Hey, Ralphie Boy.
I saw Ralph Nader on the Lehrer News hour on Monday. He gave a better account of himself than I would have presupposed. He doesn't have much love lost for people who don't think he should run. As he doesn't have much love lost for Bill Clinton or Clinton style democrats. This is much of the problem - he truly cannot see the difference between centerist globalist democrats and George Bush. To people who would say "those who don't want Nader to run don't understand democracy". I would say this in return. First simple and declaritive, I understand democracy just fine, Some people these days seem to think that having a point of view immunizes them from criticizm of it. In the last election Nader's green party candidacy possibly tipped the balance in some localities and those who still see difference between the democrats and republicans would be upset to see that repeated. Losing the presidency this time would put the democrats largely out of the federal government for 10 years to a generation (between a wholly conservative Supreme court and an entrenched, redoubted republican congress.). Democracy is not only a loftly abstract ideal, it is a thing in practice on the ground in dust among the people.
What Nader is about these days is his ego, I don't mind him not stepping down from the soap box, but he doesn't seem to be able to get over himself. He insists on being a celebration to his own purity of conviction and unsuccumbed compromise. He isn't a politition, who can't afford such fine robes, and never will be. He also doesn't understand that this country has become very conservative - that the great society libralism of the new left is over. Those parts of it that did not get entrenched will not. His great steed - as noble as Traveler - the courser Covair is tired and needs the quite green of pasture. Now is a time for guarding what gains remain in environmental, and consumer protection, in equal rights of all who work for this nation, and redeveloping principles for this to continue.
This republic goes through phases where it can conduct its affairs with astonishing puritinism, and others when the concepts of "Good Government" just set the power brokers laughing. Perhaps the worst times are when the one is being said and the other being done. This is what Ralph Nader sees. I am not going to take that away from him. I watched Frontline last night (blowing off whatever was on Fox or the mouse channel) an engaging tale of how Tom Delay and Speaker J Dennis Hastert continually rewrite the tax code so that looping hole corporations like Wachovia pay no ($ 0.00) taxes. Well taxes are bad aren't they, money for the shiftless poor - DeLay's doing the Lords work there, and all of congress signs on.
On second thought let Nader run, this will not hurt his legacy. This government isn't safe at certain speeds.
10:11:52 AM  ;;
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