**Crashing the Party
How To Tell the Truth and Still Run For President
by Ralph Nader
Reviewed January 31, 2002.
Thomas Dunne Books, 2002. 383 pages.
I confess, there’s a part of me that likes any book that points out
faults in both of the two major political parties, without pretending that
one of them has all the answers.
I didn’t really know what the Green Party stood for before I read this
book. Indeed, Ralph Nader expresses disgust that when he got media
coverage, the main focus tended to be on how he would affect the race between
Bush and Gore, not where he stood on the issues.
In the past, I used to think that if Republicans and Democrats can agree
on an issue, it must be good. However, Ralph Nader brought up many
legitimate issues that neither major party is addressing. It’s refreshing
to hear another voice.
One of his major arguments is that Republicans and Democrats get their
funding from corporations, and they are no longer governing for the people,
but for those corporations. I never used to like the idea of public
funding for election campaigns, but I begin to see the advantage to having
our elected officials not owe favors to corporations. In a way, Ralph
Nader’s presidential campaign was a simple extension of his career as a
consumer advocate. He’s still working for ordinary people, and I respect
that.
I didn’t think the book was particularly well-written. It was
often repetitive, and far too detailed. I don’t really care where
Ralph Nader was on each day of his campaign! Perhaps that’s a simple
outgrowth of the egotism a person has to have in order to run for President.
However, despite that, he had some great things to say, and some fresh
ideas. I was impressed enough that, if this had come out before the
election, I may well have voted for him, if only to send the message that
some of these ideas are worth considering. As it is, I will watch the
Green Party with interest. It would be great if some of these ideas
for election reform would be put into place before the next Circus we call
a Campaign.
Copyright © 2003 Sondra Eklund.
All rights reserved.
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Book Reviews by Sondra Eklund