By the way, I voted (by mail) for Ralph Nader for president in the Peace and Freedom Party of California’s primary for February 5th. If the primary had had instant runoff voting, my second choice vote would have gone to Cynthia McKinney and my third choice vote would have gone to Brian Moore.

Phil Sawyer, Member
Sacramento County Central Committee
Peace and Freedo Party of California

Ralph Nader’s legacy encompasses the spectrum of his life long work, especially his presidential candidacies. He has started a presidential exploratory committee http://www.naderexplore08.com

My political and civic identity was born through exposure to the candidate for whom I caucused for in Nevada, Congressman Dennis Kucinich.

Not only was I going on a limb, scrambling to educate myself on his record, bio, the issues, his campaign style not to mention volunteering for a political campaign, calling radio shows, canvassing, going to a town conference, and attending a free speech rally where I was interviewed for a published newspaper article.

Wooo!

A lot to absorb and digest to say the least.

Part of this process was owning my power as a citizen.

I, after 31 years, affirm:

* Politicians are public servants. They are elected to serve the public. We are the public. We are their Boss.

* When does a Boss grovel at the feet of their employee?

* A vote cast is duty. The highest level of civic participation in this democratic republic. The highest level of critical thinking is a mandatory prerequisite.

* The media’s power lies within the scope of communicative channels of distribution. The more channels accessed produces the variety of information and opinion necessary to serve as background information. Independent research is equally necessary.

Our future, the future of my three boys, everyone, everywhere is deeply affected by civic, social administration and control; in simpler terms, politics and government.

If we are to honor our existence and our time on Earth than we must participate.

Fight off all urges or coercion to be satisfied with the role of spectator.

A long comment, I know.

I strongly support Ralph Nader as an activist, and as a President candidate.

Even University of Missouri thug and Viet Nam era flight ace “Puke” Cunningham*, possibly the worst corruption figure in beltway history, could not poison his ultra concervative district into voting for any one but yet another Republican. This one [Bilbray] was a voted out thug [via redistricting] carpet bagger.

1992, 1996, 2000, and 2004 I was a Perot/ Perot/ Nader/ Nader voter. And by OVER ONE MILLION VOTES per cycle, the Democratic candidate collected each and every elector!

* now spending 7/24 in a federal facility near Tucson!

Want a life long career in public administration? Don’t worry about the voters picking you! You just go out and pick the district that would vote [and vote and vote and vote] some one like you in! 2000, 2002, 2004 NOT ONE State or National district switched parties in California. Not One!

If you don’t like Nader, don’t vote for him. But don’t you dare tell us we shouldn’t be allowed to vote for him, or for any other progressive candidate of our choice who opposes the Democratic Party & is offering a different paradigm to the electorate.

I suggest that you actually listen to what he has to say about the Democratic Party, both in his speeches and his book “Crashing The Party.” My experience over the last eight years is that Democrats are great at spitting out juvenile “I hate Ralph Nader” comments within the comfortably anonymous environment of blogs and websites, but have nothing constructive or mature to say in real venues in response to Nader’s detailed criticisms of the two-party system in general and the Democratic Party in particular.

What do you folks have to say about instant runoff voting? Do you even know what that is? What do you have to say about the nationwide gerrymandering that has created a tidal wave of one-party districts across the country, where candidate after candidate (Democrats AND Republicans) runs unopposed in Incumbent Safety Zones? You think people should sit down and shut up about things like that? Why should we, when the Democratic Party up and down the line refuses to address these issues?

Whoever is the Democratic nominee this year is absolutely pathetic if he or she cannot get elected to the presidency after this eight year mess. And that is your responsibility as a Democrat, not ours.

If we are to have a democracy its a two fold process. You can’t be against voter suppression on the voter end, and for it at the candidate end. I would claim anyone that would put up the spoiler straw man argument is neither progressive or a friend of democracy.

I must say I am hoping Nader makes another run. I actually think we’d be best served by an Independent run.

What concern is that to us third party voters? If you don’t realize by now that there is little difference between the Democrats and Republicans (i.e. – deficit spending, pork barrel projects, getting us involved in insane wars, immoral behavior while in office, concerned with getting lobbyists’ and PACS money for reelection more than doing what is right for the country and following the Constitution), than that’s your problem. Don’t blame us for trying to rectify that.

No, it’s a very realistic thing to say, given the real-world results — and deaths — of you people’s last little temper tantrum.

Way to marginalize yourselves. Is this some sort of self-imposed martyr complex?

That’s a very sily thing to say. If the Democrats are so almighty fabulous on the Supreme Court why do we have the cast of rightwing creeps the Democrats in Seante helped vote on to the court? See, this is why no one can take you Democrats serious; you wail abt how awful the people who voted for nader are, and how important the Democrats are as an opposition party, but even after being given a solid majority in Congress in 06 they have accomplished nothing. Well, I’ll give them driving Gonzalez out of office, that was sweet. But that hardly qualifies as the Democrats acting like an opposition progressive oarty. If the Democratic Party was a progressive political party progressives would vote for their candidates. Simple as that.