Connor the Activist

Welcome to my website! I am on a mission to change the world for the better. I believe we are long overdue for a world built on universal justice, and this website is dedicated to said vision.

My petitions encompass several different topics, but all are tied to the same greater goal: creating a world where justice is a guaranteed human right rather than a privilege for a select few.

None of my causes have ulterior motives. Many would have no impact on me at all. With my website, you can stop guessing and start yessing!

Change begins when we raise our voices together. By signing these petitions and sharing them with other potential signers, you can help push us all closer to the bright future we deserve: a future rooted in fairness.

You can sign any or all of my petitions, free of charge. It’s as easy as filling out a form!

The Causes

Please excuse the mess! My website is in the middle of an exciting update.
I am in the process of adding pledges as well as petitions, so you can support the broader principles as well as the individual ideas.
I have started to add a numbering system. This serves to divide my website into manageable chunks.

This is not a definitive list. More causes are on the way! (If there’s no link, the cause is decided but the petition isn’t ready yet.)

Pledge 0: Universal Justice
I believe we are overdue for a completely just world. All of my causes are connected to this goal.

Class 1: Future Stability and Fundamental Rights

Subclass 1A: Global & Systemic Justice

1A1. Unite For Justice
We need a global government. The upsides would be many; the downsides would be very few.
A global government could vastly improve quality of life in so many ways. For the first time in living memory, world peace would be a reasonable short-term goal. It would be far easier to make major environmental reforms, manage scarce resources, end discrimination, and enforce progressive policies. We (as a global society) could tax the rich while making capital flight a moot point.

1A2. No Need for Greed
Corruption should be banned. It’s a major reason some countries become poor and/or stay underdeveloped. Even in developed countries, it’s a reason many court rulings are blatantly unjust.

1A3. Forward, Not Back
Rights and freedoms should never be allowed to be revoked, only added. In a healthy legal system, the options are A) fast progress or B) slow progress. Not backward progress. North Korea and Afghanistan are the ultimate cautionary tales.

1A4. Regret But Don’t Forget
Past victims of injustices (or their heirs) deserve to be compensated. The injustices themselves should not be forgotten, but the narratives should be revised to reflect progressive thinking: “systemic racism was wrong to begin with“, “the right was repealed illegitimately“, “this person was wrongfully elected into power”, and so forth.

Subclass 1B: Democratic Process

1B1. Let’s All Put it to a Vote!
Direct democracy is better than representative systems. (Especially with a preset constitution to prevent regression and other injustices.)

1B2. Don’t Misuse Democracy
Some decisions should be decided separately by the individuals (i.e. each for themselves), not democratically by the group.

Subclass 1C: Economic & Material Justice

1C1. The True Right to Life!
Capitalism should only apply to luxuries, not life essentials. (Note that I am not advocating communism. Free markets should continue to exist for luxury items.) This would align with the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

1C2. Capitalism Needs a Cap!
There should be wealth caps for both people and businesses. An individual’s maximum net worth should be (tentatively) $30 million, subject to adjustments for inflation and perhaps individual circumstances. For businesses, the limit would have to depend on the company’s nature. (But at the very least, a just legal system would force Amazon to scale back!)
Many people are saying prosperity is the quintessential answer to the question, “What are we no longer in the golden age of?” This reform would serve to make the benefits of a modern, developed society more egalitarian instead of concentrating them among the top less-than-1%.

1C3. Rich … in Responsibilities
Fines should be proportional to the offender’s income and assets.

1C4. Emergencies and Premium Passes Don’t Mix
Essential services should be structured so that no amount of wealth entitles someone to faster access or preferential outcomes.

Subclass 1D: Criminal Justice

1D1. Open Prisons, Open Doors
Prisons should be rehabilitative instead of strictly punitive. Counterintuitively, it would be cheaper in the long run.

1D2. Parole Should Mean Peace
Post-parole or post-release restrictions, when necessary, should be minimal. The end of imprisonment should be the end of the nightmare, not the beginning!

1D3. Justice Beyond Arrest
Victims of theft and other crimes should automatically be entitled to compensation. (For example, if a stolen item is damaged or not found within a timely manner, the victim should receive the cash value of the item.) This could be funded by confiscating the high-value assets of criminals serving 2 years or more.

1D4. Compensation for Past Losses
As soon as asset confiscation permits (perhaps supplemented by crowdfunding), “universal insurance” should be a right for all law-abiding citizens. This would include ex post facto compensation for lost or misplaced assets up to a certain value. even if they were possibly not stolen.

1D5. Keep Lawsuits Cheap
Pain and suffering lawsuits should be replaced with predetermined maximum amounts of trauma compensation. Rich victims should receive less compensation than poor ones. (Canada has seen 5- and occasionally 6-figure settlements over nothing more than hurt feelings. This is unambiguously excessive.)

1D6. Why Waste Valuable Court Time?
If someone is indisputably guilty (e.g. if a murderer or a thief is caught on camera) they should go through the fastest possible trial. In some cases, court date waits (even in Canada) are up to three years. This is unacceptable. (These long waits are part of why I once thought court hours should be extended, but I now know why this would be impractical. Police need weekends and nights to examine the evidence.)

Subclass 1E: Healthcare

1E1. We Care About Healthcare!
Canada’s healthcare system should be expanded to cover dental, mental, vision, pharmacare, prosthetics, and restorative surgery, complete with compensation for past payers. Non-restorative cosmetic surgery should not be made free, but should at least be at-cost.

1E2. Disease Doesn’t Dillydally
Patients should have the right to reasonable wait times.

1E3. Organs Save Lives
Organ donation should be opt-out rather than opt-in. (Perhaps opt-outs should be allowed for religious reasons only.)

1E4. Smoke is No Joke
Tobacco should be banned once and for all, with religious and cultural exemptions only.

Class 2: Environmental Reforms

2A1. Renew Your Hopes
Renewables should be increased as quickly as possible.

2A2. On a Mission Against Emissions!
Pollutants should be strictly limited and gradually phased out.

2A3. Water is Wonderful
Water conservation laws should target corporations first and then people. Solar stills and dew collectors should also be more widespread.

2A4. Litter Bugs Us All
Measures should be taken to reduce waste: increased littering/pollution fines, packaging regulations, better recycling and composting laws, and more receptacles.

2A5. Cities Should be Pretty, Not Gritty
This includes increased urban green spaces, green building design, mixed-use developments, better transit, and better walkability. Car-dependent design is fundamentally outdated.

2A6. Geese and Desist!
Nuisance animals should be (non-lethally) removed from cities, especially if they are a public health hazard. (My argument will use Canada geese as an example, but will certainly not be limited to them.)

2A7. Fostering the Forest
Selective logging, seed bombing, and polyculture, including alternating swaths of conifers and fruit trees wherever possible.

2A8. Habitat is Where it’s At
Habitat protections, including pollinator protections such as bee gardens.

2A9. Know Green to Go Green
Eco-education should be widespread.

Class 3: Freedom of Information & Expression

Subclass 3A: Information & Education

3A1. Information is not a Luxury
All education should be free, complete with compensation for past buyers. The only exception should be court-ordered reeducation/training programs, e.g. for people who fail to pick up after their pets. (As one wise person said, “The best way to teach is to waste their time and their money!”)

3A2. Education for Acceptance
Racism, sexism, ableism, homophobia, transphobia, and other forms of discrimination have existed for too long, by which I mean at all.

3A3. Bullying Belongs Nowhere
Bullying has definitely overstayed its welcome in this world. There should be stricter penalties for bullies, especially adults who bully children. And more importantly, widespread education against bullying.

3A4. Science, Not Defiance
Flat earthers, anti-vaxxers, and other science deniers should be gently reeducated.

3A5. Education for Safer Sex
Sex education should be comprehensive while giving abstinence appropriate emphasis.

3A6. Proper Parenting
Parenting classes should be more widespread.

3A7. Bad Dog? No, Bad Human!
Some pet owners need to be trained.

3A8. The Sweet Smell of Nothing
People who wear excessive perfume and cologne should be gently guided to go easy on the scents, for the sake of allergy sufferers and people with sensitive noses. (Excessive scent use is mostly a post-COVID problem.)

3A9. A Kick in the Can’t’s
Cynicism and apathy toward injustice are major enemies of progress. Everyone should be encouraged to have a positive, can-do attitude.

Subclass 3B: Speech & Expression

3B1. Freedom Within Reason
Hate speech has no rightful place.

Class 4: Autonomies & Freedoms

Subclass 4A: Bodily Autonomy

4A1. Hands Off!
We need better measures against assault.

4A2. Pro-Choice, All the Way!
Full reproductive freedom includes abortion on demand, male and female sterilization on demand, and widespread availability of contraceptives.

4A3. Honest Fertility
It should be illegal to lie about one’s fertility, use of contraceptives, etc.

Subclass 4B: Family Law Reforms

4B1. Adoption Without Abandonment
Parents should have access to anonymous adoption programs.

4B2. Surrogacy Sucks
Surrogacy should be banned once and for all. It commodifies children and commercializes pregnancy. (“Altruistic only” laws, like Canada’s, are noble in principle but impossible to enforce. There is such a thing as giving gifts or doing favours after the fact and not saying why.) Worst of all, surrogacy encourages the outdated “flesh and blood” mentality, discounting adopted children as inferior to biological ones.

4B3. For the Love of Choice
Arranged marriages should be treated with zero tolerance. In a just legal system, anyone who is in a nonconsensual marriage would have said marriage automatically annulled upon entering Canada.

Subclass 4C: Children’s Rights

4C1. Kids First, Self Last
Children should have the right to be loved and prioritized, including freedom from favouritism, parentification, generational trauma, and excessive discipline. Step-, adoptive, and foster children should have the right to be loved equally and treated equitably, as full members of the family. A parent shouldn’t remarry without their children’s approval, and should never be allowed to cut contact or disappear without a trace.

4C2. Children Have Human Rights
Children’s freedom of speech, opinion, and religion need to be protected. The same goes for the right to make personal statements and the right to decline extracurriculars, summer camps, etc.

4C3. Make School Cool
The ideal school system would automatically cover all children, without the need for parents to enroll them. Homeschooling should be, if not banned outright, at least far more regulated than it is now. And the only fair reasons to pull a child out of school against their will are illness or injury.

4C4. Adoption Options
The foster system should be supplemented by giving school-age children the option to move to a friend’s house if possible. A child who feels unsafe should likewise have this option, instead of having to wait until 18 to leave. The need for safety doesn’t wait.

Subclass 4D: Work & Labour Laws

4D1. Work For Everyone Who Wants It
Employment programs should be far better. Any adult who has been unemployed for two years, or one month if they have an employment-hindering disability, should be entitled to have a minimum-wage job arranged for them in a timely manner if they request it. Ideally, this arranged employment would bypass the application and interview process entirely. (Again, this aligns with the ICESCR, which states that work is a right.)

4D2. Retirement Should Be Optional
Even if someone is forced to leave a job for age or health reasons, they should have the right to switch to a safer/easier job instead of having to retire.

4D3. Negotiation, Not Confrontation
Workers’ strikes should not cause needless disruptions.

Subclass 4E: Animal Rights

4E1. Pets Have the Right to Life
All shelters should be no-kill, and veterinarians should refuse to perform economic euthanasia, instead encouraging rehoming as a last resort.

4E2. Pets Are Family Too
Pets are rehomed far too often, which is why getting a pet in the first place should require unanimous household resident approval. (I already have a musing explaining why, in my opinion, there are only seven fair reasons to rehome a pet.)

4E3. Long-Term Pet Care
There should be more shelters for long-lived animals such as parrots and tortoises.

4E4. Better Lives for Livestock
Livestock should have the right to humane living conditions and humane slaughter. This may include making dual-purpose chicken breeds the standard again, in order to eliminate the need for chick culling.

Class 5: Security & Recovery

5A1. Refugees Deserve a Home
Refugee protections should be liberal. (easier asylum access, broader eligibility, faster processing, stronger protection against deportation, family reunification, housing/support)

5A2. H-No-A
Homeowners’ associations should be, if not banned outright, then at least tightly regulated. They definitely should not be allowed to issue fines. Only governments can issue fines; when anyone else does it, it’s called theft.

Class 6: Economic Rights

Subclass 6A: Fairness & Security

6A1. Pay What You See
Prices should include taxes and mandatory fees, with no hidden charges or bribery. Price transparency should be a right, with only the necessary exception of shipping fees. And even these should be strictly at-cost and charged with the purchase (not paid separately after the fact, like DHL).

6A2. Equal Rights for Equal Customers
Loyalty or discount programs are all well and good, as long as they are honest. Businesses should not secretly or arbitrarily favour particular customers through preferential treatment or pricing.

6A3. Sustain Stability
A just legal system would allow only fault-based evictions. Freedom from uprooting should be a right, with only necessary exceptions such as refugees. It definitely should not be a privilege for the rich.

6A4. Family is not a Free Pass
Nepotism should be banned once and for all, complete with compensation for past victims.

6A5. Fair Notice for Workers
Employees are expected to give two weeks’ notice to keep a good reference, but companies often lay people off or fire them immediately without warning. This is an oft-overlooked injustice; if anything, companies should be held to a higher standard than individuals.

Subclass 6B: Estate Rights

6B1. Death vs. Debt
Debts should not be inheritable. They should simply be erased upon death (or paid for by the taxes of major corporations). It’s never okay to punish the innocent!

Subclass 6C: Currency & Monetary Policy

6C1. Cash Should Be King
Payment methods should be a strict hierarchy. cash, then debit, then credit. Online sales would of course be an exception.

Class 7: Audience’s Rights

Subclass 7A: Narrative Fiction

7A1. Copyright Law is Copy-Wrong!
Copyright laws should be looser. Fanfiction should be allowed to flourish, while commercial adaptations should generally be allowed as long as they are respectful.

7A2. Previews are Promises
Companies should never be allowed to cancel anticipated works.

7A3. Edit, Don’t Ban
Objectionable works of fiction should be edited just enough to make them acceptable. Only unsalvageable ones should remain discontinued. And even these should remain available online with the appropriate disclaimers.

7A4. Keep the Character
Character deaths and removals should be regulated.

7A5. This Time, Not Just Next Time
Salvaging a poorly received work means restorative authorship, i.e. recalling and editing the work. Not throwing a sequel on top and calling it a day.

7A6. Writing is a Responsibility
Creators should not be allowed to bully their audiences.

7A7. Canons Need Continuity
Unnecessary inconsistencies should be corrected.

7A8. Plotholes are Bull
Works should not drop important plot points.

7A9. Cheating isn’t Beating
It should be illegal to depict unpunished favouritism or cheating.

7A10. Ban the Barriers
No work of fiction should end in victory for racism, sexism, or other forms of discrimination. Discrimination is fine as a plot device, but should always be defeated in the end.

Subclass 7B: Video Games

7B1. It’s Never Too Late To Patch
Rushed or incomplete video games should have the right to be mass-recalled and edited.

7B2. If the Fanbase Eschews it, Lose it!
Unpopular game features, including unpopular rules and restrictions, should be edited out.

7B3. We Won’t Miss This!
Video games should not be allowed to have permanently missable content. All existing examples should be corrected.

7B4. Roadblocks are Rough
This one would cover accessibility and fairness fixes.

7B5. Games are for Gamers
Some games are in dire need of UI/UX improvements.

7B6. Let the Fun Continue
Many games deserve expanded replay/continued-play value.

7B7. Freedom Can Be Fun
Some games need more options for quality-of-life reasons.

7B8. Down with Dawdling
Tedious or annoying delays should be treated as mistakes to be fixed. This reform would include making all cutscenes and tutorials skippable for the benefit of repeat players. Wherever possible, interruptions that are part of the gameplay should be made options that can be toggled.

7B9. Flaw Fixers
This last category would cover fixing minor design flaws.

Class 8: Digital & Internet Rights

Subclass 8A: Digital Autonomy

8A1. Keep it Real
Computer users should have the right to opt out of AI.

8A2. Comments are Communication
Comments should rarely be locked, and preferably only by community vote.

8A3. Conserve the Content
Broken links are the bane of internet users the world over. As a general rule, content should only be taken down if illegal. Pages that have been cited should be especially protected, perhaps with existing broken links auto-redirecting to mirrors.

8A4. Condemn the Contraband
Some unmoderated websites host viruses, scams, and other illegal content. Third-party moderation is called for.

Subclass 8B: Digital Access

8B1. Let’s Get Global
Websites should never be allowed to be region-locked. Companies should ship worldwide at actual cost, with only the bare minimum of necessary exceptions (i.e. with exceptions only for goods that are illegal in specific countries). On the internet, all nationalities should be equal, simple as that!

8B2. Own, Don’t Rent
Subscription software should be banned in favour of one-time payments, with only necessary exceptions such as cloud services.

8B3. Free Should Mean Free
Paywalls and premium plans should be mostly banned, for the sake of a fair, egalitarian internet. Information and news should be categorically free of charge, perhaps funded by the taxes of the rich. No website, not even a purely entertaining one, should be allowed to go from free to partially or fully paywalled. Only the other way around.

Subclass 8C: Platform Governance

8C1. No Home for Hate
Online communities should be protected.

8C2. Know How Your Feed Works
Algorithmic-feed transparency should be a right.

Subclass 8D: Internet Experience

8D1. Don’t Add the Ads!
Online advertising should be limited to silent, non-intrusive, closeable banner ads, which should take up no more than 20% of the screen at a time.

8D2. Redirects Can be Wrong
Some redirects are a good thing, e.g. corrections to old URLs. But no one likes being unexpectedly taken to a different page while in the middle of browsing.

8D3. Fun Features are a Fact
Popular website features should be protected, and past ones (such as YouTube’s community-contributed captions and Duolingo’s comments and volunteer program) should be returned.

8D4. Oh, My Ears!
Video volume should be standardized to prevent hearing loss from loud videos.

Class 9: Consumer Rights

Subclass 9A: Products

9A1. Down With Damage
It shouldn’t be the customer’s job to inspect everything or to cross their fingers. Rather, it should be the store’s job to keep damaged or defective goods, including spoiled food, off the shelves. Failure in this duty should entitle the customer to a double refund.

9A2. Spoilage Doesn’t Take Days Off
Shipping and delivery should be 365 days a year, especially for perishables.

9A3. Goodbye Glitches
Cell phones, debit machines, and other technology should be debugged in a timely manner.

Subclass 9B: Shops & Services

9B1. Minimum Hours, Not Maximum Hours
Stores should never be forced to close for particular days or times. Quite the opposite; they should be required to open a minimum number of hours and/or days per week, depending on the size and scope of the individual business. Wherever possible, established hours should not be cut back, and past cutbacks should be reverted out of the taxes of the rich.

9B2. With No End in Sight
Services people depended on should never be allowed to be discontinued.

9B3. Bring Back the Big Names
Popular brand-name stores or items should be resurrected via crowdfunding. “Vote with your dollars” isn’t democracy or justice; it’s “the law of the jungle” in disguise.

Subclass 9C: Miscellaneous

9C1. Banish Bureaucracy
Bureaucratic waste should be abolished in favour of convenience.

Class 10: Government & Institutional Reform

Subclass 10A: Governmental Reform

10A1. The Right to Celebrate
Cities should never be allowed to cancel public festivities. This would include not only a ban on future cancellations but also the right to makeups for past ones. Makeup events would be held not on a particular schedule, but rather as crowdfunding permits.

10A2. Drive Safely or Don’t Drive!
There should be steeper fines for dangerous driving, as well as new fines for impatient drivers. (It’s never a pedestrian’s job to sprint! It’s a motorist’s job to be patient.)

Subclass 10B. Societal Institutions

10B1. Don’t Keep People Waiting
If an institution penalizes an individual for lateness (medical, legal, airline bookings, etc.), the institution should face at least as strong a standard when it causes the individual to wait.

10B2. Dismissal Time Means Dismissal Time
Classes should never be allowed to run late. As far as I know, this is only a problem in post-secondary institutions and community centre classes, because grade schools have schoolwide bells. Maybe the solution would be individual rooms having alarms (instructors’ cell phones?) to enforce dismissal time.

Subclass 10C. Transit Reform

10C1. Transit Accountability
A transit agency should have meaningful accountability when its own actions or failures cause problems for passengers. If a bus fails to stop for a waiting passenger due to a misunderstanding, or is more than 10 minutes late, then the passenger should at least be entitled to a free bus fare as compensation.

10C2. Keep Transit Fresh
Strong smells, such as blue cheese and hardboiled eggs, should be banned from transit.

10C3. No Blasting On Buses
Reasonable noise limits, protecting passengers from loud conversations, music, phone calls, etc.

10C4. More Transit Where It’s Needed
Service should be increased where demand or inadequate coverage warrants it.

10C5. No Early Birds
Buses should never be allowed to be early, only on time or late. If a bus is running ahead of schedule, it should have to wait at the stop until the appointed minute. Leaving early is a kick in the pants to any passenger who is right on time.

Subclass 10D: Urban Design

10D1. Gates Must Go
Gated housing should be banned, because it’s elitist and inconvenient.

Subclass 10E. Other Institutions

10E1. Let’s Change What Winning Means
If someone is unable to participate in a competition, or unable to finish, due to circumstances beyond their control, they should not be declared the loser by forfeit. In fact, they should be the automatic winner on pity. Pity victories are long overdue to be made a retroactive right.

Class 11: Specialized & Cultural Proposals

Subclass 11A: Global

11A1. Don’t Mourn It, Reborn It!
Lost heritage sites and landmarks deserve to be faithfully replicated for future generations to experience.

11A2. Living Traditions
Local artisans, languages, culinary practices, and oral histories should be subsidized like physical structures.

Subclass 11B: Canada-Centric

11B1. Rethink Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is racist to Indigenous peoples and long overdue to be abolished. It is honestly appalling that Canada has not yet ruled the holiday unconstitutional for racial equality reasons. Especially now that the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation exists, making Thanksgiving hypocritical.

Class 12: Miscellaneous Reforms

Subclass 12A: Quality of Life

12A1. No Nasty Neighbours
We need better measures against rude neighbours, including people who smoke outside or are too noisy or nosy. With even one neighbour comes the responsibility of basic courtesy.

12A2. Dry Your Hands
Public restrooms should be encouraged to bring back towel dispensers. You can’t wipe your sweat away with a dryer, and paper towels are (usually) better for the environment anyway.

12A3. Toilet Turmoil
Automatically flushing toilets should be the norm. We shouldn’t have to deal with dirty toilets.

Subclass 12B. Minor Rights and Freedoms

12B1. Donate for Yourself
Donations in other people’s names should require the other person’s permission, except donations in memory. Far too many people give “donations in name” as a gift, which is basically the ultimate letdown.