| THE GOOD FIGHT: Declare Your Independence & Close the Democracy Gap Ralph Nader New York: ReganBooks, 2004 |
Rating: 4.5 High |
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| ISBN-13 978-0-06-075604-8 | ||||
| ISBN 0-06-075604-7 | 294p. | HC | $25.95 | |
As I write this review in late October 2004, another American presidential election draws to a close. The leading contenders are: Republican George Bush, Democrat John Kerry, and (a distant third) independent candidate Ralph Nader. After three debates which everyone but the Republican Party agrees Kerry won, Bush is ahead in the polls. I'll have more to say about this state of affairs in an essay linked below.
I learned early about Ralph Nader, because my mother drove a Chevrolet Corvair. That was the car whose defects Nader exposed in his 1965 book Unsafe at Any Speed. This made Detroit worry. His image at the time was one of a noble crusader upholding the right of American consumers to purchase products free of hidden, life-threatening defects — especially after General Motors executives hired a private detective to dig up some dirt on Nader so they could discredit him in a classic ad hominem attack. (This tactic fell flat; there was no dirt to dig up.) Since that time, Nader has never faltered or broken faith in speaking out for workers' rights to fair wages for honest work and for consumers' rights to safe and effective products, from cars to cold remedies.1
This book bolsters his reputation as a consumer advocate. In its 14 chapters, Nader sets forth a litany of abuses by corporate executives: producing shoddy products, misleading investors, ignoring workers' exposure to toxic chemicals and other risks, evading taxes, busting unions, disenfranchising shareholders, plundering employees' pension plans (but not their own), and polluting the environment. These actions are not the practice at many, perhaps most corporations; but they are still too common, for the corporations where they do occur are punished lightly, if at all. This happens because — in true revolving-door fashion — industry executives are allowed to take offices in regulatory agencies. Along with massive political contributions from regulated industries, this has the effect of weakening the laws and policies designed to punish the corporate malfeasance Nader describes.
The book is well worth reading, for the things Nader describes have become endemic in American corporate culture. While its main text is not specifically relevant to the upcoming elections, an Appendix entitled The Conscious Voter most definitely is relevant. Its three pages include an account of how Connecticut voters were hoodwinked by a smiling John Rowland, in spite of the fact that his opponent William Curry had made Rowland's corruption well known during the campaign. Rowland was exposed and punished — but only after he won the governorship. The Rowland case illustrates how inattentive voters are vulnerable to candidates with style but no substance. This warning applied to the presidential election of 2000 — and it also applies to the one coming up.
The Good Fight is well researched and, in general, well written. An extensive bibliography lists 149 books, nine Web sites, and 14 periodical publications. A detailed index is also provided. The book does have defects. Some of its assertions are not well-supported. Also, it contains a few confusing sentences and a double handful of errors of various kinds. The indexing is not as thorough as it might be. These errors are listed as usual on the Errata page linked below. I recommend it, though not with my highest rating.
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