The New York Times actually gave Howard Dean space on their editorial page to try to persuade Nader supporters not to vote for him.

Many Democrats also admire Ralph Nader's achievements, as I do. But if they truly want George Bush out of the White House, they won't vote for Ralph Nader in November.

Is this pathetic, or what?

First of all, who the hell is actually going to listen to Dean anymore anyway? Especially when he spouts stupid crap like:

But I don't believe that the best way to do justice to Ralph Nader's legacy is to vote for him for president.

Got that? The best way to support someone's policies is to vote against them. Note the term "legacy". He wants to keep Nader in the past tense.

Voting for Ralph Nader, or for any third-party candidate for president, means a vote for a candidate who has no realistic shot of winning the White House.

Well why the hell do you vote in the first place? Everyone has to answer this question for themselves, but it's probably the most important question you'll ever ask yourself as the citizen of a democracy.

Do you cast your vote in a strategic way, or do you vote for the person who most represents you and your views, and who you think is best for the job?

I've said this before...I think Nader's an ultra left-wing crank, but I envy those people who support him. They've got a political candidate who they believe really represents what they believe in.

If there were a third-party candidate who was aligned with the majority of my views (on Iraq, terrorism, economic policy, social issues, etc.), I'd vote for them in a heartbeat. Even if they didn't have a snowball's chance of winning in November. Hell, especially if they didn't have a chance.

Because when you step into that dorky plastic booth, it's not some bullshit little parlor game. It's your chance to be heard. It's the time in your life as a citizen that you actually wield any kind of political power. And if all we ever do is choose one of the two big franchises because they're the only ones likely to ever win...then we deserve the barren, monopolized political landscape, because we're the ones to blame for it.

So if you're Libertarian, vote Libertarian. If you're Green, vote Green. And if you like Nader, vote for him.

And tell Dean to cram it up his ass.