Great Points from Mike Gravel
The chances of Mike Gravel being the next Democratic Presidential Candidate remind me of an epic sci fi where Bruce Willis plays a gay guy who must blow up the moon in order to save the history of cowboys. Sure, it’d be great and I’d love to see it happen, but it’s unlikely. However, the man does have some very interesting and radical ideas; ideas that I would love to see come to fruition; ideas that are perhaps unpopular in political circles but which in my own circle of friends and acquaintances are wildly popular; and best of all, ideas that are his and he’s happy to speak them, even though it means he’s rarely asked to speak again. 🙂
Some quotes from a Grist article pointed out to me by Jake:
I want to superimpose an electric maglev [train] system throughout the country similar to the one that currently runs between the airport and the city of Shanghai. These maglevs can travel 300 miles an hour. Imagine if we could move trucks across this country on electricity at that speed, with no environmental pollution…
…by altering the technology of our existing cars and gas stations, they can be used to run on and distribute hydrogen liquid. Oh, it blows you away. This can probably be done within five years…
End of story. Forget the automobile industry.
Our total economy is based upon growth, growth, growth. Well, there comes a time when you destroy so you can have growth. I want to change our system of revenue from an income tax to a sales tax. That would change this country from a consuming nation to a savings nation. If we begin to look upon growth from a savings point of view, we could do more in the short run with respect to global warming. Our country right now spends more than we earn, and we’re on our way to bankruptcy.
Mr. Gravel can sound so much better on paper than hearing him speak, but that’s likely only because he’s incredibly straight forward with his personality, rather than playing the typical “careful with your words or you won’t be President” stance. Unfortunately, it’s too likely true. I particularly like the last quote there, emphasizing this countries current addiction to consumption and an excellent way to address it.
And one final quote, further emphasizing his willingness to speak his mind:
Stop and think of all the human beings that have died and suffered because of that S.O.B. [referring to George W. Bush] I personally believe that impeachment is too light a sentence. These people should be pursued criminally.
You know, when you’re sworn in to be president, you and the outgoing president have to ride in the car together to the swearing-in. When Hoover and Roosevelt rode in the same car to Roosevelt’s swearing-in, they never said a word to each other. And I’ve got to tell you, when I’m sworn in, the same will go for me and George W. Bush.
Read the original article on Grist »
Up Next: Investigating the Port Authority, Drink Tax and the Onorato Administration