our antiquated system of campaigning re:Gore

[stellanoir]

After seeing Gore this morning on the tube and having read the New Yorker's interview with him yesterday, I was struck by how at peace and creatively challenged he seems. He loves his life right now and is serving in a way that is clearly rewarding to him personally.

I wondered why would anyone want to sacrifice that presumably hard won peace, fulfillment, and to some extent, their freedom for a year and a half bare minimum, to go through what must be the often harrowing monatony of fund raising, traveling, stump speaking, debating, undoubtedly getting smeared, on the somewhat remote off chance of not having the vote manipulated again?

Yeah I imagine there are good and fun aspects of the whole process as well and that it's got to be a deep seated calling in an individual to do so but beyond that, there has to be some way to streamline and upgrade the whole process of campaigning in these times.

Should primaries still be spread over 5 to 6 months when the candidate is normally chosen within the first 6 to 8 weeks and most states are totally disenfranchised in the whole process? It's just nuts.

We all are frustrated with the disempowered DEMs but in this day and age perhaps we can ponder different and more efficient and expedient models of campaigning that are not so antiquated, prohibitive, wasteful, and integrate even better the technologies now available.

Everyone was all impressed with Dean's initial maverick use of the internet last time 'round as well as the influence of the blogosphere.

What will be new and different next time 'round?

So many aspects of our government are broken at this point that this rambling query might seem totally trivial but I wonder if the DEMs could at least lead in terms of how their own primaries and campaigns are conducted it might just set an altogether different tone for a nation so clearly gone astray.

[Gregorian]

1. Our campaigns are polluted.

It just dawned on me when reading your post that our campaigns are geared toward winners rather then the people. I want to go into a tyrrade about how America has never been anything but a dream. How a place that requires a civil war in order to eliminate slavery, is not a very nice place. But it all ties in somehow. The people. We have a Congress that appears to be a country club for power hungry goons. The people are dreaming. If we woke up, we could actually live America.

It's all too corporate in how distant it is from the people it is supposed to serve. The presidential candidate is brought to you by Coke. And when he gets into office, his allegiance will be to Coke.

I don't know. It should be that if Gore wants to run it won't take herculean efforts to bring his ideas to the people.

Until being a politician is no more powerful than being a citizen, we will continue to fight ourselves.

[stellanoir]

3. OMG really well put. . .

"We have a Congress that appears to be a country club for power hungry goons."

Yup it hardly qualifies as even a remotely representative legislature any more does it.

Have been typing a lot lately of the illusory nature of the American Dream. We delude ourselves into thinking we've got this moral supremacy and superior "family values" when that's just BS when look at the backdrop of our history from the decimation of the Natives, to slavery, to this current invasion and occupation of Iraq.

We say "In God We Trust" when in actuality we mostly worship money often regardless of the means through which it is acquired. We reward greed and selfishness routinely.

I agree it's most sadly morphed into a government of the corporations, by the corporations, and for the corporations.

I think you're right though. It needn't take "Herculean efforts to bring his ideas to the people." That's what I was trying to reinforce with my OP. Thanks for nailing it and your feedback.

[blm]

8. We should be backing lawmakers advocating for public financed campaigns.

For starters.

[AuntPatsy]

9. Good post, if only.

[blm]

2. While Dems think about doing things the right way, the GOPs have bought

up control of most broadcast and print media.

And our Dem PARTY has NOTHING to say about it, will NOT make GOP control of media an issue, and NO Dem business group bothers to even try to counter the propagandists' deliberate coup over most of this nation's news industry.


IT WON'T MATTER what kind of a campaign the Dems run - the media CONTROLS the EDITTING ROOMS where the Dem campaign gets shaped for the American voter in accordance with the GOPs storyline.

[stellanoir]

4. I go vacillate over whether

it's worse that they've taken over the media, the judiciary, or the voting technology. It's probably a toss up actually.

[blm]

5. They couldn't have taken over judiciary and the voting technology WITHOUT

controlling most media FIRST.

Dems cannot play catchup on this, and so the ONLY recourse we have now is to EXPOSE the fact that they have done this and make it a priority issue.

[stellanoir]

6. Well I agree

with your point but then we're right back to square one in the conundrum of how the heck do we EXPOSE it when they control the stupid media?

We've been howling to the wind on the internet for years now regarding media monopolies and election fraud and once in a while a trickle of info gets some minor cursory mention.

Funny I just got an answer to that question I typed before kvetching. . .we EXPOSE it through art. :)

[blm]

7. That's why I say Dems need to make it a priority issue - an issue to BRING

UP at every opportunity when they DO have a microphone or camera. The DNC should issue research and talking points to EVERY lawmaker and staff and ALL Dem spokepeople and ALL left media.

[stellanoir]

10. yup yup and yup