by
Bill's Spirit
Member since:
March 3, 2006 Candidential Encounters Of The Brainstorming Kind
November 26, 2007 06:13 PM EST
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The aliens abducted me again last night. I'd taken my tin-hat off for my nightly shower; and zap, they beam-rayed me up. As I lay strapped in the chair for study, I distracted my mind by thinking about our Election 2008 candidates. Mike Huckabee won big points when he appeared on several press interviews implying that his creationism views had enough room for the theory of evolution to fit within. I suppose that Mike may have lost the support of a few of his voters because his newly stated belief no longer matched close enough to their own, but he likely made more new friends than new enemies from showing a more inclusive position. Hillary Clinton struck a deeply resounding chord in me, with the way she presented herself on a past episode of The Ellen Degenres Show. Her casual and open composure as the two (with camera crew) went to a local diner for a meet and greet and some question answering. The message she gave that hit me so strongly was that she wanted everyone, on all sides, to tone down vicious and demeaning rhetoric and keep everything about the issues. Fred Thompson was a favorite of mine; before he started running. The wise and paternal mystique he carried then had me singing hopeful songs, but the magic seems to have crumbled under the need for constant projection and restatement under the heightened exposure. There seems to be a confusing vagueness now, in the core of the beliefs he is projecting, as if whatever he will openly dedicate himself to is swinging on some loyalty to someone else's guidance. Joe Biden is strumming an increasingly stronger chord with me. His latest showings seem to reveal a wizened, open hearted adult who is not out of touch nor overly oppressive with alternative views. He seems wholly pragmatic and adequately strong willed . With the addition of his years of experience, he seems a good mediator between liberal and conservative views. Ron Paul is a candidate I have strong, but mixed feelings about. I'm not in favor of the micro-government he seems to espouse, but I deeply react well to his position as a constitutional protectionist. His effusive candor is quite refreshing. John Edwards reaches me, but not in a presidential way. I smile most confidently when I think of him filling the position of Attorney General. John McCain carries the best aura Brokaw's greatest generation has, even though McCain actually comes from the Vietnam era. Barack Obama seems to have the full and active support of the younger-than-me generation. My perceptions of his popularity is that it is mostly among the college and just-out of college demographic. Mitt Romney hasn't reached me at all. He always comes across as guarded corporate CEO type. This is not an image that instills optimism or trust in the heart of America. Dennis Kucinich is a guy I'd like to vote for, but won't. He carries the utopian views I would most like to see our government acting under, but a deeply rooted acceptance of pragmatism leaves me knowing that no utopia can ever exist. Rudy Giuliani's appearances have accurately met my expectations, both good and bad, for what a New York City politician is. Christopher Dodd has the aura of good statesman all about him. Although this does not inspire in the presidential way, it leaves very strong hopes that he will always be well placed within the government hierarchy and structure. Bill Richardson is the caring hearted mediator many of us wish we could be. The downside of his glowing prowess is that it does not allow for surgically quick decisions, which the role of president so often requires. The aliens are finished; and so am I. They spray me with a stuff that makes all my wounds heal right up, and then they beam-ray me back to the shower. I frown and shiver. The hot water is all gone.., again. -- 26 November 2007 -- Bill's Spirit is honored to have been selected as a member of Gather's "Election 2008 People's Press Corps" Bill's Spirit is an Artist, Writer, Poet, Philosopher currently wordsmithing from a humble forge in small town Ohio. The works of the man behind Bill's Spirit have been published in small alternative and amateur presses since 1986. Before that, they just filled notebooks, took up space on walls and gathered dust in piles and boxes. -- 
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Comments: 38
Thanks, B's S!
1) He is not in with some group, Bush's, Clintons, he is his own man.
2) He tells it like it is.
3) He does not have any weird fundamentalist philosphy to push.
4) He has lots of experience, both foreign and domestic.
5) He has shown lots of leadership, demonstrated abililty to mobilize both parties.
6) He is well respected by both sides.
7) He is still the only one on either side who puts out detailed plans on Iraq or Health care and can talk intelligently on the issues with being coached.
8) The only thing in his past is an accusation of plaguerism ... for borrowing other people's words who say something he wants to express better than he can ... who has not done that ... in this Internet, You-Tube,Gather world?
9) He is not Mr. Slick, not Mr. Bazillionaire, has known pain and tragedy, and still has some connection with real people.
He is also well thought of by the other candidates ;-) Just click this link.
> way. I smile most confidently when I think of him
> filling the position of Attorney General.
I always hate it when someone else has a good idea before I do.
I agree, Edwards for AG! He can dog Bush, Cheney, Rumseld and
Alberto Gonzalez for the next 8 years as far as I'm concerned, and
we know he can do it too!
It seems like a the iceberg is splitting. Hillary and Rudy are on one chunk , Fred is on one chunk, and Barak and the rest of crowd's chuck is about to sub-divide. Maybe the theme for election '08 should be " Unification Through Alienation".
One wonders if the winner of this election will simply be whoever washes ashore first.
PS: Tells the aliens I said "Hi".
i like obama and clinton - but it scares me that clinton doesn't really answer about homeschooling. it seems that many of her POVs lean toward more gov't control. i wish they'd talk more abt those issues!! thank you, bill!
bruce k. - Edwards as AG just hit me a few nights ago. It just seems right, and I wonder if part of my feeling that way is rooted in physical resemblances between Edwards and Bobby Kennedy.
George Corneliuessen - Icebergs, eh? Well, they say "Hi" back.
jessie voigts - I really do!! And, I totally agree that candidates should talk more. Most of what they say seems to be narrowly conscripted, extremely guarded and sometimes just plain fluffy. Most of them hardly seem human anymore. More and more, they are coming across as cardboard, plastic or actors wearing thin on their role.
Vicky P. - Thank you for your concern. It is always nice to know that someone cares. For the record; they are neither kind, nor mean, just wholly scientific.
:-)
> extremely guarded and sometimes just plain fluffy. Most
> of them hardly seem human anymore. More and more,
> they are coming across as cardboard, plastic or actors
> wearing thin on their role.
That is what the people are used to seeing so much that
they expect it, in fact demand it. How fast the people turn
on someone who steps out of their role. We can just accept
that blame ourselves, though certainly the media and
corporations help. Somehow we have to get the people
as clever, fast and savvy as the corporations and the spinners.
That is a tough task so we are stuck with whatever this is
that we have.
I had no problem with Dean's effusive celebratory expression. I thought it was fully appropriate within the context, and that it portrayed him as being wholly human. I do not share the sense that our politician's need to be stoic figure heads. Since the majority of the nation is not made up of stoics, I see no reason why our representatives should be anything other than what we are; which is partly emotional.
Kay K. - I feel compelled to say that I don't share your view of John Edwards. My impression of him is that he truly does want to do good for the people of our country. I think perceiving him as an ambulance chasing shark is off the mark. He has certainly shown some sensitivity and depth of real character. I have not yet seen the flaky, or inappropriately emotional side of Biden which you've mentioned.
Diana Raabe - Thanks!
Bill, this is the problem with Democracy, and is the chief reason we have a republic.
vanilla puddin' gets wide play I suppose *chuckle*
given the nature of your "thoughts" I'd suggest you leave the tinfoil hat on full time.
In a Republic, citizenship, and it's rights, are dolled out by the government; and a Republic government's officials are usually insular and self appointing. We live in a Democratic Federalist Republic where citizenship is a right of birth, every individual has the right to vote for candidates, run for public office, and have significant influence over the government.
jJack - Maybe you should try wearing one. After all, everybody likes pudding.
Kay K. - No problem here. I'm easy going and don't mind agreeing to disagree with most folks. After all, your experiences are not mine, nor vice versa. Peace -
I only mention this to bring up the point that as frightened as the founding fathers were of monarchy and dictatorship, they were also frightened of masses of people making greedy decisions that would destroy the productive power of the business class.
This argument seems key in what is going on in the US today, that is the preeminence of coporate, business, and money in our policies. The subject is never touched on except in villifying corporations for their greed, which though a slam-dunk, does not move any discussion of this forward.
The fact is that the people are out of the process and stressed to the point where they are focused on survival, not on politics, not on policy, not on international or Constitutional questions, so we are forced to leave the construction of the country to the "experts", usually bought and paid for. What to do to improve this or fix the problems of this is the major question I can see that the US has to face.
So far we have let business run so far ahead of everyone that they can be doing about anything they want and no one really knows about, understands it, and by the time we do and get around to regulating things that are dangerous, they have moved on to make the regulation moot.
So effectively in my opinion we have a Republic. Now, whether this is what we want of what the founding fathers intended, is the debate.
Also, if you are familiar with Biden's way of speaking, he is often informal, and not just with minority audiences. Maybe it is because he is the only candidate who is a normal American and not a multi-millionaire. Why would it be "unsettling" to you for Biden to try to reach out to minorities in a minority venue?
I think leadership and courage are very presidential, and Biden has led both sides in coming up with detailed plans on important issues, and not just putting plans together but garnering bipartisan support for them as well. Other questions or style seem very irrelevent to me when substance is at stake.
I credit the bulk of this situation to the fact that Republicans have had the most control over government for the past forty-plus years.
The way we, the people, can deal with this is to vote and campaign for a return to democratic and constitutional ideals. The democratic ideology places a lot of importance on the individual, and The Constitution accords the government a role as both protector and assistant to the citizenry.
I think the hardest thing that we, the nation, currently have to overcome is the brain-washing use of the labels socialism and communism which Republicans, conservatives and industrial capitalists keep laying on every civil works and civil assistance project they object to.
This group rarely objects to government money spent on national infrastructures which aid in the transactions of commerce, but they seem always to raise holy hell over policies and projects that only benefit the personal lives of the citizenry. They don't mind if the government coddles business, but they do not want the government to coddle civilians.
An obvious reason for this is that it benefits the money makers to have the population as reliant upon the business communities as possible, for ALL of their needs. Wherever the government helps to provide for the welfare of individuals, those individuals do not need to rely on, or cow-tow to, the demands of business communities and their leaders; which means a loss of profit making opportunities for the money makers.
Every citizen not only has a vote, they also have a voice. Each of us can lobby legislators with letters, phone calls, e-mails, petitions and public speeches in order to push for the changes in government that we, the people, want; methods which a true Republic would not allow.
> I credit the bulk of this situation to the fact that
> Republicans have had the most control over
> government for the past forty-plus years.
This is not a Republicans thing, in my opinion it is that
the Republicans who used to be a reasonable group
have turned into this doctrinaire elite group of lobbyists
for big business, but not JUST big business, a corporatist
view of the world that Republicans up to Eisenhauer, and
to some extent even Nixon did not even hope to implement.
They have changed government to be friendly to corporations
who have no answerability to the voters, and who are
manipulating government and democracy to take all
practical power away from the people, except in these
sham elections we have.
The group of people who is doing this are happy to
hide in among the best and the worst of capitalists
allowing capitalism, or big business to take the brunt
of their actions, in a way close to how Hezbollah hides
among the civilians in southern Lebanon.
This group of people has sucked trillions of dollars
away from the economy every way they can in order
to grab hold of money, which effectively grabs hold
of all power as well. They apply money to make more
money and to expand the influence of their money,
and they can hire people who know the laws of whatever
country they want to subvert and pick the laws of system
apart ... because no country can make perfect legislation.
In America the spirit of the law is gone now, falling under
this onslaught that makes the4 citizens think they have
benefitted by allowing loppholes in the letter of the law
to work for them in some cases.
Look at the attack on the government from these people
who use their victories to make more money, installing
more of the likeminded people and moving on excluding
everyone else, who if not rich is forced to work for them.
This is what the Republicans have turned into, and the
Democrats as their numbers dwindle as they get bought
out as well do not know what to do. How can they propose
a left of center idea when they see what is happening in
the country and where it will get them.
The people that succeed in this system are those who have
something the "machine" wants. If it is a busieness idea, fine,
if it is political power, you better be willing to trade, sell or
go along or there are many threats that can be made in many
ways now.
> Excessive pandering and becoming carried away with
> the moment is unfortunately, too often the case with Biden.
OK ... we just disagree, I see no evidence of that. I also see
no evidence that Biden is doing anything sustantively different
from what ALL the other candidates are doing on both sides
except he is more transparent and democratic ... that is, he publishes
detailed plans of what he intends to do. That takes guts and it
takes leadership, and it takes the ability to stand on ones feet
to argue and think in real time to defend his plan ... something
none of the other candidates can do that makes Biden a very good
and capable candidate for president.
Ten unsolicited points from the world's worst connection. Merry whatever you celebrate!
Those aliens are busy at my house too...they keep me from all out political depression. Great article!