Nader wins one, loses two against the Ironic Democrats

Democrats continue their quest to deter the vote of millions of Americans and have succeeded in removing Ralph Nader from the ballots of New Mexico and Arkansas.

The New Mexican decision - originally decided by a Democrat-contributing judge - is being appealed to the New Mexico Supreme Court.

The Arkansas decision will also be appealed to the Supreme Court. In that State, Nader was removed over silly technicalities, much like the recent Florida Case.

Nader was put on the ballot in Maryland.

Apparently, many Democrats choose to focus their energies against Nader, against Voting, rather than focusing their energies on any solid plans For America. Winning is everything, even if it means the disenfranchisement of millions of Americans.

Isn't it ironic!?

Put Nader back on Florida ballot asks McCain

Ralph Nader is appealing his removal from the Florida state ballot, after a state judge removed him, stating that the Reform Party is no longer a legitimate national party under state law.

Senator John McCain sided with Nader's efforts claiming, "These obstactles discourage public participation in elections by denying voters the right to vote for their preferred candidate. Keeping Nader off the ballot in hope that his voters will be forced to support another candidate is patently unfair to those Floridians who, for whatever reason, have decided he's their man."

Once again, it seems, the two party system doesn't endorse or promote citizen participation, it only promotes the participation of those that already agree with the two party system. Any dissent, it seems, will not be tolerated for it might disrupt the status quo of a minority of wealthy, powerful people - the elite of both the Democrat and Repulican parties.

How undemocratic. (Democracy - A form of government in which political power resides in all the people....)

Update

Nader is temporarily back on Florida's ballot, though his stay there isn't guaranteed. For more information, click here.

Democrats abusing office power to fight Nader

A lawsuit filed by the Committee for a Unified Independent Party has been filed against Democrats in West Virginia, Oregon, Illinois, and Connecticut, accusing public officials in those states of misusing their official power.

Democrats are already running ads against Nader in many swing states, and challenging petition signatures all over the country, such as Nevada, where Democrats contested 11,571 of the 11,888 names to add Nader to the ballot. While this questionable focus is legal, other activities by Democrats elected into public office might not be legal.

According to the Wall Street Journal, "The fishiest situation involves West Virginia, where a state judge recently slapped down an unprecedented case brought by the state itself (rather than outside Democratic Lawyers) to keep Mr. Nader off the ballot." It appears that both Secretary of State Joe Manchin, who is currently running for Governor and Attorney General Darrell McGraw validated a petition to allow Nader to be on the ballot, but then reversed their decision after "intense political pressure from the Democratic Party."

Apparently, a half-dozen citizens, out of 23,000, argued, primarily, that the petition gatherers didn't show appropriate credentials and a few other minor incidents. The Wall Street Journal stated this action was "going too far to keep him [Nader] off the ballot."

While it can be assumed Republicans are tampering with the Nader petition drive, there are millions of voters who want to vote for an Independent Candidate, yet the Democratic Party doesn't want their votes to count. At the same time, John Kerry claims that Republicans are going to try to block the votes of African Americans, and pull more of the same 'Florida abuses'.

While 'one citizen, one vote' has become a Democratic mantra, it appears to only apply for Democratic voters.

As a registered Independent I am appalled by these actions. Not every Independent is a Republican in-disguise. Many of us are tired of the antics perpetrated by BOTH parties, and we feel that adding an Independent Party might provide some recourse.

James Carville, Democratic Strategist, often claims Republicans are better at 'it' in justification of the Democrat Party acting like Republicans. 'Well, they started it' Democrats seem to whine in validation of their childish logic.

Well, I'm tired of the past, of issues like Vietnam. What about today?

Enough is enough. Stand for something, not against something. That's what leaders do, and the Democratic Party, for all its criticism of the Republican Party, proves it's the same beast with a different costume.

Being a leader and losing is far more noble than a leader who gives up leading only to win at any cost. If that is the future of Democrats, of Republicans, of America, then there is no future.

How sad.

Couch potato voting!

During the last presidential election only about 50 percent of the eligible voting population actually voted. Many, just don’t seem to care, or don’t think it matters. Many others, after a long day at work, are simply too tired to wait in line – if they even know where they are supposed to go in the first place.

If you typically fall into the later group, absentee voting might be what you need. Many states have relaxed absentee voting restrictions in the last several years, and a new web service can help you find out more about absentee voting in your state. Absentee Impact is a company that creates voter registration software, but also helps citizens to determine if they qualify for absentee voting (requirements vary by state) and provides all the necessary forms for absentee voting.

If you do decide to vote via absentee ballot, make sure to closely follow all instructions, or your vote will not count. It is also important to request your ballot at least one month before Election Day, and it is equally important to send it in at least 10 days before the election.

So, if you think absentee voting is for you, order your ballot NOW, and VOTE!

Hybrid cars, terrorism, and global warming: A perfect choice for selective consumerism

The article, “California Rules, Detroit Quakes” by Business Week points out that extremely important events in California are going to affect the health of the United States – possibly the world. California wants to require that all cars sold in California improve gas-efficiency 30 percent, by the year 2015.

Why? “Climate changes resulting from auto emissions have already had a dramatic impact on the environment of this state,” says State Assemblywoman, Fran Pavley.

Of course the auto industry is balking. Citing cost concerns and consumer wants, the Big 3 US automakers would prefer to spend money in the courts trying to prove that there is no such thing as Global Warming.

Certainly one can understand cost concerns. Also, the mantra, ‘Buy American’, means much to the 1000’s of unionized, well-paid autoworkers. What could be more important than supporting Americans, what’s more Patriotic?

How about ending foreign oil dependency in a decade?

If every American achieved at least 40 mpg – already achieved by some hybrid cars – we could save almost 3 million barrels of oil per day, which is more than we import from the Middle East. Polls all over the U.S. indicate that Americans feel strongly about ending oil dependency. So, what is Detroit doing about it?

“Today, the market is telling us that it’s not willing to pay for those trade-offs,” states Chrysler VP, Mark Chernoby.

But what trade-offs exactly? Hybrids, such as the Toyota Prius, are already proving that such fuel-efficiency is possible – very possible. In fact, new battery packs are already in operation that will have significant effects on the efficiency of hybrid automobiles in the very near future, pushing hybrids far beyond a 30 percent gain in efficiency. Furthermore, these gains should be easily integrated into the manufacturing process by 2015.

Even for Detroit, which has dragged its feet on hybrid innovation, like some tantrum-throwing child, big gains are possible with current technology. The new hybrid Silverado proves that significant gains in fuel-efficiency can be implemented, without adjusting the manufacturing process. Yet, the Big Three ignore the future, at the expense of not only every consumer, but every citizen, plundering quick profit and selling the future.

In the midst of Iraq, of 911, of the ever-increasing threat of terrorism, and of record-level oil prices, Detroit’s massive, global auto corporations refuse to be Patriotic, refuse to strive for nothing but the safest, most-efficient technology. Instead they are worried about diminished profits. This must end.

Other hybrid car makers might not be Americans, but they are Patriotic Human Beings. They realize that oil, while helping to achieve great heights, has also created real, global problems. Hybrid technology not only benefits Americans, but the world. Greed is not a good enough reason not to change the world, nor is it sufficient to justify un-Patriotic corporatism.

What is selective consumerism?

Selective consumerism is the ability of consumers to use their purchases as a vote - hopefully, to positively affect the world. Selective consumerism is buying change. It's about saying, "I want the future to be better than today."

Countless corporations, only some of which are based in the United States, have one motive: appeasing shareholders. Typically, shareholders care about one thing: ROI, or Return on Investment. Therefore, corporations myopically search out profit, perpetually losing sight of cost/benefit for the world outside the corporation. For example, if a corporation can legally but profitably pollute the environment via a loophole in the law, even though the corporation knows the pollution is harmful, most often it will. Since the corporation is technically not doing anything wrong and reaping profits, layers of insulation obscure any moral questions.

This is not leadership. This, ultimately, only benefits consumers in the short run, if it keeps costs down. Nonetheless, ultimately, the consumer, as citizen, will pay for the clean up of this pollution - as the profitable corporation seeks new loopholes to increase profit.

Technology, including the Internet, provides consumers more choices, and the ability to vote with their choices. Do you want to buy a product that destroys people's lives, simply because it's cheap? Or, perhaps you would prefer to vote for products that are profitable, but that also make the world a better place at the same time?

I'll be doing a series of articles that focus on the hybrid car as an extreme example of selective consumerism. It's my personal favorite because it’s a big ticket item that truly has the potential to change the world.