Rewarding conscience with nightmare
I have been a subsciber to The Witness for several years now and I must say that I don't think I've ever encountered a magazine that more accurately reflected my progressive/ inclusive views on Christianity, spirituality, and social activism, and I thank you all for bringing that to me on a monthly basis.

I would like to comment on the recent U.S. presidential election because it ties in with the theme of the November 2000 issue ('Resisting Politics as Usual'). During the course of the campaign, Green party candidate Ralph Nader frequently sounded off on the assertion that there was no real difference between Democrat Al Gore and Republican George W. Bush. I couldn't disagree more. Although I concede that the Democrats and Republicans are, in fact, on the same page regarding a number of issues such as the death penalty, military spending, and world trade, I would say that there are vast differences on many other critical issues, such as environmental protection, support of organized labor and public schools, tax policy, and civil rights, issues that the Vice President clearly held views on that better reflected the public interest.

I read somewhere that Nader remarked that a victory by George W. Bush would be a "cold shower" for the Democrats. I am annoyed, however, that that "cold shower" will probably unleash a concerted effort on the part of the Republican majority to deconstruct the gains made in the area of environmental protection, including the Clinton administration's initiative to preserve the remaining 60 million acres of unspoiled wilderness in our National Forests. I am also saddened by the prospect of having a Supreme Court that, with two or three additional Bush appointees, will be much more likely to favor the interests of the wealthy over the powerless. It also upsets me that the fruits of fiscal discipline could be outrageously squandered on a Bush tax cut proposal for people who don't need a tax cut, rather than being spent on debt reduction, education initiatives, and on a first step toward universal health care.

I have no problem at all with the Green Party. I am a member of The Sierra Club who has supported environmental action groups, both nationally and locally. I have two boys, ages three and one, and I can tell you that having a President who thinks that NOTHING should be done about global warming is downright frightening. The problem, it seems to me, is that we are operating under such a poorly designed electoral system that rewards people who vote their conscience with their worst nightmare. I think that the instant runoff voting method that is currently being used in a few countries, and is under consideration by several states for future use is a good first step, along with a long overdue examination of the relevancy of the electoral college.

Ralph Nader should have understood what the consequences of his role as "spoiler" were going to be. For those of us who care deeply about social justice issues and the environment, it's going to be a cold winter.

Paul Winters
Framingham, MA

Thanks for the photos!
Ed. note: In the final moments of production of our January/February 2001 issue we neglected to include a credit for the historic photos that accompanied our piece on "Lawsuits and the loss of a culture," which dealt with the Anglican Church of Canada and the lawsuits it faces over its treatment of native children in church-run residential schools. Those photos, from the Anglican Church of Canada Archives, were provided to us by Steve Brickenden of the Anglican Journal. We appreciate his help.