Subject: Re: FW: Election 2000
Date: Fri, 27 Oct 2000 12:30:37 -0400


I'm with those who think the poco list is the wrong place for this conversation,
but the message below is so rhetorically overblown and wrongheaded that I can't
help but respond.  Taking it as a given that however awful Gore may be on all
kinds of social justice issues, Bush will be much worse, there are still
important philosophical and strategic reasons for most or all of us who are US
citizens to "vote our consciences."  Bracketing the philosophical questions and
thinking purely in terms of strategy, for many of us there's no reason not to
vote for Nader, Old Dirty Bastard from Wu Tang Clan, or whoever, because our vote
will have no impact on whether Gore or Bush gets elected.  Because of the
electoral college system, it's really only those in so-called "battleground
states" for whom the "a vote for Nader is a vote for Bush" argument should even
register.  Here in New York, for instance, as in many (most?) states, the outcome
has already been determined--so much so that neither candidate is spending any
significant campaign money here.  To put it another way, if Gore doesn't win New
York by a far greater margin than the number of voters who might even *consider*
voting for a "third party candidate," he doesn't stand a chance nationally.  For
me, that means I can campaign and vote for Nader without having to confront the
difficult philosophical and personal questions involved in weighing  the
importance of voting for what one believes versus the potentially disastrous
consequences of a Bush presidency.  If you live in Illinois or Washington or
another state where the "race" is close, those questions are harder, and you have
my sympathy.  But wherever you live, I'd urge you to read and think about those
questions outside the climate of fear-mongering, coat hanger-waving rhetoric of
the letter Liz posted and the message below.  One good place to start, in my
opinion, is ZMag (www.zmag.org) which has addressed these issues responsibly.

Ed Wiltse

FilmDiva-AT-aol.com wrote:

> Jeremiah--
>
> Our mothers, sisters and daughters, especially those of the working poor the
> unemployed and the poor, thank you for that response.  We now know what to do
> with that closet full of coat hangers we were going to throw out.  I presume
> you will be contributing whatever you can to the fund to help women get safe
> abortions overseas.
>
> Alex Keller
>
> In a message dated 10/27/00 4:05:42 AM, jeremiah.luna-AT-zdv.uni-tuebingen.de
> writes:
>
> << Elizabeth,
>
> What has the Clinton Gore and administration done for "liberals" or
> leftist. Do we have social health care! No! Do we have lower
> university tuition fees? No! The only thing to really say for Clinton gore
> is that we did not have Bush or Dole, But that is a pretty thin piece of
> bread to eat for eight years. If Bush wins well, it will be bad, but
> is it better than this three quarters bad that comes with gore. In my
> opinion - I voted for clinton the first time, and last election between
> clinton and dole I voted nader. I women for California Democrateic
> congress woman Boxer as well. And I
> will vote for a few democrats this time as well, but I am not going to
> give my already meaningless vote to gore, just because bush might be a
> little worse. Because as of yet there is noone has convinced me that there
> is a big difference between the two. Out side of the fact that Bush will
> most likely get us into another war and kill about of with the electric
> chair, while gore will just let things go on as they are, which is also an
> expression of the intolerable.
>
> Jeremiah
>
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--
***********************************************************
Ed Wiltse                            ecwiltse-AT-naz.edu
English Dept.                       ph: (716) 389-2646
Nazareth College                 fax: (716) 586-2452
Rochester, NY 14618         http://www-pub.naz.edu:9000/~ecwiltse/




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