100 Year Vision. . . I'm in F****** Love.

[blessedleader]

. . . I just read the 100 year vision for America on Wesley Clark's web page. . .

I've never read anything like that from a politician. . . I think he's the one. . .

I'm in love and I pray to god I don't have to fuckin' fall in line in 2004. . .

:-)

http://www.americansforclark.com/

Looking ahead 100 years, the United States will be defined by our environment, both our physical environment and our legal, Constitutional environment. America needs to remain the most desirable country in the world, attracting talent and investment with the best physical and institutional environment in the world. But achieving our goals in these areas means we need to begin now. Environmentally, it means that we must do more to protect our natural resources, enabling us to extend their economic value indefinitely in through wise policies of extracting natural resources that protect the beauty and diversity of our American ecosystems – our seacoasts, mountains, wetlands, rain forests, alpine meadows, original timberlands and open prairies. We will have to balance carefully the short term needs for commercial exploitation with longer term value of the natural gifts our country has received. We may also have to assist market-driven adjustments in urban and rural populations, as we did in the 19th Century with the Homestead Act.

[DoveTurnedHawk]

1. Great To Have You on Board! Don't Let the Naysayers Get You Down!

DU is very different from the real world. You will have people here trying to tell you General Clark is a horrible person, or unqualified, or a Republican in disguise. My advice is not to let them get you down. General Clark is a phenomenal candidate, and IMO our best chance to get the squatter Bush out of the White House in 2004.

GO CLARK!

DTH

[madaboutharry]

7. Tell me, DoveTurnedHawk,

Why should I stay around here? I have been thinking of deleting DU from my list and going elsewhere. The tone over the past week has become distasteful.

[calimary]

11. Ahem! Please excuse me, but...

visions of Frankie Valle just wafted through my heads - "let's hang on..."

Ok, look. I'm no kum-by-yah person here. I posted somewhere else here that - we NEED, desperately, and RIGHT THIS MINUTE, to stop for a moment and just savor. They only have bush, as another poster said, but WE have some damned fine bench strength now. In the last two days I've suddenly felt roses in my cheeks again, for the first time in almost three years.

People are as inflamed as hemmorhoids right now because we're all JUST SO DAMNED ANGRY! Like I used to be too timid to day "damn" - and more when the situation warranted it, until recently. People ar just inflamed. And, frankly, what's NOT to be angry about, considering EVERYTHING this "bring 'em on bunch" TOOK power. The anger's palpable, and you can taste and smell it.

But it's perhaps only with the onset of this summer, and EVERYTHING that's started to come down, people are so hungry for blood they can taste that, too. I think sharks probably all stand courteously in line while that bleeding fish carcass just floats there. That's a joke...

I try to look past that. Yes, it's been downright gnarly here. But I look at it sort of like a sparring class. That's pretty gnarly, too, and I talk myself into playing hookey from it a lot. But it makes you stronger and teaches you stuff, and soon you're able to react intelligently and in control instead of just panicking and flapping and flailing all over the place. HOWEVER, you start out a complete specialist in panicking and flapping and flailing all over the place. The intelligent, controlled sparring comes later, most likely, when we've seen the contenders square off and we all have a better sense of who's really gonna lead this and what the polls and the street/water cooler talk all indicate. But I think some of us (I speak for myself, too, here) are just so damned-near crazed out of our minds by what we see these ICKY people doing to our country that we're going nuts. In places like here.

Perhaps all this ruckus here on DU could be viewed from such a prism?

Y'know... we will all need each other... and we will all need each other, lockstep, to march bush out.

[juajen]

17. Great post, calimary

You are quite right. We need to wait, watch and listen carefully. What a great set of candidates. It will be very hard making a decision. We do not need infighting for this, just meaningful discussion. We also need to look at the larger picture. Here on DU we are informed and are a bunch of very tough decision makers. Our input is important, but we are definitely in the minority. Most of the country is not familiar with any of these candidates. We all should use some of the energy expounded here arguing for getting others in our community information about the candidates we love and why we love 'em. In so doing, be careful not to attempt to damage any of the other candidates. They are ours. Bush and company are the enemies.

[eleny]

26. Well put....

"Ok, look. I'm no kum-by-yah person here. I posted somewhere else here that - we NEED, desperately, and RIGHT THIS MINUTE, to stop for a moment and just savor. They only have bush, as another poster said, but WE have some damned fine bench strength now. In the last two days I've suddenly felt roses in my cheeks again, for the first time in almost three years"

I sure feel this way, too, Calimary! I realized how much I like almost every Dem candidate. I'm a Clark suporter. But I like Edwards like crazy. And Sharpton tells it like it is. Carol M/B is so poised and often speaks for me as does Kucinich. and god bless Graham for flat out asserting that * lied. I feel so represented - unlike when I see the * and his cabinet speak. They make me feel isolated. And I hate it that they tried to smear us as unpatriotic.

[bearfan454]

35. You said it all calimary

Great post !

[cally]

14. You just let it wash over you

I assume you are asking DTH because of his Clark support. A few months ago, it seemed all the threads were trashing Dean. Sometimes DU erupts in Green/Dem warfare and most threads are about that. I just try to ignore most of those battles and just enjoy the folks and the many thoughtful, informed folks here.

The Clark bashing will settle down in a few days and then there will be thoughtful discussions about his candidacy.

[TennesseeWalker]

23. I'm glad. I don't like to bash any candidate...

...and I must admit...General Clark is my dream candidate. I can see us defeating Shrub HANDILY with such a man leading us. I'm very hopeful for the return of sanity to our world. The General is restoring my faith in the inherent goodness of the average American (even Freepers).

People have been misled, those of us to the RIGHT as well. Those are mostly good people, just people we havn't reached yet.

Average Republicans don't want to be at war, don't want to lose their social security, don't want to lose their jobs to rich people's folly. They just want to enjoy life and think small, and theres nothing inherently wrong with that.

They want to be happy too.

[OKNancy]

15. I've never posted so much on DU in my two years here

I was always actually afraid of being jumped on or sounding stupid, but now I don't care. I have found my candidate and I'll support him in everyway I know how. Posts on DU will be a minor part of that effort, however. Out in the real world shoe leather means a lot more than anything else.

DU does allow me to read other opinions and also to know what problems might arise.
Edit: meant to add: stick around

[madaboutharry]

22. O.K.

n/t

[For PaisAn]

2. Me too

I think I'm in love too. He sure seems like he's the one. We need to spread the word because he's getting a late start and many don't know anything about him.

[ErasureAcer]

3. "America needs to remain the most desirable country in the world"

Get off your high horse there Big Wes...America is hardly the most desirable country in the world to those seeking equal rights, to those seeking a job, to those who seek a government that doesn't control world affairs--which includes carpet-bombing third world countries.

Big Wes...you're playing a good game. Most Americans have never been out of the country...most Americans don't know jack shit about how the rest of the world is passing the USA in just about category from the environment to equal rights.

Seriously now, America is not the most desirable country in the world.

[blessedleader]

4. Wow! it is true!

Liberals really do hate America.

;-)

[DoveTurnedHawk]

5. See What I Mean?

:D

DTH

[Wonk]

9. What the world thinks of America - BBC poll - (lose your illusions)

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=116&topic_id=385

[Bucky]

33. Wow! We ARE number one!!

Look at that poll again, Wonk! Those are incredibly high numbers! When only 24% of British or Korean respondents say they "would like to live in America," that means one in four Britons or (South?) Koreans are willing to be part of our country. If these figures are accurate, one Canadian in six, one Frenchman in eight, one Russian in ten, is willing to leave homes, families, countries, and the life they know for a shot at being an American.

Those are very high numbers. I think they prove the exact opposite of your point. The 96% of Americans who think foreigners want to live here are absolutely right. They probably are making their assumptions based on all the Pakistani, Venezuelan, Chinese, Mexican, Iranian, Canadian, Vietnamese, and Nigerian people they run into at work and in their neighborhoods.

[Nixons Bastard Son]

8. America isn't the least desirable country in the world, either...

...and there's a pretty good argument for making it the most. I can't think of another nation, save for Canada, that deals with civil rights better than we do. Not to say we deal with it well - but we are better than all the other First World nations. Civil rights issues are huge in Europe right now, where racism and minority supression is sometimes the rule of law. Look at Deutschland, where Turks have no citizenship (they don't have citizenship in Turkey, either, so they're not citizens of any nation) and are regularly denied work in favor of Germans...simply because the Germans are German!

America has huge problems, I agree. But there's a reason why we have so many immigrants from all over the world (including Europe) - to them, we are the most desirable nation in the world. Wesley Clark wants to keep it that way.

[Kellanved]

19. WTF?

Where did you get that bullshit from? There are a lot Germans with Turkish ancestry (even a few prominent politicians). It is correct that the conservatives blocked the new immigration law as well as the dual-citizenship proposal, but we do have jus solis; meaning; every child born in Germany with parents holding a legal resident status can choose German citizenship (and hold dual citizenship while underage).

I seem to remember that the US has a lot illegal immigration and thus second-class residents as well ...

[Red_Storm]

6. A Candidate Has Arrived

The more I read about the General, the more impressed I am but will he be able to survive the guerilla warfare(Presidential Campaign) that he is about to encounter ....

[newyawker99]

36. Hi Red_Storm!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[goobergunch]

10. I like almost all of this. Just one point of contention

We can never ensure that every one has the same education, or health care, or retirement security, nor would we want to do so.

[blessedleader]

12. maybe he doesn't want to be called a socialist (nt)

[ThomWV]

13. X

For me it is clear that the most important thing that can be done is to remove Bush from office. Clark is, in my opnion, the only person who can do that. Removing Bush will require that the Democratic candidate receive the backing of Democrats of course but it will also require that those who voted for Nader come to the Democratic party, where many of them started anyway, and it would certainly help if Republicans crossed over as well.

I believe that a great number of Democrats still feel the betrayal that was the 2000 election and will turn out for the 2004 election in numbers this country has never seen before. I also believe that there are many, myself included, who will support the Democratic candidate no matter who it is. Unfortunately just a large turnout on the democratic side will not win the election. You may rest assured that Mr. Bush will have a very strong turnout as well. So it is my opnion, and I could very well be wrong (I do not claim any great knowledge or expertiese in electoral matters, just strong gut feelings), that the person we choose must be one who has credentials which will attract some of the loyal opposition who have come to feel that Bush is not right for the country. I do not see any potential candidate other than Clark who can bring that segment of the voting public over to the Democratic side.

As it stands now many feel that the Republicans have a lock on national security. Clark can remove that perception and in fact can best Bush in that area. But the beauty of Clark is that while he is a man of the sword he has restraint along with strength, and I think the American people want that. On domestic issues Clark has the uncanny ability to explain liberal stances in a way that make sense to the conservative mind. So when General Clark talks about gun control or similar issues of interest to the baseball-cap set he is not immediately branded as the fellow who 'wants to take your guns away from you'. The same can be said about his utterly reasonable stance on the environment. He doesn't come across as a tree hugger but at the same time he defends the environment, so the hunters and target shooters can live with him, as can the the hiker's and climbers, and with any sort of luck the Greens that now see what their vote last time did for them can hopefully vote the Clark way too. And on and on .....

So while the other potential candidates are certainly good men and woman, intelligent, honest, and a credit to the country I still believe that Clark is the only one who has the demeanor that will let him win. That is why I support him, along with the simple fact that so far I agree with virtually every single word I have ever heard him say.

Thom

[Amanda]

29. Right on!

Very nice post, Thom. I believe that I fell in love with Clark during his appearance on 'Real Time' with Bill Maher. I had just finished reading Franken's Lies, and to hear the General proudly say that "liberal" was a term Democrats needed to take back from the conservatives and that Americans needed to protect our liberal society... I just cheered.

I hate to leave the Kerry camp because I think he would do a wonderful job as President, but I think Clark is the only one of the ten who poses a real threat to the NeoCon regime in Washington. I will support any Democrat who wins the primary, but I will donate a kidney for the chance to see a decorated war veteran ask Bush during a debate where he was when he went AWOL from the Reserves during a time of war, and how in the hell he can send away America's sons and daughters to fight in a war he himself (or his daughters, for that matter) would never have to endure.

Right now America needs a leader to clean up the mess left from four years of Repugnant mismanagemenet, and I feel that I can trust Clark to be that leader.

Plus Faux News just labeled Clark as being "pro-abortion" and "anti-war". (I guess that tiff in Kosovo didn't count?) Ahhhh, the great spin for the ingrates who can't see through the rhetoric. I think the Repugs are running scared. :)

[cally]

16. That 100 year statement made me swoon!

I also loved his statements today about how all Americans need to speak out. Then the one that just made me close to a final commitment was, I'm paraphrasing, Someone yelled out, Give em hell. Clark responded with, We'll give them the truth and they will think it's hell. :loveya:

[Sterling]

18. sounds like PNAC

nt

[KittyWampus]

24. PNAC?Sterling, You Have Jumped The Shark!

"we will assure in meeting the near term challenges of the day - whether they be terrorism or something else - that , we don't compromise the freedoms and rights which are the very essence of the America we are protecting. "

[Eloriel]

20. Just so you know

Dean has been talking about infusing our governance with vision 25, 100 years into the future for many months now.

Eloriel

[blessedleader]

21. I've followed Dean all summer, met him three times. . .

Guess I missed it. :shrug: was it when he said "we can do better than that" a million times?

[Bread and Circus]

27. Other excellent DU posters have...

pointed out that Dean likely copped this from
previous Clark speeches.

Clark has been doing the 100 year vision thing for a while.
His speeches predate that of Dean's from what I have
read.

[ProudGerman]

25. It's about damn time

I'm talking about a 100 year vision. Asian countries have been doing this for years, and look how fast they are moving up the ranks from 3rd world to 1st world status.

This is exactly what America needs. A goal to work towards. For 50 years, our default goal was the defeat of communism. When it collapsed (under its own weight), we've been pretty much listless. Having a 100 year vision can give us a goal to reach for. We've done the defeat of imperialism in Europe and Asia, a race for the moon, the defeat of communism, now we need to come to a consensus and decide where we want America to be when our great grandkids are grown up.

It's so refreshing to think in terms other than "must get Bush out". It's probably healthy too.

[Bread and Circus]

28. Look for more amazing things from Clark...

I admit there are times Clark is not perfect but
he has a certain "WOW factor" with the things he says.

When he lays out his point by point analysis/platform/vision
in the near future, he is going to blow the rest away.

I can't prove it yet, but I feel it in my bones.

This dude is "the One". I have never seen anything
quite like it.

I hope he has good fundraisers because with his vision
and campaign dollars, he is unstoppable.

Defeating Bush will just be a by-product of his campaign.

Vision is the key and this is Clark's true reason why
there was a draft movement. A lot of Clark-haters/fearers
act like it was manufactured, but it was real and our love
for Clark is real.

I know it sounds audacious and cocky, but I don't care,
Clark is my man and I think he is better than the rest.

He is not perfect, and he will make mistakes, but on balance
he is the best for our country and that is all I care about.

[IrateCitizen]

30. I admit I was VERY impressed as well.

While it doesn't address specific policies (yeah, I know, it's a VISION) and I don't agree with it 100%, I have to say that it is a refreshing change, indeed, to finally find someone entering the public sphere who is willing to talk so boldly about such long-term plans.

Gen. Clark just jumped up another few pegs in my assessment. And I had already been impressed seeing him on Face The Nation a while back -- he was measured and civil, but did not back down one bit in criticizing the Bush Administration. He was especially effective in responding to accusations from Cretin DeLay that he was an "armchair general" and should just "support the action".

[FlaGranny]

31. Can anyone tell me

where Clark stands on health care? It is one of my "issues."

[waldenx]

32. this is so sad

to see intelligent people fall for Clark's bullshit politician empty "vision" that has little backdoors such as "balance exploitation with value??"

[stickdog]

34. Cool.

Now, about his 1984 year vision ...