Wednesday Aug. 6, 2008 Neither candidate in Democrat 4th District primary meets standard

To the Editor:

On Tuesday voters in the Democratic primary will be asked to decide between Jim Himes and Lee Whitnum.

Whitnum's campaign is based on personal anger, blaming the H1B program for her inability to find employment. Harvard educated, Whitnum's intellect is largely absent throughout her campaign, one which is based on her own necessities. Her lack of intellectual thinking was recently displayed in a debate when she advocated the return of Taliban rule for Afghanistan.

However, to her credit, she challenged a corrupt electoral system that has allowed the two-party system to prevent nominees not endorsed from running, forcing the non-endorsee to petition their way onto the ballot. Voters, not partisans, are more qualified in selecting nominees.

In fact, it was voters who chose DeStefano as the Democratic candidate for governor, even though a party convention had chosen Malloy.

Whitnum complains that Himes is of a privileged background, yet Himes says otherwise. Himes wants us to know that he previously worked for an organization that promoted affordable housing. No mention of his Harvard or Oxford degrees, his time as vice president at Goldman Sachs, or the $1.5 million home he owns in Cos Cob. It's fair to say that Himes is indeed from a privileged background, whether he accepts it or not.

If elected, Himes would certainly be liberal, advocating positions that may not be beneficial to our district, such as middle class tax increases. If residents want a representative who will simply show up to vote as the party desires, then Himes would be that candidate.

Since neither Whitnum or Himes are qualified to represent our moderate district, I recommend that we relay our dissatisfaction by writing in "None of the Above" on the ballot. It is time that we the people, not the party, determine through an open primary system, who best represents our views. Neither candidate satisfies that hurdle.

James Miller
Stamford

Source: Thehour.com

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