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November 24, 2007

Former Prez Jimmy Carter

I was at the American Society of Criminology meeting in Atlanta last week, and the keynote talk was given by former President Jimmy Carter. I've always appreciated his human rights work, his involvement in Habitat for Humanity and his humble ethic of service.

Among the highlights:

When asked about Christianity and the many who call themselves Christian but do not share his values, Carter commented "I worship the Prince of Peace, not the Prince of Pre-emptive Strikes."

He articulated human rights as simple common sense - the right to have a job, the right to have shelter, the right to have food, the right to basic health care, the right to some human dignity and the right to hope for a better future. [Hallelujah!]

 former president jimmy carter

Yes, a silly picture of Jimmy Carter with a cell-phone camera from across a large ballroom.  

He did a great job during the question and answer, especially the final question about whether the reputation of the U.S. was irreparably injured in the global community. No, Carter said - the next president could take huge steps to fixing it in the first 10 minutes. State: The U.S. will not torture; we will abide by the Geneva Convention; we will respect nuclear non-proliferation agreements; we will abide by the Kyoto Protocol on global warming; ...

So, which one of the many presidential candidates in our great two party system will do that?

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