americans. Yet there’s healthfulness in traditional Mexican, African American and regional US cuisines. We have to connect people to that for better health. – Shaun C
