The September 23 super rally for Green Party presidential candidate Ralph Nader will always leave a bad taste in my mouth. Neither Joe Szwaja nor Kara Ceriello, a write-in candidate for the 36th state legislative district, Position 1, currently held by long-time democratic incumbent Helen Sommers, got an opportunity to talk about either of their campaigns. This was even more damaging for No-Spray Zone activist Kara Ceriello, as the status of her write-in campaign to get on the November 7 general election ballot was still in limbo on the evening of September 23. Ceriello and Szwaja were instead pushed off the stage after they were forced into telling the audience to financially support the Nader campaign. They could have each spent five minutes explaining to the crowd how they differed from their Democratic rivals, but instead were forced off the stage for the purpose of saving time.

That didn't stop others who didn't need the stage at the Key Arena from getting their fifteen minutes. Jim Hightower got plenty of time to speak. Reverend Robert Jeffrey gave a rousing speech on ten reasons why we should vote Green on November 7 (This guy needs to run for office, as he would get my vote). The musical acts that night, which included Eddie Vedder, got plenty of time to perform. Now it was all fine and good that the above-mentioned speakers and performers got their chance to be heard, but none of them are running for political office in Seattle.

Also, some twerp by the name of Peter Steinbrueck hogged the stage for 15 minutes and gave a self-indulgent speech about how brave his endorsement of Ralph Nader was in the face of the intransigence of the Democratic Party leadership. He didn't say one thing about Ceriello's or Szwaja's local campaigns. Could it be that our brave hero on the City Council wouldn't want to contend with the wrath of the local Democratic Party leadership were he to openly endorse Ceriello and Szwaja? The Nader endorsement is really an empty gesture on Streinbrueck's part absent any endorsements of local Green Party candidates. Ralph Nader has no chance of winning the presidential election, but local Green Party candidates do if they get enough local media coverage and enough high profile endorsements. That's how a complete outsider like Jesse Ventura was elected governor of Minnesota in 1998.

Once again we are in the same boat we were in after the April 16 protests to "Shut Down" the IMF and World Bank in Washington D.C. The original Portland "Super Rally" for Nader was something new at the time, and it worked. It worked too well, as it has now become a monster. Now prominent people are elbowing each other for a spot on the stage to the detriment of others who really need that stage. One more of these "Super Rallies" is planned for the Fleet Center in Boston on October 1, and I hope that will be all for the remainder of the campaign. They are expensive to pull off and, if they fail to draw, they could do more harm to the Nader campaign than good.

In the end, grassroots politics is hard and unglamorous work. I recently went canvassing with Szwaja on Vashon Island, a part of McDermott's district, and words can't describe how dedicated he is to his campaign against McDermott. The minute we start treating ourselves like rock stars before an adoring audience is the minute we lose sight of the fact that we are challenging powerful people. Let's not forget that McDermott is the Representative from Boeing, Microsoft, et al. It will take time to beat him, but an individual with Szwaja's tenacity might be able to pull it off in a future election.