Elect Chad Riden TN Governor #RiDEN4TN
Chad Riden for Tennessee 2018: The Only Candidate Who Wasn't A Joke
Thanks to The Jackson Sun for the shout-out in their coverage of my participation at the Jackson Exchange Club’s June 12, 2018 gubernatorial forum. It was an honor to be invited to speak and field questions on such important issues. Thank you to the Jackson Exchange Club for including Independent and third party candidates along with the big money candidates. Not everybody does that. Also, the pie was fantastic.
My papaw Riden was a preacher, a gardener and an auto-body repair shop owner in Maryville, Tennessee. He’d drive food he grew to the people he knew couldn’t afford it. My mamaw Riden taught highschool and was recognized by the state legislature for her environmental conservation efforts. They taught me to take care of this beautiful land and the people around us.
I’m sick and tired of politicians talking about their “faith” and then doing what Jesus would do on Opposite Day. He healed the sick. He didn’t drug test people or care where they were born. He fed the hungry. He didn’t have any work requirements. ALL people were created in His image and His message was LOVE. Politicans who claim to be Christians while saying and doing hateful, racist things doesn’t make sense until you realize that their true God is MONEY and POWER and they’re telling you what you want to hear.
I’m Chad Riden and I’m running for Governor of Tennessee. I want to build state-wide fiber optic internet as a public utility. I support Medicare For All. I’m for public schools and I don’t think any elected official should make one dime more than our lowest paid teacher. I’m for unionized labor, anti-discrimination laws, and the legalization of Cannabis. I’d like to build high speed rail connecting Memphis, Nashville, Knoxville, Chattanooga and Bristol and regional transit systems.
I’m against outsourcing State tasks to for-profit businesses, charter schools, privatized prisons, voter suppression, discrimination, racism, sexism, hate, fear, and ignorance.
I am fed up with bipartisan politics and the hypocrites at all levels of government. Our elected offices go to the highest bidder and rich candidates backed by their elite friends spend millions on advertising claiming to be just like us. As an Independent candidate my chances of winning this election are slim but my mother always says, “If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem.” My goal is to push the conversation in a positive, progressive direction.
I’m a comedian, a dog walker and a single father. I only care about being a good dad and having a nice, safe place to live while having a little fun.
The other candidates like to say they’ve visited “all 95 counties” in the last year as if that’s something special. People say they want to elect somebody they could have a beer with. I’ve been driving back and forth across this state telling jokes in bars every day for over 15 years. If that interests you, give me a yell. I’d love to come to your town and hang out and have a beer with you and your friends. I’ll bring some of my comedian buddies from Nashville along and we’ll have a blast.
Thank you,
Chad Riden
615-829-6187
chad -at- chadriden -dot- com
https://elect.chadriden.com
http://Twitter.com/ChadRiden
http://YouTube.com/ChadRiden
http://Facebook.com/Chad.Riden
https://www.facebook.com/groups/RiDEN4TN/
(I sent this guest editorial to every newspaper in Tennessee on June 14th, 2018.)
I’m really glad I was able to attend Community Oversight Now‘s news conference in support of their Nashville charter referendum campaign to have an independent community oversight board on Wednesday April 4th, 2018 in East Nashville.
I drive an older car and the tail lights short out a lot. I have to replace the bulb at least every 3 months or so. I always get pulled over but I’ve never felt ill at ease or in danger. I’ve never had any trouble with our Nashville police force but I also realize I’ve always been blonde haired, blue-eyed and white. not everybody has the same sense of safety all day every day that I take for granted and that is a shame.
I firmly believe that the truth can always be questioned because if you’re doing what’s right you are not afraid for your actions to be looked at in the light. Please join me in support of Community Oversight Now – Nashville.
INFO:
https://communityoversightnashville.wordpress.com/
https://www.facebook.com/NashvilleCOB/
Nashville, you may know me as an idiot you see at local comedy shows, or an idiot you see running around with cute dogs chasing pokemon, or an idiot you sometimes see posting ridiculous things on this group page, but did you know I’m also an idiot who is running for Governor of Tennessee?
In a nutshell, I’m FOR: #MedicareForAll #LegalizeMarijuana #FiberOpticPublicUtilityInternet #7DaysAWeekAlcoholSales #BlackLivesMatter #MeToo #MarchForOurLives, LGBT+ rights and protection and other things that make sense. I’m AGAINST: #PrivatizedPrisons #MoneyInPolitics, hate, racism, sexism, Trumpy.
I’m a snowballs chance in hell candidate. The media treats me like a joke, because comedians are silly clowns who’ve never made legitimate points about our culture and society wrapped in humor oh and also I’m not spending hundreds of thousands of dollars buying advertising from them, but I think if I can push the conversation in a progressive, positive direction for the next few months I will consider that a victory in itself.
Folks (that’s a word you have to use a lot when you run for office so you sound relatable), FOLKS, I would like to ask for your help. I have enough signatures to qualify to be on the ballot but I want more as a safety net. In Tennessee, if you haven’t voted in the last two elections, you’re not considered a ‘registered voter’ and your signature is not valid for this purpose. Many people enthusiastically sign my sheets, thinking they’re helping but their signature may not count and there’s no way of knowing that until the election commission ultimately arbitrarily decides whose voices to ignore. So I want to get way more signatures than necessary.
If you have read this far, I would love to have your signature on my petition. I’m in town all this week. You can come see me at Bobby’s Idle Hour tonight at 7 on Music Row, and at The East Room tuesday at 8:30 and maybe other places, or you can message me on FB or text me at 615-829-6187 and I will come to you. Thank you for your support and whatnot. I love you.
here’s my propaganda-spewing FB group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/RiDEN4TN/
I don’t want you to donate money, but you can if you want. Money in politics IS the problem. Donations will all go to buying my lunches throughout the campaign & funding street art wheat-paste poster printing.
I’m running as an Independent, as I believe our two-party system is the Good Ole Boy Network nonsense that has led to voters looking at the color of a candidate’s party affiliation instead of their character and ideals.
I’m pro legalization of Marijuana. I want to use the revenue to build out state wide municipal fiber optic internet following the Chattanooga model and implement a state Firewall (open source software that protects from cyber attack, NOT a brick and mortar wall that would cost Billion$ and change Nothing). We need to harden the security of IT for all state servers, data, networks and utilities.
I support the building of Earthship Biotecture housing out of recycled materials for our homeless in the places that already have tent cities and on other underused property.
I’m against unconstitutional legislation on any level, but especially ridiculous bills at the state level which clearly violate the separation of Church and State and would never hold up in court, even though they were proposed by a career politician with a law degree and/or the Koch Brothers.
I support LGBT+ anti-discrimination laws and I’d like to see all public bathroom signage changed to make them Unisex bathrooms. This would allow families to enter the same bathroom together without worry and eliminate a lot of nonsense debates rooted in homophobia.
I support single payer universal healthcare.
Please join my mailing list right now, register to vote, and show up at the polls 8/2/2018 to vote Chad Riden for Governor in the Tennessee state primary. The time to be a complacent slacker who doesn’t care or think politics matters is OVER. For me and for you. #RIDEN4TN