  The urlLink Washington Post recently hosted an online public question/answer forum for Howard Dean. That's a little redundant, considering he hosts such forums all the time on his site and through blogging. But still, maybe this opened him up to a new audience. The questions people asked were so thorough, it gave me hope again for an educated and critical thinking electorate. We'd been wondering for a while what Dean's stance on space is. We're impressed to say the least: Dallas, Tex. : If elected President, what are your plans for NASA and the Space Program? Do you think it's time to retire the Shuttle and move on to bigger and better things, such as a human mission to Mars, or returning to the moon? Howard Dean: I am a strong supporter of NASA and every government program that furthers scientific research. I don't think we should close the shuttle program but I do believe that we should aggressively begin a program to have manned flights to Mars. This of course assumes that we can change Presidents so we can have a balanced budget again. Here were other highlights: Baltimore, Md.
: You have received considerable rebukes over the past few days regarding your comments about southern voters. Putting aside your poor choice of imagery, it seems to me that you were right. I agree that the Democratic Party must make serious efforts to bring back into the fold disaffected poor, southern, white voters who have traditionally shared the economic priorities of the Democratic Party. My question is: how do you intend to do this? Howard Dean: I believe that although I should not have used the symbol of the Confederate flag, that the thrust of our strategy is the right thrust.
We have to get people to focus on what we have in common in the south and elsewhere in this country. We have to stop the Republicans from dividing us on issues like race and abortion and guns and start focusing on the need for jobs, healthcare and education. That is the way to bring southern white voters back to the Democrats. _______________________ Concord, N.H.: Dr./Gov. Dean, many of your fellow candidates criticize NAFTA and the WTO for our country's loss of manufacturing jobs. What is your plan to help stop the loss of these jobs without America losing out on the long term economic benefits that come from free trade under NAFTA and the WTO?
Howard Dean: Globalization is here to stay whether we like it or not, but the rules for globalization are not. Both NAFTA and the WTO help large multinational corporations but ignore the needs for the people who work for them -- not only in America but around the rest of the world. In order to make globalization work we also have to globalize worker protection, labor rights, environmental rights and human rights. Free trade won’t work under the present circumstances. 
