While An Unreasonable Man asks how to define the larger-than-life legacy of Ralph Nader, Nader himself has released a book entitled The Seventeen Traditions - a personal look at the legacy of values he received from his parents. Nader believes civic leaders are made, not born, and his career fighting for labor, environmental and consumer standards is the direct product of how his Lebanese, immigrant parents raised him. Nader’s childhood in Connecticut, with his parents’ restaurant and proverbs peppering wisdom throughout the years, seems idyllic and of a bygone era but Nader encourages everyone to record family traditions and wisdom to preserve them from the soul-eroding forces of consumer capitalism. Anyone can submit family traditions here where they will be published online.

Ralph Nader speaking on The Seventeen Traditions (among other things) on KPFA’s Living Room