I've tried to shy away from this so-called discussion, and I don't know Tom Nagy so I won't try to speak for him, but I share his, and others' frustration on the thread regarding Nader. I joined the 60s list to get a break from the mainstream media and the conventional wisdom. No, there's no party line, but I expected to engage in a different dialogue on the 60s, their meaning and what we can learn from them. The recent thread on Nader has been nothing short of disheartening if not disgusting. Go ahead and bash me as an impudent young punk [I was born in 1960s so didn't really experience the decade] but I don't understand you people of that generation, and allegedly committed to the ideals of that generation, can so virulently criticize Nader and his supporters. I'm reminded of Joseph Welch: have you people no sense of decency. I'm no big fan of the electoral system--and I think a better thread would consist of discussions on what the point of voting, of ratifying elite decisions is--but I've simply become incredulous at the pontificating and smug attacks on Nader supporters. How fucking dare you attack someone for voting for Nader, for progressive ideas! If you believe in this system of voting, if you believe in democracy--whether it be virtual, representative, or participatory--then each person has the right to vote for whomever she/he wishes, and how fucking dare you attack someone for that, especially when their vote is cast for the only progressive candidate with exposure running. I didn't vote for the president here in Texas, and would have voted for David McReynolds if I'd had the chance, but I'll be damned if I let some Democratic apologists rip me for that. Frankly, the discourse on this list reminds me of the crap I read and hear every day in most mainstream venues. And I get far too much email already and don't really need more of that. When the people on this list begin to parrot Joe Biden, Kate Michaelman, and the other liberals who've attacked Nader, I cringe. I really am optimistic about the future. I see young people all over challenging authority on many different levels. They're fortunately not swayed by the alarmism of old liberals and their "Chicken Little" attitudes about Bush and Gore [and speaking as a Texas resident, Bush isn't as different as Ann Richards as you'd like to think. You may not want to hear that, but there's hard evidence for it]. I do hope that they have the good sense to make up their own minds and not fall into the trap of reflexive support for whichever corporate whore/war monger the Democrats happen to run.
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