The ancient greeks had two words for time: "kronos" signified cronological time, a quantity measured in days, weeks and years; and "kairos", oportune time, a temporary convergence of factors that makes for enormous opportunities.
Kairos, as distinct from kronos, must be skillflly recognized. A good archer, for example, knows exactly when to fire at a moving target. Kairos is a time of extraordinary opportunity that comes and goes. If recognized, action within kairos may lead to extraordinary results. If kairos goes unrecognized, ordinary time resumes.
This very moment, for one single person, is a moment of kairos. This one person will do great good in the world even if he does not recognize and act upon this moment. But if he seizes kairos, the consequences will be extraordinary.
At this time, and only at this time, are the people of the United States so sick of the current president that they are willing to vote for the Anti-Bush. This occasion will not present itself in the future.
At this time, and only at this time, are progressives active, energized and combative. The several messess that the rightwing has plunged the country into, the recent birth of online activism, the 2006 victory which both showed the progressives what they could accomplish and the fact that they need to accomplish much more, the 2004 election wich showed the obsolence of the "republican lite" style of campaigning; all these factors converge, right now, to provide a soil so fertile for building a powerful progressive movement as we may not see in a number of generations.
At this time, and only at this time, is the need for rewenable sources of energy and sustainable living becoming so patently urgent. Not only are the effects of global warming becoming very visible and undeniable, the current crisis in the middle east is a second powerful reason to pursue alternative energy sources. In the future, of course, the need for action will become more and more evident, but the margin of error will become narrower as time goes on. Today, there is a critical mass of environmental awareness large enough to kick start a global movement.
At this time, and only at this time, does one man possess a unique mixture of qualities ideally suited to take advantage of present conditions. Al Gore has shown legitimate passion that contrasts starkly with the image of the posturing politician. His achievements in civil service and elsewhere make him the anti-Bush in this regard: competence and brilliance in one hand, recklessness and stupidity on the other. He has shown an understanding of all issues of importance today, from geopolitics to the state of the constitution. These qualities are not fleeting, and will be there after 2008 comes and goes. But if Al Gore lets this opportunity go, he will be too old, old news and lacking the advantage of a public opinion pendulum that, after reaching the far-right, is ready to move to the left.
A lot can be achieved outside of the US presidency, and without taking advantage of the extraordinarily promising conditions of 2008. But not as much as a Gore run could accomplish, not by a long shot.
It is, of course, Mr Gore’s personal decision wether to run or not. But he must know, as an environmentalist, that knowledge often has a moral content and that choosing not to know is moraly wrong. Choose what you will, Mr President, but know that 2008 is a time like no other time for you, for your country and for the world.