And what is independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader's health care position? "[A] Canadian-style, private delivery, free choice of hospital and dcotr, public health insurance system." In May of 2008, Ralph wroe about Lisa Kelly who suffers from leukemia and was intially rejected by 'non-profit' (and tax-exempt) M.D. Anderson Cancer Center until she and her husband would put down an initial downpayment for $45,000 (after which they were regularly hit up for five-figure checks or else her 'treatment' was stopped). As Ralph pointed out, "In America, 18,000 Americans die each year because they cannot afford health care, according to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Science. Many more get sick or become sicker." As he explained in 2000, "These people up in Canada stumbled upon something 30 years ago. It's called a universal human right: health care, and preventive health as well. If they do it 30 years ago we can do it now."
September 22, 1993, President Bill Clinton addressed Congress, "Every generation of Americans has worked to strengthen that legacy, to make our country a place of freedom and opportunity, a place where people who work hard can rise to their full potential, a place where their children can have a better future. . . . Millions of Americans are just a pink slip away from losing their health insurance, and one serious illness away from losing all their savings. Millions more are locked into the jobs they have now just because they or someone in their family has once been sick and they have what is called a preexisting condition. And on any given day, over 37 million Americans -- most of them working people and their little children -- have no health insurance at all. . . . Forty years from now, our grandchildren will also find it unthinkable that there was a time in this country when hardworking families lost their homes, their savings, their businesses, lost everything simply because their children got sick or because they had to change jobs. Our grandchildren will find such things unthinkable tomorrow if we have the courage to change today."
It's fifteen years later and there was no change. The same system is still in place and nothing's changed. In another fifteen years will we again be saying the same thing? Ralph Nader supports universal health care. And he supports it now. (He supported it in all of his runs.) Universal coverage for all. That's one of the things you support when you support Ralph.
Where did he get the 'audacity' to dare to dream of a fair America?
"You know mother, all I am doing is documenting your intution." Barbara Gamarekian quoted Ralph in 1977 ("Bring Up Ralph Nader: A Mother's Food for Thought," New York Times, June 27, 1977). In that article, the journalist got her answer to what Ralph likes to eat when his mother was in DC and she was invited to a meal cooked by Nathra Nader which included hummus, kibbee and a green salad. Ralph grew up in a working family, with two sisters and one brother. Their parents owned and operated a restaurant and a bakery and still made time to educate their children:
"One day, I came home and my parents were in the backyard and my mother said, 'How much is a dozen oranges?' I knew. 'How much is a dozen eggs?' And I knew. Because my father had a restaurant, so I knew the prices. And then they said, 'How much is that breeze that's caressing our faces? What do you think that sun is worth right now? And you hear those birds? What's the price of those birds?' And they were trying to teach me that there are things that are priceless. You don't always measure things by the dollar. And I remembered that as I embarked in my struggle against commercialism and the overwhelming spread of commercial dictates into universities, into government, even into religion, into areas far removed from traditional market place venues."
Ralph would go on to graduate from Princeton and Harvard. But for some reason, you never hear Professor Patti Williams gush, "He was editor of the Harvard Law Review!" Nor does anyone bother to figure out if Ralph was the first Arab-American editor of the Harvard Law Review -- not even Professor Patti, she who gushes over all things to do with the Harvard Law Review.
But back to food which had a very prominent place in Ralph's life.
Which is why it shouldn't be surprising that Team Nader launched an event (July 23rd) where you can win dinner with Ralph. Who wins? "The person who brings in the most e-mail sign-ups by August 7 at midnight to votenader.org wins." It's already proven so popular that they've added to it: if you recruit five people to sign up, you can "take part in an invitation-only conference call with Ralph and Matt [Gonzales, Ralph's running mate]" and if you recruit 20 people to sign up, you can get a Nader-Gonzalez t-shirt.
Today the Nader-Gonzalez '08 campaign has events in California:
Sun. August 3rd, 1:30pm
Nader for President 2008 Rally w/ Matt Gonzalez
Sebastopol, CA
Sebastopol Community Center
390 Morris St.,
Sebastopol, CA 95472
Contribution $10/$5 student
(415) 897-6989 or events@votenader.org
Map it
Sun Aug. 3rd, 4:30pm
Ralph Nader Book Signing and Speech w/ Matt Gonzalez
Healdsburg, CA
Copperfield's books
104 Matheson St.,
Healdsburg, CA
95448 (707) 235-1026 or events@votenader.org
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Sun Aug. 3rd, 7:30pm
Nader for President 2008 Rally w/ Matt Gonzalez
Kentfield, CA (Marin)
College of Marin- Olney Hall
835 College Ave.,
Kentfield, CA
Contribution $10/$5 students
(415) 897-6989 or events@votenader.org
Map it
