Elections

Ding, ding, ding!
In this corner, we have Ralph Nader: Consumer rights activist (seatbelts, anyone?) and controversial figure in the 2000 election.

And in the opposite corner, this year's Internet man of the hour, Ron Paul: Congressman from Texas, running on the Republican primary ticket, whose libertarian, anti-Iraq war views have spurred $6M in donations this week alone.

Both lightening-rod figures in recent political discourse, and both reaping the benefits of the web.

Round 1.
Picture if you will, the year 2000: A time before Al Gore had an Oscar to his name and Faith Hill's 'Breathe' was number one on the pop charts. A well-known crusader for consumer rights, Ralph Nader ran as an alternative to Bush and Gore, mobilizing a set of voters who were fed up with the traditional two-party system. But as Independent Lens finds out in its latest feature, An Unreasonable Man, Nader's run prompted one of the stickiest debates of this generation: was he a Crusader or a Spoiler?more

If you watched the Republican debate from Iowa Public TV yesterday afternoon, you may have noticed a candidate who hasn't been so visible in the campaign so far. Gesturing wildly and arguing with the moderator (Des Moines Register editor Carolyn Washburn), former ambassador Alan Keyes added some energy to an otherwise pretty flat conversation, but how did he make the cut for participating?

It's simple really. According to the Des Moines Register, only candidates polling over 1% were invited to participate, and in addition they must have declared their candidacy in Iowa and have an office in the state as of Oct.1. Lucky for Alan Keyes, he fit the bill, but you won't be seeing some of the more familiar faces on the Democratic side this afternoon - both Dennis Kucinich and Mike Gravel will be excluded from the debate.more