I saw An Inconvenient Truth Sunday. Among other things, I realized the youngest and newest members of our electorate have never experienced hearing an articulate statesman talk from the heart about his innermost convictions, speak up for the American national interest, demonstrate intellectual command of a complicated subject, or evoke pride from his audience when they realize they have elected, to the highest office in our once-great country, obviously qualified leadership.
Imagine what that might feel like for the first time. Just imagine....
For the rest of us - jaded citizen-voters - imagine how much better off we might be if other inconvenient truths could be unearthed? Like
- Electronic balloting without paper trails invites electoral fraud.
- American even-handedness on Israeli-Palestinian issues
- Investigation of how intelligence was fixed for the Iraq invasion (often promised Senate Committee on Intelligence Phase 2 Report).
- Judicial review of all domestic counter-terror surveillance activities.
- Democracy needs the middle class and the middle class needs the restoration of a truly progressive income tax
- A declaration that the United States will never again engage in preventive/preemptive war.
Now who could it be who could best lead us back to truth and the American Way?
Although I agree with you, I still can't help it but think of; how differently a person can act as a private citizen than as a president.
ReplyDeleteIt is becoming very clear, that a present day presidents are not individuals but handy works of a legion of handlers of various kinds. Spontaneity is all but dissapeared in a political dicourse and choreographed and carefully calculated moves have taken precedent over the really felt personal emotions.
I haven't seen the movie yet, but it's quite obvious that you got charmed by a great man expressing his deeply held convictions without "a help" from the before said handlers. Whether Al Gore would be delivering a similar kind of performance if in the office remains doubtful. Pity, isn't it?
Pekka, it's not that I've been 'charmed' by Gore and his movie. His tones struck in the movie are quite subdued and, I think, more nonpartisan than the way I have become acustomed to hearing him since 2003, when he first voiced his dissent againt Bush's outrageous blunder in Iraq.
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