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Jimmy Carter has died

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Re: Jimmy Carter has died

#181
post #46
post #20

Looking back, to me he was a much better president then people believed in the 80s. I believe if he got re-elected in 1980, the US would be in a much better place. One thing, it could be argued real work on Climate Change would have begun in 1981 as opposed to where we are now, which is just watching the average probably blowing past 3C in around 70 years from now. For his loss in 1980, I still blame Kennedy. RIP, he…

The big one I wish he’d been able to do was getting a U.S. nuclear network going like France has. It’d be nice to have now but they’re so slow to build that a 40 year head start would’ve been invaluable.

Three Mile Island and then Chernobyl kinda killed that dream. Both had bad actors trying to cover up the leak, and caused the nuclear scare to go even worse.

France also has majority ownership of the nuclear plants, something that would never fly in the US (because Socialism!).

Even when I was an intern at a power company, the leaders there saw the nuclear power plant the company owned as an "albatross around their neck".

Re: Jimmy Carter has died

#182
post #20

Looking back, to me he was a much better president then people believed in the 80s. I believe if he got re-elected in 1980, the US would be in a much better place. One thing, it could be argued real work on Climate Change would have begun in 1981 as opposed to where we are now, which is just watching the average probably blowing past 3C in around 70 years from now. For his loss in 1980, I still blame Kennedy. RIP, he…

>it could be argued real work on Climate Change would have begun in 1981 as opposed to where we are now

That's a common myth. 70s energy policy was a result of the oil crisis, not environment concerns.

Sometimes the result was conductive to the environment (e.g. efficiency increases), sometimes it was less so (various US gov research into more polluting alternatives like synthetic oil or shale oil), and sometimes it was just silly (like Carter banning nuclear waste reprocessing which set back that entire industry).

Re: Jimmy Carter has died

#183

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As Reagan's first Executive Order, he repealed all oil and gas allocation and price controls. The chronic gas lines disappeared literally overnight, and never came back. I remember that day well.

He also campaigned on states rights to win over southern whites racists, and he ignored the AIDS epidemic, because his supporters thought it was God’s punishment for homosexuals.

[deleted]

Re: Jimmy Carter has died

#184
post #20

Looking back, to me he was a much better president then people believed in the 80s. I believe if he got re-elected in 1980, the US would be in a much better place. One thing, it could be argued real work on Climate Change would have begun in 1981 as opposed to where we are now, which is just watching the average probably blowing past 3C in around 70 years from now. For his loss in 1980, I still blame Kennedy. RIP, he…

Look a little harder. The people living through the 1970s knew how bad he was and chose to put him out. He had bad staff, bad relations with the overwhelmingly Democratic Congress, and we got the Mayaguez, iran hostage, stagflation, and other troubles too many to list. He was a bad president, a good man, and a great ex-president.

He appointed Volcker, who ended stagflation eventually. And his predecessor was appointed by Nixon so it’s hard to blame Carter for this.

Re: Jimmy Carter has died

#185

Carter was the most pro-Palestinian president of the 20th century. It's worth reading his book Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid . https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palestine:_Peace_Not_Apartheid

You're telling me this guy wrote a whole book urging "Free Palestine" in 2006?

I did not know that, thanks.

Re: Jimmy Carter has died

#186
Met him one time. About 20 years ago, boarding a Delta RJ to SLC. I got upgraded, row 1. I'm stowing my carry on in the bin. Guy in row 2 stands up, sticks out his hand towards me and says "Pleased to meet you, my name's Jimmy Carter". I think "sure you are dude" and "if you were the former president, that lady next to you would be Ros...wait...she IS Rosalynn...". He had been on a fly fishing trip. Deplaned before everyone else into SS vehicle on the apron. Nice guy.

Re: Jimmy Carter has died

#187
post #181
post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The big one I wish he’d been able to do was getting a U.S. nuclear network going like France has. It’d be nice to have now but they’re so slow to build that a 40 year head start would’ve been invaluable.

Three Mile Island and then Chernobyl kinda killed that dream. Both had bad actors trying to cover up the leak, and caused the nuclear scare to go even worse. France also has majority ownership of the nuclear plants, something that would never fly in the US (because Socialism!). Even when I was an intern at a power company, the leaders there saw the nuclear power plant the company owned as an "albatross around their n…

Over in Washington, the Hanford nuclear site is a big demonstration that we haven't really solved the holistic problems of nuclear waste. (Technical, financial, legal, political.)

Even just trying to ship it elsewhere for processing gets blocked by other states and cities.

Re: Jimmy Carter has died

#188
post #20

Looking back, to me he was a much better president then people believed in the 80s. I believe if he got re-elected in 1980, the US would be in a much better place. One thing, it could be argued real work on Climate Change would have begun in 1981 as opposed to where we are now, which is just watching the average probably blowing past 3C in around 70 years from now. For his loss in 1980, I still blame Kennedy. RIP, he…

Ironically he did more deregulation than Reagan yet somehow we don’t remember it that way. For his electoral loss it’s just that Carter was never interested in the political manoeuvring. He was never going to have a good chance.

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Re: Jimmy Carter has died

#189

I have not done significant research, but the more I have read about Jimmy Carter the more I am convinced he is very underrated, and the more I read about Reagan the more I beleive he was a bad choice for the average U.S. citizen long-term (e.g. destroying the U.S. lead on climate tech, and creating policies that ultimately eroded the wealth of the middle class) Reagan was certainly charming, but I beleive he didn't…

I hope you’re right, but there is an entire cottage industry dedicated to propping up Reagan’s legacy.
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