The Presidential Candidates: James John Prattas

Prattas dropped out of the campaign on September 19th. Since it wasn't his fault that I didn't cover him in time, I'll do him the courtesy of reviewing his candidacy, but I won't add him to the main list of candidates.

Having fled to Switzerland, fearing as much an expected earthquake in his Hawaiian home as the impending economic catastrophe, Prattas issued this cry of distress:

I am sorry the White House, Senate and Congress and America have fallen to the dark forces of Wall Street's evil greedy ones, the Vader's of corruptions and treasons and conspiracy.
America is now just another 3rd world poor country, bankrupted, on schedule and on purpose, by Wall Street insiders, with the USA Treasury being raped and pillaged today by the Mongols of Evil giving them trillions of tax payers money, your money; the "evil money changers" as Socrates & Jesus talked about in Greece and in Israel over 2000 years ago, the evil dark force Hippocrates, The Wooer's that Homer also spoke about in the Odyssey.
Oh Odysseus, where art thou?

Prattas had "a Dream that we can all live in Peace, and in Harmony with Nature." He believes that "We Men and Women create chaos on Earth because of our political Agendas" and advises us to "improve our political agendas to Peace."

As his exclamation above hints, Prattas saw himself as a modern Odysseus, called to drive the usurping suitors from an American Ithaca. During his campaign, he called on Americans to become "Purple People," a merger of red, white and blue as well as "my artistic expression that we in America are a multi-colored racial society."

Prattas designed his website so you have to keep scrolling down to find his earlier policy statements. After descending past many pretty photos of Hawaii and portraits of the candidate, I learned that he advocated a massive infrastructure investment program, including the development of nanotechnology, an "Educated Holistic Healthy Life Style Program" emphasizing education and discouragement of junk food consumption, and returning American education to the basics: "Reading, Righting, Arithmetic." As you see, the task was a challenging one, and too much for poor Prattas. But his heart was in the right place. He wanted to give any student graduating with a B+ average or above a "free round-the-world education ticket" plus $5,000 traveling money. This was pure pie in the sky, of course, with no clue offered of how he would fund the scheme, but Prattas's entire campaign was a matter of the heart, much more than one of the mind. Perhaps he knew his limitations and knew that the country could do better. At least you couldn't accuse him of being anti-intellectual.

For Project VoteSmart, back in more confident days, Prattas summarized his top priorities: "1. Bring home the troops.2. Close the borders.3. Rebuild all of our city and states infrastructure and our means of production.4. Improve our water and air and food safety standards.5. Greatly improve and fund our education, arts, sciences and research for a better and healthier America." The very least he could do is find a candidate, not necessarily a kindred spirit, but someone similarly committed to the things Prattas himself considers important. Failing to do this, having perhaps abandoned his country, he confessed his unfitness for the office, though you might find his website confession enough. However, should you hear of a major earthquake in Hawaii next month, remember that you read it there first.