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Third Saturday Seminar 2014-2015
Return of the Elders, Unleash your Wisdom
Session 06
“Choosing Our Next President”
How will you decide?
Politics
Curt Gibby
Saturday, 25 April 2015 (Fourth Saturday)
9:30AM til 12:00 NOON
Room B-102, Lone Star College – Montgomery
3200 College Park Drive – Conroe, TX – 77384 – 936.273.7000
Our subject, in the spirit of the times will start with the candidates who are already declaring their candidacy for President for the 2016 election. Golly! Only 574 days from today!
“We the People” have limited choice of candidates in recent times. It becomes less and less satisfactory for two reasons. First, we have a “Two Party System. This means on election days, if we want to be part of the “Great Decision” we can only vote for one of two candidates. In the last several elections the popular votes have been very close, but the Constitutional constraint is that the President is actually elected by the Electoral College. Most states direct their electors vote as a block for the candidate receiving the most votes in the state. The electors’ vote is the one that counts. Candidates strategically concentrate their campaign efforts on the states with the most electoral votes , determined by the number of the states’ members of Congress. They become referred to as “Battleground States.” So, even if the popular vote is close, the Electoral College vote can be very-lopsided. (Giving the winner a false sense of Mandate.)
Second, the process starts with Primary Elections held by each major party to determine who will be the candidate of that party. The Republicans appear to have a thundering herd of hopefuls, while the Democratic primary may look more like a coronation, much to the chagrin of the political media, who are hoping to fuel an active public debate among multiple candidates of both parties.
If you have watched the debates in past elections, there has been no serious debate that could possibly result in our Representative democracy, our republic, returning to the promise of the preamble to our Constitution. Why, because the Primary process has become all about money . Since it seems that candidates like to make themselves attractive to the major givers and PACs on their side of the political divide, they become conflicted because they must also show willingness to compromise their integrity and commitment to the very principles that “We the People,” the constituents” desperately hope they will support in order to attract the support of the powerful in their party and yet trying how they can present themselves as the most electable by the majority of voters, especially independents and especially in the battleground states. We saw this happen in the last presidential election. The so called conservative, unintentionally made himself unattractive to key voting blocs while being assured by his sycophants that he was a “shoo-in”
It gives one hope that money isn’t the only factor in the political process.
The question we should all address Saturday is, “How will you decide?
What will be your criteria? Party Loyalty? Social Consciousness? Peer Pressure? Reputation? Track Record? Religion? Economic Policy? Gut instinct? Anger?
Will you actively support your candidate with time and money? Do you support a so called “third party candidate”? (I voted Libertarian in the last election, because neither major party represented my values. ) Some will say don’t waste your vote! That is a personal decision.
One would hope that instead of being forced to decide which political extreme, that both candidates of the major parties will show an understanding of what a vast majority of Americans really hope those who govern will deliver, that will make life better for ALL of us in a truly free and productive society. And, not one that one faction feels empowered to impose their values of religious or civic purity on others.
For those who like to read ahead —
Three areas: Public Priorities, Constitutionally defined powers of the president, the Candidates who are declaring…
For those who would like to know what the polls are saying is important to us Americans and others — I stumbled on the following link to the Pew Research group
Public’s Policy Priorities for 2015
The Constitutional Powers of the President of the United States
Article I, Part 7 and Article II
Candidates are Declaring
Last Monday, I heard what I thought was an unusual debate on Amy Goodman’s DemocracyNow. The title below is indicative of the content. I really shouldn’t be so surprised because, if you think about it, Political Progressives have a lot of unfulfilled hopes and expectations from our two-party system, some of which we all may share.
I found the arguments presented informative and enlightening. I hope you will too. Their discussion includes other potential candidates of both parties as well. And, we will talk about it on the 24th. I hope you will watch/listen or read the transcript.
Debate: Hillary Clinton Sounds Populist Tone, But Are Progressives Ready to Back Her in 2016
As usual we will start out with Current Events (Distractions)
We and the rest of the P-5+1 have a “framework” for a Nuclear Agreement with Iran. The final to be completed in July See the Summary of Lausanne statement here
Yet, the situation is not uncomplicated:
Now Iran is not only sending army officers to train and lead Shia Militias in Iraq but is supporting the Shia Houthi in North Yemen as they try to take over all of Yemen. We are sending USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) and her escorts to patrol off the coast of Yemen to intercept any Iranian attempt to supply or support the Houthi, which Iran claims they are not doing.
Hillary is now officially a candidate for POTUS, Hope you watched the debate on Democracynow.org
Debate: Hillary Clinton Sounds Populist Tone, But Are Progressives Ready to Back Her in 2016
Today is the 179th Anniversary of Sam Houston’s Texian’s Victory over Santa Anna’s Mexican Army in the Battle of San Jacinto gaining Texas her Independence.
Mid-April seems to be the time for Memorable Events, not all of them good.
Third Saturday Seminars (Page 35 of the spring Catalog)
4 Sessions
To refer to an ancient Chinese saying, our world is in interesting times and individual citizens are assaulted with a blinding array of propaganda from every conceivable source. The Third Saturday Seminar is about demystification of what is going on around us. Time will also be spent on current events. Meets 2/21, 3/21, 4/25, and 5/16. Meets on Montgomery Campus in B102.
16041 S 2/21-5/16 9:30 a.m.-Noon B102 Gibby
LSC-Montgomery
3200 College Park Drive, Conroe, TX 77384
For more information, call 936.273.7446
ALL- Montgomery Links:
Academy for Lifelong Learning: LSC-Montgomery
Registration
How do I register for a class?You can fill out a registration form and submit it to us:
- In person: LSC-Montgomery (3200 College Park Dr., Conroe, TX 77384),
Continuing Education/ALL Office Building E (Room 205) - Phone: 936.273.7446
- Fax: 936.273.7262
Reminder for ALL members:
Please let us know if you change your address, phone number, or email. Call 936.273.7446 or email: MCALL@LoneStar.edu.
“Some part of our being knows this (the universe) is where we came from. We long to return. And we can. Because the cosmos is also within us. We’re made of star-stuff. We are a way for the cosmos to know itself.” Carl Sagan
See you Saturday, in Room B-102
Curt Gibby
Director,