PGHIMC - Pittsburgh Independent Media Center

Why it is imperative that the Left defeat Bush
by David B. Wednesday, Oct. 13, 2004 at 8:39 PM

President Bush is out of touch with reality and is not fit to serve another term as the President of the United States, and it is imperative that the left do everything in its power to oust him from office in this election.

Bush’s economic policy further promote an already power oligarchy in the United States, an aristocracy that controls much of the private sector, the media, and, unfortunately, the public conscious. The billion-dollar tax cuts to the rich, the monopolized contracts for Halliburton, the potential privatization of Social Security, and other actions play directly into the hands of the most powerful corporations. Kerry proposes increasing the minimum wage two dollars, which will be a modest victory for labor but an excellent alternative to a static minimum wage under Bush. Kerry supports strengthening government health care, while Bush supports further privatizing a system that has already abandoned many impoverished Americans. The poor in America can not survive another term of Bush.

Regarding the War on Terrorism, Bush has a utopian belief that the War on Terror can someone create a world where freedom and democracy are so widespread that motivation for terrorism will gradually vanish, as if he was attempting to free people from a mere tyrannical government, not a culture that is rooted in totalitarian hierarchy. Democracy and Islamic culture are simply incompatible at this current time, and no amount of force will ever create a utopia on Earth. Bush ought to be worried about saving innocent lives, and brash actions such as the invasion of Iraq will in the long run kill millions, because Bush took a country that was not a threat and turned it into a terrorist breeding ground. Where there is death and desperation, as there now is in Iraq, ideals of hatred will take root, and once an ideology is born it grows like a cancer and cannot be killed by any means. Bush has only added oil to the fire with his invasion of Iraq for purposes of imperialism, idealism, and an extreme failure in logistics.

Kerry is not an extremist, an ideologue, or a corporatist to the extent that Bush is. He will do less to widen the gap between the rich and the poor, and will do less to further imperialistic interests. The best thing the left can accomplish in this election is to lessen the severity of the oppression. For those who wish to see third parties become more powerful, there is a bill going before the Senate right now that is extremely important to the third party cause, far more important than a few votes this election which could ensure Bush a second term would be. The bill concerns Instant Runoff Voting, the system that would allow people to vote for their favorite candidate first, and then, if there were not a 50% majority for any candidate, a runoff would be held among the contenders with highest percentages. This would eliminate the need to ever vote for the lesser of two evils again and would ensure a multiparty democracy in the future, corroding at the base of the corporate political monopoly. The HR 5293, the Majority Vote Act, which is being proposed by Senator Jesse Jackson, must be passed if there is any hope for democracy in the future. It is imperative that anyone who cares about the future of democracy place strong pressure on their representatives to pass this legislation.

People have said, when will the left realize that voting for the lesser of two evils is not working? By the same token, when will we come to terms with the fact that voting for a third party candidate accomplishes nothing under the current system? Our main priority must be getting the Instant Runoff Voting signed into law, because doing so will do more for the chances of creating a more egalitarian world than voting for a third party candidate under the current system will ever do. I ask of the left, please vote for Kerry in this election and stop the bleeding.

www.humanitarian.tk

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