Ralph--the teabaggers in general are way too simple-minded to begin to comprehend your questions, much less the irony.

Fact is, tho easily overlooked, that, until recently, we have lived everywhere under lawlessness; i.e., under diktats imposed on us by clerico-noble subclass of people.
In ancient times they owned all the land and all of the people.
In modern times, they own all of the people and most land, but also every warship, tank, wmd, cia agent, fighter jet, money, media, schooling. tnx, more cld be said

Ralph Nader is, as usual, right on.

The problem is, Tea Partiers don't understand much beyond a sentence with about 8 words in it. And words like "plutocracy" is a signal for them to stop reading.
Tea Partiers seem incapable of basic critical thinking.

There really is no reasoning with any person who has no critical thinking skills.
The only way they get it is when they get confronted in some very physical way that brutally and unambiguously contradicts their existing belief system.

Like when a republican's house in New Orleans is eight feet under water and they hear George Bush tell the head of FEMA he's doing a "heck of a job".
And even then, they'd find a way to reinforce what they already believe.

The person incapable of critical thinking sees and hears only what he believes, unfortunately.
So, Ralph Nader, right on as he is, is heard only by the already converted.
But thanks, anyway. I needed to hear it. And maybe that is all Ralph was hoping for.
Liam

I think he should have preficed this with" all answers must come from the constitution". No federalist papers, no use of court rulings.

Let's quit trying to apply logic to the Tea Party. Like the Alice in Wonderland version of the Tea Party, little makes sense. Be they Mad Hatters from mercury poising from hat making, Fox news, or Glen beck, their minds are immune to logic.

Things aren't they way they like, and someone must be to blame. (I must say they have that part right.) The trick would be to administer the proper sound-bites to turn their ire to more appropriate objects.

Why don't the Dims run focus groups with these people and see what would do the trick?
Yes, I know the argument that the Dims and Repulsives are the same, but if that's so why can the Repubs come up with sound bites that speak to this segment of the population?

If every news source portrays Ralph as a kook and an oddball than that's what people will believe. If these same people would give him the time of day and listen to what he has to say, he'd be as popular as he was in the 70's.

Give Ralph A Chance!

I don't think Nader's a kook or an oddball; I don't think he intended to do harm in 2000. My best friend voted for him in that election. But I still think that if he hadn't run then there wouldn't have been a chance for the "close call" of Gore v Bush to have occurred. Of course, the ultimate blame lies with the Supreme Court; but for allowing that situation to arise in the first place, Nader still bears some of the blame.

Will the Tea Partiers favor a PipeLine in
Afghanistan?

When compulsory mass schooling was introduced to train an obedient and docile workforce the ruling class promised themselves that the schooling would not foster critical and analytical thinking.

They have kept that promise to themselves.

Nader is yet again indulging in his habit of "Have you stopped beating your wife?" questions. Many of the Tea Party folks are demanding just the sort of reforms Ralph paints them as opposing, such as an end to gov't bailouts of corporations, easing of the parties' hold on primary rules, and a complete overhaul of tax laws and structures.

On the other hand, they do rail against nanny-state regulation over every aspect of human life and living, unreasonable constraints on war-fighting during times of active conflict, and nearly none of them have the same hatred of the concept of corporation as Ralph does.

My take is that if you ask 10 TP'ers 10 questions, you'll get 100 different sets of answers.

A common Teabagger statement:
Keep the Government out of my Veteran's Benefits and Medicare!!!!!!

How can one reason with such absurd reasoning - or lack thereof?

What we are dealing with here people are belief systems, some of which are in conflict with overwhelming evidence to the contrary. Asking them questions only causes the bitter calluses of their beliefs to harden up more.

The only way to overcome such belief systems is by deprogramming.

Unfortunately, its spreading like an epidemic. The Tea Part Movement is an incurable disease.

Answers(If any of you liberal fools are interested)
1.Cut deficits by decreasing ALL spending; military is fair game along with all entitlements
2.I do condemn corporate bailouts
3.No problem: Support tax breaks for American producers of durable goods: more manufacturing here
4.I support a crackdown of ALL crime: street AND corporate
5.No one is invading my home, why not find terrorists faster?
6.Bullshit! I am a 20 year surgeon with an excellent record, my premiums are 53,000 per year. Something better be done about it.
7.I pay my bills on time. There is no credit issue
8.Dictatorship? I see many non-politicians winning elections. Stay tuned for more
9.The INDIVIDUAL must be protected from an overbearing government AND an abusive corporation
10.Taxes add costs to everything, whether through the corporation or after the fact. Spend LESS, tax LESS. Duh.

Why does Nader think we wouldn't want to answer these questions?

‎1. I can press for reductions in fraud and waste, and by that process reduce military budgets, but I will not be sidetracked from the fact that between three fourths and four fifths of federal expenditures are for things the Constitution does not authorize and that for that reason are illegal, no matter what the Supreme Court says.

2. No I can't and I do wholeheartedly condemn both the bailouts and corporate welfare.

3. I reject any provision of any treaty that would, if enacted, effectively cede Constitutional protections against the powers of our, or any other, governmental body except that the Constitution be specifically amended as provided for in Article V to permit it.

4.A "bigger and faster crackdown" is not necessary when the government ceases to use law as a means of obfuscating markets and playing favorites among businesses to reward political supporters. The problem starts with government creating law so labyrinthine that no one can really know that it means. Simplify the law. Define markets clearly, and enforce the simple law vigorously.

5. At some point we must trust our executive branch with powers intended to protect the whole nation. Even with the Obama administration I extend that trust. When the executive branch calls upon businesses to engage in assisting with lawful surveillance those businesses should know they will not be retroactively prosecuted for their cooperation as they would be were the nation to be taken over by a totalitarian regime.

6. I can be and am against the current regime of terror in tort law. I want a "loser pays" provision that makes frivolous abuse of civil courts very very expensive. Where someone has a real case this should not stand in the way of their day in court.

7. As to "fine print" contracts, that falls under the simplification of markets provision I stated above. I much, much prefer having private services keep watch over my credit, where abuses can be checked by jealously picayune government watchdogs than having the government itself take over such services where watchdogs dare not tread and every decision is made with an eye to how important I am or whom I support politically.

8. Yes. The fact that we have a two-party system is a feature of the fact that, unlike parliamentary systems where the populus chooses among myriad parties defined by petty differences and leaves the "big" questions to the "professionals" in the U.S. the ordinary voter chooses people based on how they perceive they will vote on things like the budget and who will be on the Supreme Court. The American voter is thinking really serious thoughts (or should be) and they tend, therefore, to choose among people who appear to be serious themselves. That is what really makes it hard to create a new party. The party most likely to die and make a new party possible? Surprise! The Republican Party.

9. I do think Congress should have to declare wars. Nader's question about corporations is superfluous. The Constitution says nothing about corporations because the chartering of corporations was then and still is a function of the STATES, as is the regulation of corporations. The Constitution enumerates no power for the federal government in this regard. I reject the sort of powers invented in the Kelo V. New London decision to grant eminent domain to corporations. Such powers were never meant to apply to any entity but government itself.

10. Taxation of corporations is a means of hiding the cost of taxes in the costs of goods and services. Politicians can claim to reduce taxes on the people in a bald-faced lie while the most crucial things purchased even by the poorest members of society cost upwards of a third more than they should just to play a shell game with the true cost of government. The only good tax is the tax people actually see and feel, so they can really assess the burden government places on society.

Ralph,

I am one of your supporters, but your focus here is off the mark.

These ten questions should be asked of the democrats and the republicans (Tea Party included).

Please re-read these questions as if they were put to the democrats and then you can see more clearly why you are asking them to begin with.

Thanks for all of your great work.

"Military spending NOW takes up half of the federal government’s operating budgets."

Ralph, is your memory failing you? DoD spending has been at least half of expenditures since 1980 maybe even since LBJ. I can't remember many aspects of the government's budget prior to 1980.

And I doubt the teabaggers would be interested in answering your questions. Being introspective and reasonable are not their strong suits. To me they resemble the white citizens councils topped with a heavy dose of imperialism.

Party discipline can be maintained over centuries; over an organization or movement for a few days, or until destroyers or cripplers of them arrive.
Greens are not a party but a movement. As such, it is allowed to exist. It hasn't been thus far destroyed.

Greens appear to comprise mostly middle and upper income people and other micmacs. Unions seem not support it; nor house people.

I suggest nader starts a party. I also wish he run for congress and not presidency. As a prez, he'd be dead, deposed, exiled within days or weaks of his presidency!
I do admire the man; yet i am an egalitarian;i.e each human being earning just by birth equl respect and equal pay for equal needs.

Remember please, that there is no extras after u are borne. Chasing for extras on which mismission u are being sent, appears the greatest delusion ever. tnx for ur black, white, yellow, and olive ear!

When it comes to the tea party, it seems that there are an abundance of walruses.

(Mr. Lennon said later in life he had originally misread the story, leading him to write "I am the Walrus", which he later recanted with the line "The Walrus was Paul" in "How do you sleep at night.")

Socialism is often conflated with the sadly neglected concept of "The Common Good". In a civilized, enlightened and humane society, the idea of common bonds and concerns ought to be at the forefront of all "politicized" debate, but isn't found in the scramble for wealth and power that defines the political process in this so-called "democracy". The argumentative, chest-thumping "debate", the dismissive, name-calling rants become, in the end, tiresome. If the Common Good can be dismissed as some sort of naive, utopian vision, then our civilization is nowhere near as "civilized as it likes to imagine.

Thanks, Ralph, for posing some important questions for ALL of us.

Here is what the right wing/Tea Party types have never been able to figure out. We will have either one of two things in this country. We will have:

A. A functioning, thriving society and culture; where our children receive good educations, where crime is relatively low, and the infrastructure is healthy and perpetually growing.

Or we will have....

B. A country where the people who receive most of the country's economic treasure do not pay their fair share in taxes.

We will not - we cannot - have both.

This isn't rocket science, folks. It's called Economics 101.

http://www.tomdegan.blogspot.com

Tom Degan
Goshen, NY

Cicero: "Freedom is participation in power."

I love Nader. He's my favorite living hero. Once he's gone there will be nothing in this dying imperial cluster-fuck we call Amurka that will ever come close to the moral clarity and technocratic competence he embodies with respect to good governance. America needed him desperately, but it hasn't deserved him for decades.

I'll be happy to answer those questions.

1. the ONLY reason our Founding Fathers saw the necessary evil for government was for the defense of our country. Govt. is so massive right now, no one can audit or watch whose ripping it off, or how. Not to mention politicians in bed with those contractors and getting paid whether in campaign finance, or some way from those contractors. YES! We want to stop undeclared war. (That includes places like Serbia, Mogidishu, Darfur, etc.)

2. Corporate Welfare-GATT Nafta, and so on. I believe that we should have IMPORT taxes again-you import, whether you're a US company, or foreign company, you pay import taxes. PERIOD. As well as FLAT TAXES. IF you vote, you should also be a taxpayer. If you don't pay taxes, you don't need to vote, as you're voting yourself a place at the taxpayer feeding trough, of which you have nothing invested and nothing to lose.

3. Right now there are houses being ripped out of homeowners hands that 'LEGALLY' should be theirs, because the banks didn't follow the law with the paperwork. Selling the loans without transferring them on paper, by LAW, those homes belong to the people paying on them, not the banks. (What would happen to you if you sold a car to someone for $3500 and they paid you $50 and you signed your title over to them without the balance. No judge is going to rule that they owe you, they'll tell you that you were stupid, but the care belongs to them now. Same with these homes.)

NO BAILOUTS for banks, Fannie, Freddie, or any other company.

NO to the Federal Reserve. We've only had major financial depressions in this country SINCE the federal reserve has been created, or the same TYPE of bank. The Founding Fathers did NOT want a federal reserve....our economy for the last 3 yrs. is WHY.

ABSOLUTELY repeal the Patriot Act. As well as get a grip on illegal immigration, and airport security. I will not fly if I have to be touched, or walk thru a scanner showing my naked body.

Medical Malpractice-if that's what you want, fine....just stop BITCHING about the 'high cost of medical care'. YOU are going to pay for that medical malpractive at EVERY doctor's office. no cap. unlimited lawsuits. Just shut up about having such high doctor bills. So....you don't want any more drugs or medical breakthroughs? Fine. We'll stop the research NOW, live with what we have. The problem with drugs and treatments are that even IF they work fine in the experimentation, eventually humans will HAVE to try them, and they will affect each human being differently. What is MY medical miracle drug can kill the next person. But, hey, no new drugs, how's that for you? IF ANY drugs on the market have ANY side effects beyond a mild headache, how about we get rid of them? Just let everyone die off or die in pain? Is that ok? Is that what you want? Because you do not know how good a drug IS until it's been out there for a while used by thousands or millions of people.

I am absolutely for prison for white collar crime. No difference in status, and that includes Barney Frank, Chris Dodd and Raines for their criminal behavior and hiding the economic devastation coming at us when they swore Fannie and Freddie were just 'fine', doing 'great' back in '04. No special country club prisons for them or any other corporate criminal. State or Federal prison just like any other con artist. EQUAL JUSTICE FOR ALL.

HOWEVER...if a corporation makes 20 million overseas, and they are based in the US, that income is considered US income, not foreign, and not taxed out of the sky. WHY? Because they keep that money over there, they won't bring it here. It's in foreign economies, not ours.

I am a tea partier. But, I would also like to see some PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY. If a company poisons or sickens people here in the US, they should be boycotted. Not only fined and shut down, but boycotted by Americans. Keep a list of these companies and the people in charge. If you don't like foreign products, don't buy them. Buy American. there are websites to go to that tell you what products and where and how to get them, and most are the same price or cheaper than foreign made.

Our country is FOR THE PEOPLE, BY THE PEOPLE. NOT to serve governments OR corporations. BUT TO ALLOW the freedom of businesses to grow and people to start and run their businesses. IF they hurt someone, and that includes INDIVIDUALS, not just businesses and corporations, then they pay to those they hurt, NOT to the govt.

I haven't seen so many strawman arguments since a marathon showing of the Wizard of Oz. Who says the Tea Party participants don't hold these views?

It is also very amusing to hear a child of the 60s (Nader) attack those who are anti-establishment. Seems a bit ironic to me.

And finally, to hear the commenters here grouse about "closed minded" tea partiers, while at the same time towing the straight liberal line is just icing on the irony cake.

Workers of the World Unite! (haha)