Go Away Ralph Nader
Say what you will about Ralph Nader, but I would like him to go away. Run for Senate, run for Dog Catcher, run for the School Board for all I care…just PLEASE stay out of the 2008 election!
No one cares if you don’t like Hillary Clinton. Hillary Clinton hasn’t won anything yet, so please Ralph, stay away!
Go phone bank for your favorite candidates:
Democratic candidates Nader likes include former Alaska Sen. Mike Gravel and Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich, he said.
Gravel/Kucinich 2008? Only time will tell. Stay tuned.
February 6th, 2007 at 4:33 pm
You must be kidding. Of course we care. Don’t speak for anyone other than yourself.
The Democrats are awash in all the currupt money and cannot be trusted. It’s not that there isn’t any difference between Democrats and Republicans. It’s that there isn’t enough difference.
In my view, Ralph Nader would make a wonderful president — far better than any other candidate in at least the past 35 years. Meanwhile, let’s have a peace resolution out of Congress that will save lives. Enough of all the violence.
As for you, stop being so grumpy. Get out more often. Go see the new movie about Ralph Nader!
February 6th, 2007 at 6:52 pm
The best way to prevent Nader from running or neutralize any Nader candidacy is to fight to keep the Democrats from nominating a conservative like Hillary Clinton. If the Democrats nominate someone who was on Wal-Mart’s board of directors for six years, who voted for the war, who called for more troops in Iraq until she faced a Senate primary challenge, and who is actively involved in the far-right “Democratic Leadership Council,” there will be a progressive third party candidate who will get a lot of votes. Even if Nader doesn’t run, a Green will pull a lot of votes away from a Corpocrat like Ms. Clinton.
I still remember how Al Gore lied us into NAFTA and the World Trade Organization, which devastated the US middle class and literally starved millions of people abroad. Real Democrats are the best defense against Nader.
February 7th, 2007 at 10:19 am
Thanks for the comments on my post. I DO agree that Ralph Nader has had a celebrated career and his work means a lot to millions of people in this country. He is a great advocate and I applaud him for that.
I also understand that he is not a Democrat and that his views do not reflect that of the Democratic Party. For his opinions, motives and ideas, I am not in anyway coming down on Nader.
What I am talking about is tactics. I did not articulate this enough in my post, but my anger towards Ralph Nader comes from the fact that he runs for president almost perennially to get his message out. I have a message too, but I don’t run for president, I have a blog.
Ralph Nader would make a brilliant senator or representative and I would encourage him to run for any office office…except the president.
As we all know, the stakes are too high in 2008 for us to risk losing the presidency because of a third party candidate. You might disagree with me on this and I would love to hear your opinions. My take on it is simple and it mirrors what libhomo said:
Kick the dem candidates in the ass and do anything you can to help them formulate good public policy and solid campaign platforms. That is the way to bring third-party voters into the dem party fold.
Again, thanks Ralph for an exceptional career, but PLEASE stay out of 2008. Run for the Senate.
I’d love to hear your feedback.
Peter
February 7th, 2007 at 5:11 pm
Peter,
First off, the Clintons are just as bad as the Bushs, they just have better PR and someone needs to be pointing that out as she has the most money and is the media darling for this race. Secondly, I so voted for Nadar the first time I voted. He’s honest and that made him stand far out from the crowd. I now understand why I shouldn’t have, but I do not agree that it’s a valid way to run a “democracy”. Last year I became a Democrat so my vote would count. Then I found Mike Gravel. He’s honest. He’s smart. He’s got integrity and a very outstanding track record. He left politics because he wanted to really make a difference and the only way he could see that happening is by the people getting involved. Hence the National Initiative for Democracy. And he’s a Democrat rather than a 3rd party. The press has ignored him like a fart in church. No one who has any money wants this guy to win because if he does the gig is up. His platform and ideas are well thought out and if you actually read them instead of the media spin on them you will see it for yourself. If you care one iota about this country and the rest of the world he deserves at least a hard long look before dimissal. Since Ralph’s statement Gravel has actually gotten some mainstream press. My phone has been ringing off the hook from people who finally know who it is I’ve been ranting about for the last few months. They are blown away by his message and love him. Don’t go looking on google for it because it’s not there, just short clips here and there.
Peace,
Deborah