A Third Way
I haven't posted in a long time - I've had thoughts for posts, but lacked the motivation to flesh them out. I can only be brief, but I have a little French man in my gut* saying that Gary Johnson should and maybe even possibly could have a chance, simply because the political frontrunners in the Democrat (Obama) and Republican (Romney, Gingrich, Santorum) are so utterly cookie-cutter identical political drones, and because Paul's support could be channeled into a viable candidate, in a third party. As far as I can see, that offers the one and only opportunity for an actual step in the right direction.
Starting on an obvious public-opinion, or political, rather than strictly policy (emotional, more than rational, perhaps) point, it should be obvious that everybody hates Newt Gingrich. This is true today - those who once loved him for his reforms in the early 1990s are wised up to him by now - his positive numbers are fleeting at best. He is a pork-filled lobbyist not a radical reformer. The radical reformers are distinguishable from the Newt, today. This is the kind of thing that makes this season so interesting; it is driven by the internet, where, right now - but not for long if we don't get this real change, information has made us all much more aware of who the candidates are, and what they've been up to.
All this gives me some very innocent ideas about the possibility of a third-party win. Sure, perhaps it sounds far-fetched, but clearly it is not impossible, it is simply the kind of the thing that requires change; it is a social event, the kind you create on the internet. So, incredibly I have a possibly rational optimism about the actual possibility of a third party win: i.e., Gary Johnson. This is founded, first of all, in my optimism that most Obama supporters can see that he has not only failed to come through on his promises, but actively worked for the opposite policies in most critical areas.
But, why Johnson? Well, because the Republicans are as bad as Obama, and Johnson is actually different. Nobody likes Newt but he's a contender because nobody likes Romney either. Romney is a robot, with a 'liberal' record in Massachusetts that makes conservatives hate him, both the social-cons that like Santorum and the libertarians who like Ron Paul. Of course, the probability of a majority of any party liking Ron Paul once they read his newsletters is slim to none at best. Now, here's the catch: Nobody likes Rick Santorum either. It is clear that he is so big government, and a bit scary even for conservatives socially, that he would shrink and split the Republican party vote too, giving a third party libertarian like Gary Johnson more than just the core Ron Paul supporters - he'd get any sane Republican, who wants more than rhetoric on the economy, and less bible-thumping and preaching - though certainly all of them too.
Any of the pathetic and bizarre group of contenders would split the party, though Santorum perhaps especially, giving Gary Johnson a real chance. And he should appeal to a good many Democrats who care about civil rights and liberties: from free speech, to Empire, corporate power (corporatism) and bailouts of banks and politically connected or funded corporations, corporate subsidies and tax breaks, the federal reserve, copyright, lobbying, campaign finance, guantanamo bay, executive power, the drug war, military-industrial-prison complex, gay rights, and other liberties... basically, anyone who can see that Obama has failed them on all that, and wants actual substantive change - and from a nice guy who doesn't seem at all like the usual sleazy politician, but who was also a successful two-term governor in a blue state who was fiscally conservative (balancing the budget) and socially liberal.
So, I have a strange hope. Let's turn these sausages we're making into something edible, for a change. We the people are the chefs, and we can do better than the bought-and-paid-for circus we've been letting entertain us for so long.
* Somewhere I learned that when your socks go missing it is because they are stolen by a little French man who lives in your washing machine (or visits) and I am pretty sure they sometimes also visit your gut to stand there, hands on hips, and have unnerving but sometimes interesting insights.
Starting on an obvious public-opinion, or political, rather than strictly policy (emotional, more than rational, perhaps) point, it should be obvious that everybody hates Newt Gingrich. This is true today - those who once loved him for his reforms in the early 1990s are wised up to him by now - his positive numbers are fleeting at best. He is a pork-filled lobbyist not a radical reformer. The radical reformers are distinguishable from the Newt, today. This is the kind of thing that makes this season so interesting; it is driven by the internet, where, right now - but not for long if we don't get this real change, information has made us all much more aware of who the candidates are, and what they've been up to.
All this gives me some very innocent ideas about the possibility of a third-party win. Sure, perhaps it sounds far-fetched, but clearly it is not impossible, it is simply the kind of the thing that requires change; it is a social event, the kind you create on the internet. So, incredibly I have a possibly rational optimism about the actual possibility of a third party win: i.e., Gary Johnson. This is founded, first of all, in my optimism that most Obama supporters can see that he has not only failed to come through on his promises, but actively worked for the opposite policies in most critical areas.
But, why Johnson? Well, because the Republicans are as bad as Obama, and Johnson is actually different. Nobody likes Newt but he's a contender because nobody likes Romney either. Romney is a robot, with a 'liberal' record in Massachusetts that makes conservatives hate him, both the social-cons that like Santorum and the libertarians who like Ron Paul. Of course, the probability of a majority of any party liking Ron Paul once they read his newsletters is slim to none at best. Now, here's the catch: Nobody likes Rick Santorum either. It is clear that he is so big government, and a bit scary even for conservatives socially, that he would shrink and split the Republican party vote too, giving a third party libertarian like Gary Johnson more than just the core Ron Paul supporters - he'd get any sane Republican, who wants more than rhetoric on the economy, and less bible-thumping and preaching - though certainly all of them too.
Any of the pathetic and bizarre group of contenders would split the party, though Santorum perhaps especially, giving Gary Johnson a real chance. And he should appeal to a good many Democrats who care about civil rights and liberties: from free speech, to Empire, corporate power (corporatism) and bailouts of banks and politically connected or funded corporations, corporate subsidies and tax breaks, the federal reserve, copyright, lobbying, campaign finance, guantanamo bay, executive power, the drug war, military-industrial-prison complex, gay rights, and other liberties... basically, anyone who can see that Obama has failed them on all that, and wants actual substantive change - and from a nice guy who doesn't seem at all like the usual sleazy politician, but who was also a successful two-term governor in a blue state who was fiscally conservative (balancing the budget) and socially liberal.
So, I have a strange hope. Let's turn these sausages we're making into something edible, for a change. We the people are the chefs, and we can do better than the bought-and-paid-for circus we've been letting entertain us for so long.
* Somewhere I learned that when your socks go missing it is because they are stolen by a little French man who lives in your washing machine (or visits) and I am pretty sure they sometimes also visit your gut to stand there, hands on hips, and have unnerving but sometimes interesting insights.
Labels: corporatism, politics, rent-seeking
posted by liberty at
8:23 AM
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