Going To Mars Was The Easy Part September 27, 2018September 26, 2018 Take six minutes to be dazzled by what we humans, and specifically we Americans, have been able to do (thanks, Mel!) . . . and then as much time as you need to figure out why we haven’t been able to manage something seemingly less complex: how to live with each other with kindness, making rational decisions and reasonable compromises. (Steps in that direction: redistricting to give moderates a better chance . . . instant run-off voting, to empower third parties without unintended consequences . . . nullifying the Electoral College to accept majority rule . . . restoring earmarks (up to 1% of the federal budget) to lubricate deal-making and cooperation across party lines* . . . replacing caucuses with primaries and making it as easy as possible to vote in primaries, to lessen the influence of those with the most extreme views . . . overturning Citizens United and McCutcheon to lessen the distorting influence of big money . . . teaching civics — and science and logic — to give the voters of tomorrow the education they need to make sensible choices.) *It’s not as though every earmarked dollar is wasted; and if your representative does fund a dumb project, vote him out of office!