Ralph Nader was on Meet the Press when I turned on the TV this morning.
He was telling Tim Russert, "You take that framework of people feeling locked out, shut out, marginalized and disrespected. You go from Iraq, to Palestine to Israel, from Enron to Wall Street, from Katrina to the bumbling of the Bush administration, to the complicity of the Democrats in not stopping him on the war, stopping him on the tax cuts."
"In that context, I have decided to run for president”.
Let the bells ring! Let loose the confetti, and shout from the rooftops, “At last have we a candidate for real change!”
What? You mean you’re not thrilled at the news? That’s not an uplifting swelling of heartfelt joy that I sense? It’s more like a gouging slash at a raw nerve, you say?
Here we go again.
Russert asked him about the “blame” he supposedly bore for what has happened to the country during the past seven years. He responded, “Not George Bush? Not the Democrats in Congress? Not the Democrats who voted for George Bush?”
Regarding the other candidates Nader said, "The issue is do they have the moral courage, do they have the fortitude to stand up to corporate powers and get things done for the American people. We have to shift the power from the few to the many."
Don’t you hate it when the guy nobody listens to is right?
I’m not exactly gushing with confidence that Obama, let alone Hillary, will “stand up to corporate powers.” At least Ralph is used to being brushed aside by corporate media for telling the truth. The best we’ve heard for the two main contenders is a little watered down diluted paraphrasing of what John Edwards said.
Nader’s right. Moral courage and fortitude is what we need. Once again, if I am to vote my convictions and conscience, I must vote for Nader. Such is the pathetic state of our country, to force voters to abandon their only voice of real change and honesty just to gain a sliver of hope to defeat the Aristocratic Corporatist War Party.
Nader makes the point if Democrats can’t win a landslide against the Republicans in this election, then they need to roll it up, go away and figure out who they are.
Meanwhile over at another pundit swill basin at another network, George Will was commenting on Obama’s contrast of despair in America and the hope he was offering. Will enlightened us with his assessment that “Americans are not in despair.”
None of the other pundits challenged his assertion, of course.
Really, George? Nobody at YOUR country club is feeling despair? I wonder why not. It must be because this healthy and robust economy is so richly benefiting everyone.
I guess the 47 million people without health insurance aren’t real Americans. I suppose those growing numbers of citizens without good jobs with pensions are not Americans either. The millions living in poverty must all be aliens.
Why do I ruin a perfectly good Sunday morning watching this crap?
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13 comments:
good question! i do the same thing.
although i will always respect nader and what he has accomplished, i am buying what obama is selling to a certain degree. he's not the absolute answer to the problems we face, but he represents a sort of beginning, to me.
Annie,
I suppose it breaks down to this simple formula.
Obama represents the promise of hope.
Clinton represents futile desperation.
McCain represents the certainty of more fascism.
Nader still represents the dream.
Let's hope Nader gets the chance to put the real message of breaking the shackles of corporatism back into public dialogue. One thing is certain. Thanks to Edwards, he will not be the only voice for the cause.
More people are listening.
Nader has some good ideas. I have always liked what he stood for (mostly), but the man is just not electable. I wish he was. I also wish Dennis Kucinich, Chris Dodd, and John Edwards were electable.
This system of organized robbery will continue unabated until many millions more are unemployed, homeless, and standing in lines at soup kitchens.
The greed of the Corporate State is insatiable, and cannot sustain itself. The Plutocratic Polititians and their Bankers will not give up without a serious fight.
A police state will be required to stop the chaos from turning to out-right anarchy.
It will then take a violent revolution to disolve the police state.
These are not pessimistic views, they are based on historical precedents.
Brother Tim,
We can hope and pray it won't come to the worse case.
I like to think there could be person in the White House that really would elevate himself from the dirty game and do the right thing. Possible? Maybe, but unlikely.
I think we need Nader's voice more so than his candidacy. The message he and Edwards bring needs to be aired.
Obama speaks toward that end, but the true extent that he is compromised by the system would be revealed soon enough.
The deck is stacked against him, though, and McCain will probably win. The Aristocratic Corporatist War Party will try to steal the election again.
Note how the Corporate Media have removed Iraq from the front page and are pushing the propaganda that the surge was successful. They also like to add McCain's self applied "straight talk" label to any story about him.
It would be helpful if the FACT of right wing failure would be pushed as much as the MYTH of liberal media into the national discourse. But then, that would require an objective, fact-based and unbiased media.
Sadly, the reality is we are run by a Military, Industrial, Corporate Media and Corporate Government Complex all working against the public good.
As we wait and watch for the Tipping Point, we can only hope for minimal carnage, destruction and economic devastation.
Violent revolution must be the last resort. If it failed, it would result in the worst case scenario of a total police state lock down. They have laws labeling us terrorists already just in case.
We the people can and must find the leadership and unity, even if it takes a painfully slow movement from the grassroots local level.
Dave, I posted a lengthly editorial this morning on how the US system is set up to exclude third parties.
If there was a legitimate chance for Nader to win, I'd consider supporting him, but there is not. The only role he can possibly play is that of spoiler, as he did in 2000. The only success he can measure would be to once again deliver the presidency to the GOP, as he did in 2000. He has to know that.
I believe our system is in need of reform to expand to more than two parties, but that is a "drain the swamp" issue for December and later. If Nader wants to change the system, as he claims, let him take the lead in that reform, instead of disappearing three years as he did between 2001 and 2003 and again between 2005 and 2007.
Tomcat,
Too bad Nader couldn't make the effort to transform the Democratic Party from within. That is our best option, I believe. We need fresh leadership that understands that the Dems need to OPPOSE the Republicans and assert their support for the interests of the vast majority of Americans.
I don't think Nader will draw off a significant number of votes this time. (Fool me once, won't get fooled again) I like to think even the most ardant, naive, and wild-eyed Naderite will see that the vote is about ending the Republican dictatorship, and that means voting for the Dem.
That said, the more Nader is allowed to present the anti-corporatist perspective to the public the better. Maybe Hillary and Obama will understand the resonance of the message and amplify it.
That could actually be Nader's positive influence.
He has already done his damage and we are living with his nightmare Bush. He will be a non entity this time around. I used to respect him but he is pissing me off.
Dave--I would like to get an exact transcript of that example of George Will's blindness on Sunday (Where's the despair in America?....) I can work my tail off for some minutes and dig it out, but wonder if there is not an easier way. Suggestions?
Sorry, I don't have the transcript of Will's idiotic comment. I usually have the sense to record these things for verification.
Check ABC's This Week:
http://www.abcnews.go.com/politics/Thisweek
So, obsessive as I am, I had to get the exact quote from George Will about Obama from Sunday's "This Week".
"He's worked one pedal on the organ quite enough, now. This stuff about, I'd call it banal eloquence, where he says, 'In the face of despair, we can still hope'. I have news for him. Americans aren't in despair. Look around you. Who's despairing?"
"Look around you. Who's despairing?"
Does George Will not have Internet access??????????
Tim,
"I have news for him". I assume that must be Fox "News".
That about sums up the world view of the Cons. Deny reality, refuse to accept facts, and lie about the rest.
Then rely on the corporate media propaganda machine to do the rest. It fools half the people, and that's all they need.
Great summary, Dave!
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