A parable of Dennis Kucinich

[WilliamPitt]

(received via email)

John Kerry, Howard Dean and Dennis Kucinich were driving around Portland, Maine one sunny winter afternoon. All three arrived at the same intersection, at the same time, to find a 1988 Oldsmobile stalled out in the middle of the road.

Senator Kerry pulled his Lexus SUV up to the disabled vehicle and began to push it out of the way, towards an open, muddy spot next to the road.

Unable to maneuver his Volvo into the space between the Olds and the SUV, Governor Dean fell in behind Kerry and helped push, meanwhile sending a blast email from his PDA claiming to be the only one pushing from a different direction.

Representative Kucinich looked into the window of the Oldsmobile and noticed that the driver was unconscious, with a crying baby strapped into the passenger side. He leapt out of his biodiesel Saturn and dragged both mother and child from their vehicle, resuscitating the driver with CPR.

The story was carried nationwide by news media large and small:

"In Maine today, John Kerry easily cleared another roadblock as Howard Dean continued to fall further behind. 'The American people are tired of being slowed down on the road to the White House,' the unstoppable Kerry declared.

"Once viewed as the fastest driver on the superhighway, the faltering Dean indicated that he may get better mileage traveling in another vehicle's slipstream. 'I'm siphoning enough gas out of my other vehicles to top off this Volvo's tank for the drive through Wisconsin,' he said. 'I have to get past Madison before I can go anywhere else.'

"Senator John Edwards and retired General Wesley Clark were making significant headway driving around the South and were unavailable for comment.

"Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich, a very slow driver, was also in Maine."

[tinanator]

1. Cant wait for the final chapter!

I feel it building. I can see it. I can taste it. Im ready to book a flight to the inauguration. Just hussled up some more Kucinich voters a minute ago. :)

[pop goes the weasel]

2. That's great

It's a perfect description of the news.

[VelmaD]

3. *snort*

That's just wrong. True...but wrong. *shakes head and chuckles despite not wanting to*

[MuseRider]

4. That is good,

sad but true.

[John_H]

5. You got that right---Clark wouldn't be mentioned at all.

[stickdog]

6. Yep.

Kerry - only good press
Dean - only bad press
Clark - only token press
Kucinich - no press at all

[WhoCountsTheVotes]

7. aint that the truth!

sad but true

[tobys]

8. So true

[bigtree]

9. I Like Fairy Tales

I also like true stories. The Real Deal.

Like the one I heard about a Lt. Kerry, a Navy gunboat captain, who was retreating under fire with a group of other boats. When he saw someone in the water, Kerry reversed course and fished and rescued a a wounded Green Beret soldier from the Bay Hap River in Vietnam while wounded and under heavy enemy fire. John Kerry received the Bronze Star from Admiral Zumwalt for that action.

I have a sense of humor, but this is a callous attempt to paint every other candidate, save Rep. Kucinich, as craven and unconcerned with anything but their own election. This is crass, notwithstanding the point about the media's penchant for distortion and obfuscation.

[youngred]

10. yeah

because all the other candidates have been so kind and welcoming to DK :eyes:

[bigtree]

13. I think Dennis Kucinich is a great man.

He teaches and inspires.

[corporatewhore]

12. The point was to show the unfair media coverage of each cannidate

[NashVegas]

14. And Yet ..

I would think the guy with the medical degree would be the one to administer CPR.

But I'm just funny in the head like that.

[corporatewhore]

17. I was thinking that but again the point was abouthe media kerry only good

press dean only bad press clark occasional press kucinich not really anything

[iowapeacechief]

20. But Dennis has been an orderly!

So Pitt got it right.

The Doctor was too busy.

[corporatewhore]

22. I didnt know that!!

[DemBones DemBones]

27. Dennis was also a surgical technician

(and a caddy, which relates to doctors playing golf!) :7

[corporatewhore]

11. He would have a biodiesal saturn :)

[David Zephyr]

15. The Moral of Your Very Wicked Story: Don't Drive in the Middle of the Road

"stalled in the middle".

Yep, that's not the place to be.

[LWolf]

29. LOL

Good point.

I tend to take the road less traveled, myself. If I was stalled on the side of the road, Dennis would probably be the only one to find me.

[jmatthan]

16. Dennis Kucinich is the only one

who inspires the world for peace, not just America.

What the world needs is an American leader who can bring America back into the fold of world nations, not by war-mongering, not by spreading more unprovoked attacks on the rest of the world, not by continuing an invasion of sovereign nations for their resources and by the killing of innocent people.

What the world needs is a healer, a person capable of bringing together diverse nations under a world banner of peace.

The only candidate who has stood for that for as long as I can remember has been Dennis Kucinich and I hope that all understanding Americans can see that too.

This is not an election that should be won by how the media presents an individual but how the individual presents himself and his policies. Let Americans show the world that there is faith in a democratic process - not a media-dominated process, not a campaign finance corporate driven process, not a rich vs poor process, just a pure and simple vote for the "best" candidate to lead this world (not just America).

The only one who has done enough to convince the few non-Americans who have been closely watching the election race in your country has been Dennis Kucinich. If only every American I have heard say, "I would vote for Dennis Kucinich except that.." vote for him, there would be no chance for any other candidate.

Jacob Matthan
http://www.findians.com/educated.html
Oulu, Finland

[Kanary]

19. Thank you, Jacob!

It means a lot to me to hear how those in other parts of the world view Dennis. I'm glad you see him for the specail person he is.

Did you find out about him via the internet, or is there info about Dennis in your national media?

Thanks for posting!

Kanary

Kucinich 2004!

[jmatthan]

21. It seems only Democrats do not know where to find out

about the true Kucinich.

Almost every liberal talk show host in the US is unequivocally supporting Dennis Kucinich. For instance, listen to Mike Malloy who has been supporting Kucinich from the very beginning as THE ONLY LIBERAL in this race.

Almost every peace activist movement is supporting Dennis Kucinich. Almost every anti-war movement is supporting Dennis Kucinich.

But he remains "unelectable" according to democrats who appear to want a macho figure to stand against a "chimp".

I fail to understand such a reasoning when "the macho chimp" has invaded another country with no reason whatsoever (except that God told him to do so) and has been supported by the very machos (except Dean and Sharpton?) who are also standing in this race!!

The people who voted for the war obviously had no reasoning power to know right from wrong before. How can they suddenly be expected to have any reasoning power now?

They could not see what the world knew then from people as Scott Ritter, Hand Blix, the majority of the UN Security Council who were not bribed, etc., etc. - which does not make them very good politicians!

I would not trust them with my vote.

Jacob Matthan
http://www.findians.com/educated.html
Oulu, Finland

[ThirdWheelLegend]

24. thanks again Jacob..

Great couple of posts there.

Kucinich is the true voice of the people.

DK all the way.

TWL

[rhite5]

25. Thank you, Jacob!

I have a feeling, even though DUers resist it, they ARE being influenced by the U.S. media -- and they marginalize Kucinich with awful remarks about dropping out or making fun of the single digit results in the earliest primaries. Those results are moving up: 1%, 2%, 6%, 8% and now 16%. They act as though it is Kucinich's fault that the media has chosen to pretend that Dennis does not exist.

They have no idea how well received he is overseas AND no idea how devoted the Kucinich supporters are within the network of organizations in EVERY state who are really working on his campaign and his issues.

We are working for genuine changes that will long outlast this election. The network will not break up. It will only grow.

Dennis's stamina is incredible. I don't know how he stays on top of everything as well as he does. He is an excellent campaigner and a good organizer. (and still manages to almost never miss a vote in Congress while all this is going on).

Rosemary in Oregon

The clearly unambiguous alternative to Bush:
Dennis Kucinich
http://www.kucinich.us

[snoochie]

28. Beautiful post!

Thank you for saying this.

"If only every American I have heard say, "I would vote for Dennis Kucinich except that.." vote for him, there would be no chance for any other candidate."

I like the way you put that. :)

[redqueen]

32. If ever a post needed to be re-posted as a separate thread...

this is it!

THANK YOU! :D

[Mairead]

18. That's hysterically funny! Whoever did that is good!

And it's so true. You could polish it up a bit -it's got rough edges- but it's beautiful.

[minkyboodle]

23. great story

and sadly true.
Scott

[GalleryGod]

26. Will. Get more sleep!

:wtf: :puffpiece: :shrug:

OHhhhhhhhhhhhh!?:hangover: :hangover: :hangover: :hangover: :hangover:

[Tinoire]

30. Yep, that captures it. Good job Will! n/t

[ThirdWheelLegend]

31. hehe, good one Will..

Sad, but a true reflection of the current state of media.
TWL

[Mass_Liberal]

33. I guess you are right on the media bit

but the rest of the analogy was a bit insulting. It basically says that the only one who does anything constructive is Kucinich. That's wrong. There are other candidates (Clark, Edwards, Dean) who are also working for a more progressive America.

[no name no slogan]

35. It didn't say anything bad about the others

Dean and Kerry both tried to fix the problem at hand (the stalled car in the middle of the road). And you're right, they were making progress toward fixing it.

The DIFFERENCE is that Dennis Kucinich wants to not only fix the problem at hand, but the root CAUSE of the problems, too.

Both Kerry and Dean would have gotten the car off the road, no question, but ONLY Dennis Kucinich would have fixed the reason WHY the car was in the middle of the road.

A great piece, Will. I may have to borrow this tonight for a DK fundraising party we're having in MN. Nice work!

[corporatewhore]

36. I see that as analogy towards Freetrade

[bigtree]

37. Bull

It was one of those holier-than-the other candidates, airy fairy tales, designed to make Rep. Kucinich look like he was the only one who could possibly care about the person inside the car.

Whatever. This was a hit-and run slap. Thrown out to get a page full of 'oo's and ah's', and 'isn't Dennis the most wonderful man.' Yes he is, but so are the others. Never before have we been so lucky to have such a talented, committed field.

Hey Will, did Dennis sign your aura?

[redqueen]

38. It was an e-mail, Pitt didn't write it.

It points out the problem with the media with respect to the way they treat Kucinich as compared to the other candidates. Sorry your feelings got hurt by the way the author described their fictitious efforts. I fail to see why an anonymous e-mail's characterization is so hurtful, especially when the point is miles in the other direction.

No need to get nasty about Kucinich's supporters. ("did Dennis sign your aura?") :(

[bigtree]

45. Can't take a joke?

Then don't promote this bullshit as a benign slap at the media. It was a slap at the other candidates, notwithstanding the points about the media.

The aura reference was from William Pitt's own article.

"Will you sign my aura?

There is an assumed caricature of the typical Kucinich supporter that has worked its way into the public consciousness. People who support Kucinich are moonbeamers who commune with crystals, and who are fifth-level vegans who only eat food that doesn’t cast a shadow. I was fully expecting to meet crowds of people asking Kucinich if he would sign their auras. The reality, I quickly saw, was far different."

There was a time when Will would defend John Kerry against sly digs. No more. He's found another religion; on a leave of absense from a leave of absense. Good for Dennis.

[redqueen]

46. What joke?

You used the 'aura' comment as a dig. That's how Will presented it in his piece, and that's how you used it.

As far as the 'leave of absence from a leave of absence', I have abdolutely no idea what you're talking about, but I'm guessing that's between you and Will.


Never in my wildest dreams did I think an anonymous e-mailers description of a fictitious incident could inspire such churlishness. :eyes:

[bigtree]

47. Get real. Will Pitt is above criticism?

If I put out a similar hit-and-run parable that belittled Dennis I would hear some howling. Try to see it from a position outside of your support for Dennis.

If you don't know what I'm talking about then why criticize me on it. I had my say at first. I was as respectful as I could manage.

But I won't be shouted down or shamed for defending my candidate against sly digs and innuendo. And I don't need anyone to tell me when he is being put down. As a Kerry supporter I have feelings also. Why don't you let Will Pitt speak for himself?

Why are my digs out of bounds but it is okay for him to play hit-and-run with that insulting e-mail. Maybe he should have thought this one out before sharing. I don't think it is okay to paint the other candidates as uncaring and craven. You wouldn't take it from me. Why should I take it from William Pitt?

[WilliamPitt]

50. I am above criticism, damn you.

:)

[bigtree]

51. Now I'm laughing!

Best wishes for your candidate. :+

[bigtree]

53. The Curious Monkey (Me?)

A Traditional African Tale

Ah, but a good long time ago, deep in the dark shady middle of the forest, there sleeps a Dog (Snarky Post). He's all curled up in the ashes from a fire, cozy as can be, and he is the very first dog ever to be in the world. It's hard to say if he is a Good Dog or a Bad Dog, since back in those days, all Dog does is sleep.

Well, that's fine, but then along comes Monkey (Me).

Monkey can't let anything be. He drops from the tree, and scampers over and tilts his head to look at Dog. Looks from one side, then the other. Looks at the head and then the tail. Monkey hangs upside down from a branch to see if Dog looks different that way. All he sees is upside-down Dog. Monkey doesn't know what Dog is, because Dog is the very first Dog in the world. Off goes Monkey to tell the world. Primates just can't keep a secret.

All the animals come to see; nobody wants to get second-hand news. "Well!" says Monkey. "There it is! Anyone know who this might be?" Elephant (Lurking Freep) leans a long way over, looks down at Dog with elephant eyes. "No!" says Elephant, flapping her ears. "Not an elephant, that's for sure!" "Not an elephant!" Monkey says. "Thank you! That's a lot of help!"

Monkey calls on every beast to come and look at Sleeping Dog. One by one they look through their eyes, but nobody says he's one of theirs.

Oh, but Tortoise (Dennis) sits in a tree, and hhe knows all about the Dog. He's been there since way, way back and he knows just about everything. "Done with asking?" he calls down, and Monkey says "Just about! This thing, though," - he means the Dog - "we still don't know what it is or does!"

"Until you think of a better name," Tortoise answers, calm and clear. "I'd advise you to call him 'Dog'. He looks just like a 'Dog' to me." Oh, but hearing his name out loud wakes up Dog and makes him mad. Pop! he opens his big dog eyes, and looks at the animals all around.

"Who here went and woke me up? Never mind, I'll get you all!" And Dog charges straight at everyone, barking and showing his big dog teeth. All the animals run away, and Dog goes after them with murder on his mind.

All except Tortoise. He only laughs and pulls his head back into his house. "You'll never get me, Dog," he says. "But from this day on, you'll chase any beast your dog-eyes see." And that's how it still is, even today.

That night, Monkey makes up a new Rhyme:

Now I
Know why
You let a sleeping dog lie.

By then, of course, it's too late.

[corporatewhore]

41. as i said before it is mainly at the media but for example take free trade

it aint gonna get fixed with little tweaks here and there unless you get the big corps to go along with you (a snowballs chance) you just have to get to the heart of the problem hey big tree did kerry sign your conscience?

[bigtree]

48. My conscience is just fine.

I don't put out many attack threads. I'm defending against a hit-and-run slap at my candidate. It was a small point since this is a parable and an e-mail, but I did consider the source. The press man for the Kucinich campaign. Taking a dig at the other candidates. Or, did Mr. Pitt think this was just a benign slap at the media? Meant no harm in the suggestion that Kerry and Dean would disregard the injured passanger and the child in their haste to push the car out of the road to the nomination?

Can he honestly say that it wasn't intended as a dig? Does he feel that it was a dig?

"We are not won by arguments that we can analyse but by tone and temper, by the manner which is the man himself."
-Samuel Butler (1835–1902), British author. Samuel Butler’s Notebooks (1951).

[no name no slogan]

49. NOBODY said Kerry/Dean didn't care about the person in the car

What the parable is saying is that Kerry and Dean would react first to the situation as it presents itself; i.e. a stalled car in the middle of the road. Which is basically what they're both proposing: band-aid fixes for the symptoms of major problems that affect us. Eventually they may get to helping the driver, but their immediate focus is on treating the symptoms, NOT the disease itself.

DK, OTOH, would looks at the immediate situation, but also recognizes that it can't be fixed until we address the ROOT CAUSE of the problem. Just compare his platform on "free trade", militarism or health coverage vs. Dean/Kerry/Clark/Edwards. They're miles apart.

Oh, BTW, I think my Karma just ran over your Dogma. You may want to check that out. :D

[Mass_Liberal]

43. ah your right

Dean falls in line behind Kerry (other way round, buddy) and then Kucinich jumps out and saves the fair maiden in the car. not too biased.

[Jacobin]

34. More Fractured Fairy Tales

After this commercial, Mr. Peabody and the Wayback Machine go to the year 1492.

[cheezus]

39. Will, you're the press secretary, right?

Then do something about this problem!

[redqueen]

40. LOVE your sig

:D

:yourock:

[govegan]

42. Probably wasn't his father's Oldsmobile, either.

Of course, the Freudian implications would have been startling but overlooked by the media, nonetheless.

As parables go, it is a bit forced, a bit flamboyant.

However, the point of the tepid coverage of such an important national issue and/or process is well taken. I have heard folks proudly proclaiming "liberal" values and beliefs, while totally ignoring Dennis Kucinich and the issues that he raises. Perhaps something in the psyche of most Americans does not allow them to consider ideas outside of the little red, white and blue box they have been lugging around since their youth.

[redqueen]

44. Was Kucinich riding a bus?

Just curious...

[lams712]

52. That was satire at its best....

...unfortunately, it's a little TOO CLOSE to the truth in regards to how DK is treated in the media.

[Eloriel]

54. If you want to be helpful to Kucinich on DU, why don't you

tell us why Kucinich made a deal with Edwrds in Iowa? 'Cause a lot of us lost ALL respect for him over that clever little move. I've never liked Kucinich, but I at least respected him -- until then.

Care you give us that ole Kucinich spin on that? Start a new thread 'cause we might miss it otherwise.

[no name no slogan]

55. What, the previous 567 threads weren't enough? (nt)