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Jill Stein Pledges To Pardon Snowden and Appoint Him To Her Cabinet (zerohedge.com)

Iamthecheese writes: Trump hates him. Clinton misrepresented him. Most mainstream media outlets call him a traitor and worse. But if you vote Stein, Snowden will be in the presidential Cabinet. "The presumptive Green Party presidential nominee Dr. Jill Stein promises to grant NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden -- who many describe as a true American hero -- not just a full pardon, but a promotion to the upper echelons of government should she win the White House," reports Zero Hedge. "[Snowden] has done an incredible service to our country at great cost to himself for having to live away from his family, his friends, his job, his network, to basically live as an expatriate," Stein asserted during a town hall live-streamed to supporters on her Facebook page, US Uncut reported. "I would say not only bring Snowden back, but bring him into my administration as a member of the Cabinet," she continued, "because we need people who are part of our national security administration who are really, very patriotic. If we're really going to protect our American security, we also have to protect our Constitutional rights, and that includes our right to privacy." Her pardons would also extend to CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou and Chelsea Manning. Kiriakou first revealed proof of waterboarding and various other torture tactics employed by the government, while Manning leaked the Afghan War Diary and Iraq War Logs, which included footage of U.S. helicopter airmen deliberately gunning down journalists, to Wikileaks. Reddit co-founder and MIT student, Aaron Swartz, who leaked academic research to the public, would also receive a pardon under her presidency. "[Swartz] was a proponent of free and liberated internet and for sharing our resources on that internet, who was basically hounded into suicide by a very oppressive Department of Justice. So, he -- in my mind -- is another one of these heroes that we need to remember and be very thankful for."

177 comments

  1. No by tripleevenfall · · Score: 1

    Don't we have enough apparatchiks in high positions already?

  2. Unfortunately..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    EVERYBODY hates Jill Stein...

    1. Re:Unfortunately..... by flopsquad · · Score: 5, Funny

      EVERYBODY hates Jill Stein...

      I doubt most people know enough about her to hate her. Maybe you were thinking of Ben Stein? Or Frankenstein?

      --
      Nothing posted to /. has ever been legal advice, including this.
    2. Re:Unfortunately..... by fustakrakich · · Score: 2

      What do you have against Frankenstein?

      --
      “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
    3. Re: Unfortunately..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      For the last time, I'm not Frankenstein, I'm Frankenstein's monster!

    4. Re: Unfortunately..... by digitig · · Score: 1

      Frankenstein's monster was also Frankenstein (he regarded the doctor as his father, so he would have taken the same surname).

      --
      Quidnam Latine loqui modo coepi?
    5. Re: Unfortunately..... by fustakrakich · · Score: 4, Funny

      Actually the last name would probably be "Normal", first name "Abby"

      --
      “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
    6. Re: Unfortunately..... by gQuigs · · Score: 1

      The XKCD comic's version: https://xkcd.com/1589/

    7. Re:Unfortunately..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I was a Bernie supporter. Now that he's out, Jill Stein is the only choice left. She's great -- or at the least, a FAR better choice than Hill or Don! I would have been supporting Stein from the beginning if Bernie hadn't been in the running. So no, not 'everybody'. Troll much?

    8. Re:Unfortunately..... by Dog-Cow · · Score: 1

      Troll much?

      Yes. Yes, you do.

    9. Re:Unfortunately..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      As Secretary of the Central Committee of the Libertarian Party of Ohio, I support Gary Johnson for president but I wholeheartedly agree with Dr. Stein's proposal to pardon Edward Snowden and appoint him to the cabinet, perhaps as Secretary of Defense or of Homeland Security? After all of our previous wars, from the Revolution to World War II, a hero of each war has been elected as president, from Washington to Eisenhower. For that and other reasons, I support Edward Snowden for president in 2020 or 2024 since he is the hero of the War on Terror for revealing that the primary targets of that war are the American people and our liberties.

  3. Oh dear by wonkey_monkey · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Jill Stein Pledges To Pardon Snowden

    Yeah, I can see how that might actually be a worthy thing to od.

    and Appoint Him To Her Cabinet

    Ah, she ruined it. She's obviously just whoring for votes.

    --
    systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
    1. Re: Oh dear by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "Vote for me! Pardons for teh everyone's!"

      Nice of her to include Swartz, I'm sure he'll really appreciate that right now.

    2. Re: Oh dear by lucm · · Score: 1

      That would be the first President to pardon more people than Bill Clinton. Except this time it'd be free.

      --
      lucm, indeed.
    3. Re:Oh dear by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      and she just lost mine. Sure, it was a protest vote, but her statement is so profoundly ignorant that she shouldn't be trusted on the school board.

    4. Re: Oh dear by ArmoredDragon · · Score: 1

      I'm in favor of pardoning Snowden, but Manning and Schwartz?

      Manning leaked stuff that served no useful benefit to the public, other than being edited to improve Julian Assange's ego (who by the way, essentially admitted that he lied about the military targeting civilians, but claimed it was for a good cause.) And by the way, the guy who turned him in felt the same way.

      And Aaron Schwartz legitimately broke the law and had no noble intentions at all. The only useful thing to come out of that was to point the finger at overzealous prosection.

    5. Re: Oh dear by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The Schwartz bit is not true at all. The majority of research would have already been funded by at least one taxpayer funding source, only to be swept up and locked away. That is not right. For that alone, Schwartz's actions were just.

    6. Re: Oh dear by dryeo · · Score: 1

      Just curious, but by what authority does Congress get to pass laws denying speech? I've read the American Constitution, good document if unpractical. It was amended very early to stop the government, or at least Congress, from outlawing any form of speech. Perhaps there is an amendment I'm unaware of, namely giving the government the right to deny speech in certain circumstances such as national security and child porn. Probably was passed along with the amendment allowing the government to deny certain people the right to bear arms.

      --
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inverted_totalitarianism
    7. Re: Oh dear by jmcvetta · · Score: 1

      Aaron Schwartz legitimately broke the law and had no noble intentions at all.

      Duh Law was a badlaw in this case.

      Is free universal access to knowledge not a worthy goal?

    8. Re: Oh dear by ArmoredDragon · · Score: 2

      The Schwartz bit is not true at all. The majority of research would have already been funded by at least one taxpayer funding source, only to be swept up and locked away. That is not right. For that alone, Schwartz's actions were just.

      If all taxpayer funded research belonged to the public domain, then our military would be at a huge tactical disadvantage, among a ton of other problems.

    9. Re:Oh dear by rtb61 · · Score: 3, Interesting

      So a person that gave up all his power and salary to protect the citizens he felt he should represent is a bad person for cabinet? So based upon you claim, seriously you hugely stupid claim as an American, the founding fathers (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Revolution) should all have been hung, drawn and quartered and absolutely never have gained positions in government and anyone who said they should is a whore.

      Dr Jill Stein has shown the same courage as the founding fathers in making a profound policy decision that goes against the oligarchy and the current power institution in the military industrial complex. Would Edward Snowden do a good job in cleaning up the corruption of the self serving and hugely over powered intelligence services, probably, if he survived long enough.

      Reality is the next US election is a complete fuck up. With the least hated individual to be elected by a minority that bothered to show up, the only enthusiasm will be in the Libertarian and Green party. With many from the Republicans and Democrats intending to stay how because they have nothing but shit to vote for, apart from those who will protest vote Libertarian and Green, they will be out in droves as well as party die hards.

      The next election is the one, that who ever wins will wish they didn't and due to deep social reach of primaries getting many unstable fringe elements involved in politics and then being betrayed yet again, well, the Secret Service and the FBI will really have their work cut out for them keeping that talking head chuppa chup alive. Making millions our of the white house corporate media channel. What a mess it will be.

      --
      Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
    10. Re:Oh dear by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So? At least in this case justice would be served.

      Also, I'd rather have her as president than Hillary or Trump.

    11. Re:Oh dear by Dog-Cow · · Score: 1

      Yes, it's a poor choice. Snowden has no known qualifications for any cabinet position. Perhaps you expect Jill to create new position just for him?

    12. Re: Oh dear by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Coward.

    13. Re:Oh dear by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      How hard can a cabinet position be? It's not like any member today has to know everything about their service. Cabinet members have to network with their network to get specific information and formulate strategy. I'm sure Snowden is capable of getting his job done of advising the executive.

    14. Re:Oh dear by wonkey_monkey · · Score: 1

      So a person that gave up all his power and salary to protect the citizens he felt he should represent is a bad person for cabinet?

      That's not what I said. My point is that he is not automatically the right person for the job just because he did something newsworthy. It's stunt-appointing.

      He might be good at it in the same sense that I might be good at open heart surgery - but no-one should let me have a go on the off-chance.

      So based upon you claim, seriously you hugely stupid claim as an American

      I'm not an American.

      the founding fathers (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Revolution) should all have been hung, drawn and quartered and absolutely never have gained positions in government and anyone who said they should is a whore.

      Wow. You've read a lot into about 20 mildly facetious words. I didn't say she was a whore; I said she was whoring. It's a metaphor. And where the hell did I say anything about bloody executions?

      --
      systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
    15. Re:Oh dear by Talderas · · Score: 1

      The cabinet of the president consists of the following positions:

      Vice President
      Secretary of State
      Secretary of the Treasury
      Secretary of Defense
      Attorney General
      Secretary of the Interior
      Secretary of Agriculture
      Secretary of Commerce
      Secretary of Labor
      Secretary of Health and Human Services
      Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
      Secretary of Transportation
      Secretary of Energy
      Secretary of Education
      Secretary of Veterans Affairs
      Secretary of Homeland Security

      Each of these positions, except Vice President, is also responsible for managing the department which reports up to them, something Snowden certainly lacks the qualifications to perform. At best, Snowden might have some qualification to serve as the Secretary of Homeland Security but there's still the management level experience that he lacks and he would never receive a confirmation from the Senate anyway.

      The only non-confirmation positions that Snowden could be in that are in the Cabinet or are equivalent to Cabinet positions are the Vice President and White House Chief of Staff. Since Ms. Stein hasn't said she would make Snowden her running mate that's out of the picture, and I doubt he has the skills necessary to perform in the role of White House Chief of Staff.

      Ms. Stein's statement on putting Snowden on her Cabinet is blatant pandering for votes. Nothing more, nothing less.

      --
      "Lack of speed can be overcome. In the worst case by patience." --Znork
    16. Re:Oh dear by lsatenstein · · Score: 1

      Jill Stein Pledges To Pardon Snowden

      Yeah, I can see how that might actually be a worthy thing to od.

      and Appoint Him To Her Cabinet

      Ah, she ruined it. She's obviously just whoring for votes.

      This Canadian sees Snowdon as a hero.

      --
      Leslie Satenstein Montreal Quebec Canada
    17. Re:Oh dear by wonkey_monkey · · Score: 1

      Which Canadian?

      --
      systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
  4. Pardon Hillary by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    If Stein pledges to pardon Hillary for the e-mail thingy, then I'll vote for her! Oh wait...

    1. Re: Pardon Hillary by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Can someone be pardoned for being an imbecilic misoginistic racist egotistical asshole? If so, there's a good candidate available.

  5. Obligatory by Yvan256 · · Score: 1
    1. Re:Obligatory by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Damn it, that 2 seconds of video was not worth linking to.

      It is just, "It's a trap" - Admiral Akbar

  6. So much for rule of law by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    I don't dispute that Snowden did a public service in the end. However, he also broke the law and for that there should be consequences. I worked in the US government for a long time and 99.99% of the people working there take their obligations under the law very seriously. As with any large organization, there are bad apples. I'm sorry to say, but Snowden made himself part of the problem instead of part of the solution.

    He could have reported the problem to his corporate managers, to his government managers (as a contractor he had to be working for a government manager somewhere along the way), to the inspector general at the site where he was working or directly to the NSA inspector general, or to his congress person. In my mind, given the gravity of the situation I would have gone to the congress person. Many members of congress and members of their staff, particularly professional staffers, have high level security clearance. They certainly could have investigated, exercised oversight, and put a stop to anything untoward.

    Believe it or not, the process for intelligence oversight mostly works really well. Sometimes, like any process, it fails and those seem to be primary focus of public attention. I worked in places where we received orders to stop certain activities because they had been reported as questionable, investigated, and found to be unacceptable by the authorities responsible for oversight.

    What Snowden did was decide that none of that mattered and that, like a little kid who wants his way and wants it now, he was going to do whatever he wanted to get his way. This certainly could have been handled within the confines of existing laws and regulations without damaging national security and international relations in the process. Of course, I have no idea where someone working in government might get this ridiculous notion that "the rules apply to others but not to me" and that "it's OK to break the rules if it is more convenient for me or I can justify the end result to myself"

    1. Re:So much for rule of law by 0100010001010011 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      He could have reported the problem to his corporate managers,

      That worked so well for Thomas Drake.

      the process for intelligence oversight mostly works really well

      Citation Needed

    2. Re:So much for rule of law by BradMajors · · Score: 0

      We were orally told (so there is no written record) that we would be immediately fired if we talked with government inspectors.

    3. Re:So much for rule of law by fustakrakich · · Score: 1

      Of course, I have no idea where someone working in government might get this ridiculous notion that "the rules apply to others but not to me"

      Yeah, okay, we get the joke...

      All three candidates are making the libertarian guy look pretty good.

      --
      “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
    4. Re:So much for rule of law by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      O'reiley?

    5. Re:So much for rule of law by penguinoid · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Repeat after me, if the bad apples remain after being found, it is not just a few bad apples. Everyone is complicit.

      You do realize the saying is not, "Feel free to leave the bad apples there, so long as only a few of them are moldy and oozing juices all over the others it doesn't matter because the rest remain good." You're only allowed to call them "a few bad apples" without looking like a moron, if they are treated like bad apples are treated.

      --
      Don't waste your vote! Vote for whoever you want, unless you live in a swing state it won't matter anyways
    6. Re:So much for rule of law by johanw · · Score: 2

      A presidential pardon is also rule of law if the congress passed it. And further I think your post shows the same "befehl ist befehl" mentality that didn't work as an excuse in the Nurenberg trials.

    7. Re:So much for rule of law by markdavis · · Score: 3, Insightful

      >"Believe it or not, the process for intelligence oversight mostly works really well."

      Oh really. So secretive oversight by government officials of secretive things done by government officials "mostly works really well"? And how are we to know this?

    8. Re:So much for rule of law by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      The American Revolution was illegal; every one of its leaders broke the law (violently).

      Should they have been punished for this, once America was established?

    9. Re:So much for rule of law by demonlapin · · Score: 1

      Getting fired isn't fun, but it beats the hell out of going to prison.

    10. Re:So much for rule of law by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      The answer is classified.

    11. Re:So much for rule of law by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I agree that Snowden didn't do things the right way, and I can't even rule out some outside help from foreign countries for him to even get that intel.

      The way he got the files was illegal and might create more problems with oversight than what was in them. And as far as I know, the government didn't really break the law, it was just civil libertarians who got pissed off that metadata was being collected to determine who people accused of terrorist acts were talking to and meeting with prior to the event.

      But, the media got hooked on an attractive guy who was playing the role in a real life spy movie. The media keeps putting his name in the headlines by slowly releasing stories.

      I'm not sure he should want to come back to the US. He would be more likely to get killed by a far-right wing guy here than overseas by the CIA.

    12. Re:So much for rule of law by AchilleTalon · · Score: 0

      Yes, he can decide to bypass the hierarchy he signed to respect in first place. But he cannot claim he shouldn't be served the treatment for such a decision. The administration, on the other side, has no choice other than enforce the respect of the hierachy otherwise the whole administration will become unmanageable. You cannot tell civil servants, contractual workers, etc, they can do whatever they want. Everyone is accountable. Snowden is accountable for what he did, as well as any of his boss who covered up wrong doing. It is up to the administration to put in place the safe guards to make sure nobody is bypassing the law and regulations.

      Snowden could have done it otherwise. He was not in the obligation to release top secret information in the public domain to make his point to the current administration at a higher level.

      The choice to went public with all this top secret information is his own and sole decision. You may not agree, but I am pretty sure his decision wasn't driven at all by a desire for justice. He was seeking for something else and that's why he went public with this information.

      --
      Achille Talon
      Hop!
    13. Re:So much for rule of law by rdelsambuco · · Score: 1

      -1, retarded

      --
      I comment occasionally so that I can mod others -1 overrated or -1 offtopic.
    14. Re:So much for rule of law by Sarten-X · · Score: 1

      They broke British laws, and when some of those leaders were caught in British territory, they were indeed made to face the punishments for their crimes.

      --
      You do not have a moral or legal right to do absolutely anything you want.
    15. Re:So much for rule of law by silas_moeckel · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Morally right trumps lawful every time. That's why we have jury nullification. He exposed criminal activity by the administration.

      --
      No sir I dont like it.
    16. Re:So much for rule of law by Uberbah · · Score: 5, Insightful

      But he cannot claim he shouldn't be served the treatment for such a decision.

      Ah, yes, demanding whisteblowers face the law, while flatly ignoring the lawbreaking revealed by those whisteblowers. The penalty for violating FISA is punishable by up to 5 years and prison, and a $10,000 fine. Given the length and scale of NSA wiretapping, that probably means billions of years in collective prison time, and hundreds of trillions in fines, if FISA was enforced. Funny how you fascists are never demanding those laws be applied to the executive branch and the sort of contractor Snowden worked for.

      Snowden could have done it otherwise.

      No, he couldn't. Just ask John Kiriakou, who was investigating the CIA for torture and had his investigation shut down by "appropriate channels".

    17. Re:So much for rule of law by Austerity+Empowers · · Score: 1

      If laws need to be broken to serve the greater good, they need to be broken. The person in question needs to be ready to face the consequences, but pardons exist to ensure they do not have to, if they did indeed serve the greater good. Being sentenced to live in Russia for years is a punishment on its own. He should be pardoned with time served. Unfortunately, I don't see that happening, too many people approve of our insane government and want it to be crazier.

    18. Re: So much for rule of law by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It's pretty obvious you've never attempted to do so, or if you did, you did not check to see what effect it had.

    19. Re:So much for rule of law by Kernel+Kurtz · · Score: 1

      They certainly could have investigated, exercised oversight, and put a stop to anything untoward.

      Post should be modded 5 Funny!

    20. Re:So much for rule of law by jmcvetta · · Score: 2

      One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey just laws. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws. I would agree with St. Augustine that "an unjust law is no law at all."

      -- MLK, from his "Letter from a Birmingham Jail"

    21. Re:So much for rule of law by ZorroXXX · · Score: 1

      Thank you for an excellent comment. I am going to bookmark it and quote it whenever someone incorrectly blames bad apples from now on.

      --
      When you are sure of something, you probably are wrong (search for "Unskilled and Unaware of It").
    22. Re:So much for rule of law by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      You are thinking of some earlier time, before 9/11. Or you are an apologist for a security apparatus gone wild. Take your pick.

      Multiple people reported multiple problems to multiple managers. The universal response was, "you're offside, we're going to continue to do what we want, and furthermore by speaking out you have endangered the system. You must now be purged and then destroyed."

      The security oversight system you so proudly defend, is part of the problem now. The entire chain of command has been compromised up to and including the President. It works for the apparatus and they don't want anyone reporting any problems.

      The security establishment gets what it wants. The politicians can come up with a brilliant "idea" and have it executed in 24 hours. The public has been bamboozled with endless talk of terrorism, threats to security, and fears for their children. And the details are endless and tiresome, so who cares anyway? We have a circle jerk of power that has gotten rid of public scrutiny, process delays, and the need for troublesome items like due process, warrants and probable cause. Just send in the drones and kill them all, let God sort it out!

    23. Re:So much for rule of law by Agripa · · Score: 1

      I worked in the US government for a long time and 99.99% of the people working there take their obligations under the law very seriously.

      I don't know anybody who voted for Nixon.

    24. Re:So much for rule of law by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I don't dispute that Snowden did a public service in the end. However, he also broke the law and for that there should be consequences.

      No, he didn't. His actions fall under the right to long term public oversight over government, one of the fundamental rights "retained by the people" under the 9th Amendment, and "reserved to the people", under the 10th.

      Any law, executive order, or precedent to the contrary is illegal: the Bill of Rights is the highest law in the land. Nobody can break an illegal law.

      Laws passed by Congress are only valid to the extent that they DO NOT violate rights of the people.

      I worked in the US government for a long time and 99.99% of the people working there take their obligations under the law very seriously.

      You obviously didn't take your obligations seriously enough to understand the law of the land.

    25. Re:So much for rule of law by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      what are you stupid? how about you expose the myth that jury nullification still exists? fucking retard.

  7. Candidate Who Won't Win a Single Precinct by Salo2112 · · Score: 1

    makes campaign promise she will never have to fulfill. Film at 11. :rolleyes: Snowden should be pardoned, but this would only be credible coming from one of the two mainstream candidates.

    1. Re:Candidate Who Won't Win a Single Precinct by fustakrakich · · Score: 1

      ...makes campaign promise she will never have to fulfill.

      A very common practice in the business. Makes the front page though. And in this case it's a small reminder that we do have have more than two choices. And also the democrats can try to pull their guilt trip again and scapegoat Stein if Hillary were to lose.

      --
      “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
    2. Re:Candidate Who Won't Win a Single Precinct by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      ...reminder that more than two choices that don't count unless you are a delegate.

    3. Re:Candidate Who Won't Win a Single Precinct by PolygamousRanchKid+ · · Score: 2

      makes campaign promise she will never have to fulfill. Film at 11. :rolleyes: Snowden should be pardoned, but this would only be credible coming from one of the two mainstream candidates.

      The government in the USA has been carefully crafted and evolved into a two party system. Both the Democrats and Republicans like it that way, and have no reason to change that.

      Hell, 10% of the country could vote Green, and what representation would they get? Nothing.

      Even Bernie just sold out to Clinton. When she gets elected, all assurances she made to Bernie will get flushed down the toilet.

      Can we somehow bring in Dave Cameron as a "dark horse" candidate? I know, he wasn't born as a USA citizen, but these days, it seems everything stated in the Constitution can be fudged.

      --
      Schroedinger's Brexit: The UK is both in and out of the EU at the same time!
    4. Re:Candidate Who Won't Win a Single Precinct by lucm · · Score: 1, Insightful

      Things are getting exciting. The next President will be one of those:

      1) a failed business person with bad hair and a name tarnished by sex scandals who doesn't like Arabs and Mexicans

      2) a failed business person with bad hair and a name tarnished by sex scandals who thinks giving US citizenship to 20 millions Arabs and Mexicans is a one-shot deal that won't bring 50 millions more knocking at the door to get their share of the American Dream

      3) a feminazi who thinks women bathrooms are only for "womyn-born womyns" (not those rapists in disguise called transgenders) and who never had a non-subsidized job in her entire life

      And they all lie. Constantly. With no consideration for the intelligence of the people they lie to.

      How could things get to that point? Both the GOP and the Democrats have made terrible strategic choice. First the GOP could have picked a decent, middle-of-the-road candidate that somehow represents the GOP values, and following a Democrat president that failed to live up to the hype of his election, it could have been an easy win. But no, they went with Trump... And how did the Democrats react? Did they pick a normal, middle-of-the-road candidate that somehow represents the liberal values? Of course not, they picked a controversial figure with a sketchy background and a history of bad decisions that makes people fall asleep when she speaks.

      If this was a movie it would get a 3.5 score on imdb because nobody would believe this could happen.

      --
      lucm, indeed.
    5. Re:Candidate Who Won't Win a Single Precinct by fustakrakich · · Score: 1

      How could things get to that point?

      Two words: "Lesser evil"

      The voters fight each other over ideology. The politicians are just in it for the money, coke, and hookers. They are playing an entirely different game that the public does not want to acknowledge. They don't want to hear that they are being taken for a ride.

      --
      “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
    6. Re:Candidate Who Won't Win a Single Precinct by Gavagai80 · · Score: 1

      You're simply lying about Stein's bathroom position. She very clearly states that she believes transgender people should be able to choose which restroom to use. A position which she shares with nearly all feminists.

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      This space intentionally left blank
    7. Re:Candidate Who Won't Win a Single Precinct by Gavagai80 · · Score: 1

      If 5% of the country votes Green, they get federal funding in the next election. Perhaps they'd use that money to push their advocacy for ranked choice and proportional representation.

      There's no perfect system, though. Proportional representation gives you party-controlled lists and takes away the power of local people to directly decide who represents their community.

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      This space intentionally left blank
    8. Re: Candidate Who Won't Win a Single Precinct by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And what about us? If either sex can go to either bathroom, that's the same as forcing people who want their privacy into the opposite sex bathroom.

    9. Re:Candidate Who Won't Win a Single Precinct by lucm · · Score: 1

      Please provide a quote from Jill Stein herself to support that.

      While you scour the internets to dig up this non-existing quote, you will see that while she tweeted against the NC bathroom bill, she never actually took position, she simply swept that under "discrimination". Even when asked directly by a sycophant reporter, she refused to answer, saying that there were more important issues and deflected the question over and over.

      This is at the opposite end of the spectrum of Mitt Romney and gay marriage, where he "had" to oppose it in order to keep his base but out of decency and honesty he qualified his answer by mentioning that any kind of discrimination is bad.

      Feminazis like Stein are not supportive of transgenders once the threshold of their "women safe space" is crossed. They just use them as cannon fodder in their war against bigger bigots. There's countless examples of feminist doubletalk on this. Don't be fooled by the tolerant facade, those people are hypocrites.

      --
      lucm, indeed.
    10. Re:Candidate Who Won't Win a Single Precinct by Gavagai80 · · Score: 1

      Tweeting against the NC bathroom bill is blatantly taking a position, and she "swept that under discrimination" because it is discrimination and that's the point. There is no way to be clearer than that, and it's quite amusing that someone could seriously believe that she or other feminists are against transgender bathroom choice. Are you really so incapable of believing that women don't have an issue with transwomen that you have to invent this tortured fantasy that they suffer the same paranoia as you?

      --
      This space intentionally left blank
    11. Re:Candidate Who Won't Win a Single Precinct by tgv · · Score: 1

      Jill Stein, sorry, Dr. Jill Stein, did an "Ask Me Anything" on reddit some time ago, under the title "I am running for presidency". Which country, she didn't consider necessary to add. That's some delusional thinking, if you ask me.

    12. Re:Candidate Who Won't Win a Single Precinct by lucm · · Score: 1

      Ok so you found no actual quote, as expected.

      And just like her, you hide behind "the real point" because now you realize that she never "clearly stated" her position (your own words), all she did was let people draw their own conclusions based on a vague message rejecting a bill so stupid that even Trump didn't support it. That's called figure skating and politicians have done that since the dawn of time, but for some reason you're just too biased or self-deluded to notice it when it comes to that feminazi.

      --
      lucm, indeed.
  8. Hey, Dr. Stein... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Daniel Ellsberg is still alive. Could you find him some kind of paperwork job over at the Pentagon?

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Ellsberg

  9. Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    Pardon Snowden... Stein got off on the right foot there. Sounds good so far...

    Unfortunately, she shoved the other one in her mouth. She's in favor of "homeopathic medicine", and says that nuclear energy is, "dirty, dangerous and expensive, and should be precluded on all of those counts", when the actual data shows just the opposite. Furthermore, she wants "a moratorium on GMOs", which wikipedia states, "There is a scientific consensus[147][148][149][150] that currently available food derived from GM crops poses no greater risk to human health than conventional food".

    I REALLY want to vote third party, but we need some third party candidates who are not anti-science crackpots. I thought she might be pro-science, but apparently not.

    It's really too bad. I'd be totally on the side of a pro-environment and pro-civil rights party, something akin to a blend of green and libertarian. Bring Snowden back, stop spying on everyone, and don't trash the environment. Could be so good! However, they keep putting up unelectable nutcases :-/. This election could be THE golden opportunity for third parties, because the D and R candidates are both strongly disliked across the political spectrum. It's not that they would be likely to win, but they could become a force to be reckoned with and position themselves to gain mindshare in the future. But not by being "pro homeopathy" and generally come across like crackpots.

    Sigh. We need some real alternatives to Republicans and Democrats. "Real" being the key word.

    1. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by fustakrakich · · Score: 4, Informative

      There is a fourth candidate, you know. And he is relatively "normal" with some time in the trenches. He's on the ballot in all 50 states, and he tracks a bit higher than Stein. He makes a damn good alternative to Trump. Let's turn the election into a battle between Clinton and Johnson.

      --
      “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
    2. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Clinton could not bother to attend any debate or buy a single ad and would still be our next president. Attempting to split the vote into a third part would only further cement that.

      There is too much division around Trump for him to get enough votes. If someone else comes out of the convention most of those that actually wanted him and voted for him will not vote. The elected nominee cannot win because of who he is and any replacement cannot win because "that's not who we put on the ballot you cheats."

      Colorado saw exactly this situation in a recent (2010) election for Governor. There was an obvious candidate on the R side that the party did not like. The people wanted him, the party did not. He did not get the nomination. The candidate people wanted ran third party. The election results were 51% D, 24% R, 25% Other

    3. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by Fwipp · · Score: 1

      Unfortunately, he's a Libertarian.

    4. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by fustakrakich · · Score: 1

      And Clinton is a democrat, what's yer point? Running as a libertarian is what got him on the ballot. You do what you gotta do. And look at the bright side, he "steals" votes from Trump.

      --
      “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
    5. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by fustakrakich · · Score: 1
      --
      “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
    6. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by NotInHere · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Its nice to live in this dream world where there are other alternatives than the two major party candidates, but its not real. If he did well, Jonson would make 5% of the vote. Those 5% are more likely to come from Clinton than from trump. Clinton would miss the 5%, meaning that Trump would win more likely. So voting for any candidate than the "lesser evil" doesn't bring you anything, but in fact has a negative effect.

      The only way to fix this is to change the system. Give voters papers where they can fill in priorities, with priority one two three etc. The system is called STV: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.... The voters then will be free to support any candidate they want, regardless of strategy.

    7. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by Fwipp · · Score: 1

      I do appreciate that. :)

    8. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by fustakrakich · · Score: 0

      "Lesser evil" is still evil. Save the propaganda for the believers please. Homey don't play that.

      And you can't change the system without voting for people who would "change the system". And if you do that, you have solved the problem. capisci?

      --
      “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
    9. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Mining, and enriching uranium/plutonium doesn't happen easily. All the concrete is a big pollution generator, as well as the expense and vehicles the staff has to drive to work 365 days a year. It still might be better than coal or fracked natural gas, but it isn't perfect. However, it might not be the worst thing to have a few nuclear plants, if they are already built and functioning.

    10. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by markdavis · · Score: 2

      STV is not the only want to fix the system. Just about any type of ranked/preferential voting would be 1,000 times better than what we use now. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

      Another such example is instant runoff voting https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

      Then we could truly vote the way we want, rather than voting against who we don't want because we are always afraid of a worse outcome. Unfortunately, the RepubliCrats (the collective term I use for Democrats and Republicans) will never allow this to happen, because they don't want to give voters real choice.

    11. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by NotInHere · · Score: 1

      Voting for people is a really small contribution, and as lots of people are voting for the most various reasons, your vote won't matter much. If you really want your voice to matter more, try to apply simple lobbying tactics. Calling your representatives is a good first step. Then build a charity, go on search for donors etc. Believing in totally foreign candidates is a nice thing, but it won't happen soon.

    12. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by fustakrakich · · Score: 1

      That's true. If you can collect enough money from other people, you will be noticed.

      --
      “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
    13. Re: Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by MoronGames · · Score: 0

      Yes, Gary Johnson of the libertarian party is a much more reasonable third party candidate who actually has a lot of governing experience and reasonable beliefs and policies. Jill Stein is a nut, and I'm not sure how anyone can take her seriously.

      --
      hey!
    14. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by epine · · Score: 2

      STV is not the only want to fix the system. Just about any type of ranked/preferential voting would be 1,000 times better than what we use now.

      Yes, first-past-the-post is the worst form of voting, including all the others (modulo coercion).

      But really, you can't fix the electoral process without also fixing how legislation is tabled (death to the omnibus bill), otherwise a truly representative congress becomes gridlocked on process.

    15. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by Rockoon · · Score: 1

      Connecticut is special tho.

      A few years before the State Democrats didnt think Lieberman was liberal enough for them, the State Republicans decided that Weicker wasn't conservative enough for them. In both of these cases they ran independent and won.

      --
      "His name was James Damore."
    16. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by fustakrakich · · Score: 1

      congress becomes gridlocked on process.

      Which is what we need right now until we significantly reduce reelection rates from 95%.

      --
      “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
    17. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by Kjella · · Score: 5, Insightful

      But not by being "pro homeopathy" and generally come across like crackpots. Sigh. We need some real alternatives to Republicans and Democrats. "Real" being the key word.

      The more I read about US politics, the more I realize that what would ordinarily be normal parties here in Norway are the factions within the democrats and republicans, while the fringe crackpots are the same. Imagine a system with:

      Democratic Party
      Liberal Party
      Socialist Party
      Republican Party
      Tea Party
      Christian Party
      Libertarian Party
      Green Party
      Constitution Party

      It would be not entirely unlike our parliament. Anything above 4% nationally gets proportional representation (19/169 representatives are held in a pool for this purpose), under 4% you'd have to get a direct vote from your area (the other 150/169). Coalitions are common and usually center around the main "left" or "right" party but who is in and who is out varies. In the US you have the same factions but first they make a red and blue coalition that they call a party, then they put it to a vote.

      As long as you got a "first past the post" system, nothing matters unless you get a majority so first you must become part of something that could get a majority, then you can try pulling it in the direction you want. That's why we see candidates like Sanders, Trump, Ron Paul etc. join the main parties even if they're way on the fringes. Nobody's going to be able to change that without changing the electorate system and the keys to that is firmly locked up by the two parties that like their pseudo-monopoly on being the red and blue pill.

      --
      Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
    18. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by fustakrakich · · Score: 1

      Connecticut is special

      Aren't we all?

      Lieberman always needed republican voters to win. He was a true republicrat in every sense.

      --
      “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
    19. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by Halo1 · · Score: 5, Interesting

      She's in favor of "homeopathic medicine",

      That seems to be a little simplistic, given that she apparently even got the Green Party to remove all mentions of homeopathy from their platform. That said, pure placebo's (such as homeopathy, VR and even the colour of pills) can have their use either separately from (in case of e.g. a hypochondriac) or in combination with regular treatment.

      and says that nuclear energy is, "dirty, dangerous and expensive, and should be precluded on all of those counts", when the actual data shows just the opposite.

      If you take into account all of the government subsidies, including covering the industry's uninsurable risks, I'm not sure whether at least the cost argument holds.

      Furthermore, she wants "a moratorium on GMOs", which wikipedia states, "There is a scientific consensus[147][148][149][150] that currently available food derived from GM crops poses no greater risk to human health than conventional food".

      While she indeed argues against it because of safety arguments, there are plenty of other reasons why many people are against GMOs. Just look at the majority of comments on the Slashdot story regarding one of the "GMOs are safe" studies.

      I REALLY want to vote third party, but we need some third party candidates who are not anti-science crackpots.

      Bashing using arguments that are either easily refuted, or at the very least less clear cut than presented, is anti-science. Name-calling while posting as AC is just silly.

      --
      Donate free food here
    20. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      perhaps, but it's evil to let the greater evil win because of a lost cause. So no matter what, you are voting for the what you perceive to be be the lesser evil. So let's stop with this stupid and thoughtless platitude that let's people be smug about their vote and not consider the consequences for all the other people that will be more fucked over by the "greater evil" being realized.

      Think 3rd party is truly the least of evils? fine. I think that bullshit, but fine. But don't act like you are one of few voting for something that is not "evil."

    21. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by ItsJustAPseudonym · · Score: 2

      Those 5% are more likely to come from Clinton than from trump. Clinton would miss the 5%, meaning that Trump would win more likely. So voting for any candidate than the "lesser evil" doesn't bring you anything, but in fact has a negative effect.

      Only in a swing-state. On the other hand, if you live in a state that will absolutely go D or R, you can vote for whomever the heck you want. You would not effectively be robbing votes from anyone. But you would be going on record as giving a big "F U" to the D's or R's.

    22. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by phantomfive · · Score: 1

      I REALLY want to vote third party, but we need some third party candidates who are not anti-science crackpots.

      You can always write someone in.

      --
      "First they came for the slanderers and i said nothing."
    23. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by phantomfive · · Score: 2

      There is too much division around Trump for him to get enough votes.

      The trend in the polls is moving in Trump's favor, with some polls showing Trump even with Clinton, or outright ahead. CBS/NYT is a tie, Rasmussen is Trump with a clear lead, Economist/Yougov within a margin of error.

      Of course, Clinton had a bad couple weeks, so that may a temporary thing, but it could also be part of a longer trend. I really think things will start to crystallize once the debates happen, because that will push people into their animalistic "us against them" mode.

      --
      "First they came for the slanderers and i said nothing."
    24. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by hort_wort · · Score: 1

      The plants that are already built are the problem. There are many passive-safety measures that have been devised since these plants were constructed, but since the old reactor designs are already there, people keep using them to be cheap. The difference is in when something goes wrong you can either have a reaction that halts right away or a situation like Chernobyl, Three Mile Island, or Fukushima.

      Thorium reactors are pretty interesting in concept. I'd rather have a few of those around over the 35+ year old reactors we have running now. The science there is good. It's better than what we have and would be progress. That said, I understand the position against nuclear. Any time radioactive substances are being produced, there is a nonzero chance of them being spread out over the landscape.

      From what I can tell, the Green party seems to be against gambling with worst-case scenarios, even if the odds of the worst-case scenario happening are remote. Let's think of a list of the worst case scenarios of things!
      * Photovoltaics -- take up farmland?
      * Turbines -- kill birds/fish
      * Fossil Fuels -- Turn Earth into Venus
      * Nuclear Reactors -- Godzilla
      * GMOs -- Monsanto finishes the transition to Weyland-Yutani. Also the death of bees.
      * Water Fluoridation -- Mind control!

    25. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by friedmud · · Score: 1

      I've always voted Republican (always). But I'll be voting for Johnson.

      Don't underestimate the number of moderate republicans who are disgusted with the things coming out of Trump and Hillary's mouths...

      Are we enough to get Johnson elected? Hell no! But if we make a good showing it could finally be the start of a moderate party that believes in a limited government and progressive social views.

    26. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by fustakrakich · · Score: 1

      Your game is lame. And your accusations are nonsense.

      --
      “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
    27. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by markdavis · · Score: 1

      >"But really, you can't fix the electoral process without also fixing how legislation is tabled (death to the omnibus bill), otherwise a truly representative congress becomes gridlocked on process."

      Yes, that is a danger. But perhaps that is exactly what we need more of right now. The government (most especially the Fed) is just too large, too expensive, too imposing, and too corrupt. Maybe having far fewer laws but better ones (those that really can pass muster through lots of bickering and fighting) is much better than full-steam-ahead in directions that don't seem to be working all that well.

      I am sure we could work something out.

    28. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by KiloByte · · Score: 1

      and says that nuclear energy is, "dirty, dangerous and expensive, and should be precluded on all of those counts", when the actual data shows just the opposite.

      If you take into account all of the government subsidies, including covering the industry's uninsurable risks, I'm not sure whether at least the cost argument holds.

      You forgot that it's the only form of energy that's currently regulated to include all of externalities in its cost. For a fair comparison, you'd need to require coal to catch everything (CO2, sulphur, other toxins, more radioactive isotopes than a nuclear plant, etc) from all chimneys, transport and store that securely for hundreds of years. And despite that, nuclear is still competitive and causes many orders of magnitude less deaths.

      --
      The creatures outside looked from Alt-Right to Antifa; but already it was impossible to say which was which.
    29. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by Halo1 · · Score: 2

      and says that nuclear energy is, "dirty, dangerous and expensive, and should be precluded on all of those counts", when the actual data shows just the opposite.

      If you take into account all of the government subsidies, including covering the industry's uninsurable risks, I'm not sure whether at least the cost argument holds.

      You forgot that it's the only form of energy that's currently regulated to include all of externalities in its cost.

      No, since for nuclear a bunch of externalities are covered by the government at a rate that is below what the market is willing to offer (since the market doesn't want to cover them at all).

      For a fair comparison, you'd need to require coal to catch everything (CO2, sulphur, other toxins, more radioactive isotopes than a nuclear plant, etc)
        from all chimneys, transport and store that securely for hundreds of years.

      I doubt Jill Stein is very much in favour of coal fired plants.

      And despite that, nuclear is still competitive and causes many orders of magnitude less deaths.

      Competitive with massive government subsidies, yes. Of course, coal also gets lots of subsidies.

      --
      Donate free food here
    30. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Jill doesn't support homeopathic medicine, this is FUD.

    31. Re: Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Sounds good to me so far. Anyone challenging the corrupt medical and agricultural establishments gets my attention. She'd need to be pro-life, too, and have an actual chance at winning to get my vote, however.

    32. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by jmcvetta · · Score: 1

      Calling your representatives is a good first step.

      Have you ever actually tried this? I have. Just about as effective as shaking my fist and shouting at the sky.

      Then build a charity, go on search for donors etc.

      There we go, that's more like it. Start soliciting bigmoney bribes from oligarchs and become part of the managed "opposition".

    33. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by jmcvetta · · Score: 1

      and says that nuclear energy is, "dirty, dangerous and expensive, and should be precluded on all of those counts", when the actual data shows just the opposite.

      If you take into account all of the government subsidies, including covering the industry's uninsurable risks, I'm not sure whether at least the cost argument holds.

      If plant operators had to buy liability insurance on the commercial market, all nuclear power stations would be uneconomic.

    34. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by roman_mir · · Score: 1

      How about checking your sources? Gary Johnson is polling at 12%.

       

    35. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by SeaFox · · Score: 1

      Pardon Snowden... Stein got off on the right foot there. Sounds good so far...

      Unfortunately, she shoved the other one in her mouth. She's in favor of "homeopathic medicine", and says that nuclear energy is, "dirty, dangerous and expensive, and should be precluded on all of those counts", when the actual data shows just the opposite.

      She's running with the Green Party. What else would you expect from someone on a platform with a bunch of naturalists?

    36. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by Dog-Cow · · Score: 1

      I don't think your vote can be considered a big anything, much less an FU, if no one even notices you voted.

    37. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by r0kk3rz · · Score: 1

      Honestly, if nothing else you should consider Jill Stein because she advocates electoral reform and scrapping the first past the post system with something a lot fairer.

      From an outsiders perspective, this should be the single biggest issue in American Politics, because clearly the system you guys have is not producing very good results if your choice is between Empress Clinton and the village idiot

    38. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by r0kk3rz · · Score: 1

      The only way to fix this is to change the system. Give voters papers where they can fill in priorities, with priority one two three etc. The system is called STV: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.... The voters then will be free to support any candidate they want, regardless of strategy.

      From Jill Steins Campaign Page...
      Abolish the Electoral College and directly elect the President using a national popular vote with ranked-choice voting..

      Eliminate “winner take all / first past the post” elections in which the “winner” may not have the support of most of the voters. Replace that system with ranked choice voting and proportional representation.

    39. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by ItsJustAPseudonym · · Score: 1

      It is not a very big FU. But, I have two thoughts:

      1. They certainly are not going to notice if I vote R or D. My vote is proportionally more noticeable if I add it to the third-party segment.
      2. The more people that do this, the bigger the FU. I'm happy to contribute.

    40. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The GM foods themselves might be safe to eat, but will come at a terrible price to the planet. Just like how industrialization in itself is pretty safe, but when humans take it to the extreme, like they do with everything else, to get more shiny things, it's devastating to the world.

    41. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by Magius_AR · · Score: 1

      The trend in the polls is moving in Trump's favor

      Kind of. It's more moving away from Clinton than it is towards Trump. Clinton's numbers have gone down, but Trump's have remained flat. Frankly, I think a good chunk of the Clinton support just shifted over to Gary Johnson (whose numbers have climbed a good deal over the same period).

    42. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by SuiteSisterMary · · Score: 1

      If plant operators had to buy liability insurance on the commercial market, all nuclear power stations would be uneconomic.

      Sure, but by the same token, there are large swaths of the continental US of A that, if residents had to buy home insurance on the commercial market, would be utterly uninhabitable.

      There is also thirty or forty years of technological advancement in nuclear safety to take into account.

      --
      Vintage computer games and RPG books available. Email me if you're interested.
    43. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by jmcvetta · · Score: 1

      You're comparing apples to oranges.

      It's very easy and cheap to purchase homeowner's liability insurance anywhere in America. Liability insurance pays for harm to others caused by the home, for example someone falling down the stairs. What is difficult to buy in some places is insurance against natural disaster. For instance in California, one can buy affordable earthquake insurance only because of state legal mandates.

      The reason nuclear station operators cannot buy liability insurance on the commercial market, is because of the incalculably large potential for harm to others from the maximal failure mode of a nuclear power plant.

    44. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by SuiteSisterMary · · Score: 1

      Either way, the government is subsidizing a type of insurance that would be infeasible on the open market, in order to promote a perceived societal benefit.

      --
      Vintage computer games and RPG books available. Email me if you're interested.
    45. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by mmdurrant · · Score: 1

      Read her actual response - she thinks homeopathy and alternative medicine should be evaluated like other medicines and shouldn't be able to skirt FDA regulation by claiming to be a "supplement". If you think she's anti-science, you've committed the fallacy of missing the point.

      --
      I see my shadow changing, stretching up and over me...
    46. Re:Well, I _wanted_ to like her. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Frankly, I think a good chunk of the Clinton support just shifted over to Gary Johnson

      Maybe this thinking thing isn't for you, then. Democrats won't be leaving Clinton for Johnson. If anything they'll leave for Jill Stein. While Johnson at least isn't the thinly veiled fascist that Ron Paul is, he offers very little that a democrat would pine for. There may be some republicans leaving the GOP line for Johnson, but you'd be hard pressed to find a democrat who would.

  10. Carl Malmud for head of the printing office! by oneiros27 · · Score: 1

    I honestly don't know if he has all of the qualifications as a cabinet member (but then again, I don't know our main two presidential candidates have qualifications for being president) ... but so long as we're on the 'appoint people with different points of views than what we've had for decades', I'd recommend Carl Malamud for the head of the Government Printing Office

    (he's the guy who's been buying government documents, scanning 'em, and putting them up for free at resource.org)

    --
    Build it, and they will come^Hplain.
    1. Re:Carl Malmud for head of the printing office! by Talderas · · Score: 1

      Every Cabinet position, except the Vice President, is also the head of a US department. Snowden only has the knowledge and experience relevant to two of these positions but he lacks the experience to manage an organization of that size. He'd basically have to function like George C. Marshall did as Secretary of State and rely heavily on direct reports to manage the department and take care of most of it. Also, he's not get confirmed anyway.

      The statement of suggesting Snowden for a Cabinet position basically betrays Stein's ignorant statement as nothing but pandering for votes.

      --
      "Lack of speed can be overcome. In the worst case by patience." --Znork
  11. The corrupt, vulgar mainstream press wont allow it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Too bad for Jill Stein, Snowden, and all of America.

  12. And make Putin the vice president... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    As apparently the American nation and government need snitches who abscond to the shelter of extremely democratic and human rights protectors, and not face the consequences of their actions.

              Just my 5 pence, but then I'm not an American.

    1. Re: And make Putin the vice president... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes, you'really British, and we shot your soldiers and sent them packing in order to get the constitution we have today. Behind the Fed, the warrantless surveillance police-state is the greatest domestic enemy of the Constitution we have in our country.

  13. How is Gary Johnson better than Ron Paul? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Ron Paul was in Congress in the 80s, and ran for president as Libertarian in 1988. Ron Paul is quite knowledgeable on Libertarian positions, and put out different ideas, including putting out a bounty for a couple billion dollars on Osama bin Laden. Now, that doesn't work if an entire government (Pakistan) is hiding said people in an effort to get 'aid'.

    Ron Paul ran hard in the 2012 Republican Primary and came in 3rd after Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney. Newt Gingrich is going to be in the Trump Administration, and Mitt Romney tried to lead an effort to overthrow Trump. So, how will Gary Johnson win over strong liberals, such as those whom supported Bernie Sanders?

  14. Expatriate Patriot by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Try saying that three times.

  15. Well, that does it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    She had a real shot at winning the election and she blew it. The powers-that-be cannot let her put that traitor in a position of power

  16. Sure.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If removal of child labor laws, no minimum wage, and unregulated health care all sound good to you.

    Not that it wouldn't make us competitive with China, just y'know....

    captcha was quandary... Yes, yes it is.

    1. Re:Sure.... by fustakrakich · · Score: 2

      Nobody's perfect

      --
      “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
  17. Very Biased Article by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    "...while Manning leaked the Afghan War Diary and Iraq War Logs, which included footage of U.S. helicopter airmen deliberately gunning down journalists, to Wikileaks."

    This quote would lead a person to believe the helo pilot went gunning for the journalists, which is not the case. A battle had been ongoing in the area and the pilot saw what looked to him (and me) like a group of fighters with RPG's and small arms. What looked like an RPG on the gun sight footage was actually a camera with a really long lens. The person holding it pointed it towards the helo. The pilot, thinking he was about to be attacked, radioed in for permission to engage, received that permission and opened fire.

    Nobody deliberately murdered journalists.

    1. Re:Very Biased Article by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Exactly - I hate the new style of slashdot and lack of editorial investigation of article links.

    2. Re:Very Biased Article by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      He killed a lot more than journalists. He also killed children in that vehicle.

    3. Re:Very Biased Article by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And then engaged and killed the group of health workers when they showed up in an ambulance.

  18. snowden by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    this just goes to show how little she understands national security and what it takes to protect it. her list of pardons is apparently if you are untrustworthy son of a bitch and broke your oath and betrayed your country and have no integrity you get a spot on her cabinet. she is as big a security risk as either of the Clintons

    1. Re: snowden by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      All the people he supposedly betrayed have all broken their oaths to the constitution, just followed illegal orders, committed crimes, and continue to do so. You know nothing of this oath you mention. If you swore it, you obviously were just moving your lips but not your brain.

  19. Why Such Limited Coverage for Other Parties? by Feneric · · Score: 2

    Liking her or hating her is fine, but people should at least know about her and the other "third-party" candidate on the ballot in all 50 states, Gary Johnson. In an election where there are a record majority number of people dissatisfied with the candidates being offered up by both the big parties, the media ought to be doing a better job of covering the alternatives.

    1. Re:Why Such Limited Coverage for Other Parties? by boombaard · · Score: 1

      The overwhelming majority of media fund (and/or are owned by those who fund) one or the other of the two major candidates. Why would they want to cover candidates that they don't believe in enough to want to buy them, thus increasing the chance that their investment won't pay off?

    2. Re:Why Such Limited Coverage for Other Parties? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The system does everything it can to shut out third parties. Here's Ralph Nader being threatened with arrest after being invited to to the 2000 debates.

    3. Re:Why Such Limited Coverage for Other Parties? by Talderas · · Score: 1

      The media is going to be in a pinch. Johnson is polling at 12%. If he gets up to 15% they'll have to invite him to the debates. If this was any other year, they could have ignored Johnson at the debates, but Hillary and Trump are both posting negative favorability ratings. If the media is seen as biased against Johnson in favor of Trump/Hillary then that could push more support towards Johnson. If they give him questions then it could and would expose Hillary/Trump's ideas and stances in contrast to Johnson's. The status quo is safe as long as Johnson doesn't poll at 15%, if he does.... well this election is going to get really exciting really quick.

      --
      "Lack of speed can be overcome. In the worst case by patience." --Znork
  20. Great, another traitor in office by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Isn't it bad enough we have a traitor in the big chair, and criminals running for it? Do we have to actively search out traitors too?

  21. POL UH TISH UN by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Anything to get her foot in the door on controls. He surely could not care less nor could she help him with a fucking thing.

  22. u r so right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    it really is Jill ?
    look up her wiki page; she ran for Gov here in Mass, and the number of votes she got was below pathetic
    I bet she gets a smaller % of the votes then Pat Paulson got when he ran

    sad thing is, her program isn't that bad; at least, it isn't totally insane like the libertarian retards

    1. Re: u r so right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Should just do that for all politics. Democratards, Replublitards, Socialitards, Communitards, Totalitaritards, Technocratards, etc. Assiming the "emphasis on third syllable from the end" rule applies, these have cool pronunciations, too.

    2. Re: u r so right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Just use a catch all like "polititards". They're all the same anyway, joining up with their little gangs because they aren't capable of independent thought.

  23. really want 3rd party by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    why ?
    If you get past the GOP nonsense (1), and the things that look bad but aren't that bad (2), there isn't that much wrong with hillary
    I mean, as a practical matter, she is given a lot of credit for CHIP; are we really gonna get anyone better ?

    1) Benghazi

    2) White water - a depressingly ordianry bit of small town scandal; I doubt there is a single pol in the congress who doesn't have something like this (the AG of the state of Arkansas formed a partnership with a promient businessman, where the B guy put up all the money and the shared in the profits; since it was reasonable at the time to assume that the B guy had, or would have legal affairs before the state, this was clearly conflict of interest)

    1. Re:really want 3rd party by manwargi · · Score: 1

      Hillary is a DINO that doesn't represent what at bare minimum half liberal voters want, much less many independent voters who are disgusted with both parties. We have two Republican parties running against each other this election, and as a result of the lack of representation, there will be record turnouts for third parties this time around. If it wasn't for Johnson rising on the scene and Hillary's connections putting their thumbs on the scale, the impending "#DemExit" would be a slam dunk for the Republicans.

  24. Shouldn't need one by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If he had done things right, nobody would know who he is, and he wouldn't need a pardon. Instead, he decided to be a self-aggrandizing douchebag and attention whore, so he gets what he deserves.

  25. by def libertarian= stupid by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    thats all
    if you don't understand that, I have no interest in arguing - libertarianism is sort of a practical IQ test; if you think libertarianism is good, you fail and yes i can spell if i want to

    1. Re:by def libertarian= stupid by fustakrakich · · Score: 1

      I have no interest in arguing

      You don't say!

      --
      “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
  26. So much for critical thought by Uberbah · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I don't dispute that Snowden did a public service in the end. However, he also broke the law and for that there should be consequences.

    And the lawbreaking Snowden reported on? Why aren't you guys demanding every employee of the NSA be hauled into court, right on up through the executive branch to the president himself? Why aren't you demanding Obama be charged with 5 years in prison and a $10,000 fine for each instance of illegal warrantless wiretapping?

    And why don't you authoritarians give two shits about the Constitution? If you did work for the government, you took the same Oath of Office that Snowden, Manning, Drake, and Kirkarou did. The only way for those men to uphold their oaths was to violate the laws protecting obscenely unconstitutional actions, like the NSA's warrantless wiretapping and the CIA's torture program.

  27. Well she an afford to by dhaen · · Score: 1

    Because she knows she'll never make it, mores the pity.

  28. Ike or Vlad by jmcvetta · · Score: 1

    I'm still debating whether I will write-in vote for Ike Eisenhower or Vladimir Putin. The election is just theater so might as well have fun with it.

  29. She waffled on anti-vax by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Her anti-vax babble reveals her as just another headline seeking political crack head. The Greens in the US are a joke. Too bad as another realistic party would look pretty good right now.

    1. Re:She waffled on anti-vax by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      She isn't anti-vax, and it is so stale hearing people repeat this over and over again. As a matter of fact, she just addressed this yet again yesterday.

  30. Good to know. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Definitely won't be voting for her.

  31. Still a traitor by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Snowden is still a traitor, no matter how much you try to whitewash it.

  32. The United States Government = Traitor by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The United States Government broke constitutional laws by spying on it's own citizens, making those currently running The United States Government a traitor on it's own people. The people running the current United States Government are traitors no matter how much you try to whitewash it.

  33. This is why the punch line party will... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    never be elected.

    No matter the joke that either/both of the other parties nominate, you can count on the libertaians to be the punch line.

    They cannot be taken seriously and always are the crazier aunt or uncle at the family reunion

    Put a criminal traitor who ran-off to China and then Russia handing them uncounted numbers of secrets along the way into oone of the highest positions of government???? SERIOUSLY?!?!?

    This is what your brain looks like on drugs....sizzle....sizzle....

    1. Re: This is why the punch line party will... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You can't even put together a coherent paragraph. It barely holds together. You must work for government and agree with the current treasonous bastards.

  34. Green Party? Hah! Empty Promise. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    This is an empty promise because the chances are very near zero that somebody will get elected from the Green Party in 2016. // but yeah, Snowden as a cabinet member would probably be a good idea....

    1. Re:Green Party? Hah! Empty Promise. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Just as many of the common rules of thumb for elections are not applying this election, you shouldn't underestimate the Greens this election either. They've raised $300,000 in the days since Bernie endorsed Hillary, and all the young voters abused by the Democratic Party's treachery are planning to mass migrate to Stein. Green party or no, a left wing equivalent of the Tea Party is inevitable now that the Democrats have become a second Republican party.

  35. Stein's position on Snowden by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I'm a Sanders supporter and was looking at the possibilty of supportung Stein until I read her position on Snowden. Snowden is a traitor!!! There is no way I would support giving him a pardon or putting him in a position in government.

  36. St. Stein can't even figure out basic Con Law by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I realize she's a bit green on how government works, but one would think even a minor party candidate like Jill Stein would realize that all Cabinet positions require Senate confirmation. And there's no way Snowden is getting that, even if he's been pardoned.

  37. Going Green by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    At this point, I'm thinking "Thank you, Bernie, for introducing me to Jill Stein!!"

  38. The losing hand. by westlake · · Score: 0

    Morally right trumps lawful every time. That's why we have jury nullification.

    When has jury nullification ever give the geek the verdict he hoped it would?

    1. Re:The losing hand. by silas_moeckel · · Score: 1

      Because we destroyed it when it didn't give us the results we wanted in the civil rights era.

      --
      No sir I dont like it.
  39. Where Have You Been? by ememisya · · Score: 1

    She sounds too good to be true, all my votes belong to Dr. Stein!

  40. Canada by DarthVain · · Score: 1

    Yeah, we had/have the same problem with the Green Party up here. They have some good ideas, but then start spouting ideology just as bad as any other party on certain topics regardless of science.

    Additionally, they wanted to be seen as a legitimate party, so they tried to run a candidate in every riding in Canada. Which I think was a real mistake, as you really start scraping the bottom of the barrel at a certain point, and the types of candidate they attract are basically crackpots and hippies neither of which you really want to run anything let alone your government. Nothing wrong with hippies, so long as they have their heads out of the clouds and are trying to achieve their hippie like goals within the realm of realism. Anyway until they really focus on being more realistic they will be nothing more than a fringe party.

  41. Can I vote for her twice? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Can I vote for her twice? Please? I was already going to vote for her once, and now this. I suspect I won't be allowed to, so instead I'll just send her some money, I think. She's the woman Killary Clinton wants us to imagine that she is, but without her having to BE her. I'm not so scared of Dickhead Trump that I'm about to let her trick me into voting for her, since they're really the same person in different clown outfits. Don't give in to fear, (voting for Killary,) don't give in to hatred (voting for D. Trump,) don't give in to nostalgia, (writing in Sanders,) and don't give in to to whatever you'd have to be giving into to vote for Anarchy Lite, (Gary Johnson).

    Vote for PROGRESS, vote for Dr. Jill Stein. Or don't, but remember that you'll only have yourself and all the other dolts and cowards like you to blame when things go horribly, terribly wrong.