The View from the Meadow

Observations of the Passing Scene

Political and Social Commentary by Dave Satre

The Nation Needs a Leader
Who’s Your Candidate for President?

I recently took an online survey that reportedly matched my political views with those of the current presidential candidates. Of all the known current candidates, my strongest match was: (drum roll, please…) Mike Gravel.

And by a long shot! (cymbal/rim shot)

I’ve always been sort of on the periphery of politics. My choices are definitely not mainstream, but I do tend to keep a balance on both sides of issues and figured I would probably fall in the middle of the scale somewhere. I was really surprised when I learned that the top candidate on my list, the guy that sided with me the most on the poll’s issues, was Mike Gravel.

I hadn’t even heard of him --- but with a little online research I found out some good things about him and he evidently agrees with me more than any of the other current presidential candidates. Unbelievable. But who is he?

Gravel was a Democratic Senator from Alaska 25 years ago, noted for his anti-establishment politics and his role in stopping the draft, and getting the United States out of another ill-advised war. He was involved in the release of The Pentagon Papers and known for stopping nuclear testing in the Pacific.

He’s a man who has experienced the extremes of life, emerging from very humble beginnings and rising to power in Congress, and suffering the financial ups and downs so common to Americans in the past quarter century. He understands the real issues and the true needs of this country and its people.

He sees this Congress as a total failure, Bush as a complete disaster, the squandering of US tax dollars on the military while failing to maintain its infrastructure, the need for national healthcare and believes education should be the country’s top focus --- not the military.

My kind of candidate --- although he is basically unknown, except to older people who remember him from his days in the Senate. He is unfunded and is basically paying for his presidential effort himself. The media ignores him, most voters have never heard of him, and he’s traveling the country in his own car.

So, this got me to thinking. What are the important issues in this country today? And which are the most troublesome to me?

Well, certainly GW Bush is the worst president in the history of the country. Almost every decision he’s made has been disastrous. His continuous lies , financial squandering on the military, favoritism for his cronies and absolute refusal to shoulder the blame for his actions is the absolute worst example for Americans and for our relations with the rest of the world.

The war in Iraq is a total failure and Bush is directly responsible for the loss of millions of Iraqis’ lives, not to mention the loss of American lives and almost 30,000 troops who have been wounded, many maimed for life. I believe we should get out of Iraq as soon as possible – with the only remaining troops being the Marines guarding our new, ultra-expensive embassy.

We are spending more on military issues than the rest of the world combined, and the money is disappearing under the table into the pockets of Bush’s cronies and the owners involved in the military industrial complex.

The Bush Regime’s policy of continuous war, detailed in the PNAC, will ultimately lead to Nuclear War. Diplomacy is the only solution to the threat of terrorism. We need to support UN sanctions – not take on the world’s problems by ourselves. We must eradicate our War-Mongering Reputation --- we’re frightening our own allies.

Bush is squandering US tax dollars on the military while failing to take care of the country and its people. While vetoing measures that might fix some of the major problems in today’s America under the guise of cutting spending, our government has failed to maintain its infrastructure and the need for national healthcare and an improved education system should be the country’s top focus --- not the military.

The so-called Drug War is also an expensive failure and the immigration issue needs to be addressed. You can’t have millions of people living outside the law and maintain a true democracy. This is more like financial slavery and the burden of supporting all of these people is severely taxing our infrastructure and the American way of life.

Our Congress is a complete failure. Driven by partisan politics and the radical right it has been totally ineffective in combating the Bush Regime and has shamed us in the face of the world

Government cannot lead change, the system itself is too corrupt. Change must come from outside the system, which breaks down when one party --- any party --- controls it. Open discourse is essential. We need legislators who are honest in their dealings and have the best interests of the country and its people at heart. Without this there is no Democracy

We need to improve our diplomacy, the Bush Regime has ruined our foreign relations by attempting to bully other countries into submission. We need to treat other countries like real people.

We also need to provide a good example of democracy. We need to restore the model. Other people will emulate our principles if we prove them by example, without the lies and threats of the Bush administration. Other countries will return the favor, enabling us to work together to solve global problems, including the terrorism issue.

Perhaps the answer lies in non-professional politicians --- intelligent business leaders who have the country’s best interests at heart and are not corrupted by the incredible campaign costs and under-the-table dealings that are currently at the heart of American politics.

We need to empower the People --- they seem more qualified than our leaders --- and provide a Fourth Check in our constitutional system of checks and balances. Our system demands checks and balances and the politics practiced by GW & Company don’t seem to include the people. We need an advocate for the people that can provide a separate, but balanced, view of issues in addition to the Congress, the Presidency and the Supreme Court.

The People Want Change. They see what’s going on in Washington, evidently, more than our political leaders at all levels. The election of 2004, in which the Republicans lost control of Congress, was not enough. The people need an advocate. A system controlled by the richest two percent of 6.5 billion people, as advocated by the PNAC, is not the answer.

The Rich are definitely getting richer under the Bush Regime. The number of billionaires on the new Fortune 400 list of the richest Americans is growing exponentially while the real costs of our government are born by the rapidly diminishing middle class. And the poor don’t get anything --- they are basically viewed by the rich as a drain on the system.

Meanwhile, Bush and Company are hocking the country to finance their extravagant spending habits. The National Debt recently topped the $9 trillion mark for the first time in history. We are being told, as we were in the 1980’s and the Reagan/Bush administration, that this debt will be paid by our children and grandchildren. We are rapidly approaching the point where the government will not be able to pay the interest, much less pay off the entire debt.

Bush and his cronies are attacking the basic freedoms of Americans, using the frightening excuse of terrorism to eliminate the rights to privacy and imprisoning more people than any other country in the world in the process. They are also attacking the right to freedom of religion.

The business atmosphere has also changed radically, shifting the focus to improving stock values in order to further enrich the top levels of management while eliminating jobs for the working middle class and the poor.

Bush promised tax reductions, but they are only benefiting the rich. There is substantial evidence that the income tax currently imposed on Americans is illegal, it was never actually ratified by the States. We need a more equitable taxation system to support the country, with a larger emphasis on the country’s and peoples’ needs, instead of military spending.

I favor at least two alternatives. A flat tax --- in which every American pays a set proportion of their income --- or what is being called a FAIR TAX --- a retail tax that would also be fair and based on the amount of money spent by each individual tax payer. The rich, who spend more, would pay more taxes, but it would be not be a higher percentage than those of us who have less to spend.

We also need to focus on the ecological issues. Global warming, whether caused and curable by man or not, is a real issue. So is the rapidly increasing population, which has topped 6.6 billion people on the planet. This is happening at a time when the digital revolution is eliminating jobs. This is not a formula for success in the future. The elderly are being forced out of their jobs at a time when the Social Security retirement age is being raised. Where are the youth of this country, or any other, going to find jobs capable of providing them with a satisfactory lifestyle?

Our education system is falling apart at a time when future success will depend on knowledge and skills developed in schools. Education should be this nation’s top priority!

As a country, we need to focus on the basics: healthcare for all, shelter, employment, an improved educational system, and the repair and development of our infrastructure.

Our media is also under attack at a time when it has never been more important to have an informed public. All of us need to know what’s going on. Open discourse is essential to the needs of the country and its people. Without this there is no Democracy.

Meanwhile, my ideal candidate, the guy that supports most of the issues that are important to me, is apparently out there traveling alone, nearly anonymous, hitting the dusty trail by himself in his own car, with little help and almost no funding, riding a solid reputation established long ago, but now known only to the elderly.

And guys like me, sitting out in the late afternoon sunny spot on the east side of the meadow, resting my back against an ancient redwood and thinking about the situation in this country while hoping for a spectacular sunset. And wondering if there really is such a thing as a person qualified to lead this country away from the problems caused by Bush.

And if so, do we have enough sense to elect him or her?

And is that man really Mike Gravel……?