SteveL, November 28 at 11:43 am

Ahh how clever. I now see that you are about fourteen years old and trying desperately to play with the adults.

Try harder.

Yeah Ardee my posts are as garbled as your ideas.

Edit my last: I see no reason for the Greens NOT to run…

meh it’s late and I’m tired, sorry for the double post

@ ardee

Absolutely. SteveL lost me with that last post. I see no reason for the Greens to run in both local and national elections. In fact I fully support that (as you probably already know).

screamingpalm, November 27 at 3:24 pm

You are entitled to your opinion of garbled posts that continue to deny the reality of what the Greens are trying to accomplish.

You are correct, in my opinion, about the governments of Europe and their more representative governance. But that is the goal of third party politics here is it not!

SteveL, November 27 at 8:07 pm

You continue to criticize the Greens for not doing exactly what it is that they ARE doing. Why? I haven’t the foggiest notion, bad day for cartoons on TV?

Most learn how to walk before they know how to run.  However third parties love to make the insane mistake of doing the same thing over and over again only to have the same result. 

When Gavin Newsom first ran for San Francisco Mayor he was tailing in the poles behind a Green Party candidate.  Good move for the Greens!  This shook up the Democrats to the point where ex-President Clinton flew across the country and campaigned for Newsom and helped him win.  Why?  San Francisco mayors go on to other higher offices.  Dianne Feinstein now a Senator and Newsom is now Lieutenant governor.  Lesson:  Start small and bigger things can come.

I think what SteveL is trying to say, is that in Europe the parliamentary system is much more representative of the people where all political parties have at least some sort of presence, whereas our “winner-take-all” is much less so. I certainly agree with that.

SteveL, November 27 at 11:07 am

I would love to comment on this effort of yours but there is nothing there to comment upon.

Ardee do yours.  You don’t have to look any further than Europe to see what works vs.
here for what doesn’t,t

SteveL, November 26 at 10:08 pm

Do the research, Steve. The Green Party runs a candidate for President only because national recognition is a necessary ingredient in the building of that party. Its primary focus has been on ballot access, which the Duopoly Party tries to lock up tight in an act of self preservation. That fight is being won with more and more ballot access in each election cycle, and more and more candidates on local and state levels as well.

The real effect of the Green Party can be seen in the confederacy of dunces who appear to denigrate its successes and the need for its existence.

Third parties are a great idea.  They just cannot start at the top and waste time, money and energy running for President.  If they cannot come with the votes in one state to capture a Senate seat in one state how will they be President?

Re: screamingpalm

Your comment: “That’s the Democratic party’s
rhetoric.”

I disagree, my experience is this is true of people
in general but especially true of certain personality
types regardless of their political affiliation. Btw,
I think Paul would be a disaster, but the Republicans
won’t let him run because it would take votes from
them rather than from the Democrats.

There is just a certain swath of folks who do inane
things and that’s all there is to it, like these:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkywyGoQ2yU&feature=player_embedded

I imagine these folks are from both sides (and in-between) of the
political spectrum and they too vote. You betcha.

@ Outraged

That’s the Democratic party’s rhetoric. You see that sort of defeatism/pragmatism with many TD’ers here.

Meanwhile on the Right, Libertarian Ron Paul is doing pretty well for himself. He probably won’t get the nomination, but that sure would make things interesting!

While a third party could influence decisions made in
the other parties, they certainly won’t win the
presidency and I doubt any offices in Congress. It’s
just wishful thinking.

I challenge those who believe there is viability to a
third party to walk down the street and ask random
people what a third party is (could they name a third party?) and what the platform would have to be for them to ACTUALLY vote for it.

People like to piss and moan but in actuality few
will act upon their own rhetoric. On the other hand however, they are likely to amass around an issue. (Americans like ISSUES, they seem safer and they’re also very Oprah and Donahue-like, more familiar and easier… I guess) Most people are creatures of habit and will stay that way until the day they die.

Half of the people probably couldn’t tell you who the vice-president is, but they’ll vote anyway. If a third party is supposedly currently pertinent why aren’t the masses demanding it?

IMO, to force change - movements should mobilize and focus on issues (it’s more conducive to our nature), especially popular ones, be they political or social. Politically, an amendment to undo Citizen’s United would be popular across the ideological spectrum, so would measures effecting accountability on Wall Street, taxing the rich and protecting Social Security, as well as the Post Office, schools, libraries and measures to decrease the influence of money in politics. But then this is not news is it…....

I doubt that a third party candidate who supported even these popular political ideas could garner measurable support, I do, however, think a mainstream candidate with these same ideals would.

First things first.In the blurb on the home page mentioned a third party run in an atmosphere of 1 billion dollar campaigns.Its pretty obvious that the first thing that has to be done,has to be done first is to get the money out of politics.Public funding will make law makers more responsive to the the folks who pay their salaries (right now its the corps).There is no way right now a third party is going to be viable with Citizens United along with the policies implemented after Perot’s run at the Presidency.

Err, one billion dollar campaigns are yet another reason why third party politics is essential to the restoration of our democratic system.

Wow, great episode guys—let’s hear it for prerecorded shows!