Jerry Brown, the former Governor Moonbeam to some (not to me), is showing himself to be a real blogger, not some pol pretender with a ghost writer. Moreover, he seems far more savvy about what’s going on in the blogosphere than most of the MSM. The reason for that may be that he is less threatened by us than certain media types are. But it also may be that he has a genuinely inquiring mind. I don’t think he’s being pretentious when he quotes Schopenhauer. I think he’s actually read him. And I also think he’s genuinely anxious to get into a dialogue. He has open comments. It’ll be an interesting test of some people’s maturity to see if it stays that way. This blog has managed to sustain open comments since its inception. I hope his does too.
As an Oaklander, and as someone who has had occasional conversations with Hizzoner, I can assure you that Jerry Brown has an inquiring mind; often moving from one inquiry to another in the span of 1 minute.
I think that you’re right that he has a genuinely inquiring mind. That may be a good deal of what got him tagged with the “Governor Moonbeam” sobriquet. He would frequently say things that were odd, but, in general (putting Rose Bird on the California Supreme Court is an example of an exception), his actions as governor were in the mainstream. He abolished the tax on business inventory, and didn’t, as I recall, raise any taxes. I would have traded Gray Davis for him in an instant.
As a lifelong Californian and HUGE Linda Ronstadt fan, to me Ex Gov. Brown is a CLOSE relative of Art Bell. Brown has come down to Earth in the last five years or so, but for a good twenty some years, he was a riot.
And yes, I voted for him.
Jerry Brown seems so much more grounded than other Democrats. What does that say for the party?
Really… Governor Moonbeam is quite bright.
Roger:
I do not agree with Mr. Mayor on a lot of issues but he does have the ability to rise above strict party dogma and that is a good sign for a two party country. He is sometimes a bit undisciplined but compared to the majority of Dems in Washington I would rather work with people like Brown then with the rest of the reactionaries that the DNC produces.
I think Jerry is OK. Yes, he has had a few strange ideas in the past (and perhaps now, I haven’t kept up) but on the whole he has not appeared to be an unreasonable ideologue. I think he has handled his descent from the national stage quite well. He localized and perhaps is doing some good as mayor. The Dem’s could use a few more like him.
jerry brown is a refreshing commentator on political television. clear language, insightful and honest views, no phony shouting. i think his performance in oakland has proved that he is a rare and true public servant. i don’t have to agree with him to admire him. i always tune in when he’s on the schedule. good for him to get out here on the blogs.
Jerry seems to be like another Democrat, Bill Clinton. Don’t care a squat about their politics, but I think it would be quite interesting to sit around the campfire and trade stories.
What was the joke during the ’92 election? Clinton never inhaled, and Brown never exhaled… Of course, back then, the only alt-media I had access to back then was talk radio & Fidonet. Should be interesting to learn about Brown at first hand.
I’ll leave it for you left-coasters to judge the man’s value as a political figure. What I wanna know is why he uses Reiner’s picture on his website.
I’ll leave it for you left-coasters to judge the man’s value as a political figure. What I wanna know is why he uses Reiner’s picture on his website.
I have the answer to that. I just heard on the radio news that 56% of California voters polled would vote to have Schwarzenegger re-elected, and, of those, who wouldn’t, the favorite candidate was . . . Rob Reiner. You can’t make this stuff up. (Yes, I know that it’s really Jerry Brown’s picture and that he’s lost all his hair; still, it was an interesting coincidence.)
Jerry has really grown-up in the years since he was Governor Moonbeam. And he’s always been interesting in his television appearances. From what I can tell, he’s done a pretty good job as Mayor of Oakland, and I wouldn’t mind seeing him take a shot at state-wide politics again.