Jill Stein-a genuine question

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  • #45819
    waterfield
    Participant

    This is for all those who support her candidacy under the Green Party. And even though most here know my views in politics this truly is a good faith question. I admit I have not followed her career and so I’m seeking information from those that have. It is about her qualifications. From what I can tell her views on most issues are consistent with just about anyone-including myself-that is not a Republican. Renewable energy to address climate change and environmental issues? I’m on board. The employment of everyone willing and able to work? Count me in. 50% % reduction in the military budget? Not sure I can agree with that amount but I do believe our military industrial complex needs an overhaul. It’s still a runaway budget IMO. Returning all troops home, increasing taxes on the speculation in the stock market, off shore tax havens, IMO nothing wrong with any of that. Increased sustainable organic agriculture. Sure-why not? Increased mass transportation and using renewable energy to address our environmental crisis in our water, soil, fisheries, and forests. You bet. She wants to cancel all student debt. Oh boy I’m for that for some very personal reasons (i.e. my son’t college education). She favors public schools as opposed to private ones. Me too. I’m at odds over some of her foreign policy views such as our involvement in the territorial rights in the South China Sea. I do believe strongly that we need a presence there. I think being an isolationist when it comes to foreign affairs has proven to be unwise in the past notwithstanding scandalous episodes such as the Iran/Contra affair, etc. That is probably my biggest disagreement with the physician. Her views on nuclear energy are different than mine as I believe that as our population here and everywhere continues to multiply at increasing levels we need a drastic change in how the world seeks energy. Solar isn’t the complete answer IMO. (They’re putting panels on my roof as I’m writing this)I support her views on a moratorium on GMOs and pesticies along with what she has said about fracking. I am aligned with her on a single payer system of health care although I would want some type of assurance that an individual would have access to the finest health care professionals-as there is most certainly a difference in the quality of diagnosis and treatment that varies between physicians and hospitals, etc . Her criticism of Israel does not miss the mark and I am totally with her on that.

    So my question: For the most part I agree with her but her views are shared by many, many people who are not on the right. What makes her qualified to be President of the United States during a tumultuous time. Our economy is once again slipping into old financial patterns that brought us to the brink of depression. We face horrific dangers right here at home due to terrorism. We’re headed to a new cold war with Russia and the dangers Putin is capable of. His military now could overrun NATO forces in 60 hours according to experts. And much much more.

    So besides her “views” what does she offer? As far as I can tell she is a doctor who has never once held a public office. Again I haven’t followed her so if I’m wrong please tell me. In short she’s never been tested in battle. In fact she’s lost every single election she’s ever sought including being a gubernatoria candidate, House of Representative candidate, Secretary of the Commonwealth candidate, Town meeting Representtive candidate, and once again a gubernatoria candidate. So besides her “views” -share by many-what are her actual qualifications to be President.

    #45821
    Avatar photoBilly_T
    Participant

    Waterfield,

    To me, it says great things about her that she keeps running as a Green. She could likely have gained “power” early on, as a member of the Democratic Party, but that would have meant chucking her principles and selling out. So few politicians, in either wing of the Duopoly, have ever avoided that. It’s basically a preexisting condition of our system, which now requires nearly a billion to just get nominated, to all but sell out before hand.

    In short, I don’t see her lack of political victories as important in the slightest. It’s a badge of honor, in my book. If she were to win from that perch (The Greens), she would have done something that virtually no other president has done, at least in living memory:

    Avoided the complete (or close to it) sell-out necessary to win elections via the Duopoly.

    Here’s her “about” page:

    http://www.jill2016.com/about

    And if you just go by this little snippet, her “accomplishments” already trump Trump’s:

    Jill received several awards for health and environmental protection including: Clean Water Action’s “Not in Anyone’s Backyard” Award, the Children’s Health Hero” Award, and the Toxic Action Center’s Citizen Award. Jill has appeared as an environmental health expert on the Today Show, 20/20, Fox News, and other programs. She also served on the board of directors for Physicians for Social Responsibility.

    She is the co-author of two widely-praised reports, In Harm’s Way: Toxic Threats to Child Development, published in 2000, and Environmental Threats to Healthy Aging, published in 2009. The first of these has been translated into four languages and is used worldwide as a community tool in the fight for health and the environment. The reports connect the dots between human health, social justice, a healthy environment and green economies.

    Jill was born in Chicago and raised in Highland Park, Illinois. She graduated magna cum laude from Harvard College in 1973, and from Harvard Medical School in 1979.

    • This reply was modified 8 years, 5 months ago by Avatar photoBilly_T.
    #45825
    Mackeyser
    Moderator

    She’s got a video about how she got into politics online somewhere.

    As a Harvard trained Dr, she got asked to speak about health related issues to governmental agencies and it turns out she found tremendous systemic problems and she was good at addressing the problems in a way that the mouth breathers in govt can understand.

    As for nuclear power, let’s be crystal clear. It’s 2016. We’ve OUTPERFORMED every single worst case scenario modeled by climate scientists thus far.

    The latest by NOAA is that BY 2050, due to disintegration of Greenlands glacier from the polar ice cap and the subsequent massive and rapid calving, is that global sea rise is expected to rise NINE FEET. That’s NINE FEET IN JUST THIRTY SIX YEARS.

    It takes almost thirty years to fully decommission a nuclear reactor and I don’t think we could do them all at once. That means we need to start on some of them NOW.

    Understand that as these seas are rising, there are 12 nuclear plants along the eastern seaboard of the Fukushima design. If they are flooded by a storm before we can cool the rods and get them in storage, then we are looking at an inevitable STRING OF NUCLEAR DISASTERS.

    It’s dominoes of stupidity. They’ll all fall leading to a massively terrible outcome unless we remove some of the stupid dominoes.

    But the Establishment, which claims to at least acknowledge Climate Change doesn’t realize Hillary has embraced fracking infrastructure at home and around the world and doing so requires a 30-50 year commitment to build the additional natural gas power plants and the thousands of miles of pipelines.

    Wait a minute… In 36 years won’t the oceans be 9 feet higher?

    Well, yeah…

    And if the establishment has the out of cheap domestic natural gas, won’t it stifle innovation in the green space?

    Well, yeah, but…

    Well…yeah.

    Sports is the crucible of human virtue. The distillate remains are human vice.

    #45830
    Avatar photowv
    Participant

    Her views ‘are’ her ‘qualifications’ to me. Her views reflect ‘wisdom’ and critical thinking, and compassion.

    I dont care that she hasn’t been secretary of state, or a governor or senator
    or part of the system that is destroying the biosphere.

    She’s an outsider, alright. Not an insider. Doesn’t bother me a bit.

    It aint that hard to be President of the United States. George Bush did it for eight years.
    I think a wise, compassionate, critical-thinker
    could somehow muddle through, with help.

    w
    v

    #45832
    Avatar photoBilly_T
    Participant

    The left always gets tagged with much higher standards to live up to. Far, far higher.

    If the “outsider” candidate is centrist or right-wing, nuff said. They don’t have to explain anything. But if the outsider candidate is left-wing, honestly left-wing, she is immediately tasked with all kinds of hoops to jump through in order to prove their viability as candidate. “What has she ever done!!”

    This is something not asked by supporters of Trump, for instance, who also has never won any elective office.

    This is also not a requirement for Ms. Clinton, who, while winning elective office, and publicly supporting all kinds of traditional “progressive” causes — for women, minorities and so on . . . . hasn’t actually done anything to improve the lives of POCs or women.

    There are some, in fact, who say it’s quite the opposite. Not sure if you guys already posted this article, for instance:

    Why Hillary Clinton Doesn’t Deserve the Black Vote

    • This reply was modified 8 years, 5 months ago by Avatar photoBilly_T.
    #45836
    Avatar photonittany ram
    Moderator

    But the Establishment, which claims to at least acknowledge Climate Change doesn’t realize Hillary has embraced fracking infrastructure at home and around the world and doing so requires a 30-50 year commitment to build the additional natural gas power plants and the thousands of miles of pipelines.

    She supports fracking. She supports offshore drilling and she once supported the Keystone Pipeline. Her foundation accepts millions of dollars from the oil industry. She claims to care about climate change but wants to increase domestic drilling for oil and natural gas.

    She has little credibility on environmental issues. Any concern for the environment she has seems to be purely politically motivated.

    • This reply was modified 8 years, 5 months ago by Avatar photonittany ram.
    • This reply was modified 8 years, 5 months ago by Avatar photonittany ram.
    #45839
    Mackeyser
    Moderator

    Even though I really don’t like this site software and my phone outright hates it, I’m sooooo glad I’m back.

    I just really missed talking about substantive stuff like this.

    Sports is the crucible of human virtue. The distillate remains are human vice.

    #45873
    waterfield
    Participant

    WV: Well personally given the state of affairs in the world today I don’t want someone as President who can somehow “muddle through, with help.” If “views” are her qualifications-as you wrote- there are a million others that are qualified including my gardner who shares those
    views along with myself. Why is she a better candidate than either myself or my gardner?

    #45875
    Avatar photowv
    Participant

    WV: If “views” are her qualifications-as you wrote- there are a million others that are qualified including my gardner who shares those
    views along with myself. Why is she a better candidate than either myself or my gardner?

    ===================

    Yes, but that is exactly my view — I think your gardener could do just fine as President,
    if he/she was a critical thinker, was compassionate, and wise. And had help.

    Look at Reagan and Bush for example — Did they even write their own speeches? No.
    Did they do their own thinking on 95 percent of the documents the signed? No. I mean, unless you really think Reagan/Bush were experts on Mongolia, technology, border disputes, Asia, a gazillion other things. They didnt know shit about a gazillion things they were asked to be involved in — so, what did they do? They got help. They got advice from people who they though WERE experts in various fields. Thats what they all do. Your gardener could do it.
    Any poster on this board could be President.

    The differences would emerge because of political philosophies which would lead to
    different POLICIES.

    You think being President requires all kinds of experience IN GOVERNMENT. I think being President requires Wisdom, compassion, critical thinking.

    I also think any poster on this board could be a Supreme Court Justice. With a little help from a good law clerk. It aint that hard. WE are lead to ‘believe’ its hard. It aint. I always tell people being an elementary school teacher was WAAAAAY harder than being a lawyer. Most people probly think the opposite though. A lot of work and money go into convincing the average american that being a Judge/Lawyer/President/Politician is hard and should only be the realm of the Elites. Its bullshit.

    Just my opinion. I’m glad you are posting here, btw. We disagree on a gazillion things, but i have learned its not ‘personal’. Just different views. Thats how i look at it now, anyway.

    We need a president that SURFS. I wonder if any of them have?

    w
    v

    #45880
    Avatar photoInvaderRam
    Moderator

    Yes, but that is exactly my view — I think your gardener could do just fine as President,
    if he/she was a critical thinker, was compassionate, and wise. And had help.

    i would disagree with that.

    it would also require other people to also be critical thinkers and to be compassionate. or at least require that person to motivate or convince others to see their way of thinking.

    and good luck with that.

    and using bush and reagan as examples of how easy it is to do a GOOD job at being president isn’t very convincing.

    i think we’re all screwed to be honest.

    #45881
    Avatar photoInvaderRam
    Moderator

    i do agree with you however on how difficult it is to be a teacher. i have several friends who teach grade school. very hard and challenging job.

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