Letter: Restore respect, prosperity, peace in Nov. 2 election

Friday, April 9, 2004 | 9:14 a.m.

Ralph Nader richly deserves the admiration and respect of all informed Americans. His entire adult life has been dedicated to peace, diplomacy and the health, safety and well being of the American people and our environment.

A time may come when a candidate possessing total integrity such as Mr. Nader has a ghost of a chance to be elected as our president. However, with the November election very possibly the most crucial in American history, this is certainly not the year to indulge in futile voting, wishful thinking and vain hopes.

Our country is in chaos and its future is in dire jeopardy. We all know that President Clinton's eight years of superior leadership provided a huge surplus, which was immediately squandered by the appointed, devious Bush administration on tax cuts (payoffs) to corporations and the other wealthiest major contributors to the Republican Party. And the so-called Patriot Act guarantees even further loss of our constitutional liberties.

Even much worse is the continuing maiming and loss of lives of our courageous military members and innocent civilians in the Bush "all about oil and personal revenge" invasion of Iraq, a country having nothing to do with Sept. 11.

And the alienation of our most important former allies by Bush's insults and total lack of diplomacy must be corrected as soon as possible.

Other than the immediate and well-deserved impeachment of the entire un-elected Bush administration, both liberal and conservative patriotic Americans can only restore our former peace, prosperity, freedoms and respect to our country by voting for the Democratic candidate on Nov. 2. It is the only viable solution.

RUTH DIMAGGIO