"A sepulchral RALPH NADER sat calmly eating peanuts, his lanky frame folded into his seat like origami."

I love that description of Ralph Nader sitting through the opening performance of that horrible new musical about John Lennon. After the show:

Upstairs, PAUL SHAFFER was making his way to the elevators when he passed Mr. Nader, who was standing near the wall. "You're Canadian!" Mr. Nader said, and they had a short discussion about Canada.

We asked Mr. Nader, who said he was invited by Ms. Ono, about HILLARY CLINTON's prospects for 2008, given her newly positioned centrist platform, and -

"She's not a centrist," Mr. Nader interrupted. "She's a social-services corporatist."

O.K. Would you run against her?

"Too early to tell."

He's good with the snappy epithet: Canadian! Social-services corporatist!