Comments | liberalrage: Woo and Hoo!

thisficklemob in liberalrage

Woo and Hoo!

Oct 12, 2007 11:58

Al Gore has won the Nobel Peace Prize (sharing it with the IPCC). This is excellent for two reasons: one, the further affirmation and momentum it gives to the importance of fighting global climate change; and two, the fact that the wingnuts are probably gnawing their own faces off this morning, both because it's Gore and because it's global ( Read more... )

democrats:al gore, environment, global warming

Comments 17

jerrymcl89 October 12 2007, 19:02:04 UTC

The grammatical problem is actually caused by the comma. "As do your party and the planet" is correct :)

I think Gore would still be the best possible Democratic candidate, but I suspect it's too late for him to get in the race.

thisficklemob October 12 2007, 19:45:16 UTC

Ah, good point. I read the clause about the planet as intentionally lacking a verb; because of all the verbiage after planet, it wouldn't have even occurred to me that it could be part of the same phrase. (Which, it could have been anyway, but might have been awkward.)

Somebody probably said, hey, this needs a comma here to scan better, and they neglected to change the verb. That makes me feel a little better about their collective intelligence.

I think Gore would still be the best possible Democratic candidate, but I suspect it's too late for him to get in the race.Yeah. Although, a couple weeks ago at a film screening, I was asked to sign a petition to get him on the ballot in Mass.... the wheels can clearly turn without him to some extent. I suspect it would be too late, but then Fred Thompson only officially entered the race in September (so he wouldn't have to report funds raised in the previous quarter). So it's not impossible, just 95% unlikely ( ... )

coolred October 12 2007, 20:18:30 UTC

Since I'm German I won't comment on English grammar ( ... )

thisficklemob October 12 2007, 20:41:07 UTC

This is also the main reason why I believe he won't even consider a cabinet position.Perhaps, although I could see him being given a fair amount of leeway to advocate, even if President Whoever didn't do what he said. Actually, it might be useful for a president to have a guy like him making recommendations they didn't intend to follow; it'd give them some cover to take smaller steps and look reasonable. I don't know enough about how he and Hillary interact to know if they'd have any interest in working together ( ... )

ext_4728 October 12 2007, 21:26:11 UTC

Off topic, icon love!

chungy October 12 2007, 22:10:12 UTC

don't get me wrong, i absolutely love Al Gore for his attention to global warming, but as a scientist, I feel really bad about all the hard work that the scientists put into their studies and haven't gotten their fair share of recognition.

thisficklemob October 12 2007, 22:48:30 UTC

Well, they sort of did, because he's sharing the award with the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. (Here's an article on its scientist head, Rajendra Pachauri.)

I agree that scientists deserve the lion's share of the credit for our understanding of global warming. But the Peace Prize is about social progress. And as much as the scientific community has spoken about this issue over the past decades, it's Gore who's had success at educating the public, and putting it front and center of national and international debate. That's partly because he has a bigger megaphone, but he has used it well.

And he also points to the climate scientists' tireless work. So I wouldn't feel too slighted.

koljeff October 13 2007, 01:29:08 UTC

Interestingly, "as do your party" is perfectly good English in Britain and probably some Britain-influenced areas. The British like to say things like "Microsoft are money-grubbing bastards" and so on, which seems inappropriate to me (in terms of structure, if not content ;)), but y'know.

thisficklemob October 13 2007, 02:00:16 UTC

I suspected as much, which is why I specified U.S. English - I've noticed the British handle number differently. But somehow "Microsoft are money-grubbing bastards" doesn't sound as off to me, if only because there's a plural noun at the end. (i.e., if they said, "Microsoft are money-grubbing," that would scan more wrongly to me.)

Hmm, maybe there are Brits or Canadians who want Gore to run... *g*

koljeff October 13 2007, 04:47:08 UTC

Heh, I wouldn't be surprised. Personally, I'd rather see Kerry back on the ballot, but that's just me. ;)

Also, apparently I am illiterate! Hooray!

thisficklemob October 13 2007, 19:48:04 UTC

Really? Kerry didn't inspire me much at all, other than the being a million times better than Bush thing, and he seems to have a habit of putting his foot in his mouth.

... You're illiterate? What?

Thread 6

asaresquares October 13 2007, 06:30:47 UTC

I saw him speak in Austin last week, and....dude is amazing. THIS IS DESERVED. Really, I love the guy to pieces. ♥

NOT my choice for Prez, though (I'm a Hil chick, and totally content with my candidate, even thought she does slip up now and then). I think he'd be an excellent President, don't get me wrong, but I think he's far better suited for what he's doing now, and I think in the long-run it'll give him a happier legacy and a more fulfilled life. Honestly, I don't think the stress and political nastiness of being el Prezio would appeal to him at all (he may be a hard-hitter at times, but in general he doesn't strike me as a guy who likes to bicker), and all the bi-partisanship that he and Clinton (the male) are now pushing for would likely fall apart, as he would be forced to tow the party line.

So, yay for prizes and global warners, nay for unhappy Presidents. THAT'S MY SAY.

thisficklemob October 13 2007, 19:50:13 UTC

Yup. And I'm not sure he couldn't do as much good or more from the outside.

Also, my feeling bipartisanship is that you can't do bipartisanship with people who think it's date-rape. (Their words, not mine.) Actual cooperation and compromise is one thing, but the Republicans (and the media) use bipartisanship to mean, "whhyyyy aren't you giving Bush all he wants? Don't you see he just wants to help?"

asaresquares October 13 2007, 20:03:55 UTC

Hah, well, obviously the Bush administration's definition of bi-partisanship isn't remotely accurate (I VETO YOUR BILLS AND YET YOU'RE PISSED? WAI U SO MEEN?) and the media's backing of it has been unbelievably irritating (LIBERAL MEDIA? WHERE? I WANT SOME), and I'm definitely not going to hold ANY of the Republicans up as a symbol of goodwill (HAH.), but as much as I'm fond of the current Dems in power, I really wish everyone would WORK TOGETHER. The work that Clinton's (male) been doing with H.W. Bush, and the few Republicans who've crossed party lines to work with the Dems has really, really given me heart, and, when Gore was in Austin, he was really emphasizing cooperation, and, y'know, I really like that. As someone who's of the Washingtonesque "parties are bad" school of thought, I really want people to work together for the common good (not likely with Republicans to begin with, but hey, I CAN HOPE). So...yeah, I had a point when I started, I swear. =P

thisficklemob October 14 2007, 00:07:52 UTC

No, I get it. I've just become very cynical about 98% of the Republicans in Congress and whether you can work with them in good faith. I think it's marginally better now that the Dems have a majority, because Republicans now have to either work with Dems or do nothing at all. But before, they'd bring in some Dems under the guise of working together, and then screw them.

I think it's a good message for the voters, though, because except for the thirty-percenters who are Bush's mindless followers, I think most regular Americans want their representatives to work together to do the things we all can agree on (like SCHIP, which large majorities of voters, and even a majority of Republicans, support). But I sure hope that Obama, for example, understands the toxicity of modern conservative politics. You can reach across the aisle, just not too far. ;)