I'm not trying to start a flame war. Some of you guys already know, but I thought I'd come out and say that I support Dennis Kucinich over Gore for 2008. What do you guys make of Kucinich VS Gore? I certainly don't agree with Kucinich on everything; such as the death penalty, affirmative action, and guns, but I can't find somebody more progressive. Here is why I support him:

-repeal mandatory minimums on nonviolent drug offenses
-decriminalize marijuana
-ban corporations that shift profits offshore to avoid paying taxes from operating in the US
-end NAFTA
-end WTO
-fuel domestic steel production and consumption by rebuilding our nation's infrastructure with American made steel, utilizing the productive capacity of our mills: would be used to rebuild our schools, roads, bridges, ports, sewer systems, water systems, and government buildings
-animal bill of rights
-raise the Federal minimum wage to atleast $8.50
-strongly pro labor unions
-expand opporitunities for public service; make them more easy to become a part of
-call for at least 20% renewable energy by 2010, use NASA to help discover clean energy
-fight logging companies, goal should be to make 80% of paper from agricultural waste
-strong support for organic farming
-single-payer healthcare
-cut the Pentagon budget 15% (60 billion dollars)

I'm not trying to be offensive in any way, but has Gore ever layed out a plan half as progressive as Kucinich's?

I believe he has, but beyond that, Kucinich wouldn't have a chance of winning a national election. He doesn't have the personality and stature needed for that, and I don't think he'd make a particularly good president.

No offense, greyfox.

Nothing against Kucinich, but he's no AL GORE. Kucinich over AL GORE??? Never. :bad:

I would support Gore over Kucinich any day of the week. As soon as i heard about him wanting to end the Department of Defense and instead establish a Department of Peace, he lost the very slim chance of me ever voting for him.

Electibility is a big thing people have against him. At the same time, let's remember Kerry won the primary because people thought he was electable. "I'm electible as long as you vote for me" - Dennis Kucinich.

EM, why do you think Kucinich would be a poor President? I personally think he'd be phenomenal, judged by history on the same page as FDR.

FD, Kucinich would not get rid of the Department of Defense. He would indeed create the Department of Peace, but he never said he'd get rid of the Department of Defense.

I don't think he has the standing or demeanor to command well. It's all about image. Ever since the age of mass media, and particularly TV, image matters a lot. With his sweep and his dimunitive stature and his high voice, he is not a commanding presence. That's not to say he's not smart, capable, etc. But I don't think he has the image people want as leader of our country.

Sadly, I agree with people who complain about his image. I just think it's a shame that appearance comes into play when selecting a leader. Ah well, I know he'll never win a Dem primary. My best hope is Gore would use a lot of Kucinich's ideas as President.

I agree, greyfox. It is sad that it should come down to that, but hey, we're a nation of shallow people. How else to explain all those votes for Bush?

Here are Kucinich's top-ten priorities would he become President. You can't say these ideas are not what the country needs...

http://www.kucinich.us/issues/

Yes, it looks very good on paper. Just don't know how effective he'd be . . .

What parts do you think wouldn't be effective?

What I meant was that I don't know if Kucinich has what it takes to get what he wants. You need to be a good politician for that (just look at Bush :rolleyes: ). It takes a certain kind of person, and I'm not sure Kucinich is that kind of person.

greyfox, I appreciate Kucinich's idealism and can agree with most of his policies, however nobody alive today in my book has the experience, vision and depth of knowledge of Al Gore.

The mere fact that you were able to post a link of Dennis's homepage is a testatment to Al Gore's vision when he championed the internet and empowered you to do so. Al Gore paid a heavy price for this dedication to democracy and the American People, as he was slandered by the corpwhorate owned MSM for doing so, and I for one will never abandon him for this gift.

Greyfox, i have two questions for you... where was Kucinich during the 04 election? What did he ever do for John Kerry?

I'm not sure if Kucinich campaigned for Kerry, because his district is solid blue already. He DID make a speech at the convention is support of Kerry though, I know that.

Hi Greyfox,

I'm new to the forum and not very forum literate.

I supported Kucinich in 2004 and still support him. If anyone watches C-Span, you would have seen Kucinich stand up, time and again, against the Resolution enabling Bush to get away with murder. He stood his ground when most other dems were caving in to the pressure and afraid to stand up for America.

The problem Kucinich had, and still does, is the corporate controlled media. They slammed him in every way they could while limiting his time in any of the debates. Until ALL dems and ALL progressives start boycotting the corporate controlled media, we will never make any headway in getting our voices heard.

Personally, I have not turned on my television for over a year. I had cancelled cable (although I only watched C-span anyway), but my roommates decided they couldn't do without it. I try to buy only from blue, responsible corporations (www.buyblue.com) and will only turn on my television to see what is going on in Congress (C-Span).

Sorry for the lengthly reply.

Hi Free Spirit, great to know there's another Kucinich-fan onboard. :good:

It's definitely a shame that he will never become President because of the MSM in this country. How about SEC of Interior in Gore's administration?

Hmmmm...SEC of Interior...nah...how about SEC of State :clap: