Green Party Politics

I have been in contact with several Pima County Green Party this past week including Co-Chairs Claudia Ellquist and Andrew Spencer. I talked to them about the importance of having a third party in government elections and it really got me thinking about why the American public does not take true stock in third parties. There have been times when a third party has recieved a lot of nation-wide coverage, such when Ross Perot ran for President against Bush and Clinton all those years ago, but recently, especially in the 2008 Presidential race, it has been a publically accepted fact that the next President will be Democrat or Republican. This got me thinking. Why is it that Green Party, Independent or Libertarian candidates are not, and probably will never be truly considered viable as a President for the United States? I think Jon Stewart said it best, don't quote me on it, but he said something like Democracy is better than a Dictatorship because we have one more option to choose from.

Ellquist said what the Green Party needs to do is establish their goals and values on a broader scale that will attract the masses. There are probably quite a few reasons why we won't see a Green President or Independent President in our lifetime. One of the reason I can think of, and Spencer mentioned it to me as well, is the fact that the media does not give third parties equal coverage. If CNN or even local publications were to give the same amount of space or time to a Green as a Democrat, list values and goals of each, people might become more aware of their similarities and differences and establish them as a "real" political party, at the very least it would give us more to think about. Thinking is good, right? Ellquist told me that, as we as a nation are moving toward environmentalism and all candidates are being forced to identify their stance on things like conservation, people are beginning to realize what the Green Party has stood for for a long time now.

The best example is the past Tucson City Council elections. The word "sustainability" was used by candidates of all parties. Because we are in, especially Tucson, a time where there are a lot of questions to be answered about the future of water, growth and conservation actions, it is forcing politicians into awkward situations in which they must take a stance on where they stand on these issues. It is a tough place to be in, no question about it, but these are very important issues for our future and without proper planning it could turn out to be a disaster.

Look at the Atlanta suburbs for example. There was an article in the Daily Star this weekend talking about how these places are running out of good drinking water. They're are almost in crisis mode because the lake they were taking the water from is down "to the dregs," the organic-rich lake bottom. They can treat it but it is still poor quality. Where was the planning by these town councils?

There are many examples of this in today's news. We need politicians who know changes need to be made and have the backbone to get things done. That's why I am voting for Al Gore in 2008, he is running, right?.