Why isn't the ENVIORNMENT an issue being discussed in the campaign?

[jus_the_facts]

....this issue isn't being discussed much if at all....Please enlighten me as to WHY....this is THE MOST dire issue we face...but the topic hasn't and isn't being talked about anymore.

.....WHY..WHY WHY isn't this regarded as the most important thing we need to be thinking about...it is PARAMOUNT to our existence if it's not addressed and something DONE about it....we're ALL toast and NO OTHER ISSUES we care about MATTER NOT AT ALL???

What are your thoughts about this...as I'm just amazed that it's being overlooked and can hardly begin to understand the lack of concern about it with any of the candidates.

[pmbryant]

1. Because all the Dem candidates agree on this

There's not much to discuss when all agree that this is a crucial issue.

--Peter

[jus_the_facts]

3. I guess...*sigh*

...this is the main reason I am so passionate about politics...as it's the only thing that really matters anymore...all other problems are a symptom of this issue....ESPECIALLY OIL....yet it's not being discussed enough to placate me...nothing else will matter at all...only makes all other issues that much worse to have to deal with....ya dig? :evilfrown:

[qb]

2. I think it's a foregone conclusion among Democrats and Republicans

that anyone will be 1000X better than Bush on the environment. The only one defending Bush's environmental policies is Bush.

[jus_the_facts]

6. Yeah...I see what you mean....still all other issues pale in comparison...

.....in the long run....and it's my personal belief it should be hammered into the conscienness of EVERYONE....much more than is being done.

[blm]

13. Actually Kerry says that the environment IS a national security issue.

And that we, as Americans, need to show the courage to reject our dependency on oil and fully explore and fund alternative fuels.

For 30 years Kerry sets the standard on environmental issues, and all any other Democrat can do is follow.

[jus_the_facts]

15. it's a GLOBAL Security issue in fact.....

....thanks for your post...maybe I've been too harsh on my feelings regarding him x(

[salin]

10. hehe he still tries to sell himself as an "environmental president"

simply said, I think he is a tad delusional.

[jus_the_facts]

20. ..just a TAD.....oh don't get me started....don't EVEN get me started...

:mad:

*molly shannon impression*

:hi: ya HOOSIER! :D

[Caution]

4. It's early

Give it time, this will be an issue as well. With the economy in the tank and with a war being fought, the environment, unsurprisingly is being ignored by the candidates for the purposes of their campaigns (although if you look closely, you'll see that Kerry is talking about it).

[jus_the_facts]

18. I hope your correct....

:shrug:

[Cha]

5. Here is Dean's Environmental Principles from his site...

http://www.deanforamerica.com/site/PageServer?pagename=policy_statement_environment

"As President, I will bring my commitment to our environment to the White House, guided by six principles:

"First, environmental issues cannot be isolated from other issues. President Bush and his henchmen try to sweep the environment under the rug; I will bring it back into the light. Environmental policy cannot be separated from other issues such as energy, trade, or economic policy. This is one reason that I will ask Congress to elevate the Environmental Protection Agency to cabinet status immediately, and not drag the process out with contentious debates about restructuring. We should take this step not only to reaffirm our commitment to the environment to ourselves, but to demonstrate it to the world."

[jus_the_facts]

11. thank you for the link and the quote.....

....to me nothing else matters much...as I said...nothing else will matter when the atmosphere is depleted...and on and on and on....as all other issues will only be made much much worse because of the inaction on it....thanks agian!

[zeemike]

7. Because the Repugs control the agenda

It is they who decide what will be talked about. They control the media and keep asking questions that put the Demos on the defensive. Will Hillary Run? Can Clark beat Bush?
Is Dean waffling again?

[ikojo]

9. I disagree that the Dems cannot take control of the agenda

When the pugs were a minority party during Clintons first administration they were quite effective at getting their stuff heard and hurting his administration.

The Democrats collectively need to see a chiropractor and request a spinal adjustment. Once their spine has been properly adjusted then perhaps THEY will act as an OPPOSITION party and begin setting their OWN agenda instead of merely reacting.

People are waiting for an opposition party.

[nomaco-10]

8. The War and The Economy

are foremost in most people's mind. It's hard to think about saving the Rain Forest or Global Warming when your kids are going to bed hungry or your son is in Falluja.

[jus_the_facts]

19. yeah.....that's true.....

....a shame that we haven't solved age old problems regarding the division of class and territories...whilst destroying our very life support in the process x(

[pnb]

12. Because most people only care about today or tomorrow

People don't care about the environment because they take it as given and as something than can always be taken care of next week or next year.

People won't care about the environment until there is no longer anything to worry about.

[jus_the_facts]

17. yep....sad but true...and it'll be waaaay too late to redeem ourselves....

....because we've been dealing with the same ol' things for the most part...for 200 years...all the while compounding our problems destroying all it takes to sustain our existence....:evilfrown:

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

14. At the Harkin Steak Fry...

Clinton said that alternative energy would pump $1.6T into the economy. That was a point that needs to be taken up more vocally.

[jus_the_facts]

16. I CONCUR.....THANK YOU...after all the bashing that's gone on as of late..

...it's put me off and I haven't been able to get inspired or even want to pay attention much to what any are saying....the reason I posted this question is because of the lack of intrest shown to articles about enviornmental issues around here....got me all fired up about it all the more x(

[Character Assassin]

21. Does that mean he was right?

Without a lot more details, it's hard to lend that statement much importance.

[sandnsea]

23. But wait a minute

Kerry's manufacturing speech in Detroit addressed that very thing and people in P&C said it was stupid. Manufacturing is gone. Tax credits and R&D and supporting particular industries is anti-free market. It's more corporate welfare. Bla bla bla....

I don't think you got in that thread, but it was goddamn annoying. Especially since alternative energy is going to be a big issue in 2004 and ought to be something every Democrat can get behind no matter which candidate is talking about it.

[jus_the_facts]

29. It should be....but so far not enough is being said to appease me.....

.....as I've stated this is THE most important issue facing the entire world....if we can't eat..drink...and breathe...NOTHING ELSE MATTERS...but I seem to be screaming into the DYING wilderness...doesn't give me any relief except for the fact that I haven't left any children to live in what...if anything is left for their future... x(

[damnraddem]

22. The Bushistas hit the U.S. with a radical agenda ...

on many fronts. We haven't begun to catch up to them on all of the horrid things they've been doing. Things that would formerly have brought down all kinds of wrath on them have gone unnoticed, not JUST because of a RW media, but also because there have been so many of them that some have gotten lost in the shuffle. However, the environment has been mentioned by the Dem candidates, who know that environmental issues are ones where the voters agree with them. A Dem prez and Congress will be very busy, indeed, post 2004.

[Resistance Is Futile]

24. Not relevant

The people are too embroiled the Hobbsian world for postmaterialist philosophies to have much of an impact.

IOW, envrionmentalism is sufficiently intellectual to be a vote loser. The benighted masses are too worried about survival to be interested in abstract highbrow concepts such as if the air around them is safe enough to breath.

[bigtree]

25. It's funny how issues become 'relevant'

You can have an issue that the faithful have been banging on for weeks, totally ignored. And then, pow! Some talking head with dawn to dusk coverage "discovers" the issue, creates a hook and propels the issue into campaign history. It's such a nebulous occurence; you can't tell when or where someone will take notice. That's what makes it completely worth it to shout about your issue from now until someone gets your drift and exloits it for the rest of the world to chew on.

Most issues are tied to the environment in some way. It's some 15 months till the election. Let's see what we can do. Let's make some noise.

[jus_the_facts]

26. It's beyond relevant.....as I stated above there won't be anything else..

..that is relevant because our life support is being destroyed on a massive scale...guess once it does become relevant the it'll be too goddamn late to do much about it....that is the reality of the matter....so much for having our Earth continue to be able to sustain us anymore....when everyone can't breathe....eat....or even drink a decent sip of water without getting sick from it....then they'll remove their head outta their ass but it'll be too late...

[Lady President]

27. I agree, this should be considered a real issue

I'm with you. I think that we seriously need to look at the current environmental policy (or lack thereof,) and realize that if any Dem. is elected they will have a huge duty to undo the damage that has been done and set us back on a proper course. I think the issue is being overlooked because all of the candidate are so far superior to Bush* that it is assumed that environmentalists are going to be an ABB voting block.

I didn't notice the Kerry environmental link in this thread, so I'll give it to you to take a peek. Not to sound biased, but Kerry is the strongest candidate on the environment. From what I've read Lieberman also is very committed (everyone has to be right sometimes, I guess). I have to add that Kerry was recently endorsed by Robert Kennedy Jr. based on Kerry's environmentalist history.
http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/environment.html

[jus_the_facts]

28. Thanks for your agreement and the link too.....

....I do appreciate it a lot! :hi:

[maha]

30. It's a given.

Environment: Bush, bad. Dems, good.

What's to discuss?

[bigtree]

34. In 15 months

Bush can do some incredible damage to the environment in this time before the election. Especially if his posse senses that their time is drawing close to an end. Stay vigilant.

[hiphopnation]

31. Unfortunately...

it seems as though the portent of issues is on a sliding scale. There's so much SH*T to clean up in the meantime that the environment has slid down the list of issues.

Real environmental chage takes courageous leadership, hard, scientific fact filtered through smart legislation, and the will of the populous to recognize that change needs to be made. Our national psyche is, for now, focused on getting loved ones back home alive. Where's President Gore when you need him??

[OrdinaryTa]

32. Chest-Thumping Macho Guys Can't Be Bothered

Environmentalism isn't masculine enough for the macho guys running for president these days. This issue used to be important, but that was before the collapse of feminism. Another issue we don't hear about is homeless children - there are well over a million of them, but this is not considered important enough to be a campaign issue.

Gore was dismissed as a tree hugger for his concern about global warming. Since then the country has gone completely over to the right wing, to the point where Democrats won't even consider nominating a woman for the presidency. In such an indifferent atmosphere, environmentalism is derogated as a "woman's issue" and, as you've noted, is totally ignored.

[jus_the_facts]

33. not gonna have the strength to do that......

......as they'll be as emaciated as third world countries peoples before too much longer....ahh well....guess it's what they want to see happen...for they all will be the last to go without regardless....hope they have plenty of oxygen left to watch it up close and personal....the horror they created and let destroy the life support for all of Mother Earth x(