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Constitution of Michigan of 1963: Article I Declaration of Rights Section 5. Every person may freely speak, write, express and publish his views on all subjects, being responsible for the abuse of such right; and no law shall be enacted to restrain or abridge the liberty of speech or of the press.
Introduction: The Michigander was created to act in the interest of the People of Michigan and provide them with the necessary services and information to maintain a democratic republic. This site is also designed to be the voice of the Michigan People by publishing their writing, art and other forms of expression. It is our duty to work toward building a society that respects social justice and the Human Rights of the global community. We ask that those who would like to "water the tree of democracy" join us.
Join Us: We are calling all writers, artists and People who wish to express themselves to help make the State of Michigan a better place to live. It is the goal of The Michigander to support those who help raise the sustainability of our communities with words as well as with action. Send submissions, ideas and questions to the e-mail address listed at the bottom of this page.
Add Your Link: If you have a website that you think would be of interest to Michiganders, we would like to have it listed. We currently have a wide selection of webpages that cover such topics as government, the environment, activism, health, restaurants, entertainment, recreation, media, travel, churches and businesses. To add your website to our links page please send us two pieces of information at the e-mail address below.
1) The address of the website you wish to have listed
2) A brief description of what you, your organization or your website is.
Suggestions: We are always looking for ways to improve our website, organizations and ways to help the people of Michigan. If you have any suggestions, please send them to us and we will find ways to fulfill them.
CHARTER FOR THE MICHIGANDER PREAMBLE:
The Michigander recognizes that our society and government are tormented with inequality, militarism, poverty, violence and pollution and are mindful and recognize our responsibility before the people of Michigan and the global community and resolve to actively serve to the purpose of world peace as an equal part in the Americas and the world as a whole; determined to live with our diversity in unity respecting one another. It is our duty to enhance and strengthen liberty, democracy, independence, peace in solidarity, and openness to the world. Freedom only exists when people are free to exercise their rights. This freedom must be accepted in all of its forms: good or bad. It is also recognized that the strength of the nation is measured by the welfare of the weakest of its members and those outside who need it. To have unity and freedom we strive to create a community-based democracy that is maintained only by the citizens within them to eradicate the societal ills. The Michigander has adopted this charter as there Basic Laws.
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE:
(1) The Michigander will use all of its resources and energy to protect the lives, liberty, rights, and sovereignty of the people and to safeguard the independence and security of the state of Michigan.
(2) To promote common welfare, sustainable development, inner cohesion, and cultural diversity of the state of Michigan.
(3) To ensure equal opportunities for all citizens to the extent possible.
(4) The Michigander strives to safeguard the long-term preservation of natural resources and to promote a just and peaceful international order.
(5) These Basic Laws are the basis and limitations for all activities of The Michigander.
(6) The Michigander's activities will strive to fulfill public interest and be proportional.
(7) The Michigander and those involved must act in good faith
(8) The Michigander does respect International Law
(9) The Michigander believes every person is responsible for themselves and advances, according to their abilities and goals of the society and state.
(10) We devote ourselves to making Michigan a better place for all to live.THE BASIC LAWS:
ARTICLE 1-COMMUNITY-BASED DEMOCRACY
(1) We will work to protect equal rights for all regardless of their sex, parentage, race, language, homeland and origin, physical or mental handicap, sexual preference, faith, or religious or political opinions.
(2) The Michigander encourages all people to control the decisions and actions that affect their lives.
(3) We promote making all governmental and institutional representatives of the People fully accountable to the citizens who elected them
(4) It is our belief that citizens should be allowed to develop their own preferences and spending priorities in respect to their communities needs.
(5) We encourage a multi-party system that is inclusive and barring only those who wish to destroy a free democratic order.
(6) To promote the family, neighborhood organizations, church groups, voluntary associations, ethnic groups, etc.
(7) To promote the traditions of community involvement, volunteerism, and the responsibility to the community.ARTICLE 2-STRONG LOCAL ECONOMY
(1) It is in our interest to promote employee ownership, workplace democracy and the ideals of unionism.
(2) To use technology in ways that are humane, freeing, ecological, accountable and respond to needs of the community
(3) It is our belief that there should be some form of basis economic security that is open to all
(4) Income distributions should include the wealth created by those who take responsibility for parenting, housekeeping, home gardening, community volunteerism, etc.
(5) To restrict the size and concentration of power corporations have without discouraging efficiency or innovation.ARTICLE 3-RESPONSIBILITY BEFORE THE GLOBAL COMMUNITY
(1) We will encourage and participate in anyway we can to assisting grassroots groups in the "Third World" and to learn from them.
(2) To help all people and states toward self-sufficiency in having food, shelter, clothing, healthcare, education and all other necessities of life.
(3) To promote military cuts while maintaining an adequate defense.
(4) To promote these ideals in the global order.
(5) We wish to reshape the world without creating another empire or enormous nation-state.ARTICLE4-SOCIAL JUSTICE
(1) To always promote dignity when responding to the suffering of people.
(2) The Michigander encourages people to commit to lifestyles that promote their own health
(3) Everyone should be entitled to have a community-controlled educational system that effectively teaches academic skills, ecological wisdom, social responsibility and personal growth.
(4) We take responsibility for reducing crimes in our own neighborhoods as well as improving the quality of living.
(5) The Michigander encourages simplicity and moderationARTICLE 5-DIVERSITY
(1) The Michigander respects and honors and always encourages others to treat others equally in respect to sex, parentage, race, language, homeland and origin, physical or mental handicap, sexual preference, faith, or religious or political opinions.
(2) We not only believe, but act on the finest ideals of dignity of the individual, democratic participation, and liberty and justice for everyone everywhere.ARTICLE 6-PEACE
(1) We discourage violence in all of its forms and strive for stability and peace whether it is between nation-states down to the individual.
(2) To promote the elimination of weapons without being naïve about the intentions of persons, groups, organizations, corporations or governments.
(3) To use peaceful and effective methods to oppose the decisions and actions that we are in opposition to and reduce the "atmosphere of polarization" and selfishness that is the source of violence.ARTICLE 7-THE ENVIRONMENT
(1) The Michigander believes that human society is an integral part of nature, not above it. This, we will always promote.
(2) We encourage applying technology in building an energy efficient economy that works within the ecological and resource limits of our planet.
(3) To respect the needs and build a healthy relationship between urban and rural areas.
(4) To protect the rights of non-human species.
(5) To encourage sustainable agriculture and respect for self-regulating natural systems.
(6) To promote environmentally friendly living in all spheres of our lives.
(7) In every deliberation we must consider the impact on the seventh generation and act in their best interest.ARTICLE 8-COOPERATIVE LIVING
(1) We work to eliminate dominance and control with cooperative ways of interacting.
(2) To encourage people to care for persons outside of their group.
(3) To build respectful, responsible and positive relationships without regard to an individuals or groups sex, parentage, race, language, homeland and origin, physical or mental handicap, sexual preference, faith, or religious or political opinions.
(4) The Michigander promotes a diverse political culture that respects feelings as well as rationalist approaches.
(5) To respect the process of our means just as much as the product for our ends.
(6) We respect the contemplative, inner part of life equally to outer activities.ARTICLE 9-LOCAL RESPONSIBILITY
(1) The Michigander believes that the power and responsibility of the government should be left to individuals, institutions, communities and regions.
(2) We discourage artificial mono-cultures for entire nation-states and encourage regionally based culture.
(3) The home shall be considered the most important source of power of a democratic society and the political, economic and social institutions shall be subservient to it.
(4) Our institutions shall be designed in a way where fewer decisions and regulations over money are granted as one moves from the community to the international level.
(5) We wish reconciliation for the need for community and regional self-determination with appropriate centralized regulation in certain matters.ARTICLE 10-SUSTAINABILITY
(1) We strive to have individuals and institutions think in terms of the long-range future, and not only of their short-range selfish interests.
(2) The Michigander encourages people to develop their own vision of the future and to move more effectively toward them.
(3) New technologies shall be judged to determine how socially useful they are and ways they can shape society.
(4) To encourage fiscal responsibility in all households, institutions, organizations, corporations and government.
(5) To make quality of life, rather than open-ended economic growth, the focus of future thinking.ARTICLE 11-INFORMATION
(1) The privacy and secrecy of communication shall be inviolable.
(2) All persons should have the right to be protected against abuse of personal information.
(3) The Michigander demands that all people have the right to receive, store and disseminate complete, reliable and timely information on the activities of state bodies and public associations on political, economic and international life, on the state of the environment and other information that serves to inform a free and democratic society
(4) Governments, public associations and officials shall afford citizens the opportunity to familiarize themselves with material that affects their rights and legitimate interests.
(5) The radio, television, the internet and other forms of public dissemination shall be publicly owned and operated and responsive to the communities they serve.
(6) Public broadcasting shall contribute to educational and cultural development, to the free formation of opinion and to the entertainment of the public. Special needs and particularities of the region shall be taken into account. Broadcasters shall present events factually, and reflect diverse opinions fairly and adequately.
(7) Advertising shall be regulated to protect the sovereignty of the consumer.
(8) Independence of broadcasters and autonomy of their programming shall be guaranteed.
(9) An independent authority shall be established to submit complaints about programming.
(10) No one shall be obliged to give evidence against themselves, for their spouse and close relatives except in certain and extreme cases.CONCLUSION:
The Michigander wishes to achieve peace, justice and a sustainable environment. We respect the diversity of approaches that are going to be necessary to attain these goals. It is our goal to accomplish building a society with the most possible freedom with the least possible restrictions on the individual for reasons of health, safety, liberty, rights and sovereignty.
The Michigander has been created because of the threat that our rights and the free democratic order is currently and has always faced. We have been established because of the inability and/or unwillingness of existing organizations to address the fundamental problems of our region and the legitimate needs and aspirations of the people. For life to continue to survive in its present condition it is mandatory that the current system is infused with accountability, future focus and ecological wisdom. These are not just the wishes of the Michigander, but the will to survive.
HFI PUBLISHING
E-MAIL: HFIpublishing@aol.com
last modified: 11.1.2001