ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, August 27, 1996 TAG: 9608270139
SECTION: WELCOME STUDENTS PAGE: 71 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
TYPE: COMMENTARY
SOURCE: RYAN NISSIM-SABAT SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES
Although this year's election will give most students their first opportunity to vote in a presidential election, many have already been turned off by the antiquated two-party system.
As a group, we students are relatively uninterested in participating in this so- called democratic process primarily controlled by the interests of the wealthy. The system is too bureaucratic for ordinary people to understand.
It appears as though our choices are unfortunately limited to two contenders capable of capturing the necessary electoral votes for victory: Bill Clinton and Bob Dole.
Of course, we have the movement of Ross Perot and his Reform Party, and the emergence of Ralph Nader on the Green Party ticket, but the chances of victory coming from a third party are similar to the chances of getting some food for a reasonable price at Owens Food Court.
I am not going to waste your time with a description of the issues that seem to be relevant in this upcoming election.
Analyzing the complexities of abortion, health care, welfare reform, the death penalty, etc., won't solve the simple problem that I have this year. I feel as if I am left with two candidates who are supported by the interests of corporate greed. My only option is to vote for the choice that will hurt the least.
But does my problem go away with the simplistic approach to voting for the lesser of two evils? I've voted for Democrats in previous elections, and as time marches on, I've become convinced that my vote has just endorsed the politics of old. My vote has recently been in opposition to one candidate's ideas, rather than in support of the other's perspective.
Is voting about making sure a person we really don't like doesn't get in, or is it about electing a representative to carry our views and concerns to a level in which honest public policy can be created?
Dole vs. Clinton - is this our only choice? Does this exhibit our inability to change the direction of the national political discussion? I would like to be optimistic and think that this change will come through our recognition of the power that we have as the youth of this country.
As students with so many different perspectives of life, we have the creativity and ability to push civic awareness in new directions. Consistent with Nader's views that our system was not designed by our forebears to be a government "of the Exxons, by the General Motors, for the DuPonts," we need to turn our political discussion around and deal with the central issue of corporate power - over government, over our economy, over our media, over our colleges and over our culture.
As youth, do we want our future deafened by wealth and power consolidated in a few hands? We must begin to define the important issues as we establish our political, economical and cultural atmosphere. I wonder how far we as students and youths are willing to go to have our voices heard?
Corporations have molded our political system into a machine that disregards the needs of humanity while allowing them to increase their profits.
We just passed welfare legislation that will plunge 1.1 million children into poverty while simultaneously increasing corporate subsidies supposedly to create more jobs. Nader points out that corporate welfare - subsidies, giveaways, loan guarantees, bailout programs - are at least double what the government spends on poverty programs.
You need money to win the presidency, and campaigns are largely financed through the greed of these corporations.
I will vote this November, but I will not vote for the lesser of two evils and support a structure with which I fundamentally disagree.
My efforts will go beyond this November's election in hopes of building a progressive political movement for the future that is not only influenced by the pockets of those with the money.
I urge you to join me and create discussions in hopes of redefining future elections. The process of learning about the injustices in our society will evolve as we develop a balance between discussion and action.
Ryan Nissim-Sabat, 21, is a senior from Fredericksburg majoring in political science, with a concentration in women's and black studies. His father, a psychology professor at Mary Washington College, knew his son was headed for a life of political activism in seventh grade, when he had to pick a debate topic. He chose the death penalty. Nissim-Sabat is applying for the board of Amnesty International USA because "I'm just upset there's no student voice on the board."
LENGTH: Medium: 85 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: (headshot_ Nissim-Sabat.by CNB