The Democratic Party is Doomed
(Edited back to original Democratic Party. Intended slur was divisive)
Julian Assange spells out why the Democratic Party is doomed and a new party must be started. The party has been chasing Russia, Russia, Russia down a rabbit hole to the detriment of the real concerns of the Democrats since the loss of the election.
It is glaringly apparent that Hillary Clinton's legacy/image is much more important than the people she was representing. She and her entourage of party elites are determined to refuse to accept any responsibility whatsoever for her failure to become POTUS. They would rather destroy the Democratic Party than own up to the truth.
Assange Outlines The Six Reasons "Why The Democratic Party Is Doomed"
- The Democratic establishment has vortexed the party's narrative energy into hysteria about Russia
- The Trump - Russia collusion narrative is a political dead end. Despite vast resources, enormous incentives and a year of investigation
- The Democrat establishment needs the support of the security sector and media barons to push this diversionary conspiracy agenda
- The twin result is to place the primary self-interest concerns of most Americans, class competition, freedom from crime and ill health and the empowerment of their children, into the shadows
- GOP/Trump has open goals everywhere: broken promises, inequality, economy, healthcare, militarization, Goldman Sachs, Saudi Arabia & cronyism, but the Democrat establishment can't kick these goals since the Russian collusion narrative has consumed all its energy
- The Democratic base should move to start a new party since the party elite shows no signs that they will give up power.
Jimmy Dore discusses Assange's points:
Comments
Yup. The Dems are doomed. Neoliberalism in general is a losing
strategy. It's seems though some of them may be pulling their heads out of their asses: https://consortiumnews.com/2017/06/26/democrats-face-failing-russia-gate-scheme/
"Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." - JFK | "The more I see of the moneyed peoples, the more I understand the guillotine." - G. B. Shaw Bernie/Tulsi 2020
I no longer trust the lot of them. As Glen Greenwald says,
there will always be a "designated villain" or villains if Dems ever get enough power to do something that progressives want. Victory will melt into powerlessness. Dems will always fail us no matter how many are sent to Washington.
"The object of persecution is persecution. The object of torture is torture. The object of power is power. Now do you begin to understand me?" ~Orwell, "1984"
@Lily O Lady
Way back in "Public Option" days, someone called "hctomorrow" posted a diary at FireDogLake, and I'm glad I saved it, because it was removed a long time ago. Here's the main part:
And now we have a WWE Hall of Famer as President.
I'm not an expert on wrestling, but it's been obvious to me that, despite the talking head's love of football analogies, US politics has been pro-wrestling for quite a while.
Idolizing a politician is like believing the stripper really likes you.
Donald Trump's shining moment:
The ruling classes need an extra party to make the rest of us feel as if we participate in democracy. That's what the Democrats are for. They make the US more durable than the Soviet Union was.
And he's still doing the same thing now
except that US politics isn't as clean and honest as Wrestlemania.
"Obama promised transparency, but Assange is the one who brought it."
Greenwald wrote this. Definitely worth reading.
This 2016 article written by Greenwald is as relevant today as it was one year ago.
It is about a crisis of authority. Elites, global and domestic, abusing their privilege and going too far
"Religion is what keeps the poor from murdering the rich."--Napoleon
Someone needs to spell it out for the asshats at TOP
They are still doubling down on Russia, Russia, Russia. They have so much invested in that canard they absolutely refuse to give it up. Even site management continues to actively encourage this Shiite.
This is what they are achieving for their efforts:
That could also be a graph for the direction the Democratic party is going.
@CB Reading the GOS this
Reading the GOS this week reminds me of the Two Minute Hate from George Orwell's 1984 only the hate doesn't stop at two minutes.
What else can one do when you are losing the war
The "two minutes hate" has been going on against Emmanuel Goldstein Putin since the morning of November 9, 2016 when the proles woke up to find they were always at war with Eurasia.
All this hate is just Kos following orders from the
Corporate overlords.
Not a boss of most of us.
I cannot peek over there for more than 30 sec, before I realize (again) that they are delusional, living in a separate reality. Or illusion.
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.
Enjoy the Desperation
In contrast
This is what the Dems are NOT.
The Dems would work overtime to purge someone
even remotely like Corbyn from the party. Ooops, they did - Bernie Sanders.
How much lower can the Dems sink before the truth dawns on them? They seem to be oblivious to the damage they have/are inflicting on the Party.
And this is exactly why they can't win elections
Dude, you ruined my binky memories forever now
but LOL! I love your stuff. Thanks, keep going.
peace
This is a great explanation why the idiot Dems lose:
Why Democrats Lose: the Case of Jon Ossoff by GEOFF BECKMAN
I think that too many of them have drank the Klintonite KoolAid and they'll be decimated next year as well.
"Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." - JFK | "The more I see of the moneyed peoples, the more I understand the guillotine." - G. B. Shaw Bernie/Tulsi 2020
It appears --
they've completely co-opted Sanders. He will run in 2020 on a platform somewhere to the right of that espoused last year by Hillary Clinton.
The ruling classes need an extra party to make the rest of us feel as if we participate in democracy. That's what the Democrats are for. They make the US more durable than the Soviet Union was.
Good article here on Corbyn:
https://theintercept.com/2017/06/26/new-u-k-government-held-together-fear-prime-minister-jeremy-corbyn/
"Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." - JFK | "The more I see of the moneyed peoples, the more I understand the guillotine." - G. B. Shaw Bernie/Tulsi 2020
Socialism Strikes Back!
Thanks. I saw that about a week ago. That reporter is GREAT!
"Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." - JFK | "The more I see of the moneyed peoples, the more I understand the guillotine." - G. B. Shaw Bernie/Tulsi 2020
Her heinous only cares about power and money
as far as her legacy/image, only the hillbots care about that.
I never knew that the term "Never Again" only pertained to
those born Jewish
"Antisemite used to be someone who didn't like Jews
now it's someone who Jews don't like"
Heard from Margaret Kimberley
legacy/image
punctuation adjusted due to formatting change
But that's still more important to Her Heinous than the People she claims to represent. Anything is more important to Her Heinous than that!
"US govt/military = bad. Russian govt/military = bad. Any politician wanting power = bad. Anyone wielding power = bad." --Shahryar
"All power corrupts absolutely!" -- thanatokephaloides
Assange fails to see that the entire Democratic Party
message vote for us not those icky people. Because they are icky. There is no substance. This was what made The Party in Nineteen Eighty-Four unassailable. They abandoned issues and ideology for the quest for raw power.
"The object of persecution is persecution. The object of torture is torture. The object of power is power. Now do you begin to understand me?" ~Orwell, "1984"
Ralph Nader shines a spotlight on the dems
inability to reform themselves:
https://theintercept.com/2017/06/25/ralph-nader-the-democrats-are-unable...
Definitely worth the read.
"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11
Nader certainly pulls no punches...
They can't defend against what they themselves are.
"...two wings of the same bird of prey" Upton Sinclair, 1904. Nothing much has changed. Bernie needs to disassociate from these idiots ASAP.
"Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." - JFK | "The more I see of the moneyed peoples, the more I understand the guillotine." - G. B. Shaw Bernie/Tulsi 2020
@ZimInSeattle Too late.
Too late.
When you pay the Democratic party 100,000 dollars to defray the costs of the Tom Perez Unity Tour and you simultaneously say you don't know who Tim Canova is when you endorsed him last year, it's time to say
"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
@CB
Just want to add, and this inability is because the corporate Dems are ...the most vicious, ignorant, corporate-indentured, militaristic, anti-union, anti-consumer, anti-environment, anti-posterity [(un)Democratic Party] in history. ...
The above is simply the job description their billionaire/corporate interest paymasters issue, and which only the psychopathic could or would match with.
Psychopathy is not a political position, whether labeled 'conservatism', 'centrism' or 'left'.
A tin labeled 'coffee' may be a can of worms or pathology identified by a lack of empathy/willingness to harm others to achieve personal desires.
Nader was a big reason why the Bushites
stole the 2000 election in Floridumb. He's old, wealthy, and a hypocrite. Rec'd!!
Inner and Outer Space: the Final Frontiers.
from one who knows
-R. Nader
Always the focus is on "messaging",
as if what Democrats most need is a new, and smoother line of bullshit. This Party's leaders have spent the past six months recklessly pushing the nation ever closer to a war with Russia. They've been doing it in collusion with some of the worst elements within the neocon-controlled Deep State, without even blushing. This is not merely an instance of "poor messaging". At best it's a demonstration of utterly irresponsible cynicism, and at worst a demonstration of dangerously malevolent intent. Whether or not the Dems abandon their current Russia-gate obsession, they have already revealed themselves willing to fully collaborate with rabid MIC imperialists, purely for the sake of political expediency.
Even by finally recognizing the political futility of this anti-Russia hate-fest, the Dems will not be able to earn back the respect of anyone who desires a more peaceful world. They have already blown whatever meager credibility they might once have had, in that department.
native
(++)
Israel owns most of both parties
that's the unspoken detail. Our foreign policy will never be reasonable or normal when it's framed around what Bibi wants.
"Obama promised transparency, but Assange is the one who brought it."
I don't think the Trumpster
give a fuck what Bibi wants.
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.
Jared does.
Heads I win, tails you lose.
"Obama promised transparency, but Assange is the one who brought it."
But Jared Kushner cares about what Bibi wants.
If Kushner cares then so does Ivanka - and Daddy will do whatever his darling daughter desires.
I wouldn't say they own the parties.
But they certainly have a firm grip on their gonads.
And the Saudi's own the remainder.
"Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." - JFK | "The more I see of the moneyed peoples, the more I understand the guillotine." - G. B. Shaw Bernie/Tulsi 2020
But it does serve to show we were correct in our assessment
of Her as a neocon war-monger. I'd venture to say that Her response to the fake Sarin attack at Khan Sheikhoun would have been Option 3 - Libya redux.
Hillary Clinton's continuing willingness,
even eagerness at times... to use obviously incomplete and/or fabricated evidence as a justification for military aggression, should long ago have alerted Democrats to her true colors. If they did not know, then they certainly should know by now, that this woman likes war -- that she wants more war, not less, and that she is willing and able to lie through her teeth to get it. No matter how many people die as a result.
That she is still lauded and admired as a champion of the Democratic Party in spite of this, reveals a lot about the ethical priorities of that Party. As for her remaining supporters... well, perhaps they can still plead ignorance. Perhaps, but it's beginning to look more and more like a willful ignorance.
native
Yet every time we pointed this out to her supporters
they claimed that we were spreading right wing talking points and since she had admitted that her Iraq war vote was a mistake, they believe that she's just this nice old grandma baking cookies for her grandchildren. Not one person would allow any doubt that she wasn't a warmonger, even though her history during her tenure as secretary of state proved differently.
She has been a warmonger since she and Bill crawled out of Arkansas.
She should have been disqualified as a candidate after she gleefully laughed and cackled after watching Gaddafi's brutal murder.
Seriously, who does that?
And it doesn't matter how many women and children she killed during the Libyan war, she's still defended as a staunch supporter of women and children.
Not to mention how many if them she sentenced to more poverty when she pushed for their welfare reform.
"Seriously, who does that?" - sociopaths and psychopaths.
"Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." - JFK | "The more I see of the moneyed peoples, the more I understand the guillotine." - G. B. Shaw Bernie/Tulsi 2020
Speaking of Khan Sheikhoun
Here's Sy Hersh's latest article about the false flag:
Trump's Red Line
Here's another one, a transcript of dialogue between an American soldier and a security advisor (Houston, we've got a leaker...).
We've got a problem
"Obama promised transparency, but Assange is the one who brought it."
It is what you described:
@native Another thing that's too
Another thing that's too late to save: they put all their chips on the Russia narrative, and after about a year of it, and six months of it at saturation point, they managed to get 44% of the population on board with them.
That's not a good ROI, even though Reality Winner et al helped them get a nine-point bump up from where it had been hovering at 35% for quite a while.
Now they're abandoning the narrative and saying they'll talk about a strong economic message that appeals to the middle class. I'm guessing not too many will take them up on that, but I could be wrong.
Let's hope that this time people won't try to kick the football again.
"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
They're back to messaging again
They seem to think that if they can just come up with the right combination of words, that people will actually vote for them again.
They don't get that this isn't an ad campaign, and that no slick commercial or slogan will ever get people to believe their slimy bullshit again.
"Obama promised transparency, but Assange is the one who brought it."
Sane Progressive latest video update
Edited: changed the Subject (twice lol) from click bait to something more descriptive, put it down below with my opinion. I hope people actually watch the video and then comment, instead of focusing on my cynicism. heh Talk about fixing or building something better instead, with all that energy and those funds. Big Al wants 50 million, for instance.
No, really it's about fixing the voting system first, I go no trust. Regrets.
...
She throws Bernie under the bus where he belongs, if you ask me. What's his title? Who is he raising money for? Supporting? C'mon peeps wake the eff up. I am sad because I looked up on the FEC filings folks who donated to Ossoff from my town, responding to unending email pleas, probably. The Ds are still soaking the unemployed, Bernie is complicit. Look at what he does, not what he says.
Recent Stories Show WHy Democratic Party Fails at Populist Change
peace
I'm with Dore on Bernie.
And Dore is with Bernie. "That he's only a Super Hero instead of a Super Duper Hero... ? Pfffff." #StillWithBernie.
Exactly.
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.
The money could be helping people for real
That $100,000 from Bernie for the Respect my Uni-tay tour featuring Tom Perez? Yeah all that booing really makes for great entertainment, but in the end does nothing for regular people. What did he spend on Single Payer California I wonder, that would be good to know. What does he say about Fight for $15 in California when he damn well knows it's not enough. Maybe Tim Canova is a crap candidate but so what? He is running against DWS the most corrupt D on earth beside Clintons. If that campaign is not a great option for exposing corruption and advancing truth, then I don't know what is. Stooksbury FL-23? heh
peace
I'm with Wink on Bernie....
He is a hero with clay feet. Still, he deserves credit for pulling back the curtain and changing the conversation.
"Religion is what keeps the poor from murdering the rich."--Napoleon
If I'm not mistaken
that $15 per hour would finally be reached in 2024... The old phase in, and by 2024 any bets on what $15 an hour really does for anyone?
Only a fool lets someone else tell him who his enemy is. Assata Shakur
@Wink yeah, I'm not on board
yeah, I'm not on board with the Bernie hate at all. He was my favorite Senator for a long time before 2016. His message has been the same for 50 years. He's no sellout.
I don't blame him for endorsing Hillary after the primary. If he would have tried to make a 3rd party move or convention coup like a lot of his supporters wanted he would have been crushed.
He didn't sell out. He tried to fight the power like he always has, and he lost. I don't believe he lost fair and square by any stretch, but he still lost. From there he did the best he could with a bad situation.
If he would have ran 3rd party I believe Trump would still be president now, the only difference would be that Hillary's cult would have a much better case for blaming it all on Bernie. He'd be a parriah in the Senate and he would have ZERO political power. At least he's now the ranking member in the powerful Finance committee and the Outreach Chair - as contrived as that "leadership" position is, it does allow him to spread his message (which is a better message than any other current national political figure is trying to spread).
Yes, he has to toe the Dem party line sometimes to keep the power/influence he has, but I truly believe he clings to that power/influence for the good he can do with it, not to stoke his ego like most of his colleagues in DC.
I still believe Bernie is a different kind of politician and I don't doubt his sincerity or motivations for a second.
I agree with you and Wink.
I don't think Sanders is an appropriate target for progressives' wrath.
native
Who is saying "hate" and "sell out"? Not me.
those words don't sound like how people talk here, so I don't know where that is coming from. Maybe I am just not reading those essays or listening to those videos, are there that many linked here?
I am trying to just voice an opinion, talk on a blog, not start some fight or movement or anything. Yeah I like to suggest redirecting money and good vibes where it might do the most tangible good. That is not hateful, or sell-out talk. The closest I got there was stating facts I think, Bernie has become pretty wealthy through his own actions, every Prez candidate writes a book and goes on tour before and after, don't they? He is no different. That's fine. Now he is recruiting for the oligarchy in charge, with no plans to fix the broken election system that screwed us, but not him really. There is no way he or anyone he supports can make change with the crap that's installed nation wide. What about it?
peace
oh yeah and another thing! lol Peace is last on the list for D recovery? Please, no. Where's the compassion there?
@eyo This sounds a tad
This sounds a tad hateful to me. YMMV:
I disagree that he deserves to be thrown under the bus. He's the most popular politician in the country and he represents my values better than any other politician on the current national stage.
And who are you suggesting he's raising money for and supporting? The wrong candidates or interests? Someone he shouldn't be raising money for and supporting? Perhaps someone he... sold out to?
"throws Bernie under the bus" was the click bait
that I regret but didn't think it right to edit out. I actually picked up that phrase somewhere else, maybe Debbie. Someone here keeps saying it too, more than once otherwise it wouldn't have stuck in my lint trap like that. Perhaps it was on reddit, or Naked Capitalism. After those two and here, I don't get out much except to follow links. Too much noise, not enough signal. So yeah, I regret putting that down in words like that, it deflected from the point entirely. Regrets.
Did you watch any of the Sane Progressive video(s)? Do you know the problems with the voting systems nationwide? Any comments about that? Anything about the voter suppression tactics the Ds used on Bernie? Not fixed, not even talked about, I don't get it. For me Bernie's GOTV and HOPE again is not a good strategy. Real problems need actual tangible solutions, like verified voting machines, election observers, stuff like that. How else will you get enough of Congress to pass anything? Demographics? Really? Next decade of gerrymandering is D favored, is that the plan? Tell me please, it will relieve my urge to talk back if you know I mean.
I want "the most popular politician in the country" to start addressing the 50 broken states of voting issues, and not stop until fixed. It is elemental, essential for democracy. Software security sucks, not just on the voting and counting machines either. The place is leaking like a sieve, no consultant database left unprotected it seems. Perhaps it is too technical for the masses to follow, I don't know what to say or do about that. Education, but from who? Questions questions.
peace
Agreed.
While it's great Bernie is still out there taking about worthy causes, without addressing the totally corrupt and un-democratic system that is running the Democratic Party and preventing these things from ever happening, it's just words.
If he's serious about accomplishing these goals and/or reforming the Democratic Party, this is where we need to start. I've still yet to hear Bernie say anything addressing what happened to we the voters during the primaries.
GOTV is great, but I don't trust these people at all. They've claimed in court it is their right to disregard the will of the voters. We had the numbers last time and see what happened. To continue on just ignoring what happened and hoping we can vote all the "bad apples" out seems suicidal to me.
I really don't know how to fix things, and I really wish I did, but as long as the mainstream Democrats can pull the rug out from any progressives with no consequences nothing is going to change. I've got no hate for Bernie, but I'm very frustrated with his actions post-primary.
EDIT: I don't mean to sound like I am minimizing the importance of election reform across the board. You could take anything I'm taking about and transfer it to the general elections. That's why I find Bernie contributing to Russia-mania, albeit at a lower level than others, most depressing. This Russia crap trivializes the real issues in our elections and does nothing to fix or even address them.
Idolizing a politician is like believing the stripper really likes you.
@eyo I've seen a few
I've seen a few Sane Progressive vids and of course I'm aware of all the malfeasance in the primary. The corrupt-to-the-core DNC cheated Bernie and cheated us all. I was myself purged from the voter rolls and forced to file a fucking provisional ballot that was never counted. Yes I know about the problems with the voting systems.
The only thing I don't agree with is throwing Bernie under the bus for it. I know a lot of his supporters (like SP) are furious at him for not running 3rd party or contesting the convention. I disagree. I think that would have been a mistake. I don't think he would have won (or even gotten close) and he wouldn't have the power in the Senate and the reach to spread his message that he does today.
Maybe I'm wrong, but I think what he did after the primary (including endorsing and campaigning for Her) was the least bad option he had for the long run.
@eyo
I've heard this on this site a couple of times now, and am wondering what the documented basis for this consists of?
The Corporate Dem smear machine is still working against Bernie, which indicates to me both that he's still considered a threat by them, rather than his working for them in a manner that they actually like, and also that I'd do better to actually see documented evidence of anything to do with Bernie which is being used as a smear to discredit him among the actual Progressives and others who might otherwise work together with all potential allies to achieve something for the public good rather than disintegrating into the usual squabbling and mutually suspicious small groups getting nowhere yet again.
In any event, I'd very much appreciate a few links if you happen to have them handy?
Edit to continue:
Is Bernie 'recruiting' for the oligarchy - and if so, why did he say that he trusted the aware not to blindly do anything he said,
should he be forced into the role he now plays to retain corporate media access to get the word regarding what democratic government should be, out to those restricted to such corporate media,
knowing what he faces and hazards, as so many seem to think they do in discussion, yet forget the facts regarding the actual situation and the fine line Bernie walks once smear campaigns work their way into Progressive territory, lumping Bernie in with the ruthless and mindless corporate psychos?
Why is there a continuous Dem smear campaign against Bernie, if he's 'sheepdogging' for them?
Who else would be keeping the concept of democracy alive in the corporate media, where the non-internet-active American viewing public can be validated as citizens and human lives validated as having a worth beyond a stock portfolio, if not for Bernie?
He's talking about replacing corporate Dems with progressive, survival-oriented ones, which admittedly will likely not be permitted to happen. But it's worth a try, because, as you say,
yet we must attempt something or simply wait for the final shearing and slaughter.
He's building an informed and active base which could form a potential 3rd party, which admittedly will likely not be permitted to happen/win. But it's worth a try, because, as you say,
yet we must attempt something or simply wait for the final shearing and slaughter.
He is, meanwhile, doing what he can to raise awareness among the public who would otherwise hear nothing but propaganda, to give Americans and life on the planet whatever crumbs he's able to smuggle their way which might sustain their survival spirit. Because, as Bernie's always said, change must come from the people; one man cannot do it alone, that it wasn't about him, it was about everybody. And this causes him to be rejected as an ally by those he counted on to be also working to save themselves, themselves, in whatever fashion?
What else could he be expected to do, with a full-blown fascist take-over of all governmental systems?
Certainly, I have been told that Bernie is now mouthing outrageous propaganda and I have no way of knowing whether he assumes that most will not believe the disprovable lies and feels it more important to retain a position where he can keep the concepts of democracy and of the value of human life alive in the public mind or if he has been brainwashed within the bubble into actually believing this, although even then, if free to see evidence of disproof, Bernie can always, unlike most of the fascists in the US government, recognize and respect the truth and will admit when he's mistaken.
But in with this, I have also seen resurrected propaganda from the primary regarding votes Bernie made in the past, which invariably proved to have been for some solid reason, such as in order that some unavoidable evil was at least alleviated by some essential good, such as that soldiers sent to occupy an invaded country at least had equipment they would not otherwise have been given.
Bernie has always had an easily understandable reason for everything that he's done, in every case in which I've researched the actual context or been provided with evidence regarding situations which have been presented as making him a 'warmonger'.
And I'll personally continue to go by Bernie's life-long demonstrated character and actions, sometimes at no small risk to himself, as I do by the demonstrated character and actions of the pathologically greedy and psychopathic group he's attempting, by one pacific means or another, to replace with legitimate democratic government, which has any chance only if accompanied by the efforts of a good part of the American people already waiting by the very slaughterhouse gate.
You are almost certainly correct that
but does that mean that nobody should even try - in whatever way they can - to pacifically achieve a chance for democracy in America if the people remember what Bernie's said all along, look at the onrushing lunatic-greed-driven destruction of not only the concepts of civilization/democracy but of life on the planet likely within this decade and quite possibly within this year - and do not fail to act in a constructive manner themselves?
Or to act in solidarity, not falling yet again for the tactics of division propaganda-created by the corporate evil which has grown in great part because of this lack of unified opposition translating into passivity - amounting to tacit acceptance - on which the evil also feeds and grows.
Psychopathy is not a political position, whether labeled 'conservatism', 'centrism' or 'left'.
A tin labeled 'coffee' may be a can of worms or pathology identified by a lack of empathy/willingness to harm others to achieve personal desires.
@Ellen North It's usually part
It's usually part of a smear Clintonites toss around. He has a 3 lake houses and a sports car, blah, blah, blah.
It's a "yeah but" response to criticism of the Clintons' extreme wealth and corruption.
Dumbest set if talking points ever. Should we expect Bernie to be poor? He's been in Congress earning a 6-figure salary for decades and Jane is a successful (current FBI investigations notwithstanding) education administrator who also earns a high salary. There's NO comparison between Bernie's wealth and Hillary's but we can't let any silly facts get in the way of a good talking point.
@Ellen North Ellen: look at
Ellen: look at my comment re: DWS and Tim Canova (and Ro Khanna).
It's not about thinking Bernie is a terrible person. I don't.
It's about thinking that Bernie is serving the establishment. All the evidence points to this. I am evidence-based, and my kind memories of Bernie and various work he's done over the years cannot erase what I see.
He might well be serving the establishment under threat. Certainly Mook's claim to Podesta that they have "leverage" over Sanders is noteworthy.
But now he's not supporting Tim Canova against Debbie Wasserman-Schultz. In fact, what he said is, in DC-speak, the strongest possible expression of lack of support that there is.
Here's the problem: his own political revolution is precisely about supporting people like Tim Canova to replace people like Debbie Wasserman-Schultz. I saw problems with that strategy from the beginning: election fraud, primarily. But now it appears that he isn't pursuing that strategy.
Of course people will say that this is just one race. But Debbie isn't just any rep. She's the person who oversaw the election fraud last year (at least the part that wasn't in the hands of the techies). She's the person who put her thumb on the scale for Hillary. Now Bernie won't support her progressive challenger.
What's the point of a political revolution based on primarying entrenched corporate Democrats with progressive Democrats if, when push comes to shove, you don't do it?
And at the same time, hand the DNC a 100K-dollar check to defray the costs of the Tom Perez Unity Tour.
Bernie now is more than a sheepdog. He's practically running back and forth sticking his fingers in the holes in the dam.
"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
Thank you, CStMS! Exactly the point that
I was going to make.
For cryin' out loud, many folks, myself included, don't think that Bernie's the personification of evil--we just don't agree with 'everything' he says and does, all the time. I've stated numerous times that I believe the he is very, very well-intentioned. And that he sincerely believes that what he's doing is 'for the greater good.'
IMHO, expressing a strong disagreement with someone, should not be automatically equated with feeling hatred for someone.
Just so folks know, this is a nonpartisan blog. Not Everyone here's a Democrat--nor are they required to be.
Speaking for myself, I left the Party in 2004--due to the obvious corruption, and the way that they scr*wed Howard Dean. And, frankly, because my entire Family's simply much further 'left' than any of the so-called 'progressive lawmakers.' Including Bernie, Warren, Grijalva, Ellison . . .
Honestly, I look only at a lawmaker's policies. I could care less about anything else. So when I post (shortly) material about the just passed VA legislation--which was an offshoot of a bill that Bernie co-authored in 2014--I hope folks won't take it too personally.
The fact of the matter is that the passage of the Veterans Choice Act began the dismantling of 150-year-old precedents regarding employment 'protections' for Civil Service Employees. Not only do I have the statement from the largest federal union stating as much, I've clipped the C-Span video of a Atlantic Media Group Editor, Kevin Baron, saying the same.
We're talking bills that render the federal unions completely toothless--in regards to pushing back against adverse personnel actions, such as firings, suspensions, demotions, etc.
(That's aside from greatly expanding the privatization of veterans' medical services/care.)
Maybe I should include a disclaimer or something at the beginning of the blurb.
Lordy! as Comey would say--never thought it would come to this!
Mollie
"Every time I lose a dog, he takes a piece of my heart. Every new dog gifts me with a piece of his. Someday, my heart will be total dog, and maybe then I will be just as generous, loving, and forgiving."
____Author Unknown
"If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went."--Will Rogers
“I believe in the redemptive powers of a dog’s love. It is in recognition of each dog’s potential to lift the human spirit and therefore–to change society for the better, that I fight to make sure every street dog has its day.”
--Stasha Wong, Secretary, Save Our Street Dogs (SOSD)
The SOSD Fantastic Four
Available For Adoption, Save Our Street Dogs, SOSD
Taro
Everyone thinks they have the best dog, and none of them are wrong.
Nonsense. n/t
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.
Thanks for your thoughtful response
your defense of Bernie's character is admirable, I really appreciate the time you took to write all that. Not sure if you really want me to answer each question asked, there are a bunch in there I think I already talked about. I started out wanting to talk about the voting infrastructure and end up defending Bernie because I used the wrong words out of the chute. Go Bernie
I like Bernie Sanders, I voted for him, donated money, made phone calls. I don't think he is corrupt like most of his colleagues. It's a big club and I ain't in it. I admire Bernie trying to break down the barriers so all can join, love his words to that affect. I just think he's doing it wrong getting people to donate, register, and vote D, that's why I pipe up. "Smears" come from the MSM and other propaganda outlets, that is not my thing. Too much noise, not enough signal. I have to avoid the overwhelming noise from MSM, so I filter a lot online. I use this place to curate stuff for me too. Thanks a lot.
peace
"wondering what the documented basis for this consists of?"
I picked it up from an article at the World Socialists Web site, then did my own research to form an opinion. Thanks.
Hey Bernie! Welcome to the millionaire’s club!
peace
@eyo I'm not at all
I'm not at all comfortable with characterizing Bernie critics as haters. Or with making it all about Why are you being mean to Bernie?
Frankly, I'm not the one who's really being mean to Bernie; compared to the shit he probably takes from the people he works for, my fact-based criticism would probably be little more than an annoyance even if he did hear about it.
What I'm doing is expressing my opposition to following Bernie as a leader, given that he's not going where I want to go. Tom Perez, Chuck Schumer and Hillary Clinton are not my friends; I will neither work with them or for them, even at a distance. Played that game before and got played. Repeatedly. Bernie has chosen to work for them. That doesn't end my sympathy for him, nor even my respect, but I'm not making the same choice, and that means that this is where we part ways.
I want to go to Boston and he's heading toward Atlanta.
"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
fuckers
This is a point I've brought up before. The next step would be for Vermont to elect somebody else as their Senator, and that would be the end of Bernie.
I say: Don't blame the man who was fucked like the rest of us (or worse!). Blame and fight the fuckers who screwed over him and us alike.
"US govt/military = bad. Russian govt/military = bad. Any politician wanting power = bad. Anyone wielding power = bad." --Shahryar
"All power corrupts absolutely!" -- thanatokephaloides
Hear, hear.
@thanatokephaloides Why does the choice
Why does the choice have to be between blaming him and supporting him?
I'm doing neither. I recommend it to everybody.
Can we build our own movement/party/community now?
"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
I agree with you about Bernie. But I grow weary of him trying
to reform an irrevocably corrupt party.He needs to allow himself to be drafted into the Peoples Party and bring any other true progressives along with him. The Dems are in an inverted flat death spin that there's no getting out of. Time to abandon ship. I do have issues with Bernie saying he doesn't even know Tim Canova. WTF is that all about? Has he clarified his remarks?
"Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." - JFK | "The more I see of the moneyed peoples, the more I understand the guillotine." - G. B. Shaw Bernie/Tulsi 2020
That Bernie has yet
to bail on the Dem party strongly suggests to me that the DNC (or others) have a gun to his head. But, eventually push will come to shove and he will have to make a choice. If he chooses the party rather than "go out on his own" I will know that there is a gun to his head.
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.
Exactly.
I doubt seriously that he enjoys filling the role he's been handed (or the cards he's been dealt), but it is what it is. His only other option is to pick up his ball and bat and go home, "go rogue." For whatever reason he has chosen to take what's been given him as the better path. I can't hate him for that.
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.
As someone who worked as an unpaid volunteer
for Bernie in a very crooked state, I can tell you that he is no sellout! I second and third it here--REC'D!!
Inner and Outer Space: the Final Frontiers.
@Wink Bernie says he doesn't
Bernie says he doesn't know Tim Canova.
“I have no idea about Tim Canova, I honestly don’t,” Sanders told the Miami Herald when asked if he plans to support Canova’s second Democratic primary bid. “I know nothing about Tim Canova.”
Sanders previously endorsed the Nova Southeastern University law professor's first campaign against Wasserman Schultz, then the chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee, in May 2016.
“Clearly I favor her opponent, his views are much closer to mine than to Wasserman Schultz’s,” Sanders said at the time.
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/338847-sanders-on-wasse...
I still think Bernie is a good man. But it's fair to ask what the hell his "political revolution" even means when he abandons a progressive challenger to one of the most corrupt Democratic party incumbents--both in policy, such as the execrable payday loan bill, and in politics (we needn't rehash the hellish events of last year here. Suffice to say we have seen ample evidence of her corruption.) There are indications--not conclusive evidence, but indications that should be investigated--that DWS is involved in things even worse than what we know about from last year. At the very least, Debbie personally screwed over both Bernie and his supporters.
Bernie is not endorsing her progressive challenger.
What the fuck does it mean when he endorses Ro Khanna, who was an avid Hillary supporter, as a progressive, but he forgets (heh) who Tim Canova is?
By the way, in the political world, there's little worse you can say about a politician who wants your support than "I don't know him. I know nothing about him." Especially when everyone knows you do know him. It's the strongest possible way to send the message that you're not going to help.
"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
Bernie's leash
In the past couple of weeks I've seen several articles-- which pop up at the top of google news and various media-- about how Bernie and Jane have "lawyered up" and are "under FBI investigation" related to Jane's college "loan fraud" scandal, and now Bernie for supposedly exerting "pressure" as a senator to get the loan approved. They are being targeted. Bernie said it was political and nothing would come of it, brushed it off.
But when I read that he's inexplicably backing off support for a DWS challenger who he previously supported, I can't help wondering if this is how they are getting him in line? The coverage of this story is MSM sure has jumped recently. At least online; I do not watch TV news, I wonder if this would-be scandal is getting pushed there to?
I read a bit about the so-called scandal and it does seem to be old news, which wasn't news or a problem until it suddenly become a big deal, since he ran for president and started rocking the boat. Coincidence? Doesn't seem likely. Threatening him and Jane with criminal persecution ... ? Why wouldn't they?
I can't imagine that Dems would target Jane
(if that's what you mean by 'they'--I wasn't sure), if for no other reason that they've made Bernie their Senate Outreach Director, and he's on CNN, MSNBC, and the Sunday shows all the time. I presume he will continue to be, unless the situation gets too uncomfortable (in the future).
We listen to all the Sunday political shows on replay (XM Radio), and I can say that he wasn't questioned about the loan kerfuffle, or Jane, this past Sunday. Of course, some of those shows are taped on Thursdays and/or Fridays, so that could be why the topic never came up. Dunno.
Mollie
"Every time I lose a dog, he takes a piece of my heart. Every new dog gifts me with a piece of his. Someday, my heart will be total dog, and maybe then I will be just as generous, loving, and forgiving."
____Author Unknown
Everyone thinks they have the best dog, and none of them are wrong.
Interesting - thanks Mollie
I'm not even sure who precisely I meant by "they" because I guess I tend to think of establishment democrats, republicans and mainstream media as one giant they, working for the ultra rich. One article I read framed the attacks on Bernie and Jane as coming from republicans, but another showed some clintonistas flogging it as "look how's under investigation now, not Hillary!" spin - and they care far more about going after hilz enemies list than they do about the dem party's ostensible efforts toward unity.
So yeah, I don't know where it's coming from, and it's interesting that it's not made tv news. Yet. But his sudden backing off DWS still makes me wonder.
Exactly. n/t
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.
Hell, I don't know Tim
what's his name. So... ?
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.
Thanks for posting the SP's recent video, eyo,
since I'm reluctant to subscribe to YouTube Channels, and probably would have missed it. I tried to make one of her previous videos part of a signature line, but couldn't make it work, for some reason.
Have a good one!
Mollie
"Every time I lose a dog, he takes a piece of my heart. Every new dog gifts me with a piece of his. Someday, my heart will be total dog, and maybe then I will be just as generous, loving, and forgiving."
____Author Unknown
"If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went."--Will Rogers
Everyone thinks they have the best dog, and none of them are wrong.
Can't Sane Progressive run for Prez?
I'd vote for her.
The ruling classes need an extra party to make the rest of us feel as if we participate in democracy. That's what the Democrats are for. They make the US more durable than the Soviet Union was.
@Cassiodorus I would too. But if her
I would too. But if her campaign took off at all, I wouldn't suggest that she ride in any small planes.
"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
I agree with the Essay's premise; BUT....
.... the demise of the Dems has been predicted before, but they're still alive.
The Democratic Party has been dying of that same heart attack for 20 years, to paraphrase The Godfather: Part II's Michael Corleone!
"US govt/military = bad. Russian govt/military = bad. Any politician wanting power = bad. Anyone wielding power = bad." --Shahryar
"All power corrupts absolutely!" -- thanatokephaloides
I'm not sure if "alive" is the correct term. It looks
(and smells) more like a zombie. Dead party walking I would say.
zombie
Much the same thing was said of Hyman Roth (by Tom Hagen, to be precise).
"US govt/military = bad. Russian govt/military = bad. Any politician wanting power = bad. Anyone wielding power = bad." --Shahryar
"All power corrupts absolutely!" -- thanatokephaloides
@CB
They exist upon the money of, and borrowed power from, their donors and evidently upon the brains of their remaining unpaid supporters among the general public.
Psychopathy is not a political position, whether labeled 'conservatism', 'centrism' or 'left'.
A tin labeled 'coffee' may be a can of worms or pathology identified by a lack of empathy/willingness to harm others to achieve personal desires.
The Clintons finished the job
It's not just "Russia" but the two parties are exactly the same, broken promises and achieving nothing for the people for both parties. No wonder these are not issues that the Democrats can use.
The Democrat Party lives in the past when they had real power, but that was because they had real issues at one time and then they had power because Bush was a total screw up. Now they are left with nothing and don't understand why. "Why are we in the wilderness?"
Hillary is one of the most evil people to practice politics in my lifetime. "Russia and China must be made to pay for their support of Assad". Or her building of the Benghazi ratline shipping arms and chemical weapons from Libya to the Syrian insurgency through Turkey. Or taking 100s of millions of dollars for access to her State Department from external parties. Or arranging 100's of thousands of dollars in speaking fees for her dipshit husband. Or bragging and celebrating the brutal murder and dismemberment of another human being. By amassing huge amounts of wealth and power in her pursuit of the highest office she destroyed the democratic process as we used to practice it. She is not only evil, but her evil has spread to encompass most of the educated elite class of America. Why isn't America waiting for Nancy, Chucky and Her Evilness to lead the way forward? It's not gonna happen until new leaders and a new genuinely progressive philosophy emerges, more than likely in a new party. Don't hold your breadth that the Democrats are capable of reform of their own party. The powerful never willingly step aside nor do they ever learn anything that is contrary to what they firmly believe. Just look at Kim Ill Kos.
Capitalism has always been the rule of the people by the oligarchs. You only have two choices, eliminate them or restrict their power.
If Bill and Hillary Clinton disappeared today the Democrat
Party would still have the same problem. They are the foil for the GOP and stand for nothing more than, "Vote for us because the other guys stink."
"The object of persecution is persecution. The object of torture is torture. The object of power is power. Now do you begin to understand me?" ~Orwell, "1984"
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