Help! Is this true?

[shcrane]

Some people are telling me that Jimmy Carter wasn't all that great of a president. In effect I've been told that Carter:

-he walked out of a conference because he proposed an invasion of Nicaragua in order to ensure a pro-US government and Nicaragua’s neighbors did not want to do that.

- publicly praised the Shah of Iran, so heinous a figure that what Carter called “an island of stability in the middle East” soon collapsed from revolution (leading to Carter’s downfall).

-Since his presidency, he has certified elections which are more than dubious, and contributed to the disappearance of democratically elected governments in the Caribbean and Latin America -- most recently, shoring up Bush jr's attempts to destabilize Venezuela.

I know that the CIA had shady business in Iran in 1954, and the Ayotollah that took over after the Shah wasn't any saint. I was too young to remember much of anything about Carter's presidency, but I've admired his work with Habitat for Humanity, and thought the reason why government's chose to let the Carter institute monitor their elections was because of its unbias.

These are the resources that these people are using to smear Carter. Anyone know if these are credible sources?

_http://www.wtvm.com/Global/story.asp?S=4075747&nav=8fap_
(http://www.wtvm.com/Global/story.asp?S=4075747&nav=8fap)
_http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Zinn/Carter_PeoplesHx.html_
(http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Zinn/Carter_PeoplesHx.html)
_http://www.commondreams.org/cgi-bin/print.cgi?file=/views04/0719-01.h_
(http://www.commondreams.org/cgi-bin/print.cgi?file=/views04/0719-01.h)
_http://forums.sohh.com/showthread.php?t=482396_
(http://forums.sohh.com/showthread.php?t=482396)
_http://globalresearch.ca/articles/PET407A.html_
(http://globalresearch.ca/articles/PET407A.html)

[ananda]

1. I think it would be fair it say that..

.. Jimmy Carter is probably the best former president ever.

[Booster]

3. I agree. Pres. Carter wasn't a great President, but he was and is

a great man.

[Lerkfish]

4. I can go along with that.

[Syncronaut Seven]

2. Give the man the respect he deserves

I'll personally vouch for him. ;-)

[shcrane]

8. Thanks :)

I just skimmed the Zinn article, and it wasn't nearly as condemning as the writer of the points I posted would have it. But this really bothered me about the Venezuelan elections. I'm a big fan of Chavez. Any thoughts on the following?:

"The Carter Factor: Venezuela 2002-2004

Nowhere and at no time does Jimmy Carter, the kindly-appearing human rights rhetorician, pose a more dangerous threat to democratic freedoms and national independence than he does today in Venezuela.

With the ardent backing of the violence-prone opposition, Carter has frequently intervened in Venezuelan politics, presenting himself as a neutral mediator. At every step of the way Carter has moved to legitimate an opposition engaged in coups, uprisings, paramilitary terrorists and bosses lockouts devastating the economy.

Carter convinced President Chavez to "reconcile" with the elite leaders and supporters of a violent coup which briefly overthrew his elected government. He continually pressured the elected President to negotiate and "share power" with an opposition even after he had won six national elections."

http://globalresearch.ca/articles/PET407A.html

[jwirr]

13. Were Carter and Chavez even ruling at the same time?

Carter has been out a long time. While some of those issues may or may not be true - what difference does it make. They are just trying to say that bushie has company in being a bad prez. However, Jimmy Carter, may have made mistakes but he was not a lying sob like the prick in the wh now who cannot be trusted out of sight.

[shcrane]

16. No, this was another liberal saying that Carter stunk (and stinks)

I wouldn't care either if it was a Bush-lover. The Carter Institute monitors elections worldwide (though they wouldn't monitor the US 2004 election because the lack of a paper trail meant that they couldn't be certain of the results).

Carter apparently monitored the elections in Venezuela.

[William769]

5. ...

[proud2BlibKansan]

6. Did you check out all those links?

First link:
WASHINGTON Former President Jimmy Carter says the Democratic Party has become too closely associated with abortion rights and has strayed too far from religious people.

He calls it a mistake to wed the Democratic Party to freedom of choice and abortion. Carter says giving no attention to the rights of the fetus is a "very self-defeating policy."

The former (president) spoke in a C-SPAN-2 interview scheduled for broadcast this weekend. He talks about his new book, "Our Endangered Values: America's Moral Crisis," which argues for the separation of church and state.

Second link:
Not Found
The requested URL /Zinn/Carter_PeoplesHx.html_ was not found on this server

Third link (first paragraph)
The presidency of Jimmy Carter, covering the years 1977 to 1980, seemed an attempt by one part of the Establishment, that represented in the Democratic Party, to recapture a disillusioned citizenry. But Carter, despite a few gestures toward black people and the poor, despite talk of "human rights" abroad, remained within the historic political boundaries of the American system, protecting corporate wealth and power, maintaining a huge military machine that drained the national wealth, allying the United States with right-wing tyrannies abroad.

Fourth link:
Hello.
Bad Request
Your browser sent a request that this server could not understand.

Last link:
The two faces of imperial power include the iron fist military intervention and the "soft sell" of electoral frauds, intimidating diplomacy and democratic blackmail. Jimmy Carter is "the quiet American" of Graham Greene fame, who legitimates voter fraud, blesses corrupt elections, certifies murderous rulers, encourages elections, in which the opposition is funded by the US state and semi-public foundations, and the incumbent progressive regime suffers repeated violent disruption of the economy.

Behind the simple and humane facade, Carter has a strategy to reverse progressive regimes and undermine insurgent democrats. Carter and his "team" from his Center probe and locate weaknesses among insecure democrats, particularly those under threat by US-backed opponents and thus vulnerable to Carter's appeals to be "pragmatic" and "realistic" -- meaning his barely disguised arguments to accept fraudulent electoral results and gross US electoral intervention.

[shcrane]

11. Yes, I got a lot of bad requests as well.

My main concern is the globalresearch.ca article. Is that a credible source? I tend to believe it was a good thing that Chavez didn't go after his coup leaders because that may have spurred sanctions (or worse) from the US and other countries.

I'm not expecting Zinn to love Carter, and I know that I'm not going to agree with everything that Carter did while in office. But, I dunno... I've always really admired the guy, and I guess I resent being told that Í've given my reason over to public relations for these thoughts.

[proud2BlibKansan]

14. I don't know much about that source

But I would focus on the bad links if you are arguing with freepers. That's what they would do.

[LandOLincoln]

7. Common Dreams is to the Left

what Newsmax is the Right. I wouldn't believe them if they told me the sun was going to rise tomorrow.

[rooboy]

15. No it isn't. n/t

[Syncronaut Seven]

22. Not even close.

They may be polar opposites but in a truth/lies, good/evil type dichotomy.

[Bluebear]

9. They are not very credible sources if you ask me.

Ask those some people for a little more mainstream presentation or dismiss them as partisan kooks.

[AX10]

10. Jimmy Carter is a good man.

[OldLeftieLawyer]

12. A good rule (works for me)

is never to take as valid anything I read online.

Of course, anything DUers post is always Gospel. ;)

But, seriously, go read up on Jimmy Carter's presidency. Lots of books about that time in the library.

[begin_within]

17. His presidency was uninspiring, but he is the best former President ever.

He has really done a lot of great work, with Habitat for Humanity and now also fighting to eradicate specific diseases all over the world. Did you see his interview on NOW with David Brancaccio last Friday? He was eloquent, informed, terse, and relevant. He took a few swipes at the current administration and the right in general too, which were well-worded and convincing.

[Coastie for Truth]

19. I would agree-

A truly decent man, a model citizen, and - like too many engineers who "go into management" -- "too late in life" -- kind of micromanager with a limited span of control.

[oneold1-4u]

18. Carter as governor

Was one of the best in any southern state. He would still make a great statesman, ambassador, and certainly a better Supreme Court judge than anyone there! He also raised "peanuts" not oil and didn't lie or steal from everyone!

[Lex]

20. Carter helped us get the bad taste of the Repukes/Watergate

out of our mouths.

We needed an honest and trust-worthy man at the helm at the time.

And he was and he is.

[drduffy]

21. I disagree...regarding sources

I have found valuable info on both commondreams.org and globalresearch.ca. I think that being partisan does equal telling falsehoods on purpose. I also think much of what they say is credible.

edit title for clarity

[rasputin1952]

23. The RW attack machine is out in force because Carter is bold

enough to tell the truth about the bush cabal. He says a few truths about what the idiot prince is doing to the nation, and someone that no one thought of for years, is suddenly a 'demon'.

Don't believe what you read about Carter...for one thing, he didn't earn his Nobel Peace Prize, by being a slouch.

Jimmy Carter has more dignity, honor and compassion in his little finger, than bush could ever have in a lifetime.

This is standard RW tripe...they cannot stand anyone coming out against bush...but Carter called it like he sees it; hence the dragging through the slime pit. This will backfire on the RW'nuts.

[soothsayer]

24. I didn't like that he said 'nukular' just like dummy *