A question directed to the "all or nothing" Al Gore fans

[Angela Shelley]

I get the impression that many Al Gore fans think that "HE" would be the solution to all of the problems in the universe.

If Al Gore would be the president, then "all" would be possible.
If Al Gore does not run for the position, then "nothing" is possible.

I´m always a bit careful with the "we need a hero" mentality.
Now I´m curious.

What could Al Gore do as president that any other president couldn´t do?

[I work for workers]

1. Put an Oscar on the White House mantle. nt

[MonkeyFunk]

2. Nope

While the movie "In Inconvenient Truth" won the Oscar, Al Gore himself did not - he was not a producer of that movie.

[Benhurst]

5. How about a Nobel Prize and an Emmy then?

[sjdnb]

10. Al Gore's resume ...

Graduated from Harvard, with honors
Bachelor of Arts degree in government

Opposed the Vietnam War and could have avoided going by taking a NG spot, but did not.

As a journalist, investigated and uncovered corruption in government.

Eight years in the House of Representatives.

Eight years in the Senate.

Eight years as Vice President.

Won the Presidency by more than half a million votes in 2000.

Before it was 'popular' Gore went out on a limb to protect the planet.
From Wikipedia:
"According to The Concord Monitor, "Gore was one of the first politicians to grasp the seriousness of climate change and to call for a reduction in emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouses gases. He held the first congressional hearings on the subject in the late 1970s."<56> During his tenure in Congress, Gore co-sponsored hearings on toxic waste in 1978–79, and hearings on global warming in the 1980s.<57> In 1989, while still a Senator, Gore published an editorial in the Washington Post, in which he argued, "Humankind has suddenly entered into a brand new relationship with the planet Earth. The world's forests are being destroyed; an enormous hole is opening in the ozone layer. Living species are dying at an unprecedented rate."<58>"

2007 Nobel Peace Prize
"The climate crisis is not a political issue, it is a moral and spiritual challenge to all of humanity. It is also our greatest opportunity to lift global consciousness to a higher level. My wife, Tipper, and I will donate 100 percent of the proceeds of the award to the Alliance for Climate Protection, a bipartisan non-profit organization that is devoted to changing public opinion in the U.S. and around the world about the urgency of solving the climate crisis." Al Gore

Widely respected and admired, Gore can restore the world's confidence in America and American's confidence in their government. He has also proven he is not afraid to speak truth to power.

And, apparently a lot of people agree:
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2007/12/the_democrats_best_hope_is_al.html
Seth Swirsky, Conservative writing for Real Clear Politics:
"Whether you agree with his Global Warming stance or not (I don't), or whether you think he should be wearing earth tones or not, Al Gore is by very far the most substantial candidate the left has and yet it continues to ignore him. . . . As a conservative, I'm glad."

http://www.thenation.com/blogs/thebeat?pid=242088
http://www.newsweek.com/id/77828
http://pundits.thehill.com/2007/10/11/al-gore-for-president/
http://www.forbes.com/2007/10/19/nobel-prize-gore-oped-cx_hwm_1022maathai.html
http://www.forbes.com/opinions/2007/11/15/forbes-tracker-appeal-oped-cx_daa_1115appeal.html

[Angela Shelley]

11. Thanks, sjndb

[CoffeeCat]

3. I can't speak for all Gore fans...

...but my feeling is that our entire system of government is corrupt to the
point of us not having a democracy anymore.

Part of the Gore appeal is that he knows the system, operated within the system,
but has been out of the system for a while. He's not owned by anyone. He
hasn't promised any corporations favors or votes that harm Americans, take
away their civil rights or violate the Constitution.

One only needs to look at the behavior of our Democratic Congressional leaders.
Obviously, there are complex back-door posturing, threats, bullying and deal-making
that have NOTHING to do with what is best for "We The People." Gore isn't inextricably
intertwined in this poison.

I don't agree with your underlying supposition--"What could Al Gore do as president that any other president couldn´t do?". Many people could do what we want Gore to do. However, Gore
is the only one who had the potential to run for President in 08. He didn't run, so
we're left with figuring out which candidate can best take on the corporations, the
corruption and the neocons.

[otohara]

4. He's Already Very Respected Outside The US

I would consider that a huge advantage in many areas.

[Swamp Rat]

6. NeoGore is "The One!"

:D

[IndyOp]

7. You'd have a more interesting discussion, I think, if you posted it in terms of

what each of the candidates could do that the others could not?

What could Edwards, Obama, Clinton, Gore do that the others could not? I think that each has unique abilities.

My heart belongs to Al because he is the only senior U.S. political leader who profoundly understands what we are up against with the climate crisis and I believe that the climate crisis will eclipse all other issues for the next decade.

If we are not very, very careful the "solutions" to the climate crisis could make our other pressing problems (end war, addressing social inequalities, economic recovery) much, much worse. With effort from all citizens and a great leader we can solve many other pressing problems while addressing the climate crisis. The solutions to our problems will come to us if we view them as moral challenges. Ecologist Garrett Hardin argued in 1968 that we had arrived at a point in the evolution of civilization in which new technologies could not solve our problems - that a change in morality would be required. When I hear Al frame the climate crisis as a moral issue, not a political one, he is echoing Hardin and calling us all to action.

I suppose some people believe that all we need is "Gore" or all we need is "Obama" or "Edwards" or "Clinton" and all will be rosy. Not I. The only way we will get the change we need - desperately - is to be the change we want to see. Which candidates do I think will call American citizens to ask what we can do for our country? Which candidates do I think will allow our voices and wishes to be heard in D.C.? Gore has already called us each and all to action. Edwards has repeatedly said that he will need the people of the United States to stand with him to make the changes required to battle the corporations. Obama, in a debate a few weeks ago, told social justice groups that he wanted them in on planning his new administration -- they asked each candidate if they would be welcome in the White House and candidates all said yes, Obama was the last candidate to speak so he knew what was coming and said that if he was elected he would want to consult with them before he got into the White House.

[Angela Shelley]

9. Thanks, IndyOp

[kestrel91316]

8. He'd be a damn sight better than Caligula, that's for sure.