{news} Richard Duffee in local papers

[David Bedell]

The following story, with minor variations, appeared Sept. 14 in various 
weekly papers of the Hersam-Acorn chain, including the Weston Forum, the 
Darien Times, and the Wilton Bulletin:

Duffee joins the race for 4th District seat

The secretary of the state's office has counted more than 3,100 certified 
signatures for Stamford resident Richard Duffee, officially placing him on 
the ballot to run for U.S. Congress in Connecticut's Fourth Congressional 
District.

Mr. Duffee will challenge incumbent Republican Christopher Shays, and joins 
a crowded field that includes Democrat Diane Farrell and Libertarian Phil 
Maymin.

Mr. Duffee, a poet, teacher, lawyer in retirement, and author of a 
bibliography of the international law of peace, is the first Green Party 
candidate to run for Congress in the 4th District.

"The petitioning really took up all our energy during the summer, and 
prevented us from addressing substantive issues," said Paul Bassler, Mr. 
Duffee's campaign manager in a prepared release. "It's a requirement 
designed to preserve the two-party system and exclude new ideas."

While Ms. Farrell and Mr. Shays "have exchanged sharp words over U.S. policy 
in Iraq," Mr. Duffee said his campaign will focus not only on the Iraq war 
but on broad reforms to U.S. foreign policy.

"Our capacity to indulge ourselves in fraudulent fiascos like the invasion 
of Iraq has deep roots in our political culture. If we do not examine in 
detail all the behavior that led up to the invasion, then even if we 
promptly withdraw from Iraq, we are overwhelmingly likely to make errors 
just as serious in our dealings with Iran, Syria, Palestine, and Lebanon," 
Mr. Duffee said.  "To prevent further deterioration in our relationships 
with other nations, we must be willing to examine not only our methods but 
our intentions and some of our basic assumptions about ourselves and our 
role in the world."

In that vein, Duffee has called for closure of the Guantanamo detention 
center and strict observance of international law. He supports immediate 
ratification of the Kyoto Protocol to stop global warming, serious 
multilateral disarmament negotiations, full endorsement of the International 
Criminal Court, and measures to stop the exploitation of impoverished 
nations. He advocates, his release said, impeachment of President Bush and 
Vice President Cheney.

This is Mr. Duffee's first entrance into Connecticut politics. In the early 
1980s, he ran for school board in Peekskill, N.Y., and he has volunteered in 
the campaigns of several Democratic and Green Party candidates.

For more information visit www.richardduffee.com.