WP's George Will: Warming to A Candidacy? (Gore)

Warming to A Candidacy?

By George F. Will
Sunday, June 11, 2006; Page B07

-snip-
"Less than 10 years." That, Gore warns, is all the time that "leading scientists" say we may have "before we cross a point of no return" -- unless we make a "really good start toward dramatic changes" to combat global warming. Ten years from now will be the last year of the second term of the next president, if he or she is reelected. Surely Gore should strive to be that president, if he means these four things he says or implies:

First, so grave is the "planetary emergency" that decisions made in the next few years will determine the fate of civilization.
Second, he understands this better than any other national leader. When the Kyoto Protocol, which distributes nations' obligations regarding reduction of global warming, was created in 1997, Gore could find only "one senator out of all 100 who was willing to say that he or she would definitely" vote to ratify it.
Third, he aims "to move our country" and "change the minds of the American people" and instill "the sense of urgency that is appropriate," because "the political environment has to be changed" before solutions are possible.
Fourth, "I'm under no illusions that there's any position in the world with as much influence" as the presidency.

-snip-
Nevertheless, the likelihood that Gore will seek the presidency is suggested not only by the logic of what he says but also by what he does not say. Given how clear and present he says the danger is, he should be more specific and radical regarding the economic, indeed civilizational, changes he considers necessary. He should be -- unless he is trimming his sails and biding his time in the hope that he can acquire the presidential pulpit from which to move the nation.

There is nothing wrong with that. The nobility of politics, when it is noble, often consists in prudent maneuvering and persuading until an issue is, in terms of public opinion, ripe. A luminous example of the nobility of indirection is Lincoln's protracted and incremental progress toward abolishing slavery. Dismayed by the Kansas-Nebraska Act and then the Dred Scott decision, Lincoln did not exclaim: "That does it! Instead of running for president, I am going to prepare a PowerPoint presentation."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/09/AR2006060901550.html

I tell you boys and girls that something BIG is coming down. First, Mr. McLaughlin of the
McLaughlin Group had a positive review of Al Gore on his show 5/28/06 and now this. George Will
who considers all Dems as fools and knaves is now saying positive things about Al Gore.

There is something coming down and they want to get ahead of it.

full of grace and noble intentions!!! Gore would bring respectability back to America. These current idiots said they would bring "honor back to Washington" and destroyed the reputation of the entire country in the eyes of the world!

Go Al GOOOOOOOOO!!!

If you believe in god, as 90+% of Amurkans do, then the prospect of earth being un-inhabitable is probably not too serious. I read the 40 something percent of Amurkans believe in the second coming of Jesus (riding on a white horse from out of the sky).

George Will and his ilk are in denial about Global Warming - probably because they assume god will save them. As a result, his article completely side steps the issues and goes right to the assumption that Al Gore is using Global Warming for political purposes. No surprise here.

fundie-type conservative.

I generally don't like Will politically, of course, but I found the political analysis in this piece interesting.

Sometimes the analysis is logical and interesting which IMO makes the messenger irrelevant.

No, I do not like him much. But, in spite of his rhetoric, he is a well-reasoned guy. Also, he likes baseball, a whole lot. :evilgrin:

If he is making a move towards supporting Gore, that is very important.

Enron crooks tomorrow,Will would make his rounds and show his support as the right thing to do...

The column sounds more like a warning than an endorsement or movement toward support.

He gives credance to Gore, especially as a prospective candidate for 2008. Also, understand that Will fully gets the fact that the Repugs are in big poo-poo this next November. I think Mr. Will sees the same writing on the wall that many are seeing.

If the Democrats play their cards right, there will be no stopping them.

Will is one big bag of slime no much different than Coulter. Just smarter and not so juvenile.

It appears very straighforward to me.

on Al Gore. However I believe if Lincoln were alive today with our current 24 news cycle, dysfunctional MSM and current state of political campaigning for the almighty dollar, he might very well use a power point presentation to get his point across especially two and half years before the election.

:kick: