The Birth of a Movement, the End of Democracy

Part I: Boy, I Hope This Doesn't Suck

I made a comment last weekend that Joe, gulfgal, and JtC asked me to turn into an essay. The gist of the comment is that arguing about whether we should be focused on electoral politics or not misses the point of where we are, politically, right now. It's been a hell of a slog trying to make it into an essay, because I'm trying to sum up where I think we are politically without writing a 6-book series and boring you all to tears! So, I hope this doesn't suck--and I beg your indulgence.

Part II: Hard Labor

It’s difficult to start a movement. It’s even more difficult to start a movement that persists over time. Under the current conditions, which is to say, after at least 40 years of counter-revolution, it’s more difficult than usual, because the invisible hands that hold up any movement have had their fingers broken in a vise. The genius of Lewis Powell’s famous memo—which every progressive and leftist should read, if they haven’t, and here it is: http://reclaimdemocracy.org/powell_memo_lewis/ —was that it did not attack social justice movements head-on, but sought out the cultural and social foundations of those movements and tore them apart. It was the invisible hands holding up the political movements that had to be put in a vise and broken, in order to make America a place where such movements were overwhelmingly likely to be doomed before they started. I won’t list all the parts of American culture, white, black, and otherwise, that came under attack, but I’d like to touch on three important ones that have sustained massive damage, and either have been left broken, or have been co-opted so that they are now part of the assault on workers and on the world.

The First Object of Attack--Communities

First, and most importantly, the communities that undergirded successful people’s movements in the early- and mid-twentieth century have largely been decimated , or, in a few cases, co-opted and corrupted.

The labor movements in the early 20th century relied on urban immigrant communities that were tightly knit. The Civil Rights movement from the 40s to the 60s relied strongly on Black church communities. People were connected, they trusted each other, they were in proximity to each other and used to helping each other. In the case of labor movements, these people both lived in the same neighborhoods and worked in the same places. In the case of Black communities, they lived in the same neighborhoods and worshipped together. All these things helped hold those movements together; they represented cultural and psychological work that the movements didn't have to do—they didn’t have to bring these people together, or hold them together, because they already *were* together. They weren't introducing strangers.

For the past forty years, workers' communities have been undermined. In the case of white people’s communities, they have been undermined through the scarcity of work, the decimation of the people’s wages, and the corresponding assault on time (if you have to work three jobs where you once worked one, you will have much less time to spend forming bonds with your neighbors; if you have to move five states away to get a job, you will lose your old community and be forced to start a new one from scratch.) Black people’s communities have been subjected to an all-out economic and military assault that beggars description, but appear to have weathered the storm better than white people’s communities. Asking why that is would be a worthy endeavor, but it isn’t what I’m trying to get to in this essay (though I have my theories of course, one of them being that suburban life mitigates against the development of workers’ communities; another being that shared religion provides a strong foundation for community that isn't dependent on the workplace, and gave many Black communities a partial shield and bulwark against Powell’s attack plan.)

The Second Object of Attack--Time

If your neighborhood is not comprised of the people you work with in the same factory, or the same mega-farm, or the same mines, then you will need to spend time outside of work bonding with your neighbors to build a social community, and if you want a political community with a decent chance of survival, it will likely grow out of that community you form with your neighbors. If you could organize such a community right at work, it would be different, but in an age of fractured, weakened unions, punitive bosses ready to downsize, and mutual suspicion and fear amongst co-workers, most workers do not feel safe organizing anything political at work. We live in a world in which 12 years ago, a woman lost her factory job because she had a Kerry sticker on the bumper of her car. (Her floor supervisor apparently told her "You can work for John Kerry, or you can work for me." )So what happens when the time you have outside of work has dwindled to the point that you feel lucky to have the time to go over your kid's math homework and collapse in front of the TV with your spouse for an hour and a half before getting up to do it all again?

To put it another way, if you don't have time to have a Friday night beer night with the guys (or gals), how the hell are you going to manage to launch an alternative currency, a community garden, a child-care co-op? How are you going to muster a large number of people to refuse to buy goods from multinational corporations?

As Virginia Woolf once said, it's really difficult to do serious work when you have no time and space to do so (she recommended having one's own room and income, which is basically what the oligarchy is trying to deny to its opponents)although, as she also mentioned--people do sometimes manage: Yet genius of a sort must have existed among women as it must have existed among the working classes. Now and again an Emily Brontë or a Robert Burns blazes out and proves its presence. In other words, a strong enough will to work does sometimes find a way. If an Emily Bronte can write a novel despite everything that obstructed her, sometimes a Tim deChristopher can infiltrate an auction of public lands and prevent them from being despoiled, or an Edward Snowden can bring the dirty secrets of the security state out of the shadows and show them to the world.

But we are not talking here about the few heroic individuals. A persistent problem of the American psyche is to assume that if a heroic individual can do something, everybody ought to be able to do it, and it's not a problem--except a problem of character. It must be that we're lazy, insufficiently committed, selfish. We want to be couch potatoes. Nobody ever questions *why*we want to be couch potatoes--maybe because we've just come from the second or third of our shit jobs, looked in on our infirm elderly mom and brought her groceries, gone over our kids' math homework, gotten them cleaned up and in bed, and now have a whole hour to watch Netflix before we need to go to bed so we can get up and do it all again. We're supposed to be Martin Luther King, or Edward Snowden, or Emily Bronte, or Sojourner Truth. So instead of focusing on the structural assault that's weakening us, we engage in the time-honored American tradition of beating ourselves and our fellow citizens up as unworthy pieces of shit.

The Third Object of Attack: The Press

When communities collapse, and time outside of work vanishes, how do people connect to a larger political community?
The two answers in America from the 80s until 2002 were: through the media, or through the church. For the white left, which is mainly secular, the church was not an option, which left them singularly vulnerable to the oligarch's attack on the press. Black people, again, had the black churches as a partial shield and bulwark, which is lucky because the attack on them was far more devastating and murderous.

I’m guessing just about everyone will agree that the press has been corrupted, co-opted, bought , and that its control by the wealthy is a problem. It becomes a bigger problem when the only way people connect to a larger community than their families and closest friends is through the television, which helps them form an idea of what the people of their city, state, or country are thinking and feeling. To take just one example, the proliferation of cop shows from the 1980s on to the present day transmits the idea to the American people that their fellow citizens are untrustworthy, larcenous, and liable to blow their heads off, and that the cops attacking the people is good, virtuous, and necessary. The election of untrustworthy politicians, even when fraud and voter purges are evident, is used to transmit the idea that American voters are stupid—I can’t count the number of times that I’ve heard left-wing people talk about how stupid the American people are, how lazy they are, how selfish and uncaring, all derived from the fact that some millions of the people have been tricked into voting against their self-interest and more millions have withdrawn from a system of staggering corruption into inaction. If the people believe that the American people, as a whole, are selfish, lazy, stupid, and violent, are they likely to join with these strangers to form a movement?

None of this is intended to convey that there are not truly horrible Americans in existence, and not just at the top of the economic ladder; none of this is intended to deny the actual existence of things like racism, homophobia, and xenophobia in the American population. It’s intended, rather, to throw a light on how we are encouraged to make generalizations—and which generalizations we’re encouraged to make--and, more than anything to look at how much we were at the mercy of an increasingly corrupt press for about 20 years.

The Internet
Obviously, the counter to the mainstream press is the Internet. I wish that the Internet were what I thought it was in 2003--a cure-all pill that could provide truthful journalism and community in record time, thus neatly working around much of the damage done by the three attacks I just described. The fact is, that the Internet can provide the truth, honest communication, and communities of trust; the fact is, that the Internet can also provide a fertile field for bullying, lies, sockpuppetry, shills, and spooks. We've all experienced this at Daily Kos, and if anybody wants to look at some of the theories behind this, they can look at the research of Cass Sunstein, who used to be a top aide to President Obama: http://www.salon.com/2010/01/15/sunstein_2/ or at the excellent work of Glenn Greenwald on how the security state uses the Internet: https://theintercept.com/2014/02/24/jtrig-manipulation/

The truth appears to be that the Internet is both a strong weapon against propaganda and exceedingly vulnerable to it; that it is at once a remedy for many psy-ops and a fertile medium for them.

I'm very glad we have it. But it's not "the answer" I thought it was in 2003.

Part III: So Why Is Any of This Important?

Right now, we have a bonafide people's movement that has coalesced around Bernie Sanders. It has many issues that concern it: climate change, war, predatory capitalism, political corruption, and others. Sanders' willingness to say some things that are verboten by the current political paradigm essentially popped the cork out of the bottle and the genie--temporarily--escaped. Or, to put it another way, there was a lot of pressure building up silently and Sanders banged a hole in the dam--and water's pouring through.

I can tell this is a real movement that could persist by the way people are acting. They're eating together. They're creating art and music (without being told to). They're organizing events (without being told to). They're talking across boundaries that have been solid walls for a long time (this has to do with the fact that it's not only a real people's movement, but a symptom of political realignment). They have their own stories, and are even developing their own legends and mythology associated with the movement that aren't derived from the mainstream press. They are creating their own symbolism for the movement. All of these things are good signs. The best sign of all is the number of people who say "I don't care what Bernie Sanders does, I'm not going to vote for Hillary Clinton." The reason that's the best sign of all has little to do with #BernieOrBust per se, and a lot more to do with the fact that many people do not perceive Bernie as their reason for being in the movement--even though he was the focus that brought them out and brought them together. They see him instead as a much-loved or well-liked spokesperson.

However, the fact that Bernie Sanders is the focal point brings danger and difficulty to the movement, because despite the many people who don't perceive Bernie as their reason for being there, there are also many who almost certainly do. So if Bernie disappears into the woodwork, or tries to make the case for Hillary Clinton, some people will be lost. Either they will drift away as soon as he disappears, or leave because he tried to lead them to Hillary, or some of them may follow him to Hillary while others go off in a huff because he endorses her--all of these things would diminish the movement's numbers and focus. In a worst case scenario, it could end the movement.

Under these conditions, the electoral vs non-electoral binary opposition is singularly unhelpful, because we have a larger-than-electoral movement struggling to be born from an electoral campaign. It's already spawned some persistent electoral spin-offs, like the New Congress movement, or whatever it's called. But it's clear that there's far more energy in this movement than can be taken up with elections. This is a movement that wants to create entirely new forms, beginning, I think, with the media. Cenk Uygur, for instance (whom I pray nightly is a sincere man and not a second Markos Moulitsas or Rachel Maddow) has correctly assessed that this wave is building, and is trying to ride it to success for himself and TYT.

So what I'm trying to say is that AT THIS MOMENT, the quarrel over whether to focus electorally or non-electorally has never been more unhelpful. You might as well say "Do we want to focus on the mother's health or the health of the fetus?" two months into a pregnancy.


Part IV: The Fetus Is Healthy

We're looking at a hard labor, folks, because the transition into a larger-than-electoral movement is unlikely to be easy, even if we don't have to confront devastating attacks such as an attack on the Internet itself.
My current hypothesis, shared by Nina Illingworth (http://www.ninaillingworth.com/2016/06/01/the-foggy-bottom-of-clintons-m...) and Douglas Schoen (http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-06-01/sorry-hillary-former-clinton-ad...) among others, is that the likely countermove of the oligarchy is jettisoning Clinton and replacing her at the convention with Bankruptcy Biden, who isn't as hated as Hillary Clinton, and whose credentials will be buttressed by the presence of Elizabeth Warren as his VP.

I really have two points in this endless morass of discussion.

First, we have a genuine people's movement growing in the womb of the Sanders campaign. It should be our hope to deliver it, healthy and alive, into a larger world. And it's healthy! But we could be looking at a rocky delivery, and we may or may not have Sanders' help in bringing it to birth. In my opinion, as much as I like Bernie, we'd better not count on him being there as a midwife.

It doesn't matter that we don't like the fact that it's growing in this particular womb. There's no point in beefing about the dangers that the electoral womb present--like, for instance, the possibility that various corrupt or crappy actions taken by politicians such as Barack Obama, Debbie Wasserman-Schultz, Joe Biden, Elizabeth Warren, and their backers could negatively impact the movement trying to be born. There's no point in beefing about the fact that Bernie, though honest, is not as radical as the movement he inspired, and is far more willing, apparently, to settle for somewhat useless concessions like progressive planks in a platform nobody pays attention to anyway. There's no point beefing about any of this. The people's movement is--where the people's movement is. We might all wish that it hadn't happened this way. We might wish that it had arisen as a bunch of leftist non-partisan political kibbutzes in 500 American cities and towns, engaging in a mass experiment of alternative currency, non-corporate economics, and organic homegrown vegetables. But it didn't. It is where it is. It's our job to try to bring it to birth.

Second, we should keep an eye on those politicians and what they're likely to do, so that we can come up with possible countermeasures. For instance, I believe that the DNC is going to jettison Hillary Clinton, or let her sink under her own weight, and replace her with Bankruptcy Biden, with Warren as a VP. This will sideline Warren and stifle her voice against Wall St--which has mostly been words rather than deeds, but I'm sure Wall St will be happy to have her silenced anyway. More importantly, it turns Warren into a poisoned apple which many in the movement will be tempted to accept, turning her from a critical voice into a force of co-optation. In my opinion, this move--which likely comes from Obama--is the most potentially dangerous blow the plutocracy could strike at the infant movement, because if enough people are placated by a Biden/Warren ticket, a large part of the movement could dissipate. It is, in essence, the attempt to do again what Obama did so effectively in 2008--get in front of the movement and dismantle it.

But more than that, it is a way of getting people to accept, because they are desperate, a President and Vice-President who didn't receive a single vote during the primary process, and who, in fact, were essentially appointed by the DNC. Although this process has always been legal, in the current age, in which journalists ask billionaires whether democracy itself isn't the problem, and Hillary supporters say on Twitter that superdelegates exist to control the passions of the people, it represents a dangerous move in an ongoing psy-op to convince people that the public is a bunch of untrustworthy fools who need experts like Barack Obama and the DNC to give them what's good for them.

Apart from an assault on the Internet itself, which the movement uses to talk to itself, this is the greatest danger I see to the movement trying to be born.

What we should be asking is: How can we bring this movement to birth? How can we protect it from those who want it dead on arrival?

To those who have struggled through this whole ponderous essay--my thanks.
And any answers or thoughts you have in response to my last two questions are welcome.

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Steven D's picture

this week on CNN this morning, I am getting the vibe that the DOJ will not indict no matter what the FBI recommends, or that the investigation will be delayed until any indictment comes only after the general election. That would mean Hillary stays as the candidate absent some massive leak by the FBI agents involved or the FBI Director, Comey, pulling a Saturday Night Massacre (Old Watergate reference) and resigning. Not going to bet on either of those happening, much as I'd like to see them.

Then again, I'm not great at reading the tea leaves.

I agree, birthing this movement into a a lasting presence on the political scene will be hard work, but I think it is doable.

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"You can't just leave those who created the problem in charge of the solution."---Tyree Scott

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

If you encourage the Department of Justice and the FBI to continue slow-walking the investigation, there is a good chance the truth will come out anyway. As you are aware, the Justice Department, the FBI, and NSA have all yielded recent patriots who, in such circumstances, decided that whistleblowing – rather than silence – was the only way to honor the oath we all swore – to support and defend the Constitution

http://www.globalresearch.ca/us-intelligence-veterans-urge-fast-report-o...

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

lunachickie's picture

This media blitz has just hit the "local" airwaves in a number of jurisdictions. It's disgusting. Why is the freaking FBI afraid of Hillary Clinton and her buddies, that they're letting this farce of a candidate continue lying to the entire country? She should be GONE from this race and instead the entire country is being lied to about her position in it, and the FBI DOES NOTHING.

Isn't it funny how there's never a good Wikileak around when you really need it?

It all reeks of actual, bona-fide conspiracy; you almost wonder why something like RICO doesn't cover it.

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Impeach the Cox-Sacker!

(couldn't resist, sorry)

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Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

JekyllnHyde's picture


A Herblock editorial cartoon inspired by Richard Nixon's firing of Special Prosecutor and Harvard Law Professor, Archibald Cox, a victim of the so-called "Saturday Night Massacre" during the Watergate Scandal. Attorney General Elliot Richardson and his deputy, William Ruckelshaus, refused to to fire Cox and resigned from office on Saturday, October 20, 1973. The deed was finally done by Solicitor General Robert Bork, forever earning him the enmity of Democrats.

Herbert Block was the editorial cartoonist for the Washington Post for over 50 years.

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A riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma

lotlizard's picture

forever earning him the enmity of Democrats all honest men and women everywhere.

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JekyllnHyde's picture

Thanks for the correction, lotlizard. I'm bad with blogging acronyms. If you hadn't spelled it out, I could have never figured out what FTFY meant. Smile

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A riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma

would vote for HRC even if she was under indictment.

UGH. I view HRC's tenure as POTUS as indictments, subpoenas, investigations, etc. ad nauseum. But she will manage to push TPP through and privatize SS. Lucky us.

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Yahoo

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

And only 19% of them approve of her--last I checked; it might be lower now.

Anyway, as a campaign manager: people *saying* they will vote and actually *turning out to vote* are two vastly different things. That's why people look at favorability, enthusiasm, etc. These measures are looking downright awful for Hillary. If she's under indictment, will that 71% *turn out*? I bet they won't. But even if they do, that's 71% of 26% of the electorate. Between the independents and the Republicans, she would likely be, to coin a phrase, "toast."

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

Anja Geitz's picture

I appreciate the time you took to write this thought provoking essay. I agree with your thesis about what could damage the movement and that it will be hard work. I can only hope that enough of us are angry enough and scared enough to really do something about it. For me, it's about protecting our access to potable water. I live in California and fracking is deal breaker for me. I am now angry enough and scared enough to do something about it. The question for me is do I want to be led, or do I want to take the lead myself? And if so, what are the next steps.

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There is always Music amongst the trees in the Garden, but our hearts must be very quiet to hear it. ~ Minnie Aumonier

RejectingThe3rdWay's picture

It's OK if you are a Democrat.

That can excuse away ANYTHING.

Pathetic.

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When I was a kid, Republicans used to red scare people, now it's the Democrats. I am getting too damn old for this crap!

Clinton is not going to be indicted by an Obama Justice Department. The criminal case against her to this former-prosecutor doesn't look like one that would likely to be pursued.

There is one model for building a long term movement that wins. It is the conservative take over of the GOP - which went from the Goldwater '64 nomination to the Reagan win in '80. I always find it fascinating it is never discussed in any left of center discussion of "movements". But the conservatives challenged a sitting President in 1976 and nearly took him down. That is the only model I see in the last 50 years that works.

Bernie believed OWS was foolish in the refusal to get involved in electoral politics. I think he was right.

There is only one path to power and that is within the Democratic Party.

I get why people don't want that to be true, but the pursuit of a movement to the exclusion of electoral politics, or alternatively an attempt to form a third party is the path to marginalization.

Expect to be called out by Bernie himself about it.

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that before any movement actually is in a position to fight for power, it is going to have to solve the issue that was seen with African Americans in the primaries. While this was in some ways was generational, if we are interesting in talking about reality, we have to admit we have serious problem within the African American community.

And no, Cornell West is not going to solve this.

This needs thought and not knee jerk responses. WHY did Bernie have such a problem with this community? Was it personal?

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Steven D's picture

support Bernie more than Hillary:

http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-me-ln-adv-hillary-african-americans-2...

A poll of black voters in California commissioned by the African American Voter Registration Education Participation Project conducted by Evitarus found that 71% of 800 likely voters surveyed supported Clinton. But among the black voters younger than 40, half said they would probably vote for Sanders, compared with 34% for Clinton. The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.

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"You can't just leave those who created the problem in charge of the solution."---Tyree Scott

that many people of color would have voted differently if they had known Bernie better before the primary. Older African American women have flocked to Hillary. African American friends tell me the women for Hillary get their news from the MSM. Of course, many of the reports have been exaggerated about older people of all races and religions, etc...preferring HRC. I say keep our eye on the these upcoming states and see what happens.

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'Well, I've wrestled with reality for thirty five years, Doctor, and I’m happy to state I finally won out over it." Elwood P. Dowd "

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

This is, for the most part, not a personality-driven movement. Thank God!

As for the Democrats, the Democratic party establishment is making its own best argument for our leaving.

As for electoral politics, I said, either in the essay itself or in these comments, that Bernie has more faith in electoral politics than I do. I fall somewhere between Bernie and Big Al.

What I absolutely feel--and the reason I wrote the essay in the first place--is that quarreling over which has supremacy, the electoral or the non-electoral, is an absolute, utter waste of time, and in fact destructive, under these political circumstances. What you have is a larger-than-electoral political movement trying to be born. It will probably include an electoral wing, much as many people's movements include a political party that is associated w/the movement.

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

EyeRound's picture

Hi Signal and thank you for your essay, which brought me out of my "lurking" habits!

Have you looked at Paul Mason's bookPostcapitalism(2015)? Mason is a British economist, journalist and he writes in a style that keeps reminding me of "British working class Marxism." That's not to criticize the book, though.

So, Mason writes that capitalism is on its way out as an historical phenomenon, as one might conclude looking at the 2008 collapse and its aftermath. Its decline, though, already became evident in the mid-1980's with the technology of networked knowledge--what was to become the internet. Neoliberalism (which was on the ascent at just about the same time) is more or less the last-ditch attempt of capitalism to keep the corpse alive--to secure profits and the ownership of wealth during times when ground after ground of capitalism is being undermined. Mason's main argument has to do with the simultaneous phenomena that the internet both adds--hugely--to value while at the same time it drives price to Zero. It de-couples value and price, thereby driving capitalism into a condition whereby it expresses itself only as a kind of irrationalism that anyone with a human brain can discern. Capitalism cannot sustain this sort of disconnect. It's what Marx called an inherent contradiction that is a "baked-in" feature of capitalism. Capitalism should have been over 30 years ago (would have been a cataclysm, but 30 yrs or so ago), but has kept re-arranging the relationship between profit/private ownership and the state so as to ensure its ownership of wealth. This will not continue ad infinitum as the basis of wealth is running to zero.

Now, the upshot would be that we are living in a period of (overdue) historical transition, which you aptly note. It's not just happening here. In Europe there have been ongoing discussions in Greece, Spain, Croatia and elsewhere on the question: how can a movement become a politically viable entity? This is another way of asking your central question, I think. Responses have been mixed, but they are historically quite hopeful: Syriza in Greece swept to power on an anti-austerity platform (they seem to have been forced by the banking system to knuckle under to austerity, but the rest of the world is watching. . .); in Spain Podemos has seriously disabled the conservative-led, pro-austerity government; in England Corbyn has become the head of the Labor Party (Mason quit his job as a reporter for BBC Channel 4 to go to work with the Corbyn opposition). Just a few examples here. . . .

Periods of historical transition are notoriously difficult to survive. As an example, while Europe's colonialization of, say Africa made life all-but-unliveable for people in Africa, the current period of de-colonialization makes life arguably much worse. That's not to say that de-colonialization should be stopped and the world should return to its colonial arrangements. It is to say that what's running are two great historical "moments" together, and they are overlapping one another like gigantic plate-techtonics. Techtonics provide a suitable analogy for historical dialectics.

Periods of historical transition are also good times to be alive. The future opens up and people can see that they have options: to move, think and act in the direction of the future--as I believe you are doing--or to bury their head in the sand.

It's also, in another sense, perhaps, what Bernie is all about. HRC, with her devotion to creating ever more "public-private partnerships" is clearly part of the keep-capitalism-alive-at-any-price faction, which is not only uninteresting, it's already dead in the water.

Please don't read this as a recommendation to cease activism. Historical changes come about in and through the activism of real people who see, and imagine what else could be. As one of Bernie's ad's said, the "crazy folks."

I have to end this now, and I hope it's supportive of all of the good people on this site (apologies if it's not very clear!). My thanks to all of you. This is my first time posting--at all, evah on any website. I look forward to reading more here.

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Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

for emerging from lurking with this great comment. And thanks for the suggestion of Postcapitalism. I might substitute it for Confidence Men, which I'm rather struggling with (it's well written and has new (to me) information in it, but the framing of the information is, IMO, disingenous).

For me, the problem for capitalism is that, with burgeoning (human) population and limited resources, as well as global warming---people are now going to have to face the fact that capitalism is a death cult. Under these circumstances, unless capitalism becomes willing to shift its assumptions to accept a fundamental notion of limits (both to consumption and profit), it cannot be anything else. That's why the powerful are so resisting the shift to a "green" capitalism, based on a new energy economy; the new energy economy can't give them the level of power and control the old one does. Venezuela is an example of what you can do in a petroleum-based economy. It's harder to overthrow a government halfway around the world by fiddling with oil prices if the economies of the world are largely based on things like wind and solar. You'd have to find some other rarer commodities like, well, rare earths, that you could possess, control, and withhold in order to maintain the same imperial level of power.

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

EyeRound's picture

even though at that time (1930's) most people thought that factory production "solved" scarcity by providing the market with goods. The points you make are well-taken IMO. Regulated capitalism always undoes itself--as Richard Woolf points out again and again, but I don't take you as advocating for that. I understand that you are asking about "abundance" rather than "scarcity" as the basis for social exchange. Yes, this is a very intriguing idea and it meshes well with the internet economy that Mason discusses. I have to leave this now (appointment out of town), but hope to continue these discussions either here or on other threads. If you do pick up Postcapitalism let me know what you think of it. I found it a bumpy read, but worth the effort!

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than any election in our history, including the 1860 Presidential election, I will vote for the candidate and not the party. If I voted for Hillary and everything we feared about her came to pass, I would be despondent. #BernieOrJill

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Beware the bullshit factories.

Wink's picture

This talk - hope, really - of HRC being frog marched off to Leavenworth is overblown. As I said here a week or two ago there's no chance of Her Highness being indicted. On anything. The Village People won't allow it. She is protected by The Village, the powers that be, and so it shall be. And, as Puerto Rico has shown, those Powers That Be don't give a flying fuck whether you little people know they're sticking it up your butt or not. They will continue to do so. Unabashed and unabated. Is this a great time to be living in America, or what?! Never in my wildest nightmare did I dream Americans and America would be so fucked. Not even at the height of the Cold War did I ever dream anyone would actually push the button. Something about that Mutually Assured Destruction thing.
It's going to take a Yuuuge effort to beat the Oligarchs. Yuuuge. It really depends on the unconnected, and whether or not they're finally sick'n'tired of being sick'n'tired. Most seem perfectly content to bend over every day, so long as they get their daily bread. There's a 20-something kid (late 20s) at work that talks to me about this stuff 2, 3 times a week (when we each get a second or two to share a brief convo). "They're fucking me again, Wink." "They" being the company we work for. "I find it amazing I put up with this bull$h!t day in and day out - for $10 an hour - and still come to work the next day." Yeah, me too. But, what's "funny" (or sad) is the kid blames "anti-American Liberal bastids" for his troubles. "If we could just cut more taxes and cut Librul programs like S.S. I could get my $15 an hour" (by appeasing the rich, apparently). Even kids like this one have fallen into Powell's bull$h!t that "Liberals are to blame" for the mess you're in. I just nod. "Yeah, if we just cut taxes... " and leave it at that. 'Cuz I really don't have time to convince him otherwise. But, I think I'll print that Powell piece and hand it to him. Might be a start.

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the little things you can do are more valuable than the giant things you can't! - @thanatokephaloides. On Twitter @wink1radio. (-2.1) All about building progressive media.

TrueBlueinWDC's picture

Commenting to add this to my reading list tonight. I can scan a passing article at work, but this one is ... long. Looking forward to reading it!

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"Intelligence is the ability to adapt to change." Stephen Hawking

NEW: http://www.twitter.com/trueblueinwdc

These older eyes, read something as important as your writing, best in hard copy. So will print and read, again. Confess, never even HEARD of the "Powell Memo."

Am intrigued, and trust you have a good reason for this:
"For instance, it's now pretty clear that the DNC is going to jettison Hillary Clinton, or let her sink under her own weight, and replace her with Bankruptcy Biden, with Warren as a VP."
Anything you can share, or suggest for our edification too.
I honestly think pushing Biden/Warren ( which would silence her, too horrible to even imagine) would be the end of the Democratic party. Can't even say RIP, but more about time.

Thank you again for all the time, energy, thought you've put into this writing.

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Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

speculation by just anybody:

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-06-01/sorry-hillary-former-clinton-ad...

http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/277592-biden-clinton-tensions-linger

and then there's this, which is good analysis, though long. She's the one who convinced me, actually, that there could be a move by Obama and others to install Biden on a second ballot b/c Hillary has become too toxic:

http://www.ninaillingworth.com/2016/06/01/the-foggy-bottom-of-clintons-m...

I don't have proof, and neither do any of these people; this is a hypothesis in which I believe strongly. I will revise the piece and make that clear.

Let me say this: if the Democrats stick with a Hillary this damaged to the bleeding, bloody end, I will be stunned at the sheer political malpractice.

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

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RuralLiberal's picture

The article is long, but compelling! I read the whole thing, and it sure makes a lot of sense.

I've HAD IT with these fucking elites!

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"Stand Up! Keep Fighting!" - Paul Wellstone

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

is NOT based on speculation and gossip. It's only the possibility of a Biden candidacy which is speculative.

I will fix that. Thank you for pointing it out.

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

riverlover's picture

( I was typing right and am trying to banish that word from my vocabulary, starboard works fine for that directive) She talks the talk but there is not much walk there. And removing her as a Senate harpy (not meant in a sexist way) would be an effective muzzle. By powers above.

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Hey! my dear friends or soon-to-be's, JtC could use the donations to keep this site functioning for those of us who can still see the life preserver or flotsam in the water.

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

Because too many people still believe in her.

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

riverlover's picture

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Hey! my dear friends or soon-to-be's, JtC could use the donations to keep this site functioning for those of us who can still see the life preserver or flotsam in the water.

was Colin Powell's cover up/whitewash of the My Lai massacre.

More important reading/discussion to pass on to my grandson.

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Yahoo

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

the better. It's good to understand our enemies as well as possible.

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

gulfgal98's picture

It takes a lot more work to understand what we are up against than to bring out the pom poms and root for team blue. What we are really up against is not team red. It is team oligarchy (neo-liberals/neo-cibservatuves) who play for both team red and team blue.

I cannot begin to thank you enough for this most excellent essay.

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Do I hear the sound of guillotines being constructed?

“Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." ~ President John F. Kennedy

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

Smile

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

TheOtherMaven's picture

The Oligarchic Owners wouldn't lower themselves to actually stepping on the playing field - they pay surrogates to do that for them.

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There is no justice. There can be no peace.

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

off, but people seemed to think, on balance, no. I might do a shorter version of this, because I can see that there might be a TLDR problem with it!

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

dance you monster's picture

Leave it as is. It's a powerful diary. Really wonderful. Nothing is superfluous. And birthing a movement entails a certain amount of reading.

Thanks for this. You made this week begin on a good note.

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Please keep it as it is.
Don't know if it's possible, but could this be a separate "thread" or what ever it is called. So you & other knowledgeable people could keep adding to it?
thanks again for all the work you put into creating this essay.

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It's very well organized and not too long. Leave it as is IMO. Also, as I write, AP has called Hillary the winner in the primary race. BOOM ! So there's that. I'm sure it will show up soon in this diary.

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polkageist's picture

This essay is only a prelude to the whole subject, as you know. People need to lengthen their attention span if they don't want to become ignorant serfs. Sound bites and acronyms do not convey information and thought. What you have started is what needs to be done. It needs now to be fleshed out and acted upon. You have covered the main points and now the discussion has something to focus on. Thanks.

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-Greed is not a virtue.
-Socialism: the radical idea of sharing.
-Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.
John F. Kennedy, In a speech at the White House, 1962

Lisa Lockwood's picture

But I wouldn't cut a word. Excellent post, worth reading several times. Thanks for offering this up for discussion, but mostly, for cogitation.

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"When the powerless are shut out of the media, we will make the media irrelevant" ~Anonymous~

PDXer's picture

Thank you for sharing this stunningly comprehensive view of our present political circumstances. I find your admonition to focus on the issues and not on our candidate to be especially apt, as he would no doubt agree. Anyone with clear memories of the 1960's senses the tectonic shift that's occurring, and though the outcome is likewise impossible to predict, it's clear that the system as we have known it is over.

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featheredsprite's picture

in Philly in July, aren't you?

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Life is strong. I'm weak, but Life is strong.

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

And the protest was happening in July in Philly.

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

Steven D's picture

People's Convention is in Philly July 23rd:
https://thepeoplesrevolution.org/the-peoples-convention/

Join The People’s Revolution Saturday July 23rd, 2016 at the Arch Street Meeting House at 4th and Arch Street in Philadelphia for The People’s Convention.

In July, TPR will convene The People’s Convention in Philadelphia, a grassroots attempt to reclaim our democracy by uniting behind a common policy framework, rather than a personality or party. Leading up to our first People’s Convention this summer, grassroots organizers from around the country will work together to formulate a People’s Platform: a unifying set of ideas, beliefs, and values that will help define the movement.

This platform will also serve as a critical mechanism to hold elected officials accountable; public representatives who pledge to uphold this platform, but fail to do so through their votes and other public behaviors, will no longer be eligible to seek endorsement or support from The People’s Revolution.

This event is open to the public and all who attend can vote on whether to ratify it or not. Sanders' delegates have pledged to bring it to the floor of the DNC convention. If you would like to help draft any of the proposed platform planks, you can volunteer here:

https://thepeoplesrevolution.org/volunteer/

They could use a smart man like you.

Here are the people behind the People's Convention:

https://thepeoplesrevolution.org/5-31-16-pressrelease/

PHILADELPHIA 5/31 — Two organizers who played a major role in generating grassroots support for Bernie Sanders are getting ready to head to Philadelphia at the end of July — but they’re not just going for the Democratic National Convention. Shana East and Jackrabbit Pollack are planning The People’s Convention, an event designed to harness the spirit and momentum of grassroots organizing to influence party platforms and the DNC.

Shana East is a grassroots organizer located in Chicago, Illinois. Last year she began her foray into electoral politics, working on Chuy García’s mayoral campaign team. She then went on to be a founding member of People for Bernie, before co-founding the volunteer-run Illinois for Bernie and The People’s Revolution along with partner Jackrabbit Pollack in summer 2015. More recently, she was the Illinois Digital and Volunteer Coordinator on Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign.

Jackrabbit Pollack is a founding member of Interoccupy.net, affiliated with the Occupy Wall Street movement. In 2012, he participated in the grassroots disaster relief to hurricane Sandy known as Occupy Sandy. He has provided logistical support for groups fighting for racial justice such as SURJ, Ferguson Action, and Movement for Black Lives. In April of 2015, he began work as one of the core members of People for Bernie with whom he worked through July.

The People’s Convention is endorsed by: Occupy Wall St. NYC, People of Color for Bernie Sanders, Philly Coalition for REAL Justice, Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Campaign, DNC Action Committee, and Popular Resistance.

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"You can't just leave those who created the problem in charge of the solution."---Tyree Scott

darkmatter's picture

Thanks, CSTS.

I'm not so sure the DNC is going to let Hillary sink under the waves. Actually, a damaged-goods conservaDem is precisely what the neoliberal ascendancy wants, because multiple areas of vulnerability are to them multiple areas of control.

I'm particularly struck by your comments on the attack on time--I think you are exactly right. Just to add to your points on the attack on community, the attack on unions and the public sector are key to the neoliberal project, and here the centrality of "free trade" agreements cannot be overstated. The outsourcing of the manufacturing sector via bad trade agreements was all about access to cheap, non-unionized labor over there, and the crippling of the union movement (politically and economically) here. The breaking of unions in the U.S. leads to more precarity for workers, greater hours (your point re: time), and greater obedience generally. The same is true of attacks on the public sector, which have the net effect of making existence more precarious, more fraught with day-to-day anxiety.

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Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

are also absolutely key, yes. The latter is just an America-specific piece of the larger war we are in: the power of wealth vs the power of law. Been going on for 40 years worldwide, and the wrong people have been winning.

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

hates her, especially the covert side. Apparently they believe she compromised two of their operations--and they were willing to come out and say so in the press! http://www.newsweek.com/hillary-clinton-email-terrorism-sloppy-communica...
FBI

Also there's more than one person saying that multiple FBI agents will walk, and leak information, if she gets off:

http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/Joseph-diGenova-hillary-clinton-benghaz...
http://www.globalresearch.ca/us-intelligence-veterans-urge-fast-report-o...

This sort of thing does NOT usually get said in the press. I'd say the military, esp. the covert folks, are hopping mad, and intend to come for her.

There is enough evidence of enmity between the Clinton and Obama camps that I think Obama would shed no tears over Hillary's downfall, especially if it meant that his camp replaced the Clintons as political managers of the country for the 1%.

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

shaharazade's picture

and not at all boring. I too have been thinking about this 'political revolution' that Bernie has engendered. I maybe an optimist but what really gives me the hopies is the people's resistance to the oligarchical duopoly. In my offline community since Obama's bait and switch there isn't a whole lot of support or enthusiasm for the Democratic establishment pols local state or national. Bernie won hands down here in Oregon. I will be back later to comment mor after digesting this essay and reading it more in depth. While the site was down I read a piece on alternet that provoked similar thoughts. This is a good compliment to your essay. It too is not short but like yours worth reading.

http://www.alternet.org/election-2016/sins-liberalism
The Rebellion From the Left and the Right: Where Will It Take Us?

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Thank you.
Definitely another important To Read...in hard copy.

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Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

who took the time to read it.

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

enhydra lutris's picture

intentionally or not, designed to cripple it and to be viable past the election. Tat is the incessantly chant that it is anti-black and anti-female. That attack must be effectively countered.

Also, it seems to me obvious that we have to get the kids involved and let them take the lead, and it doesn't have to be one uniform, homogenous structured organization. Coalitions can work. We need today's SNCC and today's SDS and even today's Wobblies.

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That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --

stevej's picture

fascinating - will give it the attention it deserves later on today. Really looking forward to reading this.

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“To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize.” -Voltaire

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

Alex Budarin's picture

regardless of whether Bernie Sanders becomes President. If Bernie becomes President of the USA, it will still be necessary for movement activists to push all levels of power forward. If Bernie does not become President of the USA, it will of course be necessary for movement activists to push all levels of power forward.

People have been arrested in the USA and all around the world for attempting to realize true democracy, one which is not beholden to the military, political or economic elites. I call this the Universal Equality Movement. Tradition cannot dominate reason. Power cannot dominate morality. Privileges are dead!

We are, of course, in conflict everywhere with those individuals who wish to perpetuate the status quo and/or their illusions of superiority, whether based on race, sex, religion, nationality, or other personal characteristics.

I'm glad you posted this essay, by the way. Thank you!

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"All Life is Problem Solving" - Karl Popper

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

The pressure was there, and his speech--which is basically 90% of his campaign, is repeating that one speech--knocked the hole in the dam and let water through.

The movement coalesced around Bernie; the water found its way through the first available hole.

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

musicsleuth's picture

Between OWS and BLM this movement has its roots before Bernie. Bernie's decision to run as a Democrat has been enlightening -- both to expose the process for the fraud that it is and to make clear who walks the talk about representing voters vs. representing lobbyists. He needs to stay in it to the very end IMHO. In the meantime, I'm excited to hear about organizing beyond the primaries.

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rich, welcome to the $9billion campaign season, the offshore accounts are going to be well stocked.

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riverlover's picture

so there are more leaks in the wall the wealthy have placed around them. A few hackers, a big money heist, none of which could be reported by the losers? If only it didn't fall into other greedy hands.

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Hey! my dear friends or soon-to-be's, JtC could use the donations to keep this site functioning for those of us who can still see the life preserver or flotsam in the water.

travelerxxx's picture

So many on-target points in this essay that I don't know where to begin. And since I don't have the time at this moment (down to a few minutes to get to work), let me just say, "Thank-you!" for the work you put into it.

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Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

There's so much to say, I feel like this only scratched the surface. We're talking 40 years of history, and there were many, many attacks I didn't even touch on; also, the analysis of how race plays into all this could be an essay unto itself.

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

MarilynW's picture

pretending to be a democracy, like Canada for example. Thank you!

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To thine own self be true.

Meteor Man's picture

Stop apologizing for not being as brilliant as you think you ought to be. This was an excellent analysis of our social/political predicament.

If being brilliant at breakfast was a posting requirement most websites would crash and burn.

Keep on keepin on. I look forward to reading future articles from you here at caucus99percent.

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"They'll say we're disturbing the peace, but there is no peace. What really bothers them is that we are disturbing the war." Howard Zinn

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

I was uncomfortable w/its length and also with so much I was leaving out.

Guess that means I'll have to write more of 'em, LOL!

Thank you for the salutary kick in the rear. Smile

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

Big Al's picture

toward the Democratic party or a third party, there is no chance at success. Not the kind of success that we really need which is to seriously challenge the deep power. From what I've seen, that's where its headed. Mentioning this pisses people off that are vested in Bernie and his political revolution, or even those that believe there is something going on with the American people, particularly young people.
Like in California one of the big points made about Bernie's run is that they registered a whole shitload of new people into the Democratic party.
That's not going to do it. I don't see anything new. I wrote an essay about that awhile back that I didn't publish that challenged the notion that what is going on is new. I think there's a lot of wishful thinking going on without reflection of what people have done in the past.
That's not to say I don't "hope" that a real revolutionary movement can form, of course I do. But the obstacles to that happening have to be addressed as well.
Good essay CSTS

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Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

parts of this movement are no different than "people power" and DFA were for Dean. I just got done spending (and basically wasting) about 10 years of my life trying that strategy, along with tens of millions of other people, and we ended up running full-tilt into an invisible wall and braining ourselves, and in the end, had less political power and worse circumstances than we had at the beginning of the dance. For me, it's all about being honest about the years 2000-2011 (I need to write about that, but that would have made the essay massive.)

The only difference between Dean's and Bernie's strategies, in that sense, is that Bernie's movement is likely not to stay in the Democratic party. Bernie's campaign has pushed the Dem establishment into exposing how corrupt it's willing to be, right out in the open. They are happily confirming for anybody willing to open their eyes that they are willing to flip-flop, lie, cheat, steal, and even make death threats in order to get their way. Yes, we already knew they were corrupt bastards, but a lot of people who were in the "oh, they're not perfect, but they're not that bad" camp have had their eyes opened. Right now the Dems stand at 26% of the electorate. They're gonna be a lot less than that after this cycle. Their "lesser of two evils" thing is dying, and the non-Trump Republicans don't appear to be hastening to their side as they thought they would. She can get Jeb's donors, but she may not be able to get his voters. They despise her.

That said, I agree that a "more and better" DFA-style thing is not going to work, at least within the Democratic party, and possibly not within a third party. I disagree w/Bernie on that. But then, the movement is about much more than Bernie. That's one thing I think you're getting wrong.

I disagree with your belief that nothing is going on with the American people. Change is inevitable, at this point. The credibility of the duopoly is dying, and not slowly. One of four things will happen: 1)People will despair, and enter a state of learned helplessness (that's the most likely) 2)All the people who can (white people) will join together in rage and attack one or more scapegoats in a kind of American Nazi sort of way 3)People will rise up en masse and commit acts of violence against the powerful, or rise up in fits and starts, in small groups or singly, doing the same, in a guerrilla sort of way, 4)People will join together in an Internationale sort of way, and start building and using alternative structures, withdrawing their resources and energy from the system.

The first (learned helplessness) is what the Clintons and Bushes of the world want, and is the Big Money's favorite option. And, credit where credit is due, it's what Sanders is fighting against. The importance of Bernie in that equation is that he provides an impetus for people to do something other than give up. The crippling of the imagination and the acceptance that their way of doing things is the Natural Inevitable Way of the World (resistance is useless, etc.) is what his campaign is fighting, and it's not doing a bad job. There are rocky waters ahead, however.

The second is the establishment's second-favorite option: race war, scapegoating and Nazism. That's what Trump brings to the table. While the establishment doesn't like it as well as learned helplessness ( the animal which lies unmoving while electrical shocks are administered to it), they are willing to accept an enraged populace which takes out its ire on scapegoats. Personally, I think some of them would love an expanded race war.

The third is more trouble, but the establishment still has a way of using it to their advantage--if people pick up guns against the establishment, they can justify expanding and enriching the police state further, and really crack down on the population as a whole. Unless large portions of the military decided to NOT go along with crushing the people on behalf of the plutocrats, this method will be expensive, but also highly advantageous.

Only the fourth is going to be a problem for them. And there's already signs, many of them, that the energy that is circling around the figure of Sanders could become a bonafide people's movement--if the transition between campaign and movement goes well. It's early days, and there's no denying it would help if Sanders were on the same page w/me about this. It will be a lot harder to make the transition w/out him. But it's not impossible, and it is worth doing.

As for the existence of a political party being the death knell of any successful movement, I'm afraid I disagree. Many political movements, even genuinely revolutionary ones, have political parties associated w/them--political arms of a larger movement. The important thing is not to let the electoral aims swallow the rest of the movement. I'm afraid I agree with you that any movement associated with the Democratic party would have that exact thing happen to it, as I believe now that the Democratic party's job politically is to swallow all opposition to the status quo (from the left, anyway) and digest it. Unlike you, I see Sanders as *using* the Democratic party, strategically, for the access it gives him to mass media--he has essentially said as much. And since the Dems are absolutely not going to let any populism, not even New Deal populism, get anywhere near their power structure, the end of this is almost certainly going to be: a lot of people will leave the Democratic party.

Bernie is giving them a chance, in good faith: they can accept his policies, candidacy, and restore their credibility with most people (not with you or me, but with most people), and beat the Republicans in the fall. Or they can act like the corrupt bastards they are and wreck their credibility forever by bashing themselves against the integrity of his campaign. It's obvious what they've chosen.

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

Big Al's picture

the power of those that control us. I've talked over the years with others and many have said that their power has grown and is immense. Some think they're on the brink and can be had, maybe both are true. I didn't say there isn't anything going on, I said I don't see anything new going on. I grew up in the 60's and watched the civil right protests and marches and the Vietnam war protests, I've read about the union forming days in the early 1900's, history of other movements, etc.. People have been fighting against the "man" forever, in that respect it nothing new as is the distrust and disgust with the systems. In the end, none of them really worked because look where we're at now. The human condition is in danger because of those with the power dragging the planet down. Combine that with the fact that Americans are more distracted than ever, we've talked about that too, and I just don't see anything different other than the circumstances, the global situation we find ourselves in. I don't see a real desire to radically change things which is what I and many others believe must be done.

That's the key as I've said before, what is it people want. Most of the Bernie supporters want a higher minimum wage, free college, single payer, campaign finance reform etc., but there is no talk about radically changing the systems, creating new systems and abolishing the power structure institutions, like the Federal Reserve. The "conventions" and whatnot popping up like the People's Summit and the People's Revolution appear to be the same old thing of working within the representative system to enact change. Both of those efforts are clearly extensions of the Bernie revolution and clearly tied to the Democratic party. That might get some things like a higher minimum wage or an improvement in Obamacare (they will not allow single payer), and faux moves of campaign finance reform and other reforms of the electoral system, but the deep power will remain.

What's happening now is people don't know how its going to work out in the end. You don't know, I don't know, we can only guess. My guess is what I said above, anything affiliated with the two major political parties will be dead ends achieving at best some crumbs for the peasants without changing the power structure. Third party efforts will take decades if at all while the power behind the throne marches us off the cliff.

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lotlizard's picture

“Put your bodies upon the gears,” as Mario Savio said.

Can, for example, people’s cars “do a French truck driver” and coincidentally happen to break down on major Philadelphia roads and highways, all at the same time?

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"The credibility of the duopoly is dying, and not slowly."
really think defeating the Clintons is an important part of this.
Stunned, laughing too, when Mary Mattalin( sp?) changed her registration from Republican to Libertarian. Tho' her chosen candidate didn't make it, still of all people to leave the Republican party.
What a chuckle.

Don't think the DNC/DWS/DLC/Third Way/Clintons can see what's happening. Willful tone deafness or just another version of their "if I repeat the lie often enough it become my version of the truth" strategy?

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polkageist's picture

I said in my comment above "this essay is only a prelude to the whole subject" and that you needed to write a lot more. You're an excellent writer and I enjoy your posts. Obviously I'm not alone. Keep going.

I agree that the Democratic Party has chosen power instead of public service. At the best one can look upon it as the ultimate fate of any organization; at worst purposefully corrupt. Thus, I agree that we need a new party to give political focus to aims of the movement just forming. I think the chances of success are slim but not zero by any chance. What you are doing is giving focus to the problem and enabling people to look for practical solutions.

Practical solutions are important. In my 80 years I have seen far too much fuzzy, unfocused intellectual claptrap that accomplished nothing except make a few people feel as if they had "done something" or "said something" important. The people who listened usually ended up in jail, on drugs, impoverished, bitter, or disillusioned and either just gave up or joined the elites. Some didn't survive. Few kept up the fight because it takes numbers and money to win. So lots of us just did what we could where we could and waited. We weren't sure what we were waiting for but Bernie has given us an opportunity to start again. His constant repetition of a few truisms is what we need to continue. He knows that simplicity is the key to good political communication. Trump knows this too but his is not focused and is ineffective over the long haul. If we stay focused and don't allow minor issues to split us up, we can win. I won't live to see the end of this, but people like you can make it happen.

Keep going.

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-Greed is not a virtue.
-Socialism: the radical idea of sharing.
-Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.
John F. Kennedy, In a speech at the White House, 1962

To me, we are in phase two of Hegel's Thesis-AntiThesis-MetaThesis process.

The Movement is articulating the AntiThesis.

We have to be patient -- working in those areas where action is clear while listening as the shape of next-action develops.

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riverlover's picture

I don't see this as a takeover of an old corrupt party or formation of a new (potentially going corrupt) party. I am not sure that what I see is a democracy, which for Americans gets binary very fast, but a coalescence of ideas by many, with no (1)winners or (2)losers pointed out. That is my silly half-formed thought of the evening news hour, which I have not seen for over 5 years.

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Hey! my dear friends or soon-to-be's, JtC could use the donations to keep this site functioning for those of us who can still see the life preserver or flotsam in the water.

gulfgal98's picture

And you have nailed it!

For the last seven weeks as part of the Wed. morning Open Thread, I have been trying to educate folks here about neo-liberalism and how deeply it is now ingrained in our political system. What was missing from that series is the HOW. What you have done so beautifully in this essay is analyzed HOW neo-liberalism has been able to gain a stranglehold on our government and our lives.

As you and I have discussed in the past, I am a firm believer in social movements as the primary catalysts to change. The Occupy Movement was the first iteration of this great universal desire for real change. Then came Black Lives Matter and now Bernie has provided the national voice for that undercurrent in this country. We are starting to coalesce as a real movement. But we cannot come together if we allow ourselves to be divided, and division is exactly what the oligarchs want. Now you have so brilliantly articulated just how the oligarchs were able to do that.

I need to re-read this again and I may have more comments. Thank you for this truly outstanding essay. I hope we will read more from you on this subject in the future.

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Do I hear the sound of guillotines being constructed?

“Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." ~ President John F. Kennedy

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

There's so much more to say about all this--I'm starting to think I should have included the imagination as one of the objects of attack, b/c it surely is.

The impetus for the movement is already there. It's clear that something is wanting and waiting to be born. But will it be smashed, or fade away for lack of a medium to root in?

We're at a moment where what we do might actually be important; steering this movement, if we can, toward better waters; actually helping bring it to birth.

I'm looking forward to any other comments you have. Smile

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

As we saw with Occupy the State makes it extremely difficult to organize protest unless/until numbers are in the hundreds of thousands. New fictions like "unlawful assembly" and pre-emptive tactics (locking down whole sections of cities) not to mention militarized police forces and unprecedented surveillance are ready, willing and able to snuff out any organization with coordinated, aggressive force.

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Like you, I too have been doing a lot of forward-thinking projection as to where this movement is heading. After Occupy fizzled out (oh, such hopes, again) I felt adrift. Crushed, actually, kind of like when Bernie's voters were purged in Brooklyn and he lost New York. I also agree that a Bernie-centered movement might collapse should he leave, get tired, return to the Senate, or die. The cult of personality, whether by Stalin, Hitler, the Clintons or Kim Kardashian, is a half-formed thing. Bernie knows this; that's why he calls this movement a revolution. Revolutions only succeed if many people within groups with affiliated goals join together and work long (unfortunately) and hard until some or all of their goals are met and the society changes for the betterment of all. I fervently hope that Bernie, should he not prevail in getting the nomination, make use of all his accomplishments, name recognition, and outreach to the American people (of all ages) and craft a workable, inclusive movement of many like-minded people. Using this apparatus as a stepping stone to power for, by, and of the American people is our best chance for a happier future. Bernie supporting Hillary for president, campaigning for her, and suggesting his followers vote for her against Trump, would be an endgame so inconceivable, I might stay in bed until global warming gets dibs on hell freezing over.

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Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

Admittedly, even if everything I want comes to pass, there are still some unanswered questions, like, as you mentioned, global warming, which such a movement could do little about except develop resilience, as Gerrit describes (not inconsequential!) and try its best not to be part of the problem. Secondly, what happens when the establishment decides to rid itself of the movement? That's a hard question, perhaps the hardest.

Still worth doing, b/c what else are we going to do?
Party till the lights go out, maybe.
For now, I'm standing with the movement.

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

lotlizard's picture

at the close of Nineteen Eighty-Four.

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riverlover's picture

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Hey! my dear friends or soon-to-be's, JtC could use the donations to keep this site functioning for those of us who can still see the life preserver or flotsam in the water.

Steven D's picture

The issue isn;t that she violated the statutes in question, the issue is whether Obama's DOJ will indict.

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"You can't just leave those who created the problem in charge of the solution."---Tyree Scott

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

My family calls.

See you later tonight, or possibly tomorrow--and thank you all for reading through this whole essay!

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

yellopig's picture

More long-form posts, please. Smile

One of my disappointments with the "press" nowadays is that anything over three to five paragraphs is "too long". I'm old, I guess, but I remember times when there was an important issue being discussed, my hometown newspaper threw down half- to three-quarter-page blocks of solid text, defining the issue, naming the participants, giving the history, chewing over the various positions and identifying key focal points. And those were the big old-style newsprint pages too! Sometimes there were more than one of those per day.

It was easier to become an informed citizen when provided with that level of detail.

I don't think the Internet has improved over that. Now, like I said, we get three to five paragraphs, and those contain eight links to other articles, each of which takes time to load before I can read it, and then reload the original article, just so I can click on the next link, rinse, repeat. It's not only time-consuming to read that way, but it's distracting too, and dissipates the energy & interest the author was probably trying to raise.

/rant

Anyway, thank you for this long and thoughtful post, and I look forward to more!

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“We may not be able to change the system, but we can make the system irrelevant in our lives and in the lives of those around us.”—John Beckett

jamess's picture

some Deep Thoughts.

So is it progressivism or socialism, at the core of the movement?

Is it our 'common experience' with the negative fallout of Capitalism,

Or the simplistic glomming-on to a Candidate with the gumption,
to dare to speak Truth to Power?

Is a movement that will carry on;
that will continue to motivate others to speak out against the (rigged) madness?

Or will 'shrugs' ... one day be its lasting legacy ...

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That it couldn't even wait until the NJ polls closed tomorrow to pre-emptively call the race for HRC. The celebration is in full force over at TOP after AP and others called it today. Hey let's not leave CA to chance, let's try to suppress the vote on the eve of the primary. What a fucking disgrace the media has become.

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SiriusMoonLight's picture

13 additional Supers pledged Madam their support. NBC news calls it basically over.

Bastards.

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lunachickie's picture

So you have a choice. They shovel this shit out here, knowing that it's a lie. You can roll over and take it or you can push back.

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Actually, I'd be pretty surprised to see Warren play along with something like that. She is among the very few big name dems who didn't come out and endorse hrc early on. In our current world, speaking out like she does and embarrassing wall streeters and such can count for quite a bit. Any legislative initiatives on her part are likely to be summarily blocked. But at this point she has cred, and she would certainly flush it away by being in on a coup (or running as hill's vp like kos was dreaming about). I also wonder how big her profile is outside the "left blogosphere", and, why people keep including her in dreams of some sort of progressive endorsement of the establishment order once the primaries are over, as if it would automatically and magically call home all the wayward Bernie followers.

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murphthesurf's picture

Please write here often.
This is the kind of actual thought that has been
sorely lacking at "TOP".

Thanks.
Peace -
Murph

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