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Ralph Nader
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Ralph Nader is a consumer advocate, lawyer, and author.

He was born in Winsted, Connecticut on February 27, 1934.

In 1955 Ralph Nader received an AB magna cum laude from Princeton University, and in 1958 he received a LLB with distinction from Harvard University.

His career began as a lawyer in Hartford, Connecticut in 1959 and from 1961-63 he lectured on history and government at the University of Hartford.

In 1965-66 he received the Nieman Fellows award and was named one of ten Outstanding Young Men of Year by the U.S. Junior Chamber of Commerce in 1967. Between 1967-68 he returned to Princeton as a lecturer, and he continues to speak at colleges and universities across the United States.

In his career as consumer advocate he founded many organizations including the Center for Study of Responsive Law, the Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), the Center for Auto Safety, Public Citizen, Clean Water Action Project, the Disability Rights Center, the Pension Rights Center, the Project for Corporate Responsibility and The Multinational Monitor(a monthly magazine).

Entries by Ralph Nader

Society's Decay Rewards Wrongdoers

(324) Comments | Posted June 11, 2013 | 3:40 PM

Told you so.

Some might deem it celebratory to utter this phrase, as if one is boasting about their own clever foresight. But when it comes to serious matters -- matters that affect millions of people, their jobs, their health, and their livelihoods, there is no satisfaction...

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Reining in the Corporation

(129) Comments | Posted May 31, 2013 | 12:19 PM

"We don't use tax gimmicks" said Apple CEO Tim Cook this past Tuesday during a speech at a tech conference. This statement came just one week after congressional investigators released a report that documented how Apple, using a vast array of offshore subsidiaries, avoided paying their share in taxes to...

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Legalize Hemp -- It's Long Overdue

(116) Comments | Posted May 20, 2013 | 12:50 PM

A bipartisan legislative movement toward legalizing the growing of industrial hemp is finally on the rise. Last week, the Vermont General Assembly voted to lift a state statute that banned the growing of industrial hemp. While this, if enacted, would allow Vermont farmers to grow hemp under state law, it...

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Seeking Sustainability

(154) Comments | Posted May 10, 2013 | 2:07 PM

"Sustainability," the late Ray Anderson--founder and chairman of Interface Inc. --once told theNew York Times, "doesn't cost, it pays." After his "conversion experience" on the harmful effects his modular carpet business had on the environment, Anderson redirected his corporate philosophy to focus on the noble goal of absolute sustainability. Through...

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The Plight of the Postal Service

(304) Comments | Posted May 3, 2013 | 11:36 AM

The United States Postal Service is in a freefall due to poor management, a starkly shortsighted, paralyzed Congressional leadership, and the steady march of right wing ideologues. Corporate competitors who advance corporatization have severely eroded the historic institution created by Benjamin Franklin; one that currently delivers over 150 billion pieces...

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Boston, Texas and Corporate Criminal Justice

(276) Comments | Posted April 25, 2013 | 11:08 AM

The Boston Marathon bombings killed three and injured more than 180. The West, Texas industrial explosion killed at least 14 and injured more than 180. Guess which one drew the greater media and law enforcement response?

If it turns out that the West, Texas explosion is the result of a...

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Time for a Sales Tax on Wall Street Financial Transactions

(361) Comments | Posted April 18, 2013 | 11:13 AM

Here are some questions to consider: What do the Wall Street firms do that is so vital for the national interest? How does speculation contribute to our society? It's time for Wall Street to step up and provide some answers.

The reckless actions of Wall Street institutions led to...

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The Regulatory Nullification and the Cruelty of Big Business

(331) Comments | Posted April 5, 2013 | 4:59 PM

It's time to start paying close attention to the mechanisms of the deregulation machine. For the past 30 years, the business lobbies have pushed Congress and the executive branch to disassemble the regulatory system that has protected us from the worst excesses of Wall Street and Big Business. The catastrophic...

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Enlist the Enlightened Super-Rich!

(114) Comments | Posted March 29, 2013 | 12:09 PM

You often hear progressives bemoaning the massive war chests of the right-wing funders, particularly after their successful backing of the boisterous Tea Party movement. But a common mistake made by the left is not adequately focusing on cultivating their own likeminded super-rich to provide the necessary resources to advance their...

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Getting Tough on Devastating Corporate Crime

(280) Comments | Posted March 22, 2013 | 3:38 PM

Politicians looking to bolster their appeal to voters like to talk about being "tough on crime." They think this creates a winning public image. And why wouldn't it? Anyone who has ever seen an old western knows that the bandits in the black hats are bad and the lawmen in...

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The Cruel Gap Between CEO Pay and the Stagnant Minimum Wage

(752) Comments | Posted March 13, 2013 | 2:15 PM

Walmart CEO Mike Duke makes approximately $11,000 an hour. Think about that -- $11,000 every hour. Think about an hour of your day, the tasks you accomplish, and the compensation you receive from your employer. If you are an average American worker, you could add up all your daily work...

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Corporate Science Obstructs Science for the People

(192) Comments | Posted March 5, 2013 | 10:31 AM

Recently, in response to an online petition with over 65,000 signatures, the White House announced that it intends to make some federally funded research findings published in pricey scientific journals available to the public free of charge one year after initial publication. "The logic behind enhanced public access is plain,"...

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How to Tame the Corporation

(213) Comments | Posted February 25, 2013 | 11:47 AM

In an interview in the August 20, 1916 edition of the New York Times titled "Why American Business is Constantly Pounded," James A. Emery, then general counsel for the National Council of Industrial Defense said: "Nothing can illustrate more clearly the characteristic operation of these local and peculiar prejudices than...

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President Obama -- Get Tough on Corporate Welfare

(130) Comments | Posted February 12, 2013 | 1:19 PM

Ask anti-government ideologues about "welfare" and they are likely to tell you all about an increasingly large group of Americans who are dependent on government handouts. They might refer to the portion of the population who Mitt Romney famously called "the 47 percent," those who consider themselves to be "victims"...

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Condemning the U.S. Postal Service's Move to End Saturday Delivery

(701) Comments | Posted February 6, 2013 | 2:59 PM

The U.S. Postal Service today continued its tradition, under the leadership of Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe, of shooting itself in the foot. The only question that remains is: When will the madness end? By ending Saturday letter delivery in August 2013, as the USPS has proposed, millions of customers who...

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The Rule of Law or the Rule of Men?

(107) Comments | Posted February 5, 2013 | 10:26 AM

Last week, the State Department reassigned the official responsible for the "diplomatic issues" pertaining to the closing of the Guantanamo Bay prison. This was a telling sign that the Obama administration is abandoning its long-held but little-fought-for promise of closing that notorious facility where a majority of prisoners proved to...

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The Power of Government Purchasing

(209) Comments | Posted January 25, 2013 | 12:43 PM

In America, the term "innovation" is often exclusively attributed to the profitable successes of private businesses -- specifically big corporations like Apple, Google and Microsoft -- which are considered by many to be the purveyors of all technological advancement. Recall Mitt Romney repeatedly shouting "government doesn't create jobs" during a...

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Banding Together

(88) Comments | Posted January 11, 2013 | 2:15 PM

Technology is advancing at a rapid pace. Smartphones, tablets, laptops, high-speed internet, high-definition screens, GPS devices, and other innovations have markedly changed the way many Americans spend their time. Think of all the tools and devices that have developed in the past decade alone that make it easier to find...

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Who Can Stop the People?

(118) Comments | Posted January 7, 2013 | 1:02 PM

If your next-door neighbors were the U.S. Congress, spending your income and using their power to influence your life, would you pay close attention to them?

Over the past several weeks, Congress has been the focal point of much controversy for its inability to come together on...

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Make Civic Engagement a Priority in the New Year

(38) Comments | Posted December 28, 2012 | 10:43 AM

Many people view the New Year as a time for resolutions -- losing weight, exercising more, staying in better touch with friends, taking up a new hobby. Here's something you don't often hear of when considering New Year's resolutions -- devoting more time to civic life. Our nation has millions...

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