ThirdPartyTicket.com - debate overview and update :: 10/17/08
|
Submitted by: TrevorLyman  Subscribe to this Author Paste this code into your site to promote this story! |
Type of Content: Article A few weeks ago, we at BreakTheMatrix.com and ThirdPartyTicket.com invited every presidential candidate having a mathematical chance of winning the 2008 election to participate in an online debate to be streamed via BreakTheMatrix.com. Soon after our offer to the candidates, we were approached by Christina Tobin of FreeAndEqual.org, and asked to try to expand the debate to a live event so that more media could cover the debate. More media coverage means more reach to the American public, which is good for the candidates, their supporters and the country. We gladly accepted the challenge and began to work with FreeAndEqual.org to that end. Despite our efforts, we encountered a number of challenges. Most of the candidates had packed schedules and availability conflicts, especially when limited in choice by venue availability. About one week ago, we at BreakTheMatrix.com decided that due to the scheduling difficulties, we would serve the community best by offering an online debate as per our original intent, while Christina Tobin and FreeAndEqual.org continued to pursue the live event. Today the candidates have two options available to them. The live debate event scheduled in New York City on Oct 19th at 8pm EST at Columbia University, or the online event to be streamed via BreakTheMatrix.com/ThirdPartyTicket.com on the same date from 7pm to 9pm EST. At this moment, the only candidate who is confirmed (for the web event) is Cynthia McKinney of the Green Party. To be fair, the Chuck Baldwin campaign had made a commitment to attend the live debate when the date of the 17th was considered (the date was changed due to the 19th due to venue availability), and Ralph Nader sent out to his email list to try to build momentum for the debates. These candidates have made attempts to work together, and they should be commended for their efforts. It is our understanding that the event of the 19th may still happen in New York, and we will be sure to keep you updated if it does. If that event does not happen, and if no other candidates can make the online debate we are offering on the 19th, we at BreakTheMatrix.com/ThirdPartyTicket.com are offering a standing web cam debate to all candidates on any day from here until the November 4th election. We are asking all candidates to submit to us the dates they are available and in turn we will offer the candidates a debate on a day they are all available. The online debate format offers the candidates a great deal of flexibility, and is a viable solution to the current scheduling conflicts. All that is required of them is a web camera, a phone, a computer with an internet connection and about 2 hours of time on any given evening. We are committed to making this debate happen, and hope the third party candidates will continue to work with us. On a closing note, we would like to thank Christina Tobin and all those who work with her at FreeAndEqual.org. No matter the outcome of the NYC event, they have been persistent in organizing this event, and we appreciate their efforts. Stay tuned...
Created 11 weeks 5 days ago
Made popular 11 weeks 5 days ago |
- Flag as offensive
- Login or register to post comments
- 2661 reads
****
Scheduling conflicts are understandable but there has to be some public forum for them to speak. The most important thing for the third party candidates at this point is, I think, to get as many people as possible to seriously consider voting for candidates not excluded by the two major parties. We need to shift the system over before we can even think of actually electing someone who is not either a democrat or a republican (whatever those words even mean anymore).
Both of those parties have been ingenious in their use of media, and abusing the narrow system in which the media operates (for example why a 24 hour news channel covers the same events over and over). They perpetuate each other, and until third party candidates make a serious effort to come together and make their case, we will never see the day when we no longer have a two party (or one party depending on how you look at it) system.
It is crucial to our democracy to force the news media to let in marginalized voices. We as citizens must change the media and third party tickets need to show some sort of unified process, not in their campaigns, but in breaking down our restricted political process. Our country created a concept of a truly free and open society, yet out of any representative government in the world, we have the most restricted voter choices. Look at our neighbors to the north as an example.
If we really want to bread the matrix we need to call on our third party candidates to show unity in coming together for public forums that let American people know that there are more than two choices.
Hopefully one debate or the other will occur, but looking back consider this: Two groups trying to organize two events, times four campaigns, equals eight different schedules that need to be compatible. With no one in charge early on, no single established "umbrella" organization to try to coordinate those schedules. Plus candidates don't want to cancel major fundraising events, as might have been needed due to the last minute nature of these debate planning efforts. The surprise isn't that these debates may not happen (yet); the surprise is that competing campaigns cooperated and worked so hard on it, and they're still at it!
I wish them well and hope at least one of the efforts succeeds. Don't give up; almost three weeks remain and many voters still are dissatisfied with the duopoly's chosen two. Another good resource is opendebates.com where George Farah has been at this for a while, with a 2004 book and now a proactive web site