What it takes to get your way . . . .

[DaveT]

Liberals know everything in the fucking universe except how to govern, how to make real things happen in the real world. We know the hell out of how things should go. Yeah, we are the Masters of the Should Universe.

That’s why we are always so depressed, us liberals. What shoulda happened, well it coulda happened – and it damned sure woulda come true but somebody somewhere sold us out. Decade after decade, liberals always have our agenda of necessary changes to make in the status quo.

But they never happen.

They never happen because somebody always sold us out. Some politician caved in when the opposition said boo, and we are fucked, fucked, fucked.

Thus as it was with JFK and civil rights; LBJ and Vietnam; Jimmy Carter and his whole loser administration; Slick Willy and his triangulating – whenever our guy gets to the White House, he gives in to the opposition on key points of liberal principle.

Now it is Barack Obama who is letting us down.

Our opponents never have any problem getting their way. They don’t even care what their way is, so long as it is not our way.

Look at GW Bush. He won two razor thin electoral college victories, and he did whatever the fuck he wanted for eight years. His core supporters never turned on him, even as his bizarre combination of ruthless mendacity and bumbling incompetence wrecked our national finances while getting us stuck in two un-winnable wars.

Despite the democratic reality of losing the 2006 elections, while polling showed that everybody but those core supporters were disgusted with the whole operation, they just kept rolling along doing whatever the fuck they wanted to do.

Obviously there is an asymmetrical relationship between the left and the right in the USA.

My question is not whom to blame.

My question is what are we going to do about it?

[Goldstein1984]

1. Good question

Working within a system designed for self-perpetuation isn't going to work.

We need decisive action a al Saul Alinsky. I don't see that happening with the herd-of-cats Left.

Democrats are split between those who follow party and those who follow abstract principles.

It may be that the Left carries within the seeds of its own defeat--even when we win, we lose.

Until such time as a revolutionary leader willing to step outside the system to change it arrives, I will continue to vote, continue to write my letters and make my calls, continue to try to influence others with reasons, continue supporting NGOs working for my goals, and continue my personal financial boycott of a system following the almighty dollar.

I'm ready for mass boycotts; I'm ready for a general strike. Too much of the Left still is not.

Thought provoking post.

Rec

G1984

[treestar]

2. The Republicans don't get everything they want

A far right nutcase would be "disappointed" in Bush, too.

It just seems that way when you shield yourself from hearing your opponents.

Read the right wing media. Then you learn that it's no different. They are crying about the health care bill because it gets the government more involved. The abortion amendments don't make them happy; abortion is still legal. They are convinced the media favors liberals. The liberals have taken over the government. More socialism and limits on their freedom, etc.