[Vision2020] Don't Blame Nader! (was Stop corporate tax dodging)

[Ted Moffett]

Mike and ALL:

First off, Mike, I was just pointing out that in your "King" and "Prince" 
labeling of Bush and Nader, that you were engaging in the similar conduct of 
"labeling" that you had stated on vision2020 was inappropriate on 
vision2020, regarding a previous vision2020 post I had made that you 
publicly criticized .  I am fully aware of why you used the words "King" and 
"Prince," and I really do not care that you used these words!

My main point was that the focus of progressive's wrath should not be on 
Nader, but on the unethical and illegal conduct in Florida that 
disenfranchised thousands of voters during Gore v. Bush 2000.  And that what 
happened in Florida in that 2000 vote should not be forgotten and brushed 
aside as now irrelevant.

I agree with much of what you state regarding Nader's options, his 
motivations, and the reality of the damage done by his presidential 
candidacy.  And Nader's statements minimizing the differences between Gore 
and Bush I vehemently argued AGAINST whenever this came up during the Gore 
v. Bush 200 race.

I will not claim Nader is a saint.  He was a politician trying to pump up 
his vote.  He knew that painting Bush and Gore with a broad brush of 
"sameness" might push progressives to dump the Democratic party and vote 
Green.  To blame him for shameless political manipulations should dictate 
you blame Gore and Bush for the same, for they also engaged in this sort of 
conduct.  So if Gore had won based on his lies, would you have been happy?

Amazing how politics turns peoples' ideals and morals into such a 
contradictory maze of compromises and inconsistencies!

Nader had the right to run for president, and I support his efforts to 
attempt to bring real diversity to the American political system.  Part of 
the Green Party reasoning was that Democrats' needed to wake up and realize 
that they could not continue to "sell out" the principles of their party, 
and count on getting the progressive vote.  Nader's effort was an attempt in 
part to force the Democrats to abandon some of the "corporate sell out 
deals" that they had been making, turning them in "Republicrats."

I voted for Nader here in Idaho knowing it would have no impact on Gore.

There was a vote trading plan in effect during that campaign, that I did not 
participate in, that reasoned that a Nader vote in a state Gore was certain 
to lose could be traded for a certain Gore vote in a state that was critical 
for Gore to win, between two voters who wanted to promote both Gore and 
Nader at the same time, allowing Nader and Gore supporters to have their 
cake and eat it to:  Nader might get his 5% of the vote, which if I recall 
correctly, would allow the Green Party to have presidential matching funds 
in the next election (is this how it worked?), and Gore could still win!

As it turned out, Nader was not even close to the 5% needed.  And though 
Gore really won the presidency, both the popular vote and the electoral 
college, if you allow for the damage done in Florida that disenfranchised 
over 20,000 Gore voters, the US Supreme court "appointed" Bush president in 
his so called "victory."

In terms of the ideals of democracy and diversity I supported Nader's 
efforts.  In terms of the realities of political life and the consequences 
of Nader's erosion of the Gore vote, I pretty much agree with what you 
stated, Mike.

How to ethically come to a certain way of resolving these differing ways of 
viewing the Nader campaign in terms of absolute right and wrong, I admit to 
failure!

Maybe some of the moral absolutist fundamentalists on vision2020 can give us 
a certain answer that ends debate on this quandary?

Ted






>From: "Mike Curley" <curley@turbonet.com>
>Reply-To: curley@turbonet.com
>To: vision2020@moscow.com
>Subject: [Vision2020] Don't Blame Nader! (was Stop corporate tax  dodging)
>Date: Wed, 23 Apr 2003 08:41:47 -0700
>
><< attach1 >>


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