Today's quote . . .

This is one of the great oddities of the 21st century. Diversity of opinion seems unwelcome on today's political stage, and limitless views are filtered through a rapidly diminishing media hub that chops, edits, and repackages multiple perspectives into the appearance of true philosophy. Modern debaters are a far cry from Demosthenes and Cicero, and modern debates have spiraled into block-headed ramming contests between blue and red corners. Loaded questions and intellectual dishonesty are the standards of pundits who rule the airwaves, and their disciples line up like cult members at a Kool-Aid party. -- Brian Trent, author

Today's talk . . .

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,...22009-1,00.html
The last temptation of Al Gore - Very worthwhile read!
"I have enjoyed the luxury of being able to focus single-mindedly on this issue," says Gore, back on the patio at his Nashville home. "But I am under no illusions that any position has as much ability to influence change as the presidency does. If the President made climate change the organizing principle, the filter through which everything else had to flow, then that could really make a huge difference."

http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,1622015,00.html
Book excerpt: The Assault on Reason - Another excellent read
"In practice, what television's dominance has come to mean is that the inherent value of political propositions put forward by candidates is now largely irrelevant compared with the image-based ad campaigns they use to shape the perceptions of voters. The high cost of these commercials has radically increased the role of money in politics—and the influence of those who contribute it."

http://gorepulse.blogspot.com/2007/05/al-g...-big-plans.html
Al Gore Has Big Plans - NY Times Article appears Sunday
"Six years after the Supreme Court declared him the loser of a presidential race that seemed his for the taking, Al Gore has attained what you can only call prophetic status; and he has done so by acting as he could not, or would not, as a candidate — saying precisely what he believes, and saying it with clarity, passion, intellectual mastery and even, sometimes, wit. Everywhere he goes, people urge him, almost beg him, to run for the presidency. He probably won't — though he might. ("It's complicated," he told me, "but it's not mysterious.") He says he thinks he'd be better at it this time than he was last time. And he probably would be: Gore really does know how to hold 6,000 people in a room. But sometimes one person is one person too much for him. Given his druthers, he'd really rather talk about complexity."

http://www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/larry.king.live/
Al Gore to appear on Larry King - Tuesday, May 22 9PM EST
Some say he's helping save the planet. Now some want him to save America by running for president again. Will he? Al Gore in a Primetime Exclusive.

http://www.usaelectionpolls.com/2008/artic...ntial-race.html
Crowded field would benefit Hillary Clinton is Al Gore runs
According to all of the polls taken in 2007, Gore has the largest impact on Edwards. Edwards drops off approximately 30% and Obama approximately 15% with Gore in the running.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/van-jones/va...he_b_48766.html
Vanity Fair: The unbearable whiteness of green
" ...nobody is doing our new green movement any favors by continually portraying it solely as the playground of a white, affluent 'eco-elite.' To turn this country around environmentally, we are going to need super-majorities in every demographic group."

http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/05/17/1253/
U.S. chided for hindering international efforts on climate change
" ... some reports suggest that the United States is trying to water down the text, with objections to the draft's target to keep the global rise in temperature below two degrees Celsius in this century and cut 50 percent of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050."

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-...inion-rightrail
Why ethanol backfires
" ... it is no surprise that the price of corn has doubled in the last year — from $2 to $4 a bushel. We are already seeing upward pressure on food prices as the demand for ethanol boosts the demand for corn. Until the recent ethanol boom, more than 60% of the annual U.S. corn harvest was fed domestically to cattle, hogs and chickens or used in food or beverages. Thousands of food items contain corn or corn byproducts. In Mexico, where corn is a staple food, the price of tortillas has skyrocketed because U.S. corn has been diverted to ethanol production. And any sort of shock to corn yields, such as drought, unseasonably hot weather, pests or disease could send food prices into the stratosphere."

http://www.abpnews.com/2163.article
Three prominent Republicans join Carter, Clinton and Gore on New Covenant roster - Jan 30, 2008 - Atlanta
" ... the "New Baptist Covenant," a statement drafted in April 2006 in a meeting at the Carter Center attended by some of the same Baptist leaders. The statement says the Covenant partners are "committed to promote peace with justice, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, shelter the homeless, care for the sick and marginalized, welcome the strangers among us, and promote religious liberty and respect for religious diversity."

Today's Resources . . .

Democratic Party Debate Calendar
Mark these dates. The Democratic National Committee today released the days, sponsors and locales of the six debates it is sanctioning this year, one a month beginning in July.

July 23: YouTube/Google and CNN; Charleston, S.C.
Aug. 19: ABC News; Des Moines
Sept. 26: NBC News/MSNBC; Hanover, N.H.
Oct. 30: NBC News/MSNBC; Philadelphia
Nov. 15: CNN; Las Vegas
Dec. 10; CBS News; Los Angeles

Blog quote of the day . . .

"I just read an excerpt from Al Gore's new book; The Assault on Reason. It completely sums up how I feel about politics right now. We Americans are being divided and controlled by TV (which in turn can only be influenced by large piles of money). The Internet has the power to change that, if we can keep it from being corrupted by the same process that controls TV. No presidential candidate has impressed me as Al has with this book excerpt. How sad is that? Let's make Al Gore president! I can only imagine where we'd be today if we had done so 7 years ago…" -- BrianKuhn.com