I voted for Ralph last time and probably will this time, hopefully persuading a Ralph-leaning person in a swing state, which is what I did last time. I think there’s a better than 50% chance Ralph will be an even bigger spoiler for the Dems than he was last time, particularly tragic since he HAS proven them to be big fat hypocrites with respect to ballot access. They have put huge resources into trying to stop him. I know it’s a pragmatic move—it certainly is for the Republicans to help him—but it’s not only corrupt, it actually has turned more people to Nader—the kind of people who are indignant at the Democrats’ hypocrisy. If Kerry and McAuliffe had been smart they would have simply tolerated him on the ballot of all 50 states; this would have made it much harder for him not to stand by his quasi-endorsement of Kerry months ago when he called him “presidential”. But now Nader’s just pissed off—he’s lost not only Chomsky and the celebs but Kerry hasn’t returned his calls for months. I do support Nader’s ultimate goal, corrosion of the 2-party system; but like many I think this country will be unrecognizable after another 4 years of Bush. Nader may be the ultimate hero in the end. If you put a frog in a pot of boiling water he’ll jump out, but if you just gradually turn up the heat he’ll acquiesce to boiling to death. By so enraging half the country, another 4 years of Bush may ironically lead to enough people leaping out the pot sooner. But it’ll be Nader’s Calvary for the moment. Do you know that the current requirements for a 3rd party candidate in the debates—as determined by the privately owned and funded Commission on Presidential Debates—is a shown 15% polling in 3 mainstream polls. Unless you have the money to buy the kind of coverage from the networks that can even interest pollsters in polling to find out your support—as Ross Perot did—it’s really a Catch-22. If Nader had been in on the debates last time, he would have been more than just a nuisance “spoiler”, he would have had the kind of legitimacy that would have rallied the lily-livered celebs and intellectuals to his side this time and would have built on it here for next time, when he might have really reached the tipping point. As things have played out, if Bush wins this election he’ll be crucified instead, maybe even literally. It’s hard to say where the rage falls harder for many liberals, on Nader or on Bush. I suspect Nader, because it’s fundamentally self-hate—always more virulent.