[Peace-discuss] Fwd:Incredible News

[Linda Evans]

I'm a Kucinich supporter, but here is something else
to consider...

FIELD OF GREENS
The Green Party Plans to Field a Presidential
Candidate in 2004

National Green Party leaders came away from a late
July meeting with 
plans to run presidential and vice presidential
candidates in next 
year's elections -- consequences be damned.  Though
some Greens are 
ambivalent about the prospect, the majority of the
leadership seems 
to believe that the party needs a presidential nominee
in order to 
command a national stage from which to address
important issues 
related to the environment, social justice, corporate
power, and 
more.  (No word yet on whether Ralph Nader might again
be the bearer 
of the Green mantle.)  But by failing to make
strategic decisions 
about which electoral battles to fight -- and which
not to -- the 
Greens are set to damage the party's long-term
prospects, argues 
Norman Solomon in Grist's Soapbox.

read it in Grist:  Greens plan to field a presidential
candidate in 
2004 -- consequences be damned -- by Norman Solomon in
Soapbox
<http://www.gristmagazine.com/soapbox/solomon080603.asp?source=daily>

--- "C. G. Estabrook" <galliher at alexia.lis.uiuc.edu>
wrote:
> Comparison of Kucinich and Dean by Scott Bateman. 
> 
> Resources: Candidates websites and Google searches
> 
> 1. Health-Care Plan
> 
> Kucinich: Canadian-style single-payer system,
> extending the successes of
> Medicare, financed by a tax on employers lower than
> the current cost of
> private insurance. [Also financed in part by a peace
> dividend from a
> reduced military budget and waste.]
> 
> Dean: Complex 4-prong plan, extending multiple state
> and federal programs
> piecemeal, combined with tax credits and incentives,
> all of which Dean
> claims is more likely to become law, but still won't
> cover everyone
> 
> 2. Death Penalty
> 
> Kucinich: Opposes.
> 
> Dean: Favors for "extreme" crimes like terrorism or
> the killing of a
> police officer, although critical of Bush
> administration's "careless"
> approach to executions.
> 
> 3. Roe v. Wade
> 
> Kucinich: Pro-life until recently; now the only
> candidate pledging to make
> Roe v. Wade a "litmus test" for appointing federal
> judges.
> 
> Dean: Pro-choice, but refuses to make Roe v. Wade a
> litmus test for
> federal judges.
> 
> 4. Kyoto Treaty
> 
> Kucinich: Supports.
> 
> Dean: Says we must "take another look," but has
> "concerns" about some
> provisions.
> 
> 5. Patriot Act
> 
> Kucinich: Only presidential candidate who personally
> voted against it.
> 
> Dean: Would repeal "parts," but also wants to expand
> intelligence
> agencies; praises Russ Feingold as only Senator who
> opposed the act,
> ignoring Kucinich's vocal House opposition, implying
> no other candidate
> opposed the Patriot Act.
> 
> 6. NAFTA/WTO
> 
> Kucinich: Full withdrawal, to replace with fair
> trade; opposes "fast
> track" treatment of any future trade legislation;
> personally marched in
> Seattle protests.
> 
> Dean: Notes problems with "free" trade, suggesting
> the need for inclusion
> of human rights, environmental, and labor standards
> in trade agreements --
> but still pro-NAFTA.
> 
> 7. "Star Wars" Ballistic Missile System
> 
> Kucinich: Would abolish; has sponsored legislation
> banning weapons from
> space.
> 
> Dean: Would cut only 1/8 of the funding,
> transferring it to international
> threat-reduction programs.
> 
> 8. Pentagon Waste
> 
> Kucinich: Would cut Pentagon programs which don't
> even work, like the
> V-22, F- 22, and "Star Wars," and demand
> accountability for over a $1
> trillion in "lost" funds.
> 
> Dean: Disagrees with any proposed Pentagon cutbacks,
> and advocates
> aggressive expansion of intelligence, police, and
> special forces.
> 
> 9. Balanced Budget
> 
> Kucinich: A long-term goal, but deficits may be
> necessary in the short run
> for economic and social investment.
> 
> Dean: A main priority -- even equating it with
> social progress: "we cannot
> have social justice without a sound fiscal
> foundation" -- describing
> himself as "to the right of Bush" on the issue.
> 
> 10. Gun Control
> 
> Kucinich: Supports federal gun control legislation,
> and sponsored a bill
> calling for child safety devices on all new
> handguns.
> 
> Dean: Supports closing the gun show loophole, but
> opposes other new
> federal regulation; considers guns a states' rights
> issue; an "A" rating
> from NRA most of his career.
> 
> 11. Medical Marijuana
> 
> Kucinich: Supports compassionate use.
> 
> Dean: Firmly opposed, although promises to abide by
> a proposed FDA
> evaluation.
> 
> 12. War on Drugs
> 
> Kucinich: Proposes European-style treatment of
> addiction as a medical, not
> criminal problem, with attendant reductions in crime
> and violence.
> 
> Dean: Has accepted National Governors Association
> position: more federal
> funding for all aspects of the drug war; however,
> also speaks of drug use
> as a medical problem, and has called the War on
> Drugs a failure; website
> and recent speeches simply do not clarify what
> policies he would pursue,
> as far as I can tell.
> 
> 13. Gay Rights
> 
> Kucinich: Believes gay and straight couples should
> be 100% equal before
> the law, including Social Security and
> domestic-partner benefits; supports
> federal civil union legislation.
> 
> Dean: Signed a civil union (not gay marriage) bill,
> but opposes similar
> national laws as a states' rights issue.
> 
> 14. Energy
> 
> Kucinich: Supports investment in solar, wind, ocean,
> and other clean
> energy; risked career to prevent a power monopoly in
> Cleveland, saving
> taxpayers over $200 million.
> 
> Dean: Supports investment in alternative energy and
> energy efficiency;
> however, has sided with Vermont state utilities on
> most issues [including
> Vermont Yankee nuclear power].
> 
> 15. Political Experience
> 
> Kucinch: Has held local, state, and federal office
> for a total of 17
> years. Four-term member of Congress, since 1997.
> Currently chair of the
> Progressive Caucus, largest Democratic caucus in
> Congress.
> 
> Dean: Vermont state legislator, 1982-86; Lt.
> Governor, 1986-91; Governor,
> 1991- 2002. Former chair, National Governors
> Association.
> 
> 16. Iraq War
> 
> Kucinich: Opposed staunchly from the beginning, has
> never wavered.
> 
> Dean: Firmly opposed, before, although he told the
> L.A. Times in January
> that he would support unilateral action if Iraq had
> WMDs; softened his
> rhetoric again in March, once the war began,
> explaining in conservative
> 
=== message truncated ===


=====
"As we talked of freedom and justice one day for all, we sat down to steaks.  I am eating misery, I thought, as I took the first bite.  And spit it out." - Alice Walker (author)





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