Three Presidential Candidates for...Change!

And now there are three – count’em, folks! Three candidates for president of the U.S. who are presenting genuine choices.

My thanks to my friend Jim for pointing out (see comment to previous blog posting) the Libertarian candidate, Bob Barr. If you check the party website, you will note that Mr. Barr recently testified before the House Judiciary Committee, calling for “a thorough inquiry into the Bush administration’s attack on the Constitution’s system of separation of powers and checks and balances.”

On economic policy, the Libertarian website quotes its national chairman, William Redpath, that "The housing bill creates more regulation, more government and more mess, all with the taxpayer on the hook," says Redpath. "In the end, the government will have spent at least 300 billion dollars trying to solve a problem it created in the first place, without ever addressing why we are in this situation to begin with."

Among the three of them, Bob Barr, Cynthia McKinney, and Ralph Nader have enough ideas to get any American thinking. Nader has a well-organized website. Everyone should read it before voting. Concerning McKinney’s ideas, this blog helps; the two parties supporting her need to get their act together and make their positions easily available. The point is, although you would certainly not know it from the Monotonous Mass Media, some folks are thinking and trying to start a public debate.

To make it simple, I’d like to see the candidates address the following:

• Should America rely on its military to attack and colonize other countries or rely on diplomacy and setting an example to seek out mutually advantageous solutions?
• Should America continue consuming energy as needed to maintain its current lifestyle as long as possible or make a serious effort to create a new, less costly lifestyle?
• Is the president above the law or does the American system of government rest on a constitutional foundation?
  

The Bush/Cheney/McCain answers to those three questions are exceedingly clear. The Democratic answers seem to be virtually identical, albeit slightly fuzzy (allowing room for self-delusion, if not hope). As for McKinney, Nader, and Barr, they are welcome to submit their answers!