Good Lovin' Gone Bad

I'd always loved it when Ralph Nader waged fights against the Washington insider establishment, because he was always fighting for the little guy. My opinion of Nader has soured now, as he is once again running for President - this time as an independent - at a time when the nation, once again is evenly divided. I don't believe Nader tipped the 2000 election against Al Gore (Gore won Florida!), but he could very well tip the balance against John Kerry or John Edwards in a campaign opposing George W. Bush.

Or maybe he won't. Let me expand on an earlier argument I made. Back in 2000, most people truly believed that there was no real difference between Gore and Bush, as Nader argued. No one really cared about that election. Thanks to the souring economy, the war in Iraq, John Ashcroft, and the growing health insurance crisis, people know now what's at stake in this election. Plenty. Nader's argument that there's no difference between the two major parties doesn't hold water anymore, since Bush committed a lot of dastardly deeds Gore would never have allowed to be committed in his name. So, as I've already noted, there a lot of folks who voted for Nader in 2000 but are less likely to do so now for fear of helping Bush.

There's one other factor I haven't mentioned; Nader is getting a later start this year than he did in 2000, and he has yet to get on the ballot in any of the fifty states. Think any bureaucrats in states where Democrats are in power are going to let him on the ballot? As someone from a state where Democrats control everything, I don't think the voters of New Jersey will be able to cast a ballot for Ralphie-Boy except as a write-in.

Nader is seventy, and he's outlived his usefulness. It's time for him to call it a day and look back on a great career. The only love involving Nader now is the love he has for . . . himself.

Good lovin' gone bad, indeed.