While you ponder which Presidential candidate you will support in 2008

[Greyhound]

Or perhaps you think you already know but are still open to ideas, please consider this for your own immediate future, as well as the three or four generations that will follow.

This upcoming election is the most important you will participate in during your life. The last Presidential election was probably more so, but that opportunity was squandered and we have to live with that and its consequences.

The upcoming election will determine, among other things, who will get to name the next, or possibly two or even three, Supreme Court Justices. It is not possible to overstate how vital that will be. We have not seen a court this stacked against ordinary people in 175 years and if a so-called conservative gets in, it may well be the end for America as it was intended to be, that is, a nation where individual liberty is superior to the demands of autocrats.

Think about it, the SCOTUS of the 1830's laid the groundwork for the domination of the ruling class in this nation to this day. From the forced removal and genocide of Aboriginal Americans, “Manifest Destiny”, Jim Crow and Plessy v. Ferguson, the Civil War, the robber barons, corporate "person hood", the Federal reserve, etc., were all brought about, directly or indirectly, by the precedents set by this court.

We absolutely must find some way to shake up the electorate and make it clear what is at stake this time. Seven of the nine sitting justices were nominated by Republicans, only three of whom are generally considered to be at least marginally liberal and the youngest of these is Stephen Breyer who will be 70 by the next election. How long will they last? Can we afford to let more conservative ideologues be appointed? In short, this is our last chance to maintain a semblance of balance in the Supreme Court of The United States.

Imagine a bushbot with veto power deciding what reforms will be allowed to pass for the next 30 years.
"...imagine a boot stamping on a human face -- forever." - George Orwell (1984)

[iamjoy]

1. Now Put That Into A One Minute Speech

I hope most of us on DU realize the stakes - I would like to think many of us were aware of them in 2004, too. Of course, there are a few here who want to vote for a third party candidate who is a true liberal rather than a "corporate" or "DLC" candidate . But, I think most of us are aware of the importance of the SCOTUS.

Now, please some one put the argument of the OP in a concise, easy to understand one minute statement that can be given when trying to convince swing voters.

[politicasista]

2. It's the corporate media, stupid (not you :))

but we can not forget that the media is not on our side. It is being controlled by the GOP and BushCo. In a perfect world, it would be nice to have a soundbite candidate, but we must remember that anything a Democrat or Democratic candidate says, it will be taken out of contest. The goal for us is to stick with the facts and repeat them over and over again, rather than repeat the spin.

We have to be the media now.

[iamjoy]

3. I Need Help Talking To Voters

how do I demonstrate the importance of the SCOTUS appointees to them, some of whom may be Pro-Life (for example) or worried about other things?

[Cerridwen]

7. Will this help?

I retain an abiding concern that our Declaration of Rights not be killed by friendly fire. And, in
this day and age, the courts are the last, if not only, bulwark to prevent that from happening.
- Justice James C. Nelson (Montana Supreme Court) (emphasis added)

In reference to a recent ruling in Montana discussed here

This is about our "right to privacy" concerning our trash. Yes, I said trash. Maybe there's a sound bite in there somewhere. The police in Montana can use what you throw away as evidence against you in a court of law. Imagine that on a national scale. How well do the voters you talk to hide their little "peccadilloes?"

I'll think on it a bit and see if I can think of a more succinct version.

[Greyhound]

12. We are the media to a small extent. The tubes of the internetz are a

revolution in communication and every large change in the fabric of the world was preceded by a revolution in communication. Writing, the printing press, movable type, and the telegraph, each immediately brought about large scale social changes by disseminating privileged information to the masses, and each of these was initially fought against and later controlled by the ruling class. We are witnessing the very same thing happening now all across the globe.

If we are to heed George Santayana's lesson, we have a rapidly closing window of opportunity to make the inevitable changes ones that will be better for us. So you are absolutely correct and we simply must find a way to stress the importance, and urgency, of this opportunity as the consequences of losing it are too horrible to contemplate.

Is it significant that not one of the most ardent promoters of this or that candidate has replied to this post, ensuring that it rapidly sinks off the page time and again? Is it my writing, or the message, or the fact that the idea is counter to the stated (or not stated) plans of these candidates?

[Greyhound]

4. It is incumbent on the Party and the candidate to attract the

third party voters. They do not owe their votes to the party, as we should have learned by now.

Secondly, DLC candidates (a catchall term for any corporatist) are just as unlikely to make a liberal nomination as a Re:puke:. They are, after all, trying to push the same agenda as the Re:puke:s.

[kimmerspixelated]

5. Your post was one of the most important

ones I've ever seen. Post this on blogs everywhere you can. Send it to KO! Send it to anyone you think will care enough to blast it through their megaphones.

[Flabbergasted]

6. Ditto You're my hero greyhound.

[Cerridwen]

8. Oh, and by the way -

Congratulations (?) on 8000 posts!

LOL

[Greyhound]

15. Thank you for the notice,

My head is a little sore,:banghead: but if it makes somebody look a little deeper at their preconceptions or assumptions, it's worth it.

[election_2004]

9. Yes, I agree

2004 was the most important election of our lifetimes, but this will easily be the second-most important.

However, I believe a Democrat will win the '08 General Election...for better or for worse.

Let's hope it's for better.

[Greyhound]

10. To the six people that replied, thank you so much,

I believe you are our only hope. If anyone reading this agrees and has access to other outlets, please feel free to use this, or any part of it, we just have to get this through their heads.

I just have this dreaded feeling that our "representatives" will spend the next two years jerking us off, accomplishing nothing, and we will get a Hagel or some such fascist, with just enough of a facade of "moderation" for the sheep to elect him, because of it.

"Given the choice between a Republican and someone who acts like a Republican, people will vote for the real Republican all the time." -Harry S Truman
:kick:

[Alamom]

11. I'm with you all the way. I've written the very same on many occasions,

( or threads) although brief and less eloquent.

This is it folks. If we screw up this time, we don't get another chance.

Thanks Greyhound.



1984 is one of my favorite books.
I read it when "1984" seemed to be the very distant future, but the Cold War was very real to me
(as much as a child could understand)
and I believed it (1984) could happen. I believed a government could take over and watch your every move and tell you how to live every moment.

[bluehighways911]

13. Don't Have To Ponder

I don't have to ponder crap. I knew Obama would be President the first day I worked on his Senate run. Even before he made the ballot.

Met him once. Corresponded twice. Have been blown away by every friend and neighbor that were just praying he would run.

Sorry Dennis. Saw your act and no one voted for you. Same with Edwards. Hillary is Bush, a puppet with a name.

Richardson. Would be a great VEEP.

Pondering done. America will learn as well.

[Greyhound]

14. I like Obama, and while this post has nothing to do with which candidate

is better or worse or should/should not get our support, you've brought up the issue and it will be addressed.

He is very charismatic, and prior to his getting the "Howard Beale talk" after the primaries in 2004, I was going to support him. What disturbs me now is what his reaction to it was, he has demonstrated an apparent willingness to accept the dictates of, and then lend his support to, the corporatist agenda, and that is the biggest issue at hand as every other issue grows from it.

After studying his platform, I can only conclude that, should he be elected (and if he gets the nomination, I will vote for him), we won't be seeing any real change in the operation of the sausage factory. OTOH, I do believe he will do a fair job of at least maintaining a balance on the SCOTUS.