This is not 2000; Jill Stein is not Ralph Nader

The short version: 

1. I'm a former Democrat, former Green, now unaligned, left-of-center, independent. 
2. It was Bill Clinton's first term that chased me out of the Democratic Party. 
3. I proudly supported Ralph Nader's Green Party candidacy in both 1996 and 2000, and have no regrets (Gore lost all by himself, get over it). 
4. I have been a fan of Bernie Sanders since he became Mayor of Burlington, VT 35 years ago and was thrilled to be able to give him my vote for President earlier this year. 
5. I have had serious reservations about Hillary Clinton (and have taken heat about expressing these opinions on Daily Kos). 
6. Nevertheless, I believe that a vote for Jill Stein (or Gary Johnson) is a foolish, unproductive, and dangerous act, and I urge all Greens and left-leaning independents to join me in supporting Hillary Clinton.

The long version: 

I don't need to get into much detail on #1 and #2 above; I've told the story many times before. With the election of Bill Clinton, the "third way" of the Democratic Leadership Council had officially replaced the progressive liberalism of the Democratic Party I grew up in. That, and the arrogance of my local Democratic State Assembly member, telling me he didn't care what I think because "Who else are you going to vote for?" made me realize that I did have other choices to explore.

For me, Ralph Nader entered the Presidential electoral arena at just the right time. Here was somebody who I had considered a hero since my 1960's childhood. In '96 I volunteered for the campaign. Going to hear him speak when he visited Sacramento (where we lived at the time) was an experience unlike any other political event I've ever been to. Here was truly one of the most intelligent and thoughtful people to ever seek office, speaking for hours without a single sentence that could be considered pandering for votes.

(Read the rest at Daily Kos)

Defending Ralph Nader, but Voting for Barack Obama

Long-time readers of this blog and my other writings know that I've been a pro-democracy crusader for many, many years, and have supported many "third party" and independent candidates over the years. You probably also know that this year I am supporting Barack Obama for president.

Here's a little video I did explaining this evolution, and the reasons for it:


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Now... does this mean I've sold out and have given up on third parties or independent candidates? Hell no! I'm still committed to the cause of restoring democracy and building the electorate.

But, believing, as I do, in the rights of all candidates to be heard, I accept that this includes the candidates of the "big two" parties, and if I'm going to be fair, it means accepting that once in a while, one of them might actually have the best candidate for me at that time.

This is one of those rare times when a Democrat is the best choice for me. But I respect Ralph Nader, and recognize his right to run, and support his attempts to be included in the debates. But I'm not voting for him this time.

Carnival of the Decline of Democracy - Edition 3.04

Welcome to the Carnival of the Decline of [American] Democracy, Edition 3.04 - Blogging 'till the secret police take us away.

Ian Welsh starts the carnival off with an examination of what happens when the checkers and balancers give up their responsibilities in The End of America's Genius? posted at Firedoglake.

Laslo Weger continues the checks and balances discussion and finds it's us who's dropped the ball in Life Above All posted at Outsider's View.

Howard Ditkoff questions why Ralph Nader has failed to make election reform a major part of his independent platform in The Key Issue Suspiciously Missing from Ralph Nader’s “Table” posted at SystemsThinker.com Blog.

Meanwhile, Justin questions why Ralph Nader in Nader '08: Warning, Spoiler Alert! Hate to Spoil It, But People Will Be Saying "Spoiler" A Lot Now posted at We Op-Ed.

Holly Ord looks at the wonderful gift of freedom that we've given the women of Afghanistan in George Bush Thinks Poverty, Death and Abuse are Blessings of Freedom posted at Menstrual Poetry.

Shaheen Lakhan talks about the disenfranchisement of the elderly in Elderly Patients Face Tough Barriers When Voting posted at GNIF Brain Blogger.

I'll be back in about two weeks (March 24) with the next edition of the Carnival of the Decline of Democracy - Submit Your Posts Here. More information on future carnivals can be found on our carnival home page.