"Not Me US" also means being able to let go and move on
A common response to some of us who point out Bernie's inconsistency is that he never said it was about him, and it has always been up to us. I've noted time and again, here on LOF, and more than one other social networking venue that this movement has never been about only electing Bernie. However, reasserting that or "NotMeUS" in response to noting Bernie's inconsistency misses the point.
The actions people take matter. Most often affect their peers directly and immediately, but sometimes a person does something so spectacular that his or her actions no longer ripple outward, but result in a huge wave of impact far beyond their personal reach. Bernie is such a person. He started something great. It's up to us to continue that work.
Part of the work going forward is to continue to call out corruption and hypocrisy in our political class. With pols like Hillary this is like shooting fish in a barrel. It's not enough on its own. This primary season is ample evidence of that: voters chose the corrupt, criminal hypocrite out of tribal loyalty and conservative thought. We need allies with high profiles to consistently sustain our efforts in this regard, to show that alternatives exist who can be successful leaders.
Another part of the work going forward is to build our own network of politically active like minded individuals. A political party isn't the ultimate goal, but the initial effort may resemble that. Supporting an existing party and candidates more closely aligned with our shared progressive goals is certainly one way to engage in this work.
But one critical piece of the effort must be holding those accountable who merit it. Whether this is in the context of holding corrupt politicians accountable or holding accountable allies who engage in activity orthogonal to or in opposition to our movement, it must be done. We cannot be side tracked or bogged down or impeded. Our opponents are too rich and powerful for us to be able to carry a bigger burden than necessary.
When a leader in a movement does things that run counter to the movement it lends credibility to the movement's opponents and can demoralize people involved. Such is the case with Bernie. He has an array of choices before him. We don't know what those choices all are. We do know what he's done in the last few weeks.
And in my view it's time for some accountability. Bernie isn't the movement. He's a part of it. He's earned respect for starting it. But it can't survive if we continue to put him out there as a leader while he works to elect our fiercest opponent. It's time to move on and continue the movement without him, at least temporarily, because as time passes the more I see it as Bernie being a liability more than an asset in this struggle. I'll revisit that assessment as details of his organizations come out, but I can't wait around. None of us can afford to.
Comments
He's looked beaten ever since he met with Obama
Something very bad happened then.
Damn right he did
Dude got clued in on exactly who is blackmailing this country's high government leaders into doing their bidding or else.
Obama had that same look on his face the day after he was inaugurated. The day before he made Rahm Emanuel his Chief of Staff. A month before his hair seemed to sprout white overnight.
We're all pretty fucked, if you ask me--we still have time for miracles, if we can quit freaking out and fighting each other long enough to get our shit together. But--at least around here--we are not off to a real good start.
God I hate team analogies but
we are back at team huddle stage, with many more bodies involved. There are lines of communication to be maintained, and welcoming to newbies. But it is back to the white board for more bullet charts and crap like that. After tonight's walkout, I am more reassured that there is a determined center, Bernie not the nucleus right now. Nina Turner and Jill Stein may be the next crystallizing event, to be determined.
"or else" threats cannot work against millions. At least I hope so.
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.
With you 1000% on this, great essay.
I understand their disappointment and I feel it too.
I understand the RAGE, not at losing a race, but at the corrupt efforts that caused the loss, because I too am outraged.
What I can't understand is the Hate towards Bernie.
Those of us that were in this from the beginning were aware of what Bernie's goal was.
His goal wasn't to win. Nobody, including him considered that even possible at the time he announced his candidacy.
His goal was to awaken Americans to the corruption in our system, to show us that another way was indeed possible, and most importantly, to show that the Democratic Party was no longer the party of it's stated principles and goals and that if we wanted to implement progressive policies we need to either destroy the party or rebuild it.
Then it looked like he actually had a chance, and we got our hopes up because victory was a REAL possibility. Right up until it was literally stolen from US.
It was US that helped build this movement, It was US that got so close to the finish line, and it was US that were mocked, insulted and shat upon to no end, not just by the Party Elite's but by the Conservative voters that have co-opted the Democratic Party, re branding it into, "Republicans! Now with less Racism!".
So why all the Bernie hate?
Yeah, he made a decision that most of us didn't agree with, including me, when he decided that the best course going forward was to try to rebuild the party from the inside from the bottom up.
I don't think that is even remotely possible, the corruption runs too damn deep.
But it was HIS decision to make, and I am sure he made it with much more information and with a long view in mind. Maybe it was even the right one. I don't think so, but FSM knows I have been wrong in the past.
There was one benefit to doing what he did, he made it very difficult for them to marginalize us, I.E. the Progressives in the party.
He basically TIED Hillary and the DNC to HIS platform, listen to how his "endorsement" speeches have been delivered.
Notice something?
Yeah, none of the sycophantic fawning of the HillBots endorsements. It contained 90% focus on our goals, 7% of, "Trump Bad" and 3% of "Hillary".
The ease and speed with which so many die hard supporters were able to turn on him reminded me of something.
The reason we on the left so often lose is because we progressives are ENTIRELY TOO QUICK to turn on our own.
Bernie made a decision, it was his to make, and while I think it was the wrong one, I am not Bernie so I don't get to decide for him.
And more importantly I am not gonna let disagreement over one decision completely erase the fact that he has been constantly fighting on OUR behalf for decade after decade with unwavering consistency, frequently speaking to empty chambers simply so he could get OUR position on the record, even if it accomplished little else.
So if the Revolution fails to keep going forward, it's not Bernie's fault. He as always made it abundantly clear that it was gonna take US to do it, not him and that it wouldn't happen overnight.
We have 2 choices going forward, we can keep feeding bits of fuel to the fire and keep it growing until we have a truly epic blaze ready for 2018.
Or we can piss all over it the minute we hit a bump in the road.
I suggest we hold it until we hit a rest stop...
But that's just my decision, you, like Bernie, have to make your own.
So I agree with the essay, I just disagree on the the last bit, and that not even entirely.
"I used to vote Republican & Democrat, I also used to shit my pants. Eventually I got smart enough to stop doing both things." -Me
Theatrical rage is a must if followers are to “maintain kayfabe”
Followers have a proper dramatic role to play too.
If millions of Bernie supporters were suddenly to execute a grand doublethink about-face in lockstep, cheerfully negating everything they had professed to believe mere days or weeks ago, it would come across as downright unnatural and frankly alarming — pure Invasion of the Bodysnatchers stuff.
No, at this stage of developments, hostility is to be expected and is an obligatory part of the disillusioned follower “role.” If left animosity to Clinton were to evaporate overnight, that would just further diminish the already slim likelihood of left opposition being taken seriously in the future.
If Bernie has a plan, his sudden Hillary sycophancy may be just role-playing for strategic reasons.
Meanwhile, history may have an even bigger plan, in which dramatic displays of dissatisfaction among his erstwhile followers are necessary — also for strategic reasons.
Express angry reactions, etc., but without being attached to them as the last word.
Something like that, anyway.
Thank you
for writing what I am feeling! While the revolution was always about us and not Bernie, because he got so close (I truly believe he won had it not been for all the cheating),.the pain and disappointment is that much greater. He is the candidate I have been waiting my entire life for - could never hate this man who has faught for us for decades. We all need to stay involved - Bernie has got to be hurting too.
I can't vote for either Hillary or Trump - neither one of them speaks for or to me. I hope others will help in polling for Jill Stein to get her to the 15% level so she can be in the debates. We need her progressive voice!
Life is what happens when you're busy making plans - John Lennon
I don't get the hate, either. "Betrayer" and "sellout" are just
way over the line and uncalled for.
It's no secret that I think the "reform from within" idea is a dead end. I've written a couple of essays on the subject already. However I've also always maintained that it is necessary for some to at least try, if only to serve as another front for our opponents to defend. I think Bernie is going to do that very well. He's still with us, but not in any way I care to follow.
He'll do his thing. We must do ours. With or without him.
Great comment.
Things to also mention are that Bernie said he would support the winner of the primary and he is a man of his word, and that Bernie has caucused with and will continue to caucus with Democrats, which means any tantrum on his part would just result in marginalization and would destroy any chance at the type of corrections and forward moves he's always worked for.
I have been weepy all day
Thanks for putting it all into words.
Solidarity for the future.
Margaritas for today.
There is always Music amongst the trees in the Garden, but our hearts must be very quiet to hear it. ~ Minnie Aumonier
Sorry folks that was an accident --- I got sidetracked
and accidentally published --- lol, now I can't fucking remember what I was going to write
While I agree with a lot of what you write,
I do have to take issue with referring to Sanders as a possible liability. No matter what he does regarding HRC, he is and will remain a very strong voice for progressives. For some time now, he has been working on educating the masses on how to fight the elite. He is currently setting up organizations to continue doing that and to help build coalitions while encouraging activism and developing funding sources for progressive candidates.
Hero worship is wrong in so many ways, but it becomes especially destructive when the worshipers discover that the hero has flaws (and they always do).
If a person sweeps a floor one way and others believe it should be done differently, is the first person wrong if the floor is just as clean when the job is done?
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass
For some time now, he has
No he hasn't.
No he isn't. Those organizations will be tits on a bull: useless. Just like MoveOn, DFA, etc. Setting up large organizations that beg for change no one has to give them (and beg for dollars from the naive chumps who think they'll ever accomplish anything) is not how you fight the elites.
I will bow to the expert.
Please do tell us how to fight the elites and win. Once we know how, we can set Sanders aside considering he is just wasting our time with all this revolution talk.
Please show examples of your work so we can follow along.
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass
It's easy-peasy!!!
All we Bernie Bros need do is defeat the current government of the United States, its corporate sponsors, and its foreign partners in a battle to the death. Piece of cake!!!
/snark
Do you know a good place to buy a pitchfork?
Speaking of cake...I already ate mine. = (
(PS. You forgot the brown shirts.)
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass
I got mine from Amazon (sorry)
It's a nice pitchfork, stainless steel tines, fiberglass handle. Currently embedded in a 20 year compost pile.
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.
Please do tell us how to
All their power comes from other people's obedience. So, stop obeying them. Stop respecting their institutions. Stop respecting their "property". Stop following their rules.
If I could fight them myself, I would have done it by now, and we wouldn't be having this conversation. One disobedient citizen isn't a revolution, it's copbait. The sooner the masses wake up, the sooner we can get started.
This is what I hear you saying, is it correct?
Forgo peaceful revolution and jump straight to violent upheaval to change the system. How many need to die your way to achieve this? Just want to know what you consider acceptable losses. Are there are any unintended consequences?
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass
Well, you did skip an important step short of violence
Mass non-violent civil disobedience would also match the language Cloudbaby used.
That would also match the “fighting Gandhi” s/he referred to in a different comment elsewhere.
How does that differ from peaceful revolution?
The peaceful revolution that is springing up consists of civil disobedience, sit-ins, strikes, etc. But he/she rejected that along with all the rest of the activism that Sanders has been advocating. It was Sanders who marched with strikers during this primary season as well as marching with MLK and being arrested, wasn't it?
Saying to "disrespect their property" implies violence, especially when peaceful means have been dismissed.
From a book review of Fighting with Gandhi:
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass
Other ways to do it
There are other ways to stop obeying the oligarchy and start throwing a spanner in their works. For instance, stop paying attention to the mainstream media. Turn off the TV and stop absorbing its mind manipulation and brainwashing. Stop jumping whenever they say "jump". Find ways to stop feeding the banking vampires. Use credit unions instead of forking our money over to Chase, for example.
Obviously, the energy-sucking oligarchy has its tentacles so deeply interwoven into our daily existence, it won't happen overnight. But as Bernie said on numerous occasions, we need to think outside the box, and start taking action based on that. A multi-pronged approach.
"Don't go back to sleep ... Don't go back to sleep ... Don't go back to sleep."
~Rumi
"If you want revolution, be it."
~Caitlin Johnstone
Thinking outside the box is something
that I have been saying and doing most of my life; however, I have been really hitting that message for the last year in the hopes other might give it a try.
I have not watched television except for a couple of C-Span reports for almost 10 years now. LOL, I have never jumped when someone told me to, demanded that I do or threatened me if I don't. My bank has never charged me a dime.
Now, if you will take a look at the thread you may notice that I was asking someone else what their plan to defeat the elite is because the person I was responding to rejected any of the organizations to create coalitions and assist and fund progressives running for office as well as provide information on peaceful revolution techniques. The person I had responded to suggested they knew a better way, so I was asking them to explain their better way, and it appears what they are looking for is violent revolution.
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass
How many need to die - from
How many need to die - from poverty, police violence, even climate change - before you realize that peaceful protests and sitting around waiting for the oligarchy to "get it" don't work?
I am not proposing that we start trouble; I am proposing that we END trouble. Yes, the fix is ugly. But so is the trouble.
Really? Peaceful protests don't work?
Tell that to Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr, the Vietnam protesters, the people protesting the Keystone Pipeline, Lech Wałęsa, Act Up, Archbishop Tutu, demonstrations for woman's suffrage, the White Rose, and tons more.
Here is a list of 30 to start: 30 Examples of Successful Non Violent Action
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass
If you believe that, why are
If you believe that, why are you busy posting here, instead of protesting?
Maybe becasue it is 4:30 am, and I don't
want to wake anybody up to load up my wheelchair.
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass