{news} John Amarilios launches campaign

[David Bedell]

The following story ran in the New Canaan News-Review, part of the Brooks chain. The bizarre thing is, an almost identical story ran in the sister paper Westport News, but said John is running in the 26th District opposing Republican Judith Freedman and Democrat Arlo Ellison.  Same byline, but an editor must have introduced the error and gained us the extra publicity.  We will issue a correction and apologize to the Democrats and Republicans of Westport, who are probably now running scared.

NEW CANAAN NEWS-REVIEW, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2004

New Canaan's Amarilios Launches State Senate Run

BY JOHN MORDECAI
jmordecai @ bcnnew.com

The Green Party made its presence known in the senate race for the 36th district Tuesday, when candidate John Amarilios announced his running at Mead Park. He will oppose Republican incumbent William Nickerson.

Under a green canopy on a rainy day that made the lush greenery more appropriate, Amarilios addressed the issues he felt were lacking in the state and country.

"Power always thinks it has a great soul," he said, quoting John Adams to describe the present nature of American politics, specifically criticizing what he sees as a "greed is good" philosophy of the Republican Party. He likened the country's and state's current fiscal and ethical situation following scandals and poor financial decisions to the captain of the Titanic realizing his ship was inadequate.

'The Iceberg of societal chaos looms before us," he said.

"Decades of greed, governmental larceny disguised as privatization, neglect and willful aloofness with regard to the vanishing middle class, and the elimination of any semblance of civic responsibility by corporate entities has yielded a steady and relentless drop in the standard of living for most Americans."

A 33-year resident of New Canaan, Amarilios stands on a platform of five main points. The first being universal healthcare statewide, particularly covering the uninsured, a policy he points out that Maine has already enacted.

He also proposes vehicle taxes based on automobile size and fuel consumption, and to stop the building of more casinos, referring to state-endorsed gambling as the promotion of "an insidious and damaging practice which ruins families."

He also proposes laws to keep banks and credit card companies from charging high interest rates, especially from those in tighter financial situations, and changing foreclosure laws to allow families five years to restructure mortgage debts.

"[In the future] I'd like to see us regain our productive position in the country," he said. "And I'd like us to do it through prudent policy without sacrificing environmental concerns or risking the health of the public."

Amarilios promised if elected to stick to the principles and initiatives of the Green Party, which is committed to environmentalism, non-violence and social justice. He also denounced private funding of political campaigns, stating that all running parties should be given equal resources.

Supporter Hector Lopez Rodriguez, a native of Puerto Rico and New Canaan resident for 13 years, said he wished more politicians would take on Amarilios' views.

"He's progressive, and has a good platform and programs," he said. "A progressive government responds to the will of the people. If that's not taken into account, then they are aliens to the well-being of the people."

Amarilios has been a practicing attorney since 1989, a past commander of the Darien Power Squadron and communications officer in the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary. He hopes that as a member of the Green Party, he can be the alternative to the two dominant political parties.

"Hopefully we can awaken people in the district and tell them they have an alternative to what's going on," he said. "We want to give hope to those who feel there is no choice."
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