Momentum was building as more people throughout the country heard about O.U.T.R.A.G.E. Most people were conflicted; while they abhorred what this collective group of "rebels" had done, they - somewhat apprehensively - also agreed that it was the only way to dramatically change the wickedness of what America had become. Unmitigated greed, vulgar displays of power and wealth, and an unhuman-like selfishness had taken over the country's leadership of both the political and societal elements of the United States. "We the People..." no longer were the power, no longer even had a presence, and certainly had no equitable representation within the national culture. It was time to take away the power and give it back to the people. To do that demanded a quick and definitive change. It had taken generations for this oppression to overtake the country. The power brokers, the wealthy, and the influential certainly would not simply submit to social changes that would take away everything they'd so mercilessly crawled after over the course of their greedy lifetimes. Immediate action that cut off the And, to take away the power, the first order of business was to take away the money. By establishing new resolutions as guidelines for an more moral and compassionate country, control of the money - and the power - had to be wrested away from the wealthy in one decisive, determined - and, yes, violent - twist of fate.

Now, as the fourth daily teleconference in as many days opened, several hundred more O.U.T.R.A.G.E. "revolutionaries" joined their compatriots on the stage. Facing the cameras with an unusual directness, viewers at the thousands of sites all over America watched for any signs of potential danger. Could any of these hundreds of "rebels" be part of a sinister plan to take control of the country and turn it into a dictatorial regime? Somehow, viewers seemed to sense a trustworthiness on the part of this group. For all intents and purposes, they appeared to be true patriots, committed to giving America back to the "common people". Abraham Lincoln was credited as saying, "God must have loved the common man, because he made so many of them."

Behind this expanding assembly of O.U.T.R.A.G.E. followers was the glaring red LED sign. Today, the results of yesterday's vote were already posted for all viewers to see:

ARTICLE III. RESOLUTION: REVISE THE INCOME TAX SYSTEM TO BE MORE EQUITABLE AND LESS COMPLEX.
TOTAL NUMBER OF VOTES CAST: 761,991
TOTAL NUMBER OF "YEA" VOTES: 640,812
TOTAL NUMBER OF "NAY' VOTES: 121,179

An 84% plurality. It appeared obvious: Americans were not pleased with the convoluted, complex tax system devised over the years to favor Congressional friends and "stick it" to the rest of the taxpaying public. Lobbyists, special interest groups, wealthy elitists, and rich corporations had seen to it that they didn't pay nearly as much tax as the poor slob trying to feed his family of four on a lousy minimum wage.

From the corner of the room, a cheerful red-haired woman approached the camera. "My name is Ellie," she announced, "and I'm an RN (registered nurse) from Delaware. From the time I was in high school, I wanted to become a nurse and help the sick. It was, in my girlish opinion, the very best job anyone could ever want. When I graduated from nursing school, I worked for two local hospitals, and have also worked for several doctors over the years. The state of health care in this great, rich country is appallingly unacceptable. Millions of families go without health insurance or proper medical care. Millions more see their savings and assets completely washed away after the costs of a major illness or medical procedures forces them into bankruptcy. Yet, insurance companies pay their executives lavish salaries, bonuses and retirement plans. Congress has its own special medical plan, probably the very best health care in the world. Doctors earn excessive salaries as they've become nothing more than legal drug pushers for the huge pharmaceutical companies. I respectfully submit these fresh alternatives for a popular vote:

ARTICLE IV. RESOLUTION: NATIONALIZE THE HEALTH CARE SYSTEM SO THAT EVERYONE GETS GOOD MEDICAL CARE.

"It's time to revamp the entire health care system in America so that every individual can afford to get sick. This is something that can easily be accomplished if it were not for the powerful resistance from the American Medical Association, the health insurance industry, and lobbyists hired by the pharmaceutical manufacturers. Billions of dollars are wasted every year on a cumbersome health care program that is unfair and irrational. We believe we've eliminated the voracious appetites of this most repugnant collection of hypocrites who claim they're here to help save lives when, indeed, they often end up costing lives. The national headquarters of the AMA, and many offices of the largest insurance carriers and pharmaceutical companies now lie in ruins. Many of these organizations' leaders have been killed.

From these ashes of destruction, we can rebuild and create a new health care system in America that benefits the patients instead of lining the pockets of those in control of the powerful health care monopolies. We are proposing that ALL doctors, nurses, pharmacists, health care providers, and medical technicians are nationalized. Similar in scope to former President Ronald Reagan did with striking air traffic controllers, these medical practitioners would not be government employees, but would be "unionized" and subject to the rules, regulations, and sanctions of a government-imposed supervisory organization that would not allow strikes, work slow-downs or excessive profiteering. All of these people would be compensated at standard government pay grades. Nurses, doctors, and all others in the medical field would be paid the very same pay as a U.S. soldier, U.S. Congressman, or government employees, based on levels of expertise, experience, tenure, and responsibility.

Insurance companies, pharmaceutical manufacturers and hospitals would all be subject to government-regulated pre-determined conditions of profitability. Any excessive profits would be deposited into a pool reserved for catastrophic medical debts incurred by U.S. citizens. Excessive profits could not be used for outlandish executive bonuses, perks or buyouts. With the income tax system simplified, the IRS will be given full responsibility for monitoring these industries to ensure that no company, independent physician, or health care provider

The 'experts' will holler that this discriminates against free enterprise and will result in no motivation to compete without the basic capitalism incentive to profit. We disagree: we believe it will minimize the pool of workers, keeping only those who are genuinely dedicated to providing medical care for the sick and the disabled without consideration of the profit motive. For years, nurses have been the unsung heroes of the medical profession, earning paltry wages while doing more of the 'grunt work' than any doctor might ever even imagine. Health care should be an institution of skilled compassion and love without regard to how much money one earns. Those that are in it just "for the money" will quickly find other ways to make a living where they don't have to be such giving souls.

Yes, this is but a 'rough draft' and will certainly require fine-tuning before it becomes a formal reolution that ultimately becomes law. But it's a start. No doctors, pharmaceutical profiteers, or insurance industry experts will be seated on the committee that eventually writes this proposed legislation. It will all be the conceptualization of common everyday citizens.

A universal health care system would cover every household in America.
We are recommending that all citizens be subject to a 10% deductible, based on total household income. For example, if your household income is $35,000 per year, you would pay the first $3,500.00 for medical care before your nationalized health coverage kicked in. If your household earned $3,500,000.00 per year, you would pay the first $350,000.00 for medical care before your nationalized health coverage kicked in. For those households earning less than $35,000 per year, free medical clinics would be available for minor illnesses, routine doctor visits and check-ups, or emergency services. Those households earning more than $35,000 per year would have access to these clinics at nominal costs.

These clinics would not be included as part of the standard household deduction. They would also be utilized as centers for preventive medicine with the objective being to keep people from getting sick in the first place. Health seminars and special programs would be sponsored for the benefit of all citizens.

There will be people who will scream, 'This could cost tens of billions of dollars! It will bankrupt America!' Our response is basic: 'If we can spend tens of billions of dollars on war, we can spend tens of billions of dollars on keeping our citizenry happy and healthy and protect them from the outrageous rip-offs of the profit-mongering health care monopolies.'

The health care industry has conspired to make us believe they're justified in charging $100 for one pill, or billing Medicaid $22,000 for a simple medical procedure. We've been ripped off for years while executives, stockholders, and poltiicans milk the generla public and savor the excessive profits. It's time to put a stop to such rapacious and repugnant egoism.

I urge you all to use the portable devices provided to cast your vote. Furthermore, I urge all of you to seriously contemplate getting involved in O.U.T.R.A.G.E. and our patriotic movement. Our lime-green buttons symbolize a 'fresh start', in which we envision more common-sense approaches to government, more attention to environmental and ecological issues, and - most importantly of all - more equality for the common citizens in this marvelous United States. Thank you for your support and consideration. Our website has been overwhelmed with your e-mails. We understand how so many of you believe what we did was unforgiveable. But we ask you to remember that this is how the American Revolution started, and how - 232 years ago - on July 4, 1776, we declared independence from the British monarchy. Many colonists were revolted by the thought of a revolution then; many did not support the rebellion; many weren't really even aware of what was happening until the war started and the killing spread. We of O.U.T.R.A.G.E. see ourselves as the same kind of rebels in a contemporary setting. We knew millions would not agree with our strategy. But hundreds of thousands of us meticulously planned this revolution down to the very last detail, using our own money and quietly recruiting others as we moved forward. The use of high technology certainly aided us in the wholesale destruction of government buildings, corporate properties, and - yes - human life. In the years to come, we hope you will find it in your hearts to understand our reasons. It is our goal to make America a better place for the 'common' citizen and eliminate the malevolency that power, money and status creates. Thank you."

As voters across the country began pressing buttons on hand-held portable voting devices, the screen went black. Another day was done; a fifth vote would take place tomorrow.