Nader and Camejo should give politics a rest

Unless you are a political junkie or over the age of 40, you have probably never heard of Ralph Nader or Peter Camejo. Get ready to meet them because they both want new jobs and homes in Washington D.C. — the White House that is.

Ralph Nader seems to be best known for his 1965 assault on a little car called a Corvair, manufactured by General Motors. As a Harvard law school graduate working in Washington D.C. for a prominent Democrat at the time, Ralph used his lawyer instincts and sensed a financial windfall. Nader claimed that the Corvair was "unsafe at any speed," won a lawsuit and made lots of money. Thus began his illustrious career as an environmental and consumer-rights activist. He targets large American corporations under the guise of fairness and caring. But making money seems to be his ambition and evidently he has amassed millions including several luxury properties. It is noteworthy to mention that Nader refuses to release his tax returns, as is customary for presidential candidates (and their spouses) to do.

This will be Nader's third endeavor toward the presidency. In 1996 and 2000, he ran as the nominee for the Green Party, which champions social justice, non-violence, peace and the health of the planet. But in 2004, the Greens nominated someone else and left Nader without a party. So instead, he and Peter Camejo are running as Independent candidates. He has received the endorsement of the Reform Party, the ire of the Green Party and the vindictive rage of the Democrats. Nader seems to have a way of aggravating people (which is how he has made a very good living for himself).

The Democrats want to crucify him for running. Two organizations have recently sprung up specifically to thwart and/or end his candidacy for fear that he will split the Democratic vote. Yet Nader contends that his run will help Democrats. How? He figures that his candidacy will press them to "appeal more forcefully for the interests of the people." He believes that his "exciting campaign" will draw out Democratic voters and increase the number of voters for Kerry. I thought Nader wanted to be the president? His logic seems to be a bit skewed, which becomes evident in the extreme left-wing positions he espouses.

He calls for the end of nuclear weapons, free education for all through college, tax the rich and corporations (thereby taking away the largest investors in the economy), impeachment of Bush/Cheney (they "lied" to the American people) and the overhaul of foreign policy to "peacefully" support democratic movements in other countries. He blames illegal immigration on our government and charges multi-national corporations with ruining the "livelihood and homes of immigrant workers" (ironic how he makes his living from creating trouble for those corporations). He supports licenses for the illegal immigrants, socialized health care and having the UN take over peace-keeping operations in Iraq (UN workers left Iraq after the first insurgent bombings).

Presidencies are never determined by running mates and in this case, Peter Camejo is almost a clone of Nader. But his impassioned melt-down defending solar power, Latino rights and gay marriage during the 2004 California gubernatorial debates is an indication of his loose grip on reality. At age 70 and 63 respectively, Nader and Camejo should give it a rest. They have absolutely no chance of winning even one state, much less the national election regardless of the party emblem they are under. They will probably receive as many votes as there are Corvairs left in the United States — and that's a good thing.

Michele Gomez is a third year political science major at CSULB.