Charlie Crystle Blog: Surf's Up

April 17, 2004

Surf's Up

I can't help it--blue skies, an offshore wind, and 54 degree water. I have to hit the surf this weekend and get some solid exercise.

Next week is the last week of campaigning for the primary. I'm sadly not a part of it. In some respects I'm happy I dropped out--I was out of shape and exhausted and it was becoming gruelling. But there are issues not being talked about that should be--poverty in America, universal health care (Kerry mentions health care for all but in the context of applying multiple layers of bandaids and maintaining the corrupting insurance industry), distribution of wealth issues, corporate crime, and the corporate hold on Washington that has polluted our democracy and both parties.

My picks for the primary? There aren't a lot because both parties fail to embrace true participatory democracy and have "cleared the decks". In the AG race, though, I think it's clear that Eisenhower doesn't have the experience, vision, or character to be the AG. He lied throughout his campaign about Rendell's support for him, plus he supports higher minimum sentences and talks about the Drug War as though it were successful. Jim, it's a failure and you've failed to convince me otherwise. In fact, all you've done is make sure there are, as Rev Sharpton notes, more blacks in the state pen than at Penn State, enforcing to the hilt laws that by their very nature discriminate against minorities.

Barasch is more moderated, and has a lot more experience at a much higher level. Morganelli, well, he has the bucks, which scares me, because his record and his connections are both a bit murky. But I'm just a small-town boy from Lancaster, what do I know?

Toomey will not pull out the win against Specter. He's already made the argument a million times that Specter is a liberal. So what. That's not the question, Pat. Republican voters want to know what you are going to do differently. People want something to vote for, not just to vote against. Besides the fact you're approaching neo-Nazism with your definition of conservatism, alienating the reasonable moderate Republicans, you're just not making the case of why you'd be a great Senator. You wouldn't. You convey no sense for what this country is about, no sense of leadership on any issue, and no sense of why you should be part of the elite group of 100. You merely attack poor Arlen, who, while a reprehensible little rat, does in fact do the job at a level I can't imagine you ever aspiring to. And he pretty much sucks, so what does that say about you?

And Joe Hoeffel. Well, Joe's been refining his game, travelling the state, meeting with people in what he calls "economic summits" but which are really more like sessions to practice his rhetoric. I've heard him recently and he's improved a lot and has embraced some of the issues my campaign championed, including offshoring.

Things will get a lot more interesting when Specter and Hoeffel face off as of the 28th. Joe's got a tough race, and is going to have to do more than just show up in campaign mode to capture people's imagination enough to leave the known for the unknown. As they say in the music industry, "people don't know what they like, they like what they know."

Joe, we hardly know ya.

Posted by Charlie Crystle at April 17, 2004 11:20 AM | TrackBack

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Charley,

Logical minded people who then speak the truth are what you and Howard Dean truly are. This type of person in America is an easy target for criticism and avoidance because Americans do not wish to heard anything unpleasant even if true. That is why we get the poltical parties and system we deserve.

Someday as the public learns the meaning of good thought and truth, maybe things can change! Such changes, I fear, will have to happen in a parallel universe process with a sudden cross-over to reality because the corporate controlled media will not report the truth initally as it happens!

Posted by: Neil Gardner at April 18, 2004 11:15 AM

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Thanks Neil, and thanks Terry. Change comes with belief, tenacity, and hard work. I'm willing to keep at it if you are. Even if you aren't. But it's a lot easier with your help :)

Terry--I'll see you at Ben's event tonight!

Posted by: Charlie at April 19, 2004 01:13 PM

i thought eisenhower did have rendell's support...but if he's a lyin' fool i'm not going to vote for him this primary. the AG race is probably something I should have followed...because I don't know much about the others as well. Eh well.

Posted by: terry at April 17, 2004 06:19 PM