Forum Post: OWS Presages a Powerful Independent 2012 Presidential Candidate
Posted 12 years ago on Dec. 19, 2011, 10:57 a.m. EST by thenewgreen
(170)
This content is user submitted and not an official statement
I agree with much of what this author has to say:
This doesn't have to be an "OWS" candidate, but still I think the stage is set for a 3rd party candidate. I recommend reading the comments below the post too.
Thoughts?
I think we need changes in the senate and congress, that would have a bigger impact this year. Liz Warren is a great start.
I agree with that. Warren is fantastic.
I disagree with the author. I feel that we need to NOT have any one leader. Once power is centralized, it begets corruption.
I would much prefer that democracy become more direct than ever before. We have the technology to engage in a fully direct democracy.
"I would much prefer that democracy become more direct than ever before"
-I can certainly get behind this. There is no reason given our current internet capabilities that our leadership be so incredibly removed from the reality of the people.
The one real problem with a fully direct democracy would be: How would we then protect minorities from majority tyranny?
This is great timing for Rocky Anderson for president, running as the candidate of the newly formed Justice Party.
http://www.justicepartyusa.net/news/view/171929/?topic=75698
He seems interesting. Need to improve the dialogue in America. Third party candidates have sadly always served to take votes away from the party they come closest to, I think two, a liberal party and a libertarian party candidate would round our the ballot nicely. I bet between them they would get most of the vote.
I just hope the two major parties don't play spoiler and take votes away from the Justice Party.
If people would start voting for the candidate who best represents their values, a third party candidate would win.
It's kind of late for that any way, way to early in terms of the size and development of OWS to talk about a new party,
I don't think the author is trying to say that OWS should create a party, only that they have presented the nation with a context in which a third party candidate could do quite well. It wouldn't have to be the OWS party. Hell, it could be the libertarian party... the mood in the US is so anti-establishment that if the candidate was honest and had some progressive ideas, they could do well.
I've run as a Green Party candidate for Congress and twice for the state legislature, I personally will probably vote for Dr. Jill Stein who will probably be the Green Party candidate for President, but I don't think it will amount to much,
The point is that the left has not been particularly decisive whether it gets behind a Democratic Party or it supports some so called third party candidate which are really little more than sectlets,
A genuine realignment of American politics will probably entail a massive break on the part of liberals and especially on the part of the institutional support of labor, civil rights groups and similar formations from the Democratic Party and we are nowhere near that yet, Absent that what I think OWS needs to focus on is organizing, Once 10 or 20 million people are occupying will be time enough to talk about a next step,
Thank you for the response, I agree that OWS needs to be focusing primarily on organizing. Good luck to you in any future campaigns.
OWS99% would gain attention in the political arena at a NAtional General Assembly in the works for July 4th where the Assembly will produce a List Of Grievances to serve on the government as per the 1st Amendment. From the Declaration posted on their website http://www.the99declaration.org/
" V. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that IF the PETITION FOR A REDRESS OF GRIEVANCES approved by the 876 Delegates of the NATIONAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY in consultation with the NINETY-NINE PERCENT OF THE PEOPLE, is not acted upon within a reasonable time and to the satisfaction of the Delegates of the NATIONAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY, said Delegates shall reconvene to utilize the grassroots network established in the election of the NATIONAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY to organize a new INDEPENDENT POLITICAL PARTY to run candidates for every available Congressional seat in the mid-term election of 2014 and again in 2016 until all vestiges of the existing corrupt corporatocracy have been eradicated through the power of the ballot box."
There is already a candidate that is polling highest amongst Independents and is equally despised by establishment R's and D's, but is also seemingly flat out HATED by OWS.
So good luck. OWS can't help but look a gift horse in the mouth, and then lie about what they see.