Bernie Sanders
Related: About this forumNominating HRC will not be the greatest mistake.
Last edited Wed Apr 20, 2016, 05:35 PM - Edit history (4)
If there is a great mistake, a serious oversight, a terrible miscalculation, I'd say it is something bigger than the Clinton campaign. It's something like this...
The DNC purposefully and out-of-hand dissed a politician they framed as a white guy from an insignificant state who has attracted non-democrats as well as democrats to vote to revitalize America across it's enitre expanse and deep into all its corners
For decades the party has yearned for, tried, and failed to do what Sanders has done and is doing. He's gotten the awful corrupting influence of big money donors out of a significant national campaign. He's brought in unafilliated voters, rural voters, and yes even men.
And for that he's been attacked as an icon of a fearful white patriarchy.
The DNC clearly sees itself as an urban party of minorities and women. I'm sure that technocrats look at that electoral focus in a way that makes logical actuarial sense. But that focus also makes the democratic party reliant on sexism and racism in a manner that to reach numerical voting superiority over republicans must rely on those features just as much, if not exactly in the same way as the GOP has over the past generation.
I see -THAT- as the huge mistake. A mistake at the level of fundamental morality and humane philosophical outlook.
Focusing on urban areas is a mistake that may get democrats elected, but one which will in the not distant future leave scores of millions of people outside the concern of democrats who quite naturally will 'serve their base'. That mistake will create more small ghost towns, make quality education more distant and less accessible, distance healthcare from people who need it, and decrease availability of transit, digital/communications services, and all infra-structure that promotes development
Of course, this will be great for the elite ex-urbanite who will live squire-like in McMansions on the tops of hills and ridge-lines, but this approach really will end up sticking it to small town and country working people.
n2doc
(47,953 posts)Outside of the bluest of blue areas, the Party is dying. You see it in the takeover of state houses, Governorships, and Congress. Might be able to win the Presidency and maybe hold on to the Senate by focussing entirely on the cities, but losing the rest of the country means that we never get it all back. And we will constantly be struggling to come up with good candidates to run for office.
BillZBubb
(10,650 posts)Should Hillary win the nomination and election, the 2018 midterms will be the biggest bloodbath in Democratic party history. The party is dying, it just doesn't realize it yet.
Baobab
(4,667 posts)extremely important to or working Americans future that we not endorse his wife's presidency, but I see even the most basic discussion of that seems to get squelched here - basically, we're going to very greatly regret a deal signed 20 yrs ago which has already caused two major national disasters, one financial one medical.
Our only hope is to back out of it before this other part of it takes effect.
Since we were never told about it its quite arguably illegitimate.
peacebird
(14,195 posts)And instead of voting reliably D as I have for 41 years, well.... No more.
I will donate & vote for the Berniecrats. I will vote in Nov, regardless, but I certainly will NOT vote for Hillary.
I will vote tho, perhaps I will just write in Bernie.
retrowire
(10,345 posts)RoccoR5955
(12,471 posts)I will not be part of the RepubliCON-Lite Party!
BillZBubb
(10,650 posts)the Democrats have done precious little to actually help make minority people's lives that much better. And since Bill Clinton's administration they've in many ways actually made things worse.
The only reason the Democrats have an advantage with minorities is because the republicans are pretty much openly racist and anti-immigrant. Democrats like Bill Clinton could get away with "welfare reform" and a racist crime bill because as Thomas Frank puts it, "where else are they going to go?". The same holds for the left of the Democratic party. They see the corporate, Third Way rot taking over the party, but "where else are they going to go?".
HereSince1628
(36,063 posts)the things that hold their coalition together are a belief that white patriarchs are opponents and gun control.
After that support becomes very much matter of political convenience. After all, where can their coalition go?
Baobab
(4,667 posts)And that is starting to show.
wendylaroux
(2,925 posts)only a Berniecrat for me or nothing.
Depaysement
(1,835 posts)It's now a party of professionals and their corporate masters. It's a party for only the right kind of minorities: educated, polished professionals, technocrats, marketers, "winners." For many Democrats now, everything else is mostly lip service and everyone else can mostly go to hell.
ReallyIAmAnOptimist
(357 posts)Professionals and the corporate masters.
So you see, it's simply two sides of the same coin.
HereSince1628
(36,063 posts)are their tools.
Baobab
(4,667 posts)nt
djean111
(14,255 posts)Debbie DINO blocks any liberals and/or progressives who try to run.
I am done with the Democrats, because a party of war and fracking and the TPP and Third Way slashing of Social Security and Wall Street and private health insurance and un-affordable college - is not a party I can belong to. Finis.
Check out the New Democrat Coalition, which is advised by the Third Way. The Democratic Party as I knew it is gone.
LiberalElite
(14,691 posts)our place in it.
HereSince1628
(36,063 posts)djean111
(14,255 posts)It is just so disgusting, though, when we are told to just keep trying to elect liberals. Bullshit.
The thought of the Third Way in the White House again is nauseating.
HereSince1628
(36,063 posts)formed to push it as a broader conservative movement inside the democratic party
oldandhappy
(6,719 posts)when mostly it seems as if they hob nob with the 1%. I am getting confusing messages with what I see. I am a woman. I am 76 years old. I am not a minority except that my age does make me less valuable to many. I am a target for mail from cremation societies and hearing aid companies!! What Bernie is saying resonates with me. I feel the DNC and DWS have driven me out of the party. So how is it the party is for women and minorities? Yes, I see minorities voting for clinton. Makes my head spin. Enjoy those McMansions! There are a lot of us down here in senior mobile home parks. Thanks to mail in ballots, we vote!
Appreciate your post. Have no idea what the future will be.
merrily
(45,251 posts)Sometimes, I've lived in very poor urban areas and sometimes in upscale (though not 1% areas), but always urban areas.
HereSince1628
(36,063 posts)The interest I share with Bernie is in jump starting the -whole- country, across all it's expanse and into every corner and crevice. Justice and economic opportunity must -reach- everyone. Social and economic wrongs need to be righted. Rules and approaches long discarded need to be brought back to protect from people who would harm them... including corrupt and unscrupulous politicians
And in doing that there are going to need to be priorities because it's so big a project it's not reasonable to expect it all happen at once. But -all- of it needs to be scheduled into the agenda.
I've lived in rural areas, in hamlets, small towns and in metropoli. I grew up in the second or third larges metropolis in the country there are people and problems that need addressing in all those places.
Writing off large areas of America because there is nothing classy about reaching out to them from amid life of the urbane chic chic beau haut isn't progressive or particularly liberal.
Baobab
(4,667 posts)which will cause the loss of affordable housing when the price of natural gas and electricity jump up.
Cities may lose rent stabilization laws at that point, although its significantly less inevitable because of (forget his name)s death.
One would have to know a lot about rent stabilization laws and also know how valuable all that land is if it was vacant to understand why developers want this so very much.
Churning.
Where would all those people go? Somewhere much cheaper, likely because housing in urban areas is really expensive now. But many people would have a difficult time because of lack of public transportation.
lots of urban people just wont be able to make the transition. But cheap rent is tied to a specific apartment.
riderinthestorm
(23,272 posts)Oh I knew her and her supporters had to use every shitty thing they could to derail his insurgency against the oligarchy but its made it impossible to ever support her.
I know she's decided she doesn't need us to win the GE and frankly that makes me relieved. It allows me the freedom to simply walk away without guilt.