AAMP!itude

look who's running...

The other day, Ralph Nader announced his presidential campaign and then held a press conference.

Classic nader. I recently finished reading a biography about him (published in 2002). Running for president is one of the remaining ways which he can publicize his causes and try to influence the government.

I read his speech from yesterday's press briefing, and found the eloquence of his prose to be so high that I think he was trying to appeal to the literary intelligentsia.

Until you see him kissing babies, I don't think Democrats ought to have much to fear from his campaign. Most Dems seem to be rallying around opposition to Bush.
But if you think about it, suppose they win the White House. How much could they advance their philosophy or policies given a Republican-majority legislature?

some further commentary:

James Ridgeway in the Village Voice sez:

"Somewhat...surprising... are the lefties huffing and puffing about what a horrible thing Nader has done to them. But they ought to remember that the left, especially the New Left, never cared for Nader. He actually comes out of the conservative, small-town, family-values world that politicians love to talk about. Nader has this in common with Edwards, another lawyer with whom he shows some affinity, and Kucinich."

Antonia Zerbisias of the Toronto Star thinks that a Canadian documentary called The Corporation will publicize an anti-corporate message very similar to Nader's. The film, currently playing in Canadian theatres and cable tv, will be distributed in the U.S. in June.
It's described as "a visually arresting montage of interviews, archival footage and animation, demontrating how corporations, which have the legal right of persons, exhibit all the clinical signs of psychopaths..."

=- =- =- =-

meanwhile...
I heard on C-SPAN radio this morning that former Congressman Robert Dornan is running against incumbent Dana Rohrabacher for the Republican primary in the 46th Congressional District in California.
The district is one of those oddly-shaped gerrymandered ones. It's long and skinny, hugging the Southern Calif. coast from PV to Newport Bch. It was designed by Calif. Democrats to segregate Republican voters away from other districts.
What you have in the 2 Republicans are candidates on the kooky side. Rohrabacher was a disciple of Reagan, who did some surfing. (... as in pre-internet. When and how much, I don't know.) He's been regarded as a nutty libertarian.
Dornan has been out of office for 7 years, and is a staunch supporter of Ariel Sharon. He's generally regarded as a hard right bombast.

[My interest in these guys is 'cause I have family in the area. Plus I remember seeing Dornan and his wife host an L.A. tv talk show when I was a kid. I also understand that Rohrabacher graduated from to my high school. (Before my time.)]

Glad not to live there, no more. The politics are often too wacky. (Pretty soon the Governator will be able to run for President.) Better to live in humdrum central Maryland.

Posted by raacluse at February 24, 2004 09:15 PM