I miss Jimmy Carter

[Java]

he had a certain decency that is missing in most politicians

[alexwcovington]

1. yeah

[Dob Bole]

7. I live near him...

about 10 miles away, I in Americus and he in Plains. He's a really great guy and normal person, except for the secret service agents that he has around. Occasionally you can bump into him at Wal-Mart, or at his little country church.

I have a few friends who work at a technical suuport place here in Americus, and one night Rosalyn called. She said, "I can't get on the Internet. Jimmy can but I can't." He laughed at her. I still hound him about that one, saying "Dude, you laughed at the first lady."

It will be a sad day when he's not around anymore.

[TennesseeWalker]

2. Bravo.

My sentiments exactly. The more time passes, the larger Jimmy Carter seems. I truly believe he is the most honorable man to serve as president in modern history, and most definitely one of the most intelligent.

Saw him on Hank Hill....carpenter, peacemaker, Christian. But just a "one-termer". That definition doesn't hold much meaning for me anymore. America should be so lucky as to have a real leader like Carter. I love him.

[no name no slogan]

3. Yeah, but I'm sure

the ± 300,000 East Timorese that were murdered under his watch by our pal Suharto in Indonesia aren't missing him too much, though. :(

[FDRrocks]

5. Did he really know?

This is a genuine inquiry. I feel so bad for the Timorese people. All fingers I've seen point as Kissinger, maybe I am just in a state of denial.

[no name no slogan]

9. Unfortunately, he did :(

He even sent Daniel Patrick Moynihan there to reassure Suharto that we'd stay out of the East Timor situation. Moynihan brags about it in his autobiography.

I read about it in one of those numerous interviews by David Barsamian of Noam Chomsky. Unfortunately, I can't remember which one.

ANOTHER GOOD THING CARTER DID
He brought peace between the Egyptians and Israelis. Too bad none of the rest of our presidents can figure out how to do the same with Israel and Palestine. :)

[FDRrocks]

11. It is not too blemishing.

A look at world affairs views that mass murder seems to be the current way of life. No matter how liberal or conservative, communist or capitalist... every single example seems to show that slaughter is a way of life. The East Timorese were a most tragic example, almost along the line ofs the NLF of Vietnam, except they seem not to have any semblance of a defense.

It is really, really sad. Maybe it is just an imbred thing in us humans. I know I would certainly be pissed if I my brain was intruded by a bullet for saying the wrong thing or being in the wrong place.

I still think Carter would be much better for this country than most of the candidates or the last Democratic president, he would just need time to develop. Human rights, that should be above all, whether you restritc thier rights, equalize thier rights to an extreme, or whatever... we need to figure out how to stop this stuff.

[Dob Bole]

8. Explanation.

Carter had 2 different foreign policies. He was, and remained for the most part, the only human rights President we ever had.

However, in 1979/80, his foreign policy was different. Because of a number of Marxist revolutions in Latin America and the Iranian hostage crisis, he had to adopt a more Cold Warish policy. (His opponents were branding him as being a Communist.) A few regrettable incidents resulted. However, you still can't beat the following accomplishments with a stick:

Camp David Accords
Panama Canal Treaty
Creation of Dept. of Education
"" Energy Dept.
SALT Treaties
Expansion of Habitat from Humanity from local ministry to worldwide provider of housing.
Winning the Solid South

etc, etc

I doubt our current administration knows what 'treaty' means.

[no name no slogan]

10. Good points, Grenator

but I was actually referring to an incident that happened early on-- in 1977, when Suharto put the clamps down even harder on East Timor.

I still agree with everything else you posted-- he was a much better Human Rights President than any that have succeeded him (despite giving asylum to Somosa from Nicaragua in 1979).

(PS glad to see somebody remembers that awesome SNL sketch from way back-- was that 1992 or 1996? "Teve Torbes has got it going on!" -- "Tuck off, Torbes")

[Dob Bole]

13. Samosa

First, I will put my bias out front. I live near Carter, I'm only 21, and everything I know about the administration comes from my ex-Carter-campaign professor of Latin American history.

While the Samosa family definitely sucked for Nicaragua in some ways, they only sucked to a certain degree when compared to the rightist dictators that Reagan supported afterwards. The ensuing Civil War lasted for several years until ended by President Violetta Chimarro, the wife of a guy killed by Anastasio Somoza. The difference is between bad and really really stinking bad.

Take Cuba, for example. In Cuba, people's first amendment rights are somewhat suppressed. But, Castro sucks not nearly as much as the rightist dictator who preceded him. At least now people have health care and education. The situation is somewhat similar, except that the samosas were worse than Castro.

[FDRrocks]

4. The CIA did some nasty things in Latin America

and the ME under him. I respect his peace agreement regarding Egypt, which he won a Nobel Prize for.

And I also know 4 years in power could not do much, and he may not have known what was happening in the afformentioned sectors of the world, by different organizations.

Yes, I would take Carter over most candidates in the Democratic field right now. Over Clinton, definately.

[burr]

6. He also had comman sense...

something that our leaders and party has abandoned in the name of "taxcuts" and "Homeland Security".

[TeeYiYi]

12. Carter: Bush too busy to deliver peace

Carter: Bush too busy to deliver peace
by
Wednesday 17 September 2003 10:04 PM GMT

Former US president Jimmy Carter says Israel must bring a halt to its illegal settlement policies before a peaceful solution can be found in the Middle East.

Carter also said that Arab countries must also recognise Israel's "right to exist and its right to security" during a speech on Wednesday.

He also warned that President George Bush was probably too busy to focus on settling the Palestinian-Israeli conflict because of other pressing international issues.

"It would be impossible today for President Bush to go in immersion at Camp David with Israelis and Palestinians for 13 days to work out an agreement," he said, recalling his own experience.

More: http://english.aljazeera.net/Articles/News/ArabWorld/Carter+tells+Israel+to+halt+settlements.htm

TYY

[Dob Bole]

15. Disagree on this point

Bush definitely has time for a 13-day summit in Camp David if he wanted to. After all, he can afford like 40 days of vacation time.

[TeeYiYi]

17. I think what he meant to say was . . .

. . . too busy campaigning and vacationing and posing for action figures and . . .

TYY

[IranianDemocrat]

14. I don't miss that asshole.

He didn't let the Shah of Iran eneter his country for cancer treatment and left him to rot in Panama, while making the Shah feel like the U.S. was his only friend left in the world. Carter is the idiot behind the whole revolution catastrophe.

[JasonBerry]

16. A little angry tonight?

You're mad tonight, huh?

I don't think defending the Shah will make many friends on DU!

[Aidoneus]

21. no, that would probably be the Dulles brothers

why do you care about the Shah, anyway?

The revolution had roots long before Carter..

[G_j]

18. one term..it's sad..

anyone else feel that Reagan/Republicans hijacked that election? I know it looked that way to me at the time. In retrospect, given the Republicans MO, and the circumstances of the Iranian hostages release, I feel pretty sure that they did.

[dfong63]

19. yes, i would vote for carter again

and he has done a tremendous amount of good as an ex-president.

[wuushew]

20. Is Jimmy Carter or the (Democratic) congress responsible for this graph?

http://www.geocities.com/fedbudget/federalbudget2.html


More defense spending? What the fuck happened to detente?

[Zolok]

22. Ah Jimmy...first dem I ever voted for...

I know how you feel.
I miss Hubert Humphrey.

Shee-it I miss Mike "can't bribe him" Dukakis!


OH OH OH
And Adlai Stevenson...a class act all the way!


And Paul Tsongas....would that I'd given ten times of myself to his cause.
Peace to their ashes.
Except Dukakis....cause' I've seen him around time and I tell you like Napoleon at Elba, the DUKE WILL RETURN!
:)
www.chimesatmidight.blogspot.com