August 15, 2007
Letters to the Presidential Candidates
By Stan Dyer
If asked, most people would reply that America is a
Two Party political system; Democrat and Republican. That answer would be incorrect. That would be like saying there are only two teams in Major League Baseball. Even though only two teams make it to the World Series, there are still a lot of other teams in the league. The difference is that in Major League Baseball, all of the teams, no matter how little money they have, or how few people care if they ever win a game, have a chance to make it to the World Series. In American politics, the teams with the most money always make it to the
Big Show. A candidate can literally buy his way onto the big ballot.
In the last presidential election, there were at least 10 candidates on the ballot, but most people cannot name more than two or three. As for political parties, the list of candidates announcing their intentions to run in 2008 lists twelve different affiliations, not counting those who have no affiliation, are listed as "other", or have no known or declared ties. In addition to Democrat and Republican, the list also includes Libertarian, Constitution, Prohibition, Independent, American, Green Party, Reform, Humanistic, United Fascist Union, and the Democrat/Farmer/Labor parties. So, why do we hear so little from the
bush league teams? It's because most people, (even those who want to vote with a conscience), consider voting outside the top two as wasting a vote. One perfect example of a wasted vote is the self-proclaimed Democrat/Farmer/Labor party candidate, Ole Savior. That is his name. I do not make this stuff up.
I say "self-proclaimed" because, apparently, he and the election commission are the only ones in the world who know he is running. I went to his party's website to view their list of presidential candidates, and Mr. Savior's name was not on the list. I went to Mr. Savior's website only to discover that it was incorrectly published and, thus, unavailable. I emailed Mr. Savior directly and got the infamous mailer "demon" who slapped my hand for even trying that address. Now, I'm no genius, but it seems to me if a person is running for president, he should tell someone and not hide away in some closet. I also discovered that I am not the only person who failed to contact this candidate.
The Project Vote Smart website tried to contact Savior for information, but he refused to provide any responses to their National Political Awareness Test. Mr. Savior refused to do the same for all major news organizations and ignored inquires from John McCain, Geraldine Ferraro, Michael Dukakis, Bill Frenzel, and Richard Kimball, the Project Vote Smart president. For anyone wishing to waste a vote in the 2008, this guy is definitely the front runner. It gets better. I actually found some biological information on this guy and a rudimentary platform.
Ole Savior is a 57-year-old, single, father of three who lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He attended both the University of Minnesota and Marshall University, but the only sheepskin he has is from Minneapolis High School, Class of '67. He lists his professions as Artist and Writer. There is also a list of favorite books, movies and musicians, but none of it is from the past two decades. His favorite quote is his own, and reads:
"Oh God save us in loving service. In life, death, sex and rebirth to everyone. Why
pay to suffer for free? Love to be free, free to be me, free to give myself to thee."
His platform is to "Save the world from chemical and nuclear weapons of mass destruction. Ten thousand weapons we no longer have a need for that can kill all of humanity and Earth. Ban landmines worldwide". Those are worthy causes, but he gives no hint about how he intends to approach those issues, and could not be contacted for further information. His priority issues are giving life, not death, saving the children of the world, saving humankind, saving the environment now, and peace. Please excuse me, but the more I read about Ole Savior, the more the words "Jim Jones" kept popping into my head. This guy might be a great candidate, but he can't bait the public with information like that and then run off into the jungle to hide.
I found a campaign address for Savior, and I'm sending him a letter. Of all the people I intend to write, I vote Ole Savior least likely to respond. Let's find out! Oh, by the way, the list of presidential candidates as it stands right now contains 66 Republicans, 54 Democrats, and 103 from the grapefruit league. The grand total today is 223. Now do you see why they limit who can appear in a debate? Of course, that number will be pared down significantly, but I salute every candidate, (even Ole Savior), for having the spirit to throw a hat into the ring. If you would like to write Ole Savior, the address is:
P.O. Box 141031
Minneapolis, MN 55414
My letter goes in the mail today, and, if it is not forwarded to Guyana, I expect it to be returned unopened and undeliverable.