1. Free the People: Justice 101
The Batman/Batwoman Project
Understand this basic system change + we can lighten everyone‟s load.
Overnight. We need PEACE and we need it now.
2. Time
The Mayan‟s predicted the end of an era – ushering in a new period of peace on earth.
But where‟s the peace?
The world is a mess. A global financial crisis. Rat race over money and land. Idlenomore,
Montreal student protests, Occupy. We‟re inundated with anti-corporate messages. Why?
Because there is something inherently wrong in the system.
We‟ve acquired so much information in the Information Age, but we haven‟t stopped
long enough to use that information for good, especially in the area of justice/the
economy.
2013 will be the year of truth, justice + accountability – a new era of peace in society + the
economy.
Why? Because the internet + social media have shifted the balance of power from big
business back to the people – where it should have been all along…And the people are
demanding more. They want industry to work for them, not against them.
3. Martin Luther King Day
Yesterday we celebrated a man who lived and
breathed the ideals of peace, equality and freedom.
From his April 4, 1967 "Beyond Vietnam" speech:
“When machines and computers, profit motives and
property rights are considered more important than
people, the giant triplets of racism, militarism and
economic exploitation are incapable of being conquered."
4. Justice 101
Well, I also have a dream – and I believe it can be
accomplished very shortly. I‟m setting the deadline as
Valentine‟s Day. As cheesy/consumerist a holiday as
that has become, the whole world organizes for a day of
love on that day, let‟s stop this sinking capitalist ship for
once and for all. Because the end does not justify the
means. Stop and look around the world, terrorists (ahem,
tourists, I mean). You may be blitzing all over the globe
on the company dime but you‟re killing the world. We
can‟t keep up.
The industry that keeps us the most enslaved to debt?
The mortgage industry. An industry with which I‟m
intimately familiar.
5. Unite
Yesterday, President Obama urged Americans to
unite. And that is truly the key. Once we unite as
fellow citizens of a country on one common issue,
then we can see fundamental change. And
fundamental change is clearly what we need.
This is not about politics, this is about maximizing
life and minimizing stress. For all people. Allowing
people to regain their freedom again.
Remember: Human-made problems can be human-
fixed. (With a little imagination!)
6. Perspectives on Justice
Perspective is everything. A couple of perspectives:
1. Corporate/Law & Order
Preserve the status quo – rarely, if ever, question the
capitalist system, especially not its bedrock – the
private property system
2. The Hippy
Questions the status quo – including the capitalist
system and its effects on the people and the planet
7. Hippies
Nowadays, we‟re all hippies. Anti-corporate sentiment
is running high and it‟s not going away. We all want a
system that puts people first + profits second.
But the corporate model – profits first, people second -
has been the primary model…Until now. Until the
internet + social media have shifted the balance of
power in favour of the people.
8. Change is Good
In fact, it is inevitable.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same
thinking we used when we created them.” – Albert
Einstein
Human-made problems can be human-fixed. If you
have just an ounce of an imagination.
9. Justice 101
The Western notion of justice is a concept of moral
rightness based on ethics, rationality, law, natural
law, religion or equity. It is also the act of being just
and/or fair. - Wikipedia
Goal: Put people first and profits second. Stop the
overwhelming debt burden that keeps us all
running on this rat race we call life.
10. The Batman/Woman
Project
Understand these few things:
1. The people are the majority. So despite what
anyone says, they have the power to trump the
minority in power. They just do. It‟s simple math.
2. The only way the people can exercise this power
is if they unite on one common issue and vote on it.
Direct democracy/internetocracy – a new era of
accountability and direct civic engagement. Why
not? We all have a voice, we all have ideas.
11. Change.org
To vote for change, sign up at Change.org.
This is the site that will really help “change the
world”. It‟s grassroots all the way, but it will work!
Vote on the campaigns by Creative Justice + others
12. What is the Law?
It is a system of rules enforced through social
institutions to govern behaviour. It shapes politics,
economics, and society in countless ways and serves
as a social mediator of relations between people. –
Wikipedia.
The law affects nearly every aspect of our lives
everyday. They are supposed to be aimed at
ensuring fairness, so that stronger groups do not
use their powerful positions to take advantage of
weaker groups.
13. Can the People
Change the Law?
In law school, they teach us that the law is an evolving
tree. It evolves to meet the needs of people and society
and to reflect a greater understanding in society
(Wikipedia).
Law School Motto - “Through Law to Justice”: The law is
meant to be a pathway to justice, not an end in itself.
“Each of us has a part in ensuring the law works
properly and justice is done”
(http://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/dept-
min/pub/just/img/courten.pdf).
14. Principles of Equity
When the strict application of the law is too harsh, the
law can be supplemented by principles of equity.
“Equity is commonly used to „mitigate the rigor of
common law‟, allowing courts to use their discretion and
apply justice in accordance with natural law.” –
Wikipedia
One of the Maxims of Equity:
Equity will not suffer a wrong to be without a remedy
When seeking an equitable relief, the one that has been
wronged has the stronger hand.
15. Natural Law
“Natural law is a system of law that is purportedly
determined by nature, and thus universal. Natural
law is contrasted with positive law ("man-made
law”, not "good law";) of a given political
community, society, or nation-state, and thus serves
as a standard by by which to criticize said positive
law.” – Wikipedia
“Natural justice has largely been replaced and
extended by the more general „duty to act fairly‟.” -
Wikipedia
16. The Universal Declaration
of Human Rights
Natural law/principles of equity can be pulled from
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights:
Formally adopted by the U.N. on December 10, 1948
The most universal human rights document in
existence, delineating the thirty fundamental rights
that form the basis for a democratic society.
Today, the Declaration is a living document that has
been accepted as a contract between a government
and its people throughout the world.
17. The Universal Declaration
of Human Rights
Article 1.: All human beings are born free and equal in
dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and
conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit
of brotherhood
Article 3.: Everyone has the right to life, liberty and
security of person
Article 4.: No one shall be held in slavery or servitude;
slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their
forms
Full Text:
http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/index.shtml
18. Purpose of Government
What is the purpose of the government?
“To enable the people of a nation to live in safety
and happiness. Government exists for the interests
of the governed, not for the governors.” - Thomas
Jefferson
The government are the lawmakers, so shouldn‟t we
just trust them to create policy + laws to fix our
problems?
19. The Issue: An Inherent
Conflict of Interest
The profit motive has created an inherent conflict of
interest between those in government – those
entrusted with protecting the interests of the people
- and those in the corporate world – those who
effectively govern society.
The lawyers – those entrusted with promoting
ideals of justice - are mostly busy practicing law.
They are firmly entrenched in a system that never
questions the private property land system.
20. Above the Law
Batman was above the law, but it was for a good
cause = to protect the people.
The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives agrees
that “Parliament (is) no longer the place to fight for
a just society”
They say “In this current phase of the fight for true
democracy, the arena is in the streets, not in the
legislatures.”
http://www.policyalternatives.ca/publications/moni
tor/parliament-no-longer-place-fight-just-society
21. The Need for Reform
3 million Canadians are living in poverty.
Children, youth, single parents, Aboriginal
Canadians, recent immigrants, people with
disabilities and seniors feel the hardest hit.
Why? Because we‟ve built up this corporate shield
where the poor can‟t access the things they need
because it would negatively affect the bottom line.
The problem is the bottom line is the wrong line.
22. The Mortgage Industry
The mortgage industry is the industry that enslaves us all to
the greatest burden of debt, but it serves no socially useful
purpose in society.
In fact, throughout history, this industry has been loathed as
being ETHICALLY WRONG. By all religions, in fact! There
was a little leeway in the Hebrew Scriptures, but even the Jews
were punished for staying within those guidelines.
If the mortgage industry serves no socially useful purpose in
society, in fact it is one of the greatest harms to society, then
why does it exist? Is it a necessary evil?
No. If we change the model of corporate governance, we can
change the industry so that it benefits all of us. Overnight.
23. Shareholder Model of
Corporate Governance
Current Model:
Bottom Line: Maximize Profits for Shareholders
Shareholders = Shareholders
people who own Directors & Officers (D&O)
Employees
shares in mortgage Brokers/Agents/Realtors
lending Landlords
companies Homeowners (aka
Mortgage Holders)
Renters
Down & Out (D&O)
24. Shareholder Model of
Corporate Governance
Even Donald Trump admits that all corporations are
pyramids. And that is the problem. The few at the
top benefit, while the many at the bottom suffer
from the effects of a system that they are effectively
cut out of.
This was the image the Mayans were trying to get
through my thick skull all these years!!! It truly is
the key.
25. Stakeholder Model of
Corporate Governance
New Model:
Bottom Line: Maximize Benefits for all Stakeholders
Who are the stakeholders?
All people in a country are All stakeholders vote to lay
stakeholders in the off the mortgage debt
mortgage industry, either collectors, eliminating
directly as borrowers or mortgage debt at its root.
indirectly as renters. Resulting in a benefit to all
Virtually, everyone in stakeholders – no mortgage
a country. or rent payments ever again.
Real estate = common estate;
The biggest portion of our
debt burden is eliminated.
We have time to pursue our
dreams again.
26. Pros of Mortgage Industry
Financially benefits the small minority who are
shareholders in the mortgage industry
Provides jobs to the directors, officers, employees,
and mortgage/real estate brokers/agents in the
industry
Provides income to landlords, with the vast majority
of that income going back to the mortgage lenders
(until the mortgage is paid down)
27. Cons of Mortgage Industry
Mortgage and rent payments burden all citizens of a
country, with the single largest burden of debt that we
all face. We spend the majority of our lives working to
pay down this debt. But the debt never goes away.
The mortgage industry is not serving a socially useful
purpose in society. It was considered ethically wrong
when it was developed. Now it is considered an atrocity,
a system that prevents people from living in foreclosed
homes – because we‟ve always done it that way.
C‟MON!!! DO YOU SEE HOW WRONG THAT IS??
28. Political Science 101
The #1 principle in developing good policy:
Consider, whether the end justifies the means.
In the mortgage industry, the end goal – making $
for the shareholders, providing a small minority
with jobs – does not justify the means – enslaving us
all to debt for our entire lives.
Think of all the social problems that stem from the
fact that we all need to make end‟s meet – to pay
our mortgage/rent payments
29. The Ethics of the Mortgage
Industry
For centuries upon centuries, the mortgage lenders
have been criticized in popular culture. The
Medieval Times was when Robin Hood was first
introduced. Virtually all the common people were
opposed to it at the time, but they stuck to its rule.
Why were they opposed to it? It violates the basic
tenet of all religions – karma – love one another –
what you sow, you will reap…
30. Campaigns
Go toCreative Justice‟s Change.org site to vote for
fundamental change in the mortgage industry = no
more mortgage or rent payments ever again.
http://www.change.org/en-
CA/organizations/creative_justice
Canada
United States
More countries to be added as the movement spreads
31. Creative Justice
Creative Justice is a Social Justice Think Tank based in
Toronto, Ontario.
We are a group of independent thinkers committed to
proposing real + efficient solutions to solve the global
economic crisis.
Our vision is to make industry socially useful again.
One industry at a time.
Be the change you want to see in the world. – Gandhi
32. Contact Us
We welcome your ideas, feedback and questions.
Email us at creativejustice8@gmail.com
Text us at 416-576-8424