Hello, I would like to explain why I think that many intelligent voters would love to see an interview with Harry Browne, the Libertarian presidential candidate. To explain, I'd like to provide some background about my involvement in the electoral process. I have been voting in presidential elections since 1972, the year after I turned 18. When I first registered to vote I felt that affiliating with an established political party would be tantamount to letting someone else do my thinking for me. I therefore registered as an independent and retained that status until 1986, when the first of my four children reached school age. At that time I found I was shut out of voting for school board members because the voting occured during the primaries, and one had to be a registered Democrat or Republican to vote in those elections. Reluctantly I registered with the Democratic party. They seemed less interested than Republicans in regulating my personal life. But I was not happy about being forced to declare allegiance to a particular political ideology in order to vote for the people who would determine how my children would be educated. In this election year I was prepared to vote (again) for Bill Clinton, despite his disappointing failure to support individual liberties, because at least he seemed to be making headway on reducing the national deficit. But then I heard an announcement that struck me like a bombshell: Harry Browne was campaigning to become the Libertarian party's candidate for president. I first heard Browne speak in the early 70s on NBC's Today Show, where he was promoting his book, How I Found Freedom in an Unfree World. I had never heard someone speak with such clarity, rationality, and insight. I bought the book and found it so remarkable that I have never stoppped rereading it. In fact, despite the book's being slightly dated now, I continue to have my students read, analyze, and react to Browne's ideas in the courses I teach at the university. Realistically I know that Browne's chances of winning the presidency are close to zero. But what a wonderful opportunity for the entire country to hear coherent insights full of intelligent reasoning rather than the usual rhetoric designed to push our emotional buttons! Harry Browne's ideas are fresh, unique, exciting. His commitment to freedom and nonviolence are awe-inspiring. He leads several internet presidential polls. He is newsworthy. Strictly for pragmatic reasons, I renewed my registration with the Democratic party. But philosophically I am a Libertarian, and I will vote for Harry Browne. I'll bet that if the media gives Browne fair coverage, millions of voters will discover they are also Libertarians. I've been told that the Libertarian Party is now 25 years old and is the largest and fastest growing third party in America. This sounds like the future to me. Harry Browne is a scoop, a real news story that every news organization should be investigating and reporting. John A. Johnson, Ph.D. (814) 231-1449 http://cac.psu.edu/~j5j/