Ralph Nader's Nutty Ideas [View All]

[Yavin4]

I caught the end of the NPR debate between Ralph Nader and Howard Dean, where Nader made two points which he considers the heart of his campaign:

(1) National Referendums or Ballot Initiatives on issues. Now, anyone who lives in a state where they have such initiatives know full well just how regressive these initiaitives are. Ralph, more than anyone, should know that ballot initiatives give the rich and the powerful a tool to enact regressive policies. Proposition 13 in California is probably the most famous of these initiatives, as well as Proposition 48 which has greatly reduced African American enrollment in CA's elite universities. Not to mention, the numerous ballot intiatives throughout the West that have sought to deny Gays and Lesbians their constitutional rights. We're a representative democracy that has a constitution that protects the rights of the minority. Ballot initiatives gives the majority tyrannical power, which gets abused. (See California's horrible budget problems.)


(2)Binding None of the Above votes. Nader wants a line on every ballot that gives citizens the right to say, "None of the Above", and if that choice wins, then the entire election is thrown out and re-started. This just shows the juvenile nature of Nader's political thinking. Like a child that doesn't want his dinner, he wants to throw it out, and then expects a better dinner? Does he honestly believe that we will get better candidates in 30 days after an election? Again, what kind of candidate are you going to get within 30 days of an election?

In that debate, Nader has shown that his positions on major policies are delusional and outside the spirit of progressive American politics. Anyone who supports him, support regressive policies.