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- Wikinews interviews Bill Hammons, Unity Party of America presidential nominee (2020/10/24 00:17)
Friday, October 23, 2020
Wikinews accredited reporter William S. Saturn reached out to Unity Party of America presidential nominee Bill Hammons of Colorado to discuss Hammons's 2020 campaign for President of the United States.
Hammons, a former Newsweek manager and owner of the website "Bill's List", founded the Unity Party in 2004 with supporters of General Wesley Clark's unsuccessful campaign for the Democratic Party's presidential nomination. The party, which describes itself as centrist, advocates in its constitution for, among other things, a balanced budget amendment, elimination of the federal income tax, tax deduction for health care costs, a global minimum wage for fair trade, term limits for Congress and judges, lowering the voting age, DC statehood, and expanded space exploration.
Hammons has grown the party with various campaigns for public office. He ran for US Congress in 2008 and 2010, US Senate in 2014 and 2016, and for Governor of Colorado in 2018. Last year, Hammons embarked on a presidential campaign and became the Unity Party's first presidential nominee. Engineer Eric Bodenstab, the party's 2018 nominee for Lieutenant Governor of Colorado was picked to be his running mate. Bodenstab spoke to Wikinews last August. The Hammons-Bodenstab ticket has qualified for ballot access in Colorado, Louisiana, and New Jersey.
With Wikinews, Hammons discusses his background, campaign, the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Supreme Court, and Black Lives Matter, among other issues.
Interview[edit]
Background & leadership[edit]
((WSS
)) : Which past U.S. president(s) do you most admire and why?
- Hammons: George Washington. Our first President set so many precedents, most important among them not making the Presidency any more powerful than it absolutely needs to be.
((WSS)) : How have your past experiences prepared you for the job of President?
- Hammons: I am the Founder and Chairman of the 42-State Unity Party of America, as well as a former Manager at Newsweek Magazine (one of the joys of that job was reading both Newsweek and Newsweek International cover-to-cover on a weekly basis, and that reading gave me a firm foundation in knowledge and understanding of national and international affairs). I am also the owner of Bill’s List, a website which has received as many as 17,000 visitors on a single day, and knowledge of how to reach the most Americans possible without relying on the all-too-fickle media is a crucial skill.
((WSS)) : How would you describe your style of leadership? How does it compare to the leadership styles of President Donald Trump and former President Barack Obama?
- Hammons: I am a Centrist, with the attitude that all sides need to be listened to, even if I disagree with them. It’s important to understand where someone else is coming from before you work to meet their needs and persuade them to work with you.
COVID-19 & campaigning[edit]
((WSS)) : If you were president, how would you have handled the coronavirus pandemic differently than President Trump?
- Hammons: Where do I begin. We need to massively ramp up use of the Cold War-era Defense Production Act to produce all the materials we need to fight this Pandemic, a Pandemic which has already killed twice as many Americans as died in Korea and Vietnam combined. Taiwan, a democratic nation of tens of millions directly across the Taiwan Strait from China, has had exactly seven deaths from Covid, and we can do even better. We need to be testing widely and constantly, and can boost our economy by hiring an army of federal Contact Tracers with the ability to call, text, email, and message via Social Media each and every American who has been exposed to the deadly virus. The CDC can work with Facebook and other Social Media companies to aid Contact Tracing outreach and build confidence (e.g., Contact Tracers can be given Social Media accounts with official badges, explanations of the tracing process and why it’s so important, etc.). Hotels currently lying empty can be rented out for quarantining those who have been exposed and who don’t want to expose their families, and local restaurants can be contracted to provide contact-free room service for those quarantined. Further, Federal unemployment insurance benefits can be offered to all Quarantiners to ease the financial impact of having to remain isolated for weeks at a time.
((WSS)) : How has the pandemic affected your campaign and your ability to reach out to voters?
- Hammons: Before the Pandemic hit, I was knocking on doors on behalf of other Uniter candidates, and that crucial means of engaging with voters (many of whom still haven’t heard of the Unity Party) is gone until further notice. Since declaring for the Presidency, my own campaign has instead been reaching out to voters with a top-notch text and phone call effort with some modest success.
((WSS)) : Based on your general feeling on the ground, about how many votes do you expect to receive in the 2020 election?
- Hammons: My vote count has been on a hockey stick graph trajectory for several years now, and I have no doubt that trend will continue through the 2020 election, along with Unity Party voter registrations which have gone vertical this Fall.
Nominations & gridlock[edit]
((WSS)) : What would a Hammons administration look like? Which specific individuals would you ask to be in your cabinet?
- Hammons: My model will be [Abraham] Lincoln’s “Team of Rivals” (it just so happens that Lincoln was another Dark Horse candidate who came out of nowhere from the heart of the country, literally and symbolically, to win the Presidency). I’ll bring on the Best and the Brightest, preferably individuals driven less by ideology than by a sincere desire to see a country run smoothly with a minimum of drama. I’ll look for a mix of dedicated Civil Servants with the brass tacks experience of how government works along with turnaround types from backgrounds outside government who know how to get the impossible things done.
((WSS)) : Who would you nominate to the Supreme Court? Would you apply any litmus tests? Should the number of justices remain at nine?
- Hammons: The only litmus test will be a nominee’s Common Sense desire to reach legal conclusions in keeping with both a strict Originalist interpretation of the Constitution and the best interests of the country. The number of Justices should be set at 13 with a Constitutional Amendment to prevent future Court Packing, and the four new Justices should be smart non-ideologues who have been ignored for their lack of ideology.
((WSS)) : As president, how would you work with Congress to avoid gridlock and pass your agenda?
- Hammons: The election of the first Unity Party President will be an earthquake certain to set off tectonic shifts across the American political landscape. As a Uniter, I’ll use my freedom in the Center to force both sides to compromise or be tossed into the Dust Bin of History.
Policies[edit]
((WSS)) : What should be done, from the government's perspective, to combat global climate change?
- Hammons: We need to take a look at what no less than Bill Gates and scientists from Harvard have been working on recently, and explore sending cooling dust (on a limited and experimental basis) into the atmosphere to lessen temperatures and thus buy the planet time for a long-term reduction in greenhouse gas emissions to have its own impact.
((WSS)) : What are your views on the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan? What would you do as president to help resolve the conflict and how does that comport with your overarching philosophy on foreign affairs?
- Hammons: The United States could go a long way towards regaining the international stature it has lost with its inept Covid response by negotiating a resolution to yet another conflict with its roots in the ineptitude of the Soviet Union (the old Russian Empire in everything but name). The US could offer to impose peacekeepers, and warn both sides they will experience severe sanctions if any peacekeepers are harmed in any way.
((WSS)) : Are you concerned about deplatforming and the censorship of certain views on social media? How would you address this issue as president?
- Hammons: I sincerely believe Facebook and other social media companies are doing the best they can to balance freedom of expression with protecting the democracy which has given us that same freedom of expression. We could learn a lot from Germany, a distant mirror of a nation which was rebuilt from scratch by the US and others after World War II: German admirers of Adolph Hitler and Nazism have many of their freedoms restricted, and, partly due to those restrictions, Germany has been a thriving democracy for decades.
((WSS)) : What can you do, as president, to improve race relations in the United States?
- Hammons: I can help the Black Lives Matter movement principles get a Bismarckian translation into reality (Bismarck was the one who observed that “Politics is the Art of the Possible”). “Black Lives Matter Too” would be a title that would put a dent in the “All Lives Matter” counterargument. “Defund the Police” should be retitled “Refund the Police” (along with “Refund ICE,” for that matter) and we as a nation can take a sober look at how we can be a more harmonious nation going forward where all sides are respected and heard.
Related articles[edit]
- "On the campaign trail in the USA, July 2020" — Wikinews, August 31, 2020
Sources[edit]
- "Candidate Inquiry" — State of Louisiana Secretary of State, October 17, 2020 (accessed)
-
Gabe Fine. "Unity Party Gains Minor-Party Status, and Will Make a Major Play in 2018" — Westword, June 12, 2017
- Wikinews interviews Phil Collins, U.S. Prohibition Party presidential nominee (2020/10/22 23:40)
Thursday, October 22, 2020
U.S. Prohibition Party presidential nominee Phil Collins took some time to answer a few questions about his 2020 presidential campaign from Wikinews accredited reporter William S. Saturn.
Collins is currently chairman of the Prohibition Party. Previously, he served as a trustee of Libertyville Township (Illinois) and as chairman of the Prohibition Party of Illinois. After moving to Nevada, he ran for Mayor of Las Vegas in 2019, and finished in second place overall. He was not the Prohibition Party's first choice for the 2020 presidential nomination. In November 2018, the party nominated a ticket of Bill Bayes for President and C.L. Gammon for Vice President. Bayes withdrew in March 2019. Gammon assumed the presidential nomination and the party nominated Collins for Vice President the next month. Gammon withdrew due to health reasons around August 2019 and Collins took over as the presidential nominee. The party picked anti-alcohol activist Billy Joe Parker as Collins's new running mate. Parker spoke to Wikinews back in July.
After securing the Prohibition Party presidential nomination, Collins sought the nominations of the American Independent Party (AIP) and the Reform Party for ballot access in California and Florida, respectively. Despite winning the AIP California Presidential Primary in March, Collins lost the nomination to businessman Rocky De La Fuente in August. He also fell short of De La Fuente for the Reform Party presidential nomination in June. Nevertheless, the Prohibition Party has attained ballot access in Colorado, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Vermont. The last presidential election in which the party appeared on at least four state ballots was in 1984 with nominee Earl Dodge.
The Prohibition Party is the third oldest existing political party in the US, having been established in 1869. It reached its height of popularity during the late nineteenth century. As its name suggests, the party supported the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which banned the sale of alcohol, and resulted in the period known as Prohibition (1919–33). Since the repeal of Prohibition in 1933, the party has declined. It stays afloat, in part, due to the George L. Pennock Trust established in 1939, which pays the party's operating expenses. It continues to nominate candidates for president as well. Wikinews has previously interviewed two of those nominees: 2004 and 2008 presidential nominee Gene Amondson and 2016 presidential nominee James (Jim) Hedges. Collins makes it three.
With Wikinews, Collins discusses his background, the COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on his campaign, presidential nominations, gridlock, climate change, foreign policy, and race relations.
Interview[edit]
Background and leadership[edit]
((WSS)) : Which past U.S. president(s) do you most admire and why?
Collins admires Abraham Lincoln (pictured) for his leadership during the US Civil War.
Image: Alexander Gardner.- Collins: I admire [Abraham] Lincoln because he was a good leader in the Civil War. He wanted to ensure that the union was preserved, and he achieved that goal. He chose cabinet members and generals who would serve their country very well, and he wasn't disappointed. I admire [Ronald] Reagan because he persuaded Congress (which was mainly Democrats) to cut tax rates. While he was president, the unemployment rate, inflation rate, and interest rates decreased.
((WSS)) : When and why did you join the Prohibition Party?
- Collins: I joined it in the summer of 2014. I found that I agreed with most of the platform, and I knew that I could be a state leader, since I didn't think the party had any other members who lived in Illinois.
((WSS)) : How have your past experiences prepared you for the job of President?
- Collins: I was in the navy for 21 years, including eight years in marine units and six months near Baghdad. If I were the commander-in-chief, that might help me command the military. I was a township trustee. Since I have the government experience, I learned the importance of reading resolutions, especially budgets, before I voted on them.
((WSS)) : How would you describe your style of leadership? How does it compare to the leadership styles of President Donald Trump and former President Barack Obama?
- Collins: If I were president, I'd have a more constitutional leadership, by reading the Constitution, whenever I decide if I should sign or veto a bill. Presidents Trump and Obama signed budgets that increased spending, increased the deficit, and increased the debt. I wouldn't do that.
Coronavirus pandemic and campaigning[edit]
((WSS)) : If you were president, how would you have handled the coronavirus pandemic differently than President Trump?
- Collins: I'd encourage the governors to help one another better. A few states, with no stay-at-home orders, have low infection rates, compared to a few states that had mask and stay-at-home orders. I would have asked governors of a couple of those healthy states, to have a televised press conference, at the White House, to tell what their states did.
((WSS)) : How has the pandemic affected your campaign and your ability to reach out to voters?
- Collins: In Tennessee, we paid someone to get petition signatures, for us. When a lot of businesses were closed and many summer events were cancelled, it was hard for our workers to find people, who would sign the petitions.
((WSS)) : In 2016, Prohibition Party presidential nominee Jim Hedges received 5,617 votes, the most for the party since 1988. Based on your general feeling on the ground, about how many votes do you expect to receive in the 2020 election?
- Collins: I think that I'll get 9,000-11,000 votes. I'll be on the ballots in more states, and I'll be a write-in candidate in more states, compared to Mr. Hedges.
Nominations and gridlock[edit]
((WSS)) : What would a Collins administration look like? Which specific individuals would you ask to be in your cabinet?
- Collins: I'd nominate people who could work well with members of the Prohibition, Republican, and Democrat Parties. The majority of those people would be people who had political experience. Since Robert Gates was a secretary of defense for a Republican and Democrat, I'd nominate him for secretary of state. Other than that, I haven't thought of anyone. If I win, I'll ask for suggestions from other Prohibition Party officers.
((WSS)) : Who would you nominate to the Supreme Court? Would you apply any litmus tests? Should the number of justices remain at nine?
- Collins: I haven't decided whom I'd nominate. I'd choose someone who is a federal appeals court judge who always rules according to the Constitution. No, I wouldn't have any litmus test. Yes, I think that the number should remain nine.
((WSS)) : As president, how would you work with Congress to avoid gridlock and pass your agenda?
- Collins: I'd try to learn about each senator and representative so that I could talk to a lot of them and persuade them to agree with me. I'd usually propose bills that obey the Constitution, so I'd tell people that my view is what the founders would have wanted.
Policy[edit]
((WSS)) : What should be done, from the government's perspective, to combat global climate change?
- Collins: Some scientists say that global climate change isn't caused by people and that the change is part of a cycle that has happened for at least 1,000 years. If I'm president and I read that the majority of scientists think that people caused the change, I'd ask a few former EPA heads for their opinions about how we should combat it.
((WSS)) : What are your views on the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan? What would you do as president to help resolve the conflict and how does that comport with your overarching philosophy on foreign affairs?
- Collins: I think that those countries should compromise and split the disputed area in half. I don't see any reason why the U.S. should be involved, so I think our government should be neutral.
((WSS)) : Are you concerned about the deplatforming and social media censorship of notable conservatives and libertarians? How would you address this issue as president?
((WSS)) : What can you do, as president, to improve race relations in the United States?
- Collins: I could ensure that recruiting ads for the federal government (especially for the military and FBI) will show co-workers of a few ethnic groups, showing that many federal workers work, well, with members of different races. I'd send federal agency offices information about federal discrimination rules. The rules should be posted in each federal office, so the employees and the public will know that discrimination will be punished.
Related articles[edit]
- "On the campaign trail in the USA, August 2020" — Wikinews, September 30, 2020
- "On the campaign trail in the USA, June 2020" — Wikinews, July 25, 2020
- "On the campaign trail in the USA, October 2016" — Wikinews, November 6, 2016
- "Prohibition Party holds convention; nominates Jack Fellure for U.S. President" — Wikinews, June 23, 2011
- "Wikinews interviews Jim Hedges, U.S. Prohibition Party presidential candidate" — Wikinews, January 29, 2011
- "Wikinews interviews Gene Amondson, Prohibition Party presidential nominee" — Wikinews, June 6, 2008
Sources[edit]
- "United States Presidential Election Results" — Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections, October 14, 2020 (accessed)
- Rachel Crosby. "Carolyn Goodman cruises to third term as Las Vegas mayor" — Las Vegas Review-Journal, April 2, 2019
- Christopher Placek. "Harper College board winner moves out of town, withdraws" — Daily Herald (Arlington Heights, Illinois), April 5, 2017 (updated)
-
Nick Hines. "The Head of the Prohibition Party Doesn’t Care if You Drink" — VinePair, February 15, 2017
- Wikinews interviews 2020 Melbourne Lord Mayor Candidate Wayne Tseng (2020/10/22 05:49)
This article mentions the Wikimedia Foundation, one of its projects, or people related to it. Wikinews is a project of the Wikimedia Foundation.
Thursday, October 22, 2020
2020 Melbourne Lord Mayor candidate Wayne Tseng answered some questions about his campaign for the upcoming election from Wikinews. The Lord Mayor election in the Australian city is scheduled to take place this week.
Tseng runs a firm called eTranslate, which helps software developers to make the software available to the users. In the candidate's questionnaire, Tseng said eTranslate had led to him working with all three tiers of the government. He previously belonged to the Australian Liberal Party, but has left since then, to run for mayorship as an independent candidate.
Tseng is of Chinese descent, having moved to Australia with his parents from Vietnam. Graduated in Brisbane, Tseng received his PhD in Melbourne and has been living in the city, he told Wikinews. Tseng also formed Chinese Precinct Chamber of Commerce, an organisation responsible for many "community bond building initiatives", the Lord Mayor candidate told Wikinews.
Tseng discussed his plans for leading Melbourne, recovering from COVID-19, and "Democracy 2.0" to ensure concerns of minorities in the city were also heard. Tseng also focused on the importance of the multi-culture aspect and talked about making Melbourne the capital of the aboriginals. Tseng also explained why he thinks Melbourne is poised to be a world city by 2030.
Tseng's deputy Lord Mayor candidate Gricol Yang is a Commercial Banker and works for ANZ Banking Group.
Currently, Sally Capp is the Lord Mayor of Melbourne, the Victorian capital. Capp was elected as an interim Lord Mayor in mid-2018 after the former Lord Mayor Robert Doyle resigned from his position after sexual assault allegations. Doyle served as the Lord Mayor of Melbourne for almost a decade since 2008.
Interview[edit]
About Wayne Tseng, his team and his plans[edit]
Can you tell us something about yourself?
((Wayne Tseng)) [I am an] Australian Citizen of Chinese descent [and] fluent Cantonese, Mandarin and English speaker. Born in Vietnam and migrated to Australia with parent in the 1990s. Graduated as a computer engineer in Brisbane and received a PhD in Melbourne. Lectured in RMIT University before launching [my] firm eTranslate.
I authored two teaching texts: Open Learning, Introduction to Project Management and Open Learning, Introduction to Assembly Language.
The firm which shares the same name as the USA firm eTranslate (but not related) specialises in language expertise and language information technology. The firm has two arms — The technology arm focuses on services to help developers to create language variants of their software. The language/cultural services arm provides cultural communication services to local government. Australia is a lot of ethnic minorities speaking over 120 languages and over 80 cultures.
As the firm grew, I spent more [...] time in the cultural communication services arms. There I served as the principal consultant leading a team which delivered consultancy services to all three levels of government in Australia.
I also founded the non-profit organisation Chinese Precinct Chamber of Commerce which was responsible for a lot of Australia first Chinese and Australia community bond building initiatives. I have a passion for community activities that leads to the betterment of Australians.
In 2014 I invented the Australian Chinese Zodiac which matches the Chinese zodiac animal with the Australia local wildlife. The design was aim[ed] to promote better understanding between Chinese and Australian community. It went viral.
I always have been active in politics. [I] was a member of the Australian Liberal Party and participated in a federal election.
During my time in politics, I saw the limits of Australia's Westminister system. This system was designed by the British government to be used in its colonies in 1842. It assumed that the colonies do not have their own ideals and follow just one single set of social values. The system only allows a government and an opposition. These are often occupied by either the Progressive — The LEFT (Labour Party) and the Conservative — the RIGHT (the Liberal Party).
However, 21st Century Australia is much more culturally diverse. There are different ideals and social values. Australian[s] can not see themselves fit into either the LEFT or the RIGHT ideology online. The people of Australia is more comfortable with fit for purpose policies or CENTRE. The current system does not support a third centre party.
In fact, Australians have become more cynical about the two major parties (LEFT and RIGHT). They are well educated and well informed. They believe they can offer the government so much in input and suggestions. They want to have more say in the governing of [...] Australia.
I have since come to the belief that direct vote or participating democracy is the key for the next stage of the country's evolution. This is [a] movement overseas in terms of direct vote or direct democracy.
- In UK, the Sheffield council — The council begin to use direct vote in some of the council decisions.
- In Iceland — they rewrote their constitution through public submitting and voting.
- In New York — The city review its city budget through direct vote.
In Australia, I believe introduction of direct voting needs to be [a] gradual process. Laws needs to be enacted to allow direct voting. But before this, the public and [sitting] government needs to see the benefit of direct democracy.
((WN)) What made you decide to run for the Melbourne City's Lord Mayor? Why do you think you should be the Melbourne's Mayor?
((Wayne Tseng)) In [the] 2020 Melbourne local government election, I was nominated for the Lord Mayor of Melbourne. I hope to use the election as a platform to seed public awareness on participating democracy.
I advocated for the creation of a platform called Participate in Melbourne where the people can begin with submitting their issues/concerns, offer suggestions, hold public debate and send those conclusions to elected councillor to deliberate and vote. [I] hope once the benefits are known, the council will enact laws to allow direct vote.
I have founded an organisation called eTranslate that has offices in different countries. Over the years, [I] have gained a considerable amount of business and life experiences which are important in public life.
Apart from my professional life, I have always engaged in community work. I have a passion to enter public office and serve the community in a larger capacity.
I have always been active in politics. I was a member of the Australia Liberal Party and participated in a federal election.
During my time in politics, [I] understood the inner workings of major parties and the Australian political system. Most importantly, I have lived in Melbourne since 2000 and understand the city intimately as a business operator and as a resident.
((WN)) [C]ould you please explain what are the powers of Melbourne's Lord Mayor?
((Wayne Tseng)) Unlike the City of London where its local government administer London CBD [Central Business District] and greater London, the City of Melbourne is divided in 76 areas and the Melbourne City Council only administer the Melbourne CBD and two surrounding residential areas, Docklands and Southbank.
While the area Melbourne City Council administer is small, the Melbourne CBD (second only to Sydney) is the engine of Australia's Economy. So [while] the scope of power is limited, the policies are wide-ranging. The Lord Mayor of Melbourne is partly a ceremonial role and partly a directorship role. It is like the Chairman of a company. The CEO of the council has all the executive powers. But the mayor and the councillors are like the board of directors and the chairperson. The only difference is that this chairperson sets the agenda for the CEO to implement. The chairperson drafts the agenda based on the wishes of the people — the voters.
((WN)) Tell us about your team Zorin. Tell us about your partner Gricol Yang.
((Wayne Tseng)) As required by the Victoria Election Authority. All candidates that contest for the seat of Lord Mayor and Deputy Lord Mayor must form a team for ease of identification.
So I choose Team Zorin as a name that represented me, Wayne Tseng — Lord Mayor Candidate and Gricol Yang — Deputy Lord Mayor Candidate.
I chose Zorin because I also have another company called Zorin Industries which specialise in Robotics. The name will only last until the result of the election is known.
Gricol Yang obtained a degree in commerce and worked in the ANZ Banking Group as a Commercial Banker.
((WN)) You ran in an election as a representative of the Liberal party in 2010 — why did you quit the party? What have you learned since leaving the Liberals?
((Wayne Tseng)) I quit the party so I can run as an independent in the council election. I am pursuing direct democracy which is not an element of the Australian Liberal Party platform.
However, during the time as a member of the Liberal party, I have learnt so much about...
- Australia political systems
- The workings of 3 levels of government
- The political party machinery
- The relationship between the government and its people
- The change in Australian sentiment and;
- The limitation of the current Australia democracy in address[ing] change.
((WN)) Tell us about your company eTranslate.
((Wayne Tseng)) I founded the firm eTranslate which shares the same name as the USA firm eTranslate (but not related). We specialise in language expertise and language information technology. The firm has two arms — The technology arm focuses on services to help developers to create language variants of their software. The language/cultural services arm provides cultural communication services to local government. Australia is a lot of ethnic minorities speaking over 120 languages and over 80 cultures. We have offices across Australia and in selected countries.
Some of our past achievements include:
- During years 2000 we launch world first Multilingual Olympic Games Information Website.
- We launched world first Web Content Information System that support multilingual content.
- We launched world first e-commerce platform that support different languages and different currencies.
- Now we launched a new services to assist Robotics developer to create different language human robot interface.
We also won a number of awards for our innovations.
Wayne Tseng's Candidate Questionnaire and Answers for this year's Melbourne Lord Mayor election.
Image: Victorian Electoral Commission.((WN)) In the Candidate Questionnaire and Answers, you had listed operating eTranslate has given you expertise in undertaking the role of Councillor. How? Can you please explain?
((Wayne Tseng)) As the firm grew, I spent more of [my] time in the cultural communication services arms. There I served as the principal consultant leading a team which delivered consultancy services to all three levels of government in Australia.
[A] politician needs business and life experience so they can make decisions that address real business and life situations.
So I do believe after years of growing and operating a business in so many areas, I could be of a service to the city.
((WN)) What do you think of the current governance of Melbourne's Mayor?
((Wayne Tseng)) The current mayor, Sally Capp, entered mid-term when the previous mayor Robert Doyle was outsed for sexual harassment allegation.
I do appreciate the hard work Sally did to bridge the political divide in a council chamber she inherited. This year the pandemic has made her work even harder as for any other leaders. But what she fall short off is to stand up to the State Government (provincial government) which [has] restricted the city ability to take its own decisive action to better protect the city.
She is Labor aligned so she can not compromise too much of the Labor State Government reign. But a local government needs to be separate [from] State government so it can exercise its power to protect [its] constituents.
((WN)) Could you please [tell] us about the 'Precision Policies'?
((Wayne Tseng)) Team Zorin pledge to bring all Melbournians to the council chamber. We will deploy an online platform to let Melbournians participate in the running of the city. You can post issues in your area, submit your solutions, raise alerts about wrong doing, rate your councillors action and comment on council decisions. It's called Participating Democracy. We pledge not only [to] formulate policies for the majority, but also [to] formulate precise policies for the minority. We called this Precision Policies.
You see the majority rule in current democracy. If you are in the minority, you will not be in luck. Our participating democracy platform ensure[s] that the needs of everyone includ[ing] those in minority group are captured. The government should work harder to ensure there are policies that precisely addressed the needs of everyone including minority group. Thus Precision Policies.
((WN)) What are some of the things you can bring to [the] table if you were to be elected as the Lord Mayor?
((Wayne Tseng)) Many other candidates in the election only advocate big spending and relief in payment of taxes. Just like the Spanish Flu that shaped the 20th century, COVID-19 is shaping our time and the city is ill prepared for the post COVID world. Our council processes and bureaucracies are still paper base, our revenue model is not flexible to enable rapid recovery and take advantage of new opportunity.
My strategy is to Re-open, Reset, Reform as part of Melbourne Recovery. There is a comprehensive plan for recovery in all sectors from business to residents. See attached document.
((WN)) What does Melbourne lack under Sally Capp's Mayorship which you plan on improving?
((Wayne Tseng)) Sally['s] current strategy is to spend to recovery. While this is necessary, fundamental reforms are needed.
My strategy is to Re-open, Reset, Reform as part of Melbourne Recovery.
Key Reforms include:
Make Melbourne a full digitally transformed city with intelligent systems.
Melbourne needs an efficient platform to recover and to seize new opportunities. Some of our processes and bureaucracies are still paper base. The tech needed are already available and proven models of digitisation are easily accessible. We should move towards full digitisation plus installation of intelligent systems. In simple jargon, these intelligent systems can enable efficiency projects such as:
- Freeing up unused public car park spaces, so enabling higher utilisation.
- Broadcast CBD traffic information to cars so to redistribute traffic around the CBD.
- Give Melbournians direct access to council services via their mobile.
- Expand the existing "Participate Melbourne" to allow Melbournians to post issues, submit suggestions, hold virtual forums, vote on a solution, and submit to council for deliberation. If laws are enacted, allow direct vote.
- Give an automated platform to engage with local Melbourne suppliers.
- Offer an easy "e-engagement" platform for new industries to engage Melbourne and Melbourne businesses. The country Estonia has this for the last 8 years. Skype came from Estonia. Singapore has its GeBIZ system to engage any overseas enterprises in just 24 hours.
- A permanent system to monitor COVID and any future outbreak (See below Bug Busters) team.
This new platform will be Melbourne "Digital Railway" to recovery.
Make Melbourne the first to reform council rate calculation.
Post COVID Melbourne will see many empty shops, office floors and rental apartments. This is in addition to the many heritage-listed and old CBD properties that are not rentable but incredibly valuable. The current council rate calculation which is based on property value will send these owners off the cliff.
Our team advocate a fundamental change to how council rate is calculated — based on yield and property value. A property of high value that remains vacant can receive lower rate bill. This will give relief but also give incentive for the property to attract new tenants. For commercial property where the tenant pays for the outgoing, the reduced rate bill will help to attract new tenants and relief for the tenant to grow their business.
The same applies to heritage-listed properties and residential rental properties. The list of beneficiaries is long.
Make Melbourne an active Jobweaver.
In some of candidates' campaigns have been alluded Job — Job — Jobs; unfortunately, reality is we know old industries including retail will not return the same number of jobs. So where will new jobs come from. Local government should enact policies and implement initiatives to attract new industries. While the federal government hands out Job Maker financial assistance, local government should implement "Job Weaver" initiatives to attract new industries.
While one candidate stated he has attracted a billion-dollar project to Melbourne, little of this money trickles to small businesses and local workforce. Melbourne's well-educated workforce can attract industries such as Robotics, AI Systems, Smart Financial Services and Accreditation Services. The key to attract these new industries is the development of the e-engagement platform.
Australia [may] enter a new NATO style trade pack with US, Japan, India, and other friendly nations. With so many Indian students and professions in Australia, Melbourne can seize the opportunity to be the business and finance center to administer these new alliances. Again, an efficient digital e-engagement platform is the key to seize these opportunities.
((WN)) On Team Zorin's website, you wrote "Melbourne is too precious to be used as a test lab for half-baked policies." What are some of the current policies that are under-serving the residents of Melbourne?
((Wayne Tseng)) There are many current policies that are not working and under serving. Here are two examples:
The Melbourne city council [...] advocate for more residential towers and approve[d] a lot which is under construction. But there are no essential services in these areas to service residents. Essential services such as doctor, dentist, child care, mental health services and women's health services are almost non-existent.
Here is my advocacy: There is little on other candidates' platforms for Melbourne as Residential Precinct. There is a Chemist Warehouse in every block. But where to go when you are sick at night. Our team propose to attract essential services (such as 24 hours super-clinic) to service Melbourne residents including GPs, dentist, childcare, radiology, mental health, men's health, women's health and crisis management. We have over 50,000 students in Melbourne; however, they are not entitled to free medical at St Vincent even with a medical insurance. Gary Morgan rightly said, young family will settle in CBD, but where do they send their children for childcare, early learning, kindergarten, primary and secondary schools. Schools will lift apartment resale value. New apartments are being approved but with little green space and essential services. This will be failed.
Melbourne City council advocate to re-open business but there is not enough measure to make sure the premises are COVID safe.
This is my advocacy: Make Melbourne the first to install a city-level outbreak detection team.
A hard COVID lesson learnt is that outbreak needs to be contain fast. COVID-19 will not be the last. There are also frequent gastro outbreaks. Our team propose Australia first city-level Rapid Response, Virus education / awareness, Outbreak Detection and Containment Team (jokingly called Bug Busters). While we may not like to mention it, China's city level Bug Busters are key for them to contain outbreaks.
In addition, we advocate installation of health check gates at shopping centers and places of high people concentration. These gates will not only measure temperatures but will have regularly updated features to detect other symptoms. Just like security check points, they will become part of the post-COVID world. They may be integrated as part of security and drug checks. (The technology is already in used overseas).
Think again, this along with PPE when mandated and social distancing is the key to safe opening.
((WN)) On your website, you wrote "Team Zorin pledges to bring all Melbournians to the council chamber" — how do you plan to do that? How will this affect people of Melbourne? What technologies would you require to achieve that?
((Wayne Tseng)) The phrase bring all Melbournians to the council chamber is a metaphor. The reality is that all Melbournians will have their opportunity to submit their issues and their suggestions into the digital democracy platform. They can participate in virtual debate and trials. Those findings will be submitted to the council chamber for formal debate. Now even if the laws do not allow direct vote, the platform has online polls to allow the people to vote. The elected councillors can see the "wish" of the people and voted accordingly. Thus — "Bring the Melbournians to the council chamber".
To a number of Melbournians who have been so stressed and depressed, it will take sometime for them to appreciate the opportunity to have their say. At the same time, so many Melbournians are tired and fed up with the current mayor for the lack of real solutions and the state government errors and mistakes, they will look for alternatives.
I believe instead of installing another leader who is not going to be any wiser or someone who just want[s to] offer sensationalism just to win power, this is the time where we open the pathway to collective governing. The direct democracy or participating democracy (depends on who is framing this concept) will allow Melbournians to work collectively, find out solutions, TRIAL solutions, hold [...] forum and see what really works and then tell their leader to consider these well-founded solutions.
It does not affect the people of Melbourne other than giving them a new avenue to seek their answers. It will put the elected official on notice that people demand more, want to take part in the process of governing. Also the demand for greater transparency.
There are emerging technologies for participating democracy.
MiVote is one prominent technology using blockchain to enable secured voting. Since the model on how direct democracy is going to unfold, the technologies are catching up with the needs of the people.
For the first time in digital revolution, it is technology that is catching up with the people. In this case, it is the digital democracy platform trying to the catch up with the inspiration of the people. Other less sophisticated ones include WordPress with template UpVote.
((WN)) What do you think of one's right to privacy? Will the people of Melbourne have to compromise a part of their privacy to accommodate to your plans for the city?
((Wayne Tseng)) Australia has a very strong privacy protection law. By participating in the democracy platform, the people would not disclose much of their details other than:
- Their entity;
- The fact that they are [enrolled] as a voter for that electorate and;
- detail of their experience and their views.
((WN)) How would you ensure the digital platform you intend to deploy for residents to participate for the running of city is not misused? In what ways will you ensure only the residents of the city can use it? Will the platform use user's privacy respecting software?
((Wayne Tseng)) The model in which how this participating democracy works itself will also be debated. Of course, I will seed the initial model.
The initial model do not allow anonymous posts or vote. Every one [who] contributes must verify that they are registered voters against the voters roll in the election authority. The voting itself are base on block chain which is the most secure we now have.
The software will respect Australia privacy law.
((WN)) How do you plan to help those Melbournians who are in the economically weaker category?
((Wayne Tseng)) The homeless and people living below the poverty line are part of the Melbourne community. On policy, the council will rent back empty home to give temporary shelter to the homeless or reduce rental for those who are economically weaker.
((WN)) Statistics show number of crimes reported in various cities in Australia including Melbourne have increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. How do you plan on handling the COVID-19 pandemic? What policies would you introduce to reduce the rate of crimes in Melbourne?
((Wayne Tseng)) On my policy platform, we have advocate[d] for night safe zones, additional CCTV and patrols. We will work with the police department (run by the state government) to ensure they monitor the parts of the city that pose higher risks.
((WN)) Why do you think "Melbourne is poised to be a world city by 2030"? What are some of the things necessary for ensuring that comes true? What are some of the current barriers which may prevent that from happening? How would you remove those barriers?
((Wayne Tseng)) Australia is an island continent. It has the world largest iron, lithium, uranium and rare earth reserve[s]. It has the most agriculturally sound land. It has every geographical [feature] you can find [on] earth. There is enough land to support a population of 2 billion.
Melbourne like Sydney is a business, administrative and cultural centre. Yet it does not have the financial burden of being the largest city in Australia.
Melbourne can seize the opportunity to be administration centre of the new opportunities. From new opportunities comes [new] found wealth and city development.
But what is stopping the city is its old paper base bureaucracies. This is why I advocate full digital transformation of council processes and install new smart systems. I also advocate the development of a[n] e-engagement system which allow[s] new industries from overseas to quickly engage with the City of Melbourne.
((WN)) Tell us about "Guided Governing". How would that play out? Your campaign talks about Democracy 2.0. What are the things where democracy is currently failing? How do you plan to fix it?
((Wayne Tseng)) In the Democracy 1.0, the majority rules. If you are a minority, you[r] needs may not be addressed.
Melbourne is so much more than those issues raised by the mayoral candidates. The recovery needs to include everyone, not just those whose needs are on the candidates' policy platform.
Melbournians will no longer accept that if your needs are not on their agenda, [bad] luck try again in 4 years. A lot can happen in 4 years. One COVID-19 lesson is to address issues head on, fast and with well-founded solutions. We can see from Stage 4, there were mistakes — 50 mistakes as the Herald Sun reported.
We understand politicians are human, there is a limit to how much they know — especially career politicians. Melbournians as a collective can offer so much. Take my extensive policies. In fact, the list is much longer. These are real issues submitted by people at the ground level including suggestions by the people on my mini digital democracy platform.
For example, when Sally advocated for the expansion to Southbank Boulevard and big events, residents in Southbank already unhappy at sound levels rejected this completely. They advocate that the council should enforce a quiet zone after 10pm at residential areas. This is on my platform.
Melbournians can submit their observations of any failures. One election issue is the self-injecting room (I know it is the state government who put it there). While every candidate concedes having one near QVM [Queen Victoria Market] and near residential towers is bad, no candidate mentioned that there are dealers hovering 150 meters away supplying the goods creating an epicentre of drug deals around the self-injecting room. Chinese students living in EQ towers on A'beckett street reported this on my platform even if they are not voters.
You see citizen participating can also stop bad policy in its track, this is guided governing.
Melbournians can offer topics/suggestions that the candidates don't see. As a collective they have a greater foresight. In my policy document, topics discussed include:
- Reform how council rate is calculated — So many Melbournians discussed this topic and offer justification why it works and give real life examples. It is like having a virtual forum and running a proof of concept exercise. No other candidate discussed this. It is on my platform.
- Job, Job and Jobs. Most Melbourne business owners know old industries, particular retail will not return the same number of jobs. We need to attract new industries. Council can play a role in attracting new industries. We call this Jobweaver.
- The need for rapid digitisation and the establishment of an e-engagement platform to attract new industries and new business from overseas. Melbournians do business overseas like in Singapore. They experience the quick and easy way to establish presence in the city.
- Also a local city level outbreak detection and control team — Bug Busters. They saw such in Wuhan, HK [(Hong Kong)] and Singapore. [They] attribute to [it] keeping their numbers down. COVID-19 will not be the last.
These potential ideas and virtual forum findings can be submitted to the council chamber for councillors to debate guided by the evidence presented. Of course the current laws do not allow citizens to directly vote on council decisions. But Melbournians can conduct their votes on online polls. The result will show the councillors in the chamber the wish of the people. If they do not vote reflecting the wish of the people, they will know their [fate] come next election.
If I was to be elected, I will take gradual steps to introduce a platform for participation and direct vote.
My plan is to expand "Participate Melbourne " to empower Melbournians to
- submit their issues.
- submit their suggested solution.
- offer other ideas for the betterment of Melbourne.
- hold virtual forums.
- participate in online committees (Dan already legalise[d] online meetings for committees).
- participate in trials or proof-of-concept exercises.
It goes further:
- comment on council's own initiative or agenda.
- rate the performance or action of a councilor.
- report on policy failures (Herald Sun report of a socall park gate was a classic).
- While [they] can not directly vote on council decisions, they can vote in online polls to tell councillors the wish of the people.
((WN)) Why do you plan to make Melbourne Australia's capital?
((Wayne Tseng)) Melbourne was Australia capitol until 1927. Then it was moved to Canberra.
The indigenous people of Australia do have rights. But their identity and their rights are either suppressed or not encouraged.
I want to use Melbourne public space to be a place where the First Nations (Indigenous) people can hold their discussion forum. I want to have the map of their different tribes displayed in Town Hall.
I also want a day where we have the Indigenous festival.
((WN)) You have plans to create a city level disease detection swat unit and to install temperate and health check gates — how much time would it take to do it all across Melbourne? How much resources and funds are you planning to put behind the disease prevention of the city?
((Wayne Tseng)) I am [not(?)] privy to council records. So I don't have all the tools to calculate. But because the area that Melbourne City Council is small. I can work out the budget. I may budget to be the same that the city is spending now controlling the outbreak.
((WN)) Your manifesto also mentions reviewing "animal management plan" — could you tell us more about it?
((Wayne Tseng)) Pets are not support[ed] and unwanted in City of Melbourne. The current animal management plan advocates if lost pets are not claimed within a certain number of days they are killed.
Many people who moved from the suburbs to the city often left their pets on the streets. This is sad.
I think we should be compassionate. I will definitely review the pet plan and called it "Creatures big and small care plan".
((WN)) How do you plan to preserve the indigenous art and support multi-cultural aspect of the city?
((Wayne Tseng)) Mining companies frequently blasted sacred aboriginal sites destroying precious aboriginal artwork. Some of their art work are actually dumped in shipping containers. Melbourne has so many public galler[ies] and museums. They can be commission to preserve, store and exhibit aboriginal artworks.
((WN)) Given the owners profit from pairing up with Airbnb which hikes the house rent — what is your stance on Airbnb and similar short-stay rentals and their long-term effect on affordability?
((Wayne Tseng)) Airbnb and similar short-stay rental are [an] important source of income for city apartment landlords. Yet they are also a source of disturbances for residents. Residents deserve peace and enjoyment.
So Airbnb needs to be regulated. My plan is to have public consultation where all stakeholders get to have a say on the digital democracy platform and hold a virtual forum.
Some of the initial key consideration[s] include:
- [Give] building management greater powers to set standards.
- Apply standards to Airbnb and other booking agencies.
- Ensure new building[s] have setup for Airbnb access and landlord to meet strict requirements.
((WN)) What are some of the strongest criticisms you have received for your plans for Melbourne? How did those criticisms change your views?
((Wayne Tseng)) My policies for the city of Melbourne have been collectively suggested by talking to the people of Melbourne through my digital participating democracy platform. So they are populist policies. Few actually criticise them.
However, there is one major challenge. The current tension between Chinese and Australia fuel public speculation about why so many Chinese candidate. They are worried about foreign infiltration. While I enjoy pretty good coverage, many other Chinese/Asian candidates are being teased or harassed. Overall, this does not give a good public image for all Chinese/Asian candidates. Any voters who [do] not know me, may not vote for me because I have a Chinese face.
((WN)) If you had to vote for the current candidates other than yourself for this year's election, which three candidates would you vote for? Why?
((Wayne Tseng))
- Sally Capp — She has the experience as mayor and can ensure continuity of city's affairs.
- Aaron Wood — He was the deputy mayor and he is willing to stand up for the city's benefits from the next level up government — The State Government which has more over-arching power over the city.
- Greens — they are a popular party in Melbourne city CBD, their policies [have been] becoming less radical and more mainstream.
((WN)) What are some of the reasons people may not vote for Team Zorin?
((Wayne Tseng)) Reasons:
- We do not belong to the major parties (Liberal or Labor).
- We are not from the social elite (traditionally mayors were from big business person, link to major parties or social elite). The current mayor Sally Capp comes from political heritage linked to the Liberal Party. This is where this model does not fit the modern world. It is not fair that the seat of mayor always goes to the elite.
- We may be seen as inexperience[d] as none in our team have administer[ed] the City of Melbourne.
((WN)) In case if you do not win the election, what would be your next plan of action?
((Wayne Tseng)) [My] goal is to leverage on the friend and networks I have] developed to further advance participating democracy in Australia.
During the time as a candidate, I have used any publicity available to promote the concept. I have written to the following part[s] of society:
- To all Australia sitting politician and candidates,
- To all Australian media includ[ing] TV, radio and newspapers,
- To different cultural community groups,
- To different community and non profit organisation[s].
I hope to promote the concept to all level[s] of society so they will become more educated and understand its benefits. So when future government can enact direct vote, the great people of Australia can easily follow.
I will formally form a party called Zorin Australia which will attract member[s] across Australia through the democracy platform.
We will also gradually establish a nation-wide democracy platform where the great people of Australia continue to post their issues, solutions, vision, hopes and advise the government on the course of governing.
The various champions on the platform can be great candidate[s] to represent the people come next election.
((WN)) What do you think of world dominance?
((Wayne Tseng)) I do not believe in world dominance. The whole point of the participating democracy or Democracy 2.0 is to give the power to determine by the people.
The people collaborate in their own community. The different communities collaborate in a city. Cities collaborate in a state/provinces. Provinces collaborate in a country. Countries collaborate together as part of one cohesive entity.
Of course, this is a utopia that is not going to happen anytime soon. But it is a model that we hope where countries at different stage of readiness will adopt. Step by step humanity improves.
Imagine we have a new martian colony. What kind of government will we want to be there. We will likely want something like participating democracy, everyone['s] needs are address, everyone collectively decides. So if this is what is in the future, why can['t] we start to slow[ly] adopt this model today.
About multi-cultural aspects of Melbourne[edit]
((WN)) What does the demographic of Melbourne currently look like?
((Wayne Tseng)) According to 2016 census:
Children aged 0–14 years made up 3.8% of the population and people aged 65 years and over made up 5.1% of the population. Of people in Melbourne (State Suburbs) aged 15 years and over, 23.7% were married and 5.8% were either divorced or separated.
0.5% of the population, or 24,062 people, identified as Indigenous Australians (Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders) in 2016. Melbourne has the 10th largest immigrant population among world metropolitan areas. In Greater Melbourne at the 2016 census, 63.3% of residents were born in Australia.
((WN)) How do you plan on making Melbourne the Repository for Cultural Artefacts and Knowledge?
((Wayne Tseng)) I always believe knowledge is humanity['s] biggest achievement. Yet they are constantly be[ing] destroy[ed] by successive regime who see certain part do not align with their ideology. It happens all around the world.
But I [don't] want to be racist. I am Chinese. So I can comment on China. For a millenni[um] each imperial dynasty aim[ed] to destroy the knowledge and culture of those that were not compatible with their regime.
The biggest destruction was [by] the Qin (Chin) emperor when he unified China. Even to this day, the Chinese Cultural Revolution has further destroy[ed] what was traditional China.
File photo of Buddha's statue in Bamiyan, Afghanistan which was later destroyed.
Image: James Gordon.We see it in Afghanistan, Syria and even in Australia.
There are a large part of Australia society which love truth, knowledge and fairness.
Australia for the time being is very stable politically. The country geographic is stable with no earthquakes and volcanoes. Humidity is low and weather stable.
To sum it up, it is a country suitable to [store] artefact[s] and knowledge that are at risks in their host country. The benefit for Australia is that the world will come and see, bring[ing] tourism.
The artefacts will only be preserve[d] here with consent of the traditional owners.
((WN)) Are you aware of the GLAM (Galleries, Libraries, Archives and Museum) outreach project run by Wikimedia? Do you look forward to facilitating the outreach for mutual benefit? How would you facilitate that?
((Wayne Tseng)) I did not know until now. I understand what is GLAM. I think it can serve as a great preservation of culture, artefact while Wikipedia is for the preservation of knowledge. I will look into it in the future.
((WN)) What according to you is more important: Representation of minorities in the council or minority citizens getting a platform to express their needs, and grievances? Why? What are your plans to achieve that?
((Wayne Tseng)) It's democracy in Australia. The City administration changes after each election. Certain administration may be pro-minority, some may not. Some administration may have good minority representation, some may not.
So it is important that there is a platform which empowers the minority to post their needs and discuss their preferences. [By] law if issues are known, they need to be addressed by the government.
So it will be ideal that we get both good minority representation in government and the platform to support them. But the former can not be guaranteed.
((WN)) Why did you start eTranslate? What type of advice does it provide to the three tiers of government?
((Wayne Tseng)) eTranslate has two arms — the Technology arm — which focus on empowering technologies to support multicultural user needs and multilingual content.
The other is multicultural communication services — It is a like a Public Relation service but focus on ethnic groups. So our team provide this multicultural PR services to government. We empower the government clients with language resources, cultural expertises and ethnic media channel to interact with their ethnic minority constituents.
So we work with all levels of government.
((WN)) What are some of the problems ethnic minorities face in Melbourne?
((Wayne Tseng)) Due to low fertility rate, Australia has [to] constantly embark on increasing migration to top up its population. As such, there is a diverse set of ethnic minority groups in fact over 80. Australia treat[s] its minority well compare to other OECD [(Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development)] countries. But when you have so many group[s] competing for government priorities, it is hard to find a balance.
Most of the time, the larger minority group[s] gain more access to resources. This is why my participating democracy platform helps to ensure the needs of all minority groups are identified and addressed — Thus Precision Policies.
((WN)) What percentage of residents in Melbourne and Victoria are aboriginals?
((Wayne Tseng)) Melbourne 0.5%, Victoria 1.6%.
((WN)) Aboriginal population in Melbourne and in Victoria is very low as compared to other states. Why? And would it make sense to make Melbourne capital of Aboriginals when there aren't enough of them in the city?
((Wayne Tseng)) The distribution of indigenous people depends on a lot of factors. These again due to historical reasons that we can go on forever. The are tens of indigenous tribes across the country. Sadly some were hunted to extinction in the last century, particularly in Tasmania.
Mak[ing] a location a capital for the First Nations people will be symbolic rather than totally enshrine[d] in law. Ideally it would be best in the City of Darwin. But unless I was a mayor there, it may not happen.
So having [it] in Melbourne does allow some symbolic and provide a forum for the different tribes to gather and have open discussions.
The "capital" can rotate from city to city periodically if other cities allow. But ultimately it will be up to the elders to approve.
((WN)) How [do] you envision Melbourne would look like by 2025 under your mayorship?
((Wayne Tseng)) Each mayor term is 4 years, that takes it to 2024 at the latest. Realistically, Melbourne and Australia being a much smaller economy will take longer to recover from COVID-19.
So to be practical, we hope the city will attain the following by 2024-25:
- Melbourne recovers from the pandemic;
- Most business restored;
- City finances recover from the massive debt incurred;
- City fully digitised and ready to take on new opportunities;
- Residents can enjoy a safe, healthy and livable environment;
- Tourism flourish[es] again;
- New industries invest in Melbourne;
- Arts and Culture restored.
((WN)) If elected, what would constitute a successful mayorship for you?
((Wayne Tseng)) I believe what constitute a successful mayorship are
- To maintain the integrity and high standard expected from the office of Mayor;
- Implement the pledge made during the election;
- Be consultative to the community;
- Be proactive in responding to issues;
- Monitor the changing force at state, national and international level and prepare the city to meet those challenges;
- laid the foundation necessary to grow the city and protect it against unsavoury forces.
Further thoughts[edit]
Wayne Tseng also shared his insights on various things on how collaboration between the members of society,
((Wayne Tseng)) Just [to] summarise:
Since I was 10, I watched how the ant[s] collaborate. I asked how we people can collaborate further. In school, I appreciated competition bring creativity. But I also believe collaboration ensures not only creativity, but accountability, responsibility, integrity and productivity.
When I was in university, my computer studies focused on collaborative computing. My post graduate research was on software globalisation — again global collaboration.
My company eTranslate really aims to empower companies to go global while in Australia assist all ethnic minority groups collaborate and co-exist in harmony.
In politics, I seek to find a solution where we can reach consensus. It does not have to be LEFT or RIGHT, black or white. Democracy is one system that endures, but it is no longer acceptable to just say majority rules. This led me to participating democracy or Democracy 2.0.
Once can say — So my life experience really led me towards participating democracy or Democracy 2.0.
((Wayne Tseng)) Democracy 2.0:
When I gave presentation, I always said if there is a Mars Colony now, what kind of political system or government would you prefer: Authoritarianism, Communism, Fascism, Monarchy or Democracy?
If Democracy, do you want to be squeeze[d] to either the LEFT or the RIGHT or only majority rules? Or may be you want a collective government where the needs of everyone is addressed. So that's participating democracy. Now if that is the future, why don't we progress towards this TODAY.
I have developed an index to measure to what degree a country has adopted participating democracy. I share this in the future topic.
((Wayne Tseng)) Society 1.0:
While developing the model for participating democracy, I saw many institutions have refined processes and some have matured to a point where it is like a car. The [model], functions and overall attributes of a car is matured.
Imagine that we put all the attributes of an institution whether a health system, a hospital, a school or an education department in a bottle. We can deploy this to other countries that have [not] yet got such a matured setup.
Now imagine we got a whole matured community or city setup in bottle, this can be deploy to new city setup in the dessert or new settled land.
Now imagine after exchanging and further developing these setup. Eventually, like a car which is quite mature, we have a setup or definition of a city or SOCIETY that is almost universally accepted. I call this SOCIETY 1.0.
Democracy 2.0 can lead to SOCIETY 1.0. The ongoing debate of how to govern a society will lead to a universally agreed FORMAT/SETUP/DEFINITION of a SOCIETY.
During COVID-19, the ability of different medical centres to collaborate in the development and trialling of different vaccine candidates showed the need to standardise setup of clinics, hospital and even the health ministry. Those that are compatible and matured progressed further.
It will take a moment to sink it.
((Wayne Tseng)) Collectivism 1.0:
Collaboration and Collectivism if well structured or modelled can be the next BIG step in human achievement.
We see collaboration between students. Let say this has a productivity factor of 4 (where 1 is a person working on his own)
We see collaborat[ion] of different team[s] working together each focusing on a part of the problem. This has the productivity factor of 16.
However if there is [a] well defined guide to community collaboration where the high number of participants can explore all different permutation[s] of a problem, the productivity factor can be 256. Add in computation power. We are talking about a factor of 65,536. It will expand humanity achievements.
Back to my childhood observation — the numbers do count in creativity and productivity.
The holy grail is to find that magic collaboration model.
Sister links[edit]
Sources[edit]
- "Melbourne City Council election results 2016" — Victorian Election Commission, October 20, 2020 (date of access)
- "Results for Melbourne City Council Elections 2008" — Victorian Election Commission, October 20, 2020 (date of access)
- "Nominations" — Victorian Election Commission, October 19, 2020 (date of access)
- Moon Festival. "Team Zorin Make Melbourne the Capital Again" — YouTube, September 30, 2020
- Rachel Eddie. "The candidates competing for the keys to Melbourne Town Hall" — The Age, September 27, 2020
- "Police-recorded crime trends in Victoria during the COVID-19 pandemic" — Crime Statistics Agency, September 22, 2020
- Sally Capp. "Sally Capp - City of Melbourne" — Municipal Association of Victoria, June 2018
- Clay Lucas and Miki Perkins. "Robert Doyle quits as lord mayor of Melbourne" — The Age, February 4, 2018
- Frank Chung. "Chinese buyers 'frustrated' at property myths form Australian lobby group" — News.com.au, Jully 30, 2015
- "Derrimut - 2010 Victorian Election - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)" — Australian Broadcasting Corporation, December 6, 2010
- "Former Lib leader to stand for lord mayor" — Australian Broadcasting Corporation, October 28, 2008
External links[edit]
- "MiVote" — MiVote, October 19, 2020 (date of access)
-
"Team Zorin" — Team Zorin, October 19, 2020 (date of access)
- Wikinews interviews Don Blankenship, U.S. Constitution Party presidential nominee (2020/10/19 21:21)
Monday, October 19, 2020
Businessman Don Blankenship of West Virginia, the U.S. Constitution Party's 2020 presidential nominee, answered some questions about his campaign from Wikinews accredited reporter William S. Saturn.
Blankenship, reportedly nicknamed the "king of coal", was chairman and CEO of Massey Energy from 2000 to 2010. During his tenure, the 2010 Upper Big Branch Mine disaster occurred, which resulted in the deaths of 29 miners. A jury convicted Blankenship of misdemeanor conspiracy to violate safety standards willfully, and he received a one year prison sentence in 2016. He maintains his innocence and blames federal regulators for the disaster. After his release from prison, Blankenship ran unsuccessfully for the Republican Party's US Senate nomination in West Virginia. He subsequently sought the Constitution Party's nomination for President. At the virtual 2020 Constitution Party National Convention this past May, Blankenship won the party's nomination on the second ballot. He selected Michigan Taxpayers Party chairman William Mohr as his running mate. Mohr spoke about Blankenship with Wikinews in June, describing him as "a good man with vast knowledge in the political field [who] stands firm on his positions, aligns well with the party platform and has an abundance of ability to lead this nation in the direction it needs to go." Mohr lauded Blankenship's "ability to influence leaders around him" and claimed the nominee "has a backbone superior to most men and will be the strongest President we have seen in decades."
The Constitution Party was founded in 1991 as the U.S. Taxpayers Party. It changed to its current name in 1999. The party advocates states' rights, gun rights, limited government, protectionism, and non-interventionism. It strongly opposes abortion and illegal immigration. In 2016, the party's presidential nominee Darrell Castle received 203,091 votes (0.15 percent) with ballot access in 24 states. The Blankenship-Mohr ticket is on the ballot in 18 states with write-in access in a few others.
With Wikinews, Blankenship discussed his background, the COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on his campaign, what a Blankenship presidency would entail, and policy matters. Additionally, he delivered his final plea to voters ahead of Election Day.
Interview[edit]
Background & leadership[edit]
((WSS)) : Which past U.S. president(s) do you most admire and why?
- Blankenship: George Washington. Put his life where his mouth was.
((WSS)) : How have your past experiences prepared you for the job of President?
- Blankenship: I have dealt with the government and know its flaws. I have been poor. Rich. In federal prison. Defamed. And I have beat the evil of the establishment over and over. I know what we need to do if we are [to] save America from the politicians.
((WSS)) : How would you describe your style of leadership? How does it compare to the leadership styles of President Donald Trump and former President Barack Obama?
- Blankenship: My leadership is based on truth and conviction. I set the example by standing for what is right when what is right is not popular.
- [Neither] Trump nor Obama are leaders. They are misleaders.
Coronavirus pandemic & campaigning[edit]
((WSS)) : If you were president, how would you have handled the coronavirus pandemic differently than President Trump?
- Blankenship: I would have insisted that those with symptoms be quarantined. I would have protected the elderly and allowed the youthful strong to work.
((WSS)) : How has the pandemic affected your campaign and your ability to reach out to voters?
- Blankenship: The pandemic greatly limited our opportunity to gain ballot access. It is hard to get petition signatures when you cannot get within six feet of someone.
((WSS)) : In 2016, Constitution Party presidential nominee Darrell Castle received 203,091 votes, a record for the party. Based on your general feeling on the ground, about how many votes do you expect to receive in the 2020 election?
- Blankenship: We should do some better. But were we on the ballot in West Virginia, Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania; we would have gotten twice the votes we will now get.
Blankenship presidency[edit]
((WSS)) : What would a Blankenship administration look like? Which specific individuals would you ask to be in your cabinet?
- Blankenship: It would look smaller as we would have fewer cabinet positions. The cabinet would be made up of individuals who have not worked in government before but rather individuals from outside DC who have had to reckon with the government.
((WSS)) : Who would you nominate to the Supreme Court? Would you apply any litmus tests? Should the number of justices remain at nine?
- Blankenship: Constitutional loyal judges. The only litmus test would be whether their prior decisions were based in law or politics.
((WSS)) : As president, how would you work with Congress to avoid gridlock and pass your agenda?
- Blankenship: Common sense pressure. No drama allowed. No hyperbole allowed. Facts not fantasy.
Policy[edit]
((WSS)) : What should be done, from the government's perspective, to combat global climate change?
- Blankenship: Nothing. Our country has much more pressing and certain challenges than climate change. We need to save America before we engage in preventing a half degree increase in temperature in the next century.
((WSS)) : What are your views on the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan? What would you do as president to help resolve the conflict and how does that comport with your overarching philosophy on foreign affairs?
- Blankenship: We need to stop policing the world and allow other countries to manage their own affairs. We need to withdraw our troops from all but a very few foreign countries. Armenia and Azerbaijan should be given the freedom to solve their own issues.
((WSS)) : Are you concerned about the deplatforming and social media censorship of notable conservatives and libertarians? How would you address this issue as president?
- Blankenship: Free speech has to be fully protected unless it endangers others or is clearly defamatory. Social media platforms should be just that. They provide electronic assembly of the people. They enable what the Constitution calls freedom of assembly.
- There should be no censoring other than profane and similar talk.
((WSS)) : What can you do, as president, to improve race relations in the United States?
- Blankenship: Stop granting "privileges" to one race which impede on the "rights" of another race. Equalize education but by neighborhood not by race. Recognize that there are more poor white people than black people. Accept that the problem is mostly a black issue not a race issue. Use facts, not drama and rhetoric, as the basis for action. End illegal immigration.
Final plea[edit]
((WSS)) : Election Day is quickly approaching and early voting has already started in some states. What is your final plea to voters?
John F. Kennedy at his inauguration: "Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country."
Image: CWO Donald Mingfield.- Blankenship: My final plea to voters is to understand that all your rights, your American way of life, your medical care, and your kids' future depend on America's survival. [President John F.] Kennedy's words are critical if we are to remain a bastion of freedom: "Ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country."
Related articles[edit]
- "On the campaign trail in the USA, May 2020" — Wikinews, June 19, 2020
- "Wikinews interviews former Congressman Virgil Goode, Constitution Party presidential candidate" — Wikinews, February 27, 2012
Sources[edit]
- "Ballot Access" — Constitution Party (United States), October 15, 2020 (accessed)
- Richard Winger. "Wyoming Keeps Don Blankenship Off Ballot Due to a Paperwork Error" — Ballot Access News, September 9, 2020
- Richard Winger. "South Carolina Constitution Party Will Not Have a Presidential Candidate" — Ballot Access News, August 26, 2020
- Richard Winger. "Constitution Party of New Mexico Nominates Sheila “Samm” Tittle for President" — Ballot Access News, May 19, 2020
- Howard Berkes. "Convicted Coal Mine CEO Is Taking His Case To The U.S. Supreme Court" — NPR, May 11, 2017
-
Kara Van Pelt. "Former U.S. coal CEO gets year in prison for blast that killed 29" — Reuters, April 6, 2016
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