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The Majesty of the Law Needs Magisterial Lawyers

June 18, 2013
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Remarks by Ralph Nader on the occasion of receiving the Connecticut Bar Association Distinguished Public Service Award Hartford, Connecticut, June 17, 2013 Today, we gather as both attorneys and lawyers to contemplate our privileged profession. The many specialized workshops today are largely designed to better our role as “attorneys” – as attorning for our clients.…

Obama: Sweat the Small Stuff for Big Justice

June 12, 2013
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By Ralph Nader The imaginative uses of the mighty presidency in American history and its bully pulpit have rarely been much above amateurish when it comes to helping people empower themselves. This has been the case even when the same party controls the White House and both Houses of Congress. Consider the last opportunities when…

Nader “Told Us So” about the Problems with the San Onofre Nuke Plant

June 7, 2013
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Nader “Told Us So” about the Problems with the San Onofre Nuke Plant  Friday, June 7, 2013  Southern California Edison announced today that it will be permanently shutting down its troubled San Onofre nuclear plant. Ralph Nader’s response was “It’s about time.”  Nader has been pushing to close this and other risky and costly nuclear…

Let the People Know – Put Full Texts of Government Contracts Online

June 6, 2013
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Openness in our government is essential for a healthy democracy. When citizens and voters have access to information about the inner workings of their government and representatives, they can cast informed votes. However, when this information remains in the shadows, citizens are left without access to the information necessary for them to properly exercise their…

Told You So: The Big Book of Weekly Columns

May 30, 2013
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Signed copies of my new book: Told You So: The Big Book of Weekly Columns, are now available at Politics & Prose. Combating corporate abuses requires constant vigilance. Corporations shape America’s political process as much as they shape America’s economy through PAC contributions and threats to move manufacturing and service jobs to low-wage countries. The columns…

It’s time to raise the minimum wage!

May 30, 2013
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For more information on the campaign to raise the minimum wage visit: timeforaraise.org The current federal minimum wage is $7.25, way below the unrealistically low federal poverty definition of $18,123 per year for a family of three. Adjusted for inflation, the minimum wage in 1968 would be above $10.50 per hour. An increase in the minimum wage…

To Kerry: Get Israeli Peace Leaders Before Congress

May 30, 2013
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By Ralph Nader The new Secretary of State John Kerry taking four trips to the Israeli/Palestinian region in the past two months means yet another U.S. effort for a negotiated peace process between the Palestinians (under ruthless occupation) and the very dominant Israelis. Why should the prospects be any better than the failed attempts by…

Nader says Fannie and Freddie Stockholders Stuck in Financial Limbo

May 23, 2013
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GSE’s Shareholders Should be Allowed to Benefit From Fannie and Freddie’s Recovery Just as AIG and Citi Stockholders Benefited In a letter today to the Secretary of the Treasury, Jacob J. Lew, Mr. Nader urged Secretary Lew to consider the plight of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s common shareholders. In the letter, Mr. Nader wrote…

More Exposés, Less Action

May 22, 2013
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By Ralph Nader There must be reasons why people are weary of the flood of excellent documentary films, books and articles showing us what the corporate state – that is, the fusion of big business and government to constantly serve the former against the peoples’ interest – is doing to our beloved country. We are…

Patriotic Yardsticks for Unpatriotic Giant Corporations

May 16, 2013
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Why are big, global U.S. corporations so unpatriotic? After all, they were created in the U.S.A., rose to immense profit because of the toil of American workers, are bailed out by American taxpayers whenever they’re in trouble, and are safeguarded abroad by the U.S. military. Yet these corporate goliaths work their tax lawyers overtime to…