GORDON CAUGHT DOING LINES

If you want to bitch and moan about the proposed tax hike, and who doesn't, feel free to use yesterday's post as an open thread on the issue. Today, we'll take a look at one particular third party line.


Third parties, minor parties, call them what you will. The fight for, or co-opting of, these ballot lines underscores our jaded, cynical, unprincipled politics, particularly in Rensselaer County.

We have no problem with the existence of such parties. That is their right. We also have no problem when a major party candidate is endorsed by a third party if that third party's general philosophy overlaps with the philosophy of the candidate's actual party. But, when things like this happen, it...

Rodney Wiltshire could run on the Democratic line and the Working Families line without any major contradictions. Ditto Jim Gordon running as a Republican and Conservative. Gordon is currently a Republican Councilman for District 1 and the County's Stop John Sweeney Coordinator.

Now, in addition to his other lines, Jim Gordon will be running as the Green Party candidate for mayor of Troy. No, really. We know, we thought the same thing.

Lets take a look at a few planks in the Green Party Platform. Come on, it won't hurt. Promise.

1. The Green Party honors and seeks to follow the teachings of the Haudenosaunee who implore us to consider the impact of our decisions on the well being of the next seven generations* in our deliberations of policy and practice in all areas of live (life?), and in particularly, with respect to the environment.  Toward this goal, NY should establish a goal of being carbon neutral by 2030.

2. No hydrofracking for natural gas (fracking, same-sex or otherwise, is permitted).

3. Implement the rapid phase-out of nuclear power for environmental as well as economic reasons and the replacement of that power with clean renewable sources so that nuclear power has no future in New York State.

4. It is essential that we develop effective alternatives to society's current patterns of violence. We will work to demilitarize, and eliminate weapons of mass destruction (and establish a new pattern of violence).

5. We call for the immediate legalization of the growth, sale and possession of cannabis and hemp under NY State law, and for legal opposition to Federal prosecutions for the same. Prohibition and the resulting “drug war” have unjustly incarcerated countless individuals and scarred communities, often along racial and class lines, while draining resources from society (obviously the Greens are in bed with Frito Lay and part of the Marijuana-Munchy Industrial Complex ).

6. Women’s rights must be protected and expanded to guarantee each woman’s right as a full participant in society, free from sexual harassment, job discrimination or interference in the intensely personal choice about whether to have a child. Women’s right to control their bodies is non-negotiable (we will not deploy troops to stabilize your vagina).

 7. The Green Party affirms the rights of all individuals to freely choose intimate partners, regardless of their sex, gender, gender identity, or sexual orientation. The Green Party recognizes the equal rights of persons who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, intersex, transsexual, queer, or transgender to housing, jobs, marriage, medical benefits, child custody, and in all areas of life including equal tax treatment. We support legislation such as the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act to outlaw discrimination gender identity or expression; GENDA also expands the state’s hate crimes law to explicitly include crimes against transgender people (intersex? we'll bring the frosting).**

8. Fully funded, full day, and developmentally appropriate Universal Pre-K and Kindergarten with certified and unionized educators (another giveaway to those little Pre-K fuckers).

9. Establish a publicly funded single payer health insurance program covering all residents in the state.

10.The Green Party stands firmly for social justice for all those living in this country regardless of their immigration status (and before you ask, yes, even undocumented Canadians).

11. Reject life without parole sentences: They fail to recognize the human capacity to change and fully appreciate the value of each human life (we can all appreciate the value of Lemuel Smith's or Bucky Phillips' capacity to change).

12. Provide the equivalent of a living wage income and adequate benefits to those who are not able to work (yes! Finally, my fibromyalgia comes in handy). 

 Granted, a candidate never agrees fully with their party's platform. There are always disagreements. But, does Gordon support half of the Green Party platform? A third? A fourth? If so which planks does he support and how will he help implement the planks he supports?

Would some enterprising journalist ask Gordon which of these positions he supports. No doubt  Franco will have Jim on his radio program once more before the election. Will Franco ask what Green Party positions Gordon supports? If none, will Franco ask Gordon why he accepted the Green Party line? We know the answer, of course. This is not a Gordon problem. They all do it. In this instance though, the platforms are so antithetical to one another a justification for running on both is impossible. We just want the politicians that accept lines antithetical to their party enrollment to confess that its all bullshit.

Ah! Screw it! Nothing changes.

 

* Because 6 generations is obviously too few and 8 generations  is just ridiculous.

** Intersex? Seriously. No clue what  that means. Jim, it's your party. Help us out here.