>It seems to me it was no fluke that the left was completely
>marginalized under the Reagan-Bush years and only re-surfaced under
>Clinton. Therefore the best of all possible outcomes for the left is a
>very thin Gore victory, with Nader at his magic 5%.
"Completely marginalized"? I don't think so. As Chomsky is fond to point out, it was the citizen resistance to Reagan's early attempts at direct intervention in Central America (remember the "White Paper" fiasco?) that drove that administration underground, and thus led to Iran/Contra. I was quite active at that time, and I remember plenty of meetings and mobilizations and direct actions -- not only in response to the wars in Salvador and Nicaragua, but also to apartheid in South Africa and occupation in Palestine.
Under Clinton, however, serious resistance was indeed marginalized, partly because the mainstream liberal groups -- the ones squawking about Nader -- pulled back, lest their perceived access to The Great One be compromised. It's been the student groups, among others, that relit much of the resistance we see today, from globalization to sweat shops to corporate rule. But the liberal groups have, by and large, been silent as Clinton/Gore dismantled programs that the libs supposedly held dear (Wellstone is an exception in the Senate). If Gore wins, will Jackson, Steinem, Ireland, and the rest suddenly call for scrutiny of the new admin? Based on the past 8 years, I rather doubt it.
>If we have to face Bush, it will get ugly in a hurry. Bush is a little
>like Nixon: petty, mean spirited, and probably paranoid. You can bet,
>the very first thing he and his right will do is pronounce Nader
>the anti-christ, and proceed to conclude that Amerika has handed them
>a mandate for a long list of repressions against the devil's minions.
Well, if you honestly believe this, I suggest you leave the country should Bush win. The rest of us will take up the slack, such as it is. I think Clinton has been far worse for civil liberties than was Nixon; but this flies in the face of lib fears and mythology, and so has no currency. Alas.
DP