I had heard for years that Dennis Kucinich is an especially charismatic person, so to see him in person was the chance that came along this week, and thanks to Trina Ballard and facebook, we hooked up to make the trip from Bellevue to attend a small fundraiser at the IBEW Union Hall in Tacoma. After tonight I can picture Dennis in real life, and still feel his sincere handshake given with a warm smile. I can hear his voice, intelligent and clear, his morals not in compromise, no cognitive dissonance in his conversation.
Dennis has to raise money to run again, to preserve his Congressional seat in Ohio. Ah, the whole election process in this country is so daunting, as we supporters put our 40.00 or so into the envelope, I was thinking of the billionaire Koch bros who fund the people who will serve their interests. So now in America if you are a person of conscience, you will never have the kind of funding as a sell out. I guess this has always been true, and I am having to see it in all it's horror.
Last Friday evening, Dennis answered questions for 45 minutes, and then walked around the room. Trina and I were able to speak with him personally for a few minutes. The issue of Bradley Manning was raised earlier, and he told us the crazy story of how he has tried visit Manning. He contacted the Sec. of the Army, who told him to contact the State Dept, who told him to contact the Sec. of the Navy, who told him to contact Manning's lawyer, then he was told he needed Manning's permission, which he got. Well, then he was cleared by the prison in Quantico, Virginia to visit, and informed that if he visited it would be taped, and that he could be called as a witness in the trial. Sounds like blackmail to me.
Dennis is on the Congressional Oversight Committee, to further the injustice of this scenario.
For the past 8+ months Manning has not been allowed to exercise 23 hours a day, including in his cell, not allowed normal clothes, and is kept in isolation.
"They are trying to break him." Said Dennis.
Contrast this with the 5 soldiers being held in prison at Fort Lewis for murdering Iraqi civilians unprovoked, and dismembering the bodies. One of these soldiers was just allowed to return to his home with a minimum security monitor.
There you have it, the priorities in the U.S.: it is far worse to share state secrets of illegal war operations than it is to murder people.
The issues raised were so numerous, and daunting. For instance that are 15 million unemployed in the U.S. now. Millions have stopped even filing for unemployment, so the official figures are not close to the reality of our social situation.
Our tax dollars are going to fund and insure Nuclear Power plants because there is no private agency or insurance company who would dare invest in something as unsustainable and risky.
Kucinich's district in Ohio is being redrawn, because of the huge population loss occurring in Ohio in recent years. Now he may have to run in an entirely new district.
Even with all of this, he tells us there is reason to keep working. From a practicing Buddhist I will take this home with me as a mantra in troubled times.
He is a lone voice of truth in a sea of confusion. If you have a chance to ever see him, and put a few dollars in the envelope, it might assuage that distant fear that there are no high quality leaders in our midst. Dennis is the real thing.
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