Joyce L. Arnold: Liberal, lesbian, Independent, equality activist, writer.
“I can’t wait to see which Republican candidate will terrify me into voting for Obama again.” Via SomeECards
To be clear, I didn’t, and won’t, vote for Obama. I think the only “vision” he has is of himself. But the statement above humorously points to the kind of spin that keeps on working for our Two Corporate Parties. Efforts in the Left side of Grassroots USA include those challenging the insider system. That’s largely what this series of posts is about.
The Left has been criticized for including so many “issues” and “causes” that it spends more time trying to find ways to organize than it does actually getting something done.
Of course, by working together, people from different but related movements can not only support each other, but move closer to the point of critical mass. That happens when enough people persistently making the same demands become impossible to ignore. That’s how women won the right to vote; how the Civil Rights Movement forced the nation to look at the realities of segregation. It’s how the Anti-War Movement helped end the winless Vietnam War – enough people ignoring the “you’re naive” dismissals, and refusing to accept “hopeless.”
Perhaps we are at the same kind of pivotal moment. As always, when the pushing is coming from the Left, the efforts are multiple. To this point there seems to be a great deal of organizing around overlapping, similar concerns, but not enough coming together to reach critical mass.
In spite of so much going on, I still read comments like, “Nobody is doing anything.” Maybe enough people aren’t active, or maybe not enough active people have found each other or considered joining forces. But it isn’t accurate to say nothing is happening. A few current examples follow, and then I’m going to include the entire list of various “third” parties, campaigns and projects I’ve compiled in the last several weeks, including some new additions. It’s lengthy, far from inclusive, and one way of visualizing how extensive the unrest is.
First, some of what’s happening or planned:
#OCCUPYWALLSTREET plans big:
On the 17th of September, 20,000 nonviolent civilians will swarm Wall Street and set up an indefinite occupation – complete with free kitchens and doctors, tents and communal childcare – until their demand for real democracy is met. … If we can pull it off, then this just might be the breakout moment that saves our democracy from the combined threats of plutocracy, oligarchy and corporatocracy.
Identifying themselves as “a global network of culture jammers and creatives,” they ask: “Can we on the left learn some new tricks?”
Another action, October 2011:
We call on people of conscience and courage—all who seek peace, economic justice, human rights and a healthy environment—to join together in Washington, D.C., beginning on Oct. 6, 2011, in nonviolent resistance similar to the Arab Spring and the Midwest awakening.
Jack Balkwill at Intrepid Report writes that, among others attending are
Chris Hedges, Glen Ford, Margaret Flowers, Kevin Zeese, Ann Wright, Cornel West, Jane Hamsher, Jeff Cohen, Ray McGovern, Medea Benjamin and many other household names from the progressive blogosphere, noted activists and progressive icons.
I wonder – can such “household names” represent the grassroots? That’s an actual question, and I’d love to know what you think.
I don’t know if there is any coordination between the October 2011 effort, and one by the Coffee Party, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t any. The Enough is Enough March is also planned for October, in DC, with a “call … for a peaceful and decisive demonstration to save democracy in America.” They describe three components to their action:
It must be peaceful;
It must go beyond partisan politics …;
Going forward, we must take our resolve to save our democracy and organize at the district-level to have sustained impact.
RootsAction using online organizing, says it will
mobilize behind policies that actually address the immense economic, social and environmental problems facing our country. The goal is to organize people who are already active into an independent political force, while reaching out in a genuinely populist voice to those who are not committed progressives.
An example of conversation on the Left, from TruthOut:
Recently I sat down with two of the young adults who organized and led the Egyptian resistance movement that overthrew Hosni Mubarak. The media narrative said it took 18 days, when in fact, they had been organizing for over five years.
According to these young men, the moment they knew they had won was the day Mubarak’s government shut off the Internet and blocked cellphone communications. When people could no longer get updates about what was happening in Tahrir Square, they had to come out of their homes and see for themselves, tripling the size of the protests in one fell swoop.
Stacy mentioned this one in her Early Bird post last Sunday, David Meyer at the Washington Post “Americans are angry. Why aren’t they protesting?:
(People) rarely make these calculations (to protest) by themselves. Rather, they respond to those around them. Ostensibly spontaneous eruptions of political protest reflect the hard work and investment of organizers who cultivate grass-roots activism.
Via Intrepid, Larry Pinkney writes in “Barack Obama and the evil of the two lessers”: “The Democrat and Republican parties are two peas from precisely the same pod,” and are the “perpetuators” of a system that serves the “pod.”
This is just a sampling. The question remains – will there be enough “coming together,” enough shared energy, or whatever, so that actual changes will occur – not just for 2012, or about Obama, but sustained efforts that help challenge the Two Party Front for the Oligarchy?
Posts in this series:
Grading the Electoral College
Two Parties = Too Few Choices
Two Parties = Too Few Choices, Part II
Two Parties = Too Few Choices, Part III
Articles and Opinions
3rd Parties: What They’re For and What They Do, Rick Gaber
Directory of U.S. Political Parties
Primary Realities, spincitysd
“What is the history of ‘third parties’ in the United States?,” This Nation
“Why Third Parties?,” Robert Longley
Political Parties / Reform Efforts
Americans Elect
Coffee Party
Conference on the Constitutional Convention
Contract for the American Dream
Fair Vote
Green Party, U.S.A.
Independent Voting.org
Libertarian Party
Move To Amend
New Progressive Alliance. (Thanks to noalternative). More at Firedoglake.
No Labels
Occupy Wall Street
October 2011
Roots Action
Socialist Labor Party
Stop Hoping, Start Acting
Tequila Party
The Centrist Alliance
TruthOut
Votocracy
Working Families Party
( Photo via WatchingFrogsBoil )
To consider the ‘Progressive’s’ anger at President Obama one has to look back at history and particularly with respect to FDR’s 1936 re-election campaign. When the Social Security act was passed as part of the New Deal, FDR had to compromise and in order to win supprt from the southern racist Democratic Senators who threatened a filibuster if the legislation did not exclude African Americans, women and Hispanics from being eligible for social secuirty.
The Social Security Act was also racially coded—in part because of the power of Southern Democrats in the New Deal coalition. Southern politicians, reported one architect of the new law, were determined to block any ‘entering wedge’ for federal interference with the handling of the Negro question. Southern employers worried that federal benefits would discourage black workers from taking low-paying jobs in their fields, factories, and kitchens. Thus neither agricultural laborers nor domestic servants—a pool of workers that included at least 60 percent of the nation’s black population—were covered by old-age insurance.
Pesident Obama faced the same tough decision when it came to the health care legislation that was passed in 2010 All Republican Senators and four Democratic Senators (Bayh, Nelson of Nebraska, Lincoln and Liebermann) took a public option off the table and Presdient Obama understood that if he championed a public option health care reform would be dead for decades to come. He made the same tough choice that FDR had to make inorder to pass Social Secuity act of 1935.
In 1936 irate Progressives who derided FDR for ‘caving’ in to the southern racist Democratic Senators ran a third party Progressive candidate who actually got over 800,000 votes (shades of Rlalph Nader in Florida in 2000).
The re-election campaign of 2012 has a lot in common with FDR’s 1936 re-election campaign. Here is what FDR had to say about Republican campaign promises in 1936:
http://farmingtonnhdemocrats.blogspot.com/2011/07/fdr-had-it-right.html
Ah yes, fan politics inspires the gullible to suck up the unbelievable.
Now to Joyce’s terrific post in a series of important posts.
It’s so important for people to see actions in play by people who won’t accept the pitifully small-minded “leadership” that now resembles the Obama presidency.
Yes yes
Joyce you are spot on. When looking at the Civil Rights movement you had a flashpoint in Rosa Parks and a leader in MLK, the suffrage movement you had Susan B. Anthony, Genevieve Clark, and Lucy Stone and others that started the movements but did not live to see the fruits of their labor. Even after the passage of the 19th Amendment it would not be until the 60′s and 70′s that the movement would pick up again and more advances made. My point is we have one of two choices 1) Play the long game and take the wins when and where we can get them at the national level while at the same time as you say take over at the local level and work our way up. But we must still keep up the pressure on the idiots in charge right now. Or 2) Play the short game and if we don’t get everythinig we want in one shot, give up. What the progressive/liberal movement lacks is direction, right now we are all over the place. BHO is not what many of us thought he was, I will be the first to say that, however the Dems, before they lost the house did do some good things, Lily Ledbetter, Consumer Protection Bureau, Health Care (primarily keeping your kids on yours was one good part of it but it needs more work) and other issues that BHO did sign into law. Again the DEMS made an assumption that they could improve it in the next session not realizing until too late that they would lose the house. I am not saying for anyone to vote for BHO, that is your own choice, forget the concept of the lesser of two evils, been there done that. I am saying however look at the conservative movement, they have been working towards these goals for the last 50 years and building the infrastructure to put their plans in motion. Did they win every victory no, but they kept their eye on the prize. The complete destruction of the New Deal. We have to start thinking the same way and work from the bottom up. We Liberals and Progressives have to do in 10-15 years the same thing. Last, I could be wrong but in the next decade if things do not change you could see the emergence of a third party that could finally take away the hold the dems have on its base. We as liberals have to start being as cold and calculating as the opposition. Turn anger, hurt, and dissappointment into cold hard strategic decision making. I am not saying roll over people just for the sake of it, but when we see an opening be cold and decisive. I have something I will post later and would like your thoughts great posting and very informative as always.
As I know I’ve said before, if we keep playing this one election at a time game, we help maintain the two corporate party status quo. A few people win, big. Most of us lose.
I hope for a third, a fourth, however many parties it takes to break the current system. If it turns out the Democratic Party can be forced back to its liberal roots, then I’ll be happy for that, too. That could even help force the Republicans to stop their more and more extreme rightward movement.
Thanks for your comments here, and I’ll be watching for your post.
Be careful nighttrain37, Taylor maight call you ‘gullible’
Joyce, you have performed a great service for your country with this post. Thank you.
A big part of what writing this series does is help relieve a lot of frustration on my part
. Thanks very much for reading.
Joyce we are in complete agreement, we can’t win focusing on one election at a time. Another issue that has to be addressed is voter suppression. It was Paul Weyrich that said “I don’t want everybody to vote. Elections are not won by a majority of the people. They never have been from the beginning of our country and they are not now. As a matter of fact, our leverage in the elections quite candidly goes up as the voting populace goes down.” Now that being said we have to start the get out to vote now, we already know what the are going to do, so you start voter registration now, we drive people to the dmv and get ID cards, confirm the precincts, become precinct captains, be prepared to film republicans attempting to prevent people from voting. When you know the enemies line of attack, counter attack. At the same time work towards over turning or challenging voter suppression laws. Here to my main idea
Democrats Should Stand For: Fair Taxes, Responsible Government
Democratic Strategy for 2012 and Beyond
Just like the military this has to be a concerted and repetitive effort in order for it to work. While on-line blogs and on-line reaction forces may work, we need more faces and real voices on the radio and TV to stir up people, it’s more work but pays dividends. Likely voters are older and may not get all their info from the internet. Know the basic talking points, push the envelope but with truth.
1) Keep it Simple (Republican Mantra: Tax and Spend Democrats) “Cut and Run Republicans” Put and keep them on the defensive
Everyone must be on the same messaging page, and it must be repetitive day in and day out. This will require discipline. While we don’t have to walk in lockstep(herding cats) this is basic and simple. Attack, Attack, Attack!!!!!!! Stop being so damn nice!!!!
2) Republican Mantra (Small government, Low Taxes) Democrats (Fair Taxes, Responsible Government) this is what we stand for
3) Core Principles
i. Protect and Preserve the Working Class
ii. Provide a safety net for the Elderly, Poor, and disadvantaged
iii. Protect Women’s Rights
iv. Provide Our Children with a Solid Education
4) Republican Raiders, must be repeated consistently on TV and Radio
i. Raid SS, Cut Medicare
ii. “Slash” McConnell
iii. Cuts to Public Education
iv. Healthcare, point out everyday what will be lost to elderly/working class if repealed “Cut and Run FReepublicans” running from responsibility to educate
v. Destroy Working Class (Focuses on Blue Collar/Middle Class)
vi. “ Bust it Up” Bohner
vii. Must always be tied back to running away from responsibility i.e educating kids
5) Party of the Free Ride (Free Ride for Corp) (Welfare Kings of Industry)
1. Corps should “Pull yourself up by the bootstraps” (No more subsidies)
2. Call out Corp by name that ship jobs overseas (M. Romney)
3. Throw back market argument (Let the market decide success not the government) target subsidies again
ii. Free Ride for the Gangsters (correct self with Banksters)
6) Call Out Media (it is not and has not been Liberal for a long time)
a. Radical Right Wing Radio
b. Refer to MSM as Corp Owned Media (Politicians must do)
i. Hint at right ward slant in coverage of politics, visibility is key
There will be some initial pushback however, remember White House journalists want as much attention as they can get (ignore Gregory, Stossell, and other key journalist for a couple of sessions)
More press conferences, again visibility
c. Hint at MSM working for FOX News, (slip of the tongue from time to time)
i. This will also put FOX on the defensive, and off the targeted issues
ii. Hint at media bias towards the right subtly, but more aggressively as the elections get closer
d. Call out Meet the Press, CNN, and other shows when FReepublicans get more airtime than Democrats (Politicians again) Bin Laden death coverage prime ex.
7) Use the Constitution (Republicans claim to want to stick to it, use it against them)
a. Congress shall regulate commerce
b. Government intrusion between patient and doctor (Pro Life pols at state level specifically)
i. Big Government Republicans (Get government out of the womb and bedroom)
ii. Work towards removing corporate personhood. This will take time (years perhaps, but if you remove this you get rid of Citizens United in time)
9) Destroy myth of San Francisco Liberal
10) Disregarding the base (2010 prime example of base being ticked off) agree to disagree and go back on the attack.
11) Fight attacks on the base (Liberty = Liberal) (Progress = Progressive)
12) Fight attacks on groups that help Democrats (ACORN did a lot of voter registration, one less thorn in the GOP’s side)
13) Fight voter suppression (ACORN was good at this)
14) Last, the FReepublic Party gives every Democrat the ammunition to beat them in a debate, get better research and keep an eye on Liberal Radio, TV, and blogs. They do the research, just have to get it. Attack FReepublic strengths and turn into weaknesses.
This is simple and to the point and does not take a lot of effort. It has to start with a low drumbeat in the media, radio and TV. Repeated consistently, and the politicians will follow. If implemented and stuck to can be used at local and state levels for years to come
Forget the polls and treat every election as if you’re going to lose (always the underdog).
This is not perfect and could use more work, but for now just would like your thoughts and we must keep it short, sweet, and to the point.
Look forward to hearing from anyone with better ideas.
I’m in the middle of something right now, but will get back to this
No call out to the left media that brought us Obama. Because the media were on board in this effort. They and their lefty supporters must have knew what was in store for us when they never worried their heads about Obama’s professed worship of Reagan. Somehow being worried about the right instead of the left seems hollow and deluded and intended to distract those that were taken in by the Obama propaganda. Over and over we should be wondering who in the Democratic party is responsible for bringing us the disaster that is Obama. The right lost big time in 2008 and 2006. Or did they? That is the more important question. Democrats had the power So who gave it away? Because this is no accident. Those that brought us Obama have not been held accountable.
Again I ask…..who did those in the left media support? Ed Schultz …Obama Rachel…Obama…Keith…Obama….Name one big media supporter of Hillary. GE owned NBC . The former CEO of GE is a big Obama guy. And of course no problem with GE ‘s sale of NBC. Obama was put in power to destroy progressive and more importantly, common sense policies…and more particularly the Dem party. Why are Republicans even in contention after the disaster of Bush? How did they capture the House and the state houses and governorships? The disaster of Obama’s policies. And those policies don’t come out of thin air. This was a con job. And Obama was the spokesman. A face, an image ….nothing more…There have been other great cons. But Obama is not the puppeteer….
I think we have to relearn what “holding accountable” means, for Electeds and for the Dem leadership. In general, we’re obviously not very good at it. But, that’s a part of what I think is actually happening through Atmuch of the various efforts I’ve listed. At least people are working at it.
This is the kind of thing that encourages me … people thinking and working to come up with ideas. The necessity of repetition, and of knowing that it’s going to take time, and getting out of the “let’s get through this election and then we’ll do something” restrictions.
I would want to add a commitment to civil rights / equality to the core list. Of course, I do realize that once you start adding on, things get more complicated
Some thoughts—it
Is not about the same old same old the two parties are roughly the same. The Ralph Nader meme was superseded by the Ralph Nader narcissism that gave Bush the Presidency…after the right had managed to help pay for nader’s effort to derail Gore. Bradley’s effort to derail Gore was an example of left stupidity, the same brand of left that brought us Obama. And the left that brought us Obama no longer have credibility. They must rebuild that credibility because they are now partly to blame for this disaster. The Nancy Pelosi’s of the left cannot be trusted. The Ed Rendell’s can. So let’s be more discriminating in our analysis. The Hillary supporters knew better and must lead now…not the losers who call themselves the left or progressive or what not….they are obviously gullible fools who fancy themselves do gooders and a cut above.
As for women’s rights, that is a fight of a different generation that is dying off. The young women of today are lost and directionless. Their organizations are a total failure on most terms especially advocacy.
Only the LGBT community have energy, money and political power…and most of all…fight. The women of today have ceded leadership and are pathetic in terms of organization and political instinct. Too many college educated women opposed Hillary for the fraud of Obama. Perhaps this speaks to the American idol transformation taking place. At any rate, when assessing success, it is only the LGBT community that even registers. This is less about a third party than it is about getting rid of the Obama wing of the Dem party….I.e. those who took over the Dem party and brought to power a Mancurian candidate. The working class had common sense….something that is badly needed now.
Manchurian
So if anything, perhaps some in the LGBT community should lead. Not the Matt (rabid obama supporter) Taibibis who may do good reporting and commenting now but were hopelessly deluded in the primaries. We should not throw out the good with the bad. We should be discriminating in our analysis and absolutely not forget who those were who led us to this point. Especially the Obama cheerleaders in the media who are really self aggrandizing paid for propagandists with not an ounce of critical thinking abilities or interests.
I’m pressed for time, and just checking in. Thanks for maintaining a focus on this, Joyce.
As for Nightrain37′s suggestions, over at Corrente has put together a twelve word platform. It’s simple, elegant, and to the point:
Any candidate for office, and any progressive organization, must support this platform if it wants my support.
A little simpleminded. A feel good left platform …just like Obama was a feel good candidate. But nothing is really that simple. Having leadership ability and common sense should be the first order of business in choosing and/or finding a new leader. Because right now all Democrats in congress look paralyzed by Obama’s dysfunction.
There is a lot of thoughtful stuff at Corrente . I’ve found lambert’s focus on what he calls DISemployment to be very interesting.
As a starting place, a simple list like this is helpful. Among other things, it could be a first step: here are our goals at this point, then turn to the “how to” work.
Well interestedly Lambert was not an Obama supporter in the primaries
No, he wasn’t, and he’s been very upfront about that.
I’ll vote for any primary candidate running against Obama who goes with that.
Joyce this is the start of a 5 to 15 year plan.that would have to be done in phases, Second we all have to get past Obama, he is not the Democratic Party and the party will be here long after he is gone remember the democratic party has been around for over 200 years. Again we have to be cold and calculating in our thought process. I would love any comments or ideas you may have. A platform without a plan leaves us where we are now, no focus or direction. I even have a plan of implementation that includes target sites, Get out to vote, My ideas are not perfect and this is a work in progress the general idea is how to tie in messaging with explanations as to what each phase means. The military taught me to reach your objective you either go over, under, around, or through the obstacle. We have to do in 10-15 years what the Republican Raiders have done in 30-40 and are now seeing the fruits of their labor. Think about this Rush Limbaugh did not start out as the number one talk show in 1984, he built his show over the years and now has clones all over the place and he scares the hell out republican politicians. You have to have a plan, it gives you focus and direction. Look forward to everyone comments.
Oh absolutely, the thinking has to be long-term.
I look at ideas you and others share here; look at similar things at other blogs; look at that long but far from complete list I’ve compiled … lots of good ideas and actions, with a good bit of overlap and similarities, but also with a distinctive thoughts and features. I keep coming back to: how to get, at the least, the multiple efforts coordinated. It’s not unusual to have multiple things going on. and I think there are some very good things that can come out of that: more ideas, more creativity, more energy. But at some point, in some manner, a “coming together” point has to be reached. I often read that what’s needed as a person, a strong leader. That may be correct, but it concerns me, too, as it seems very easy for people, all of us, to end up more focused on a person than on the policies and goals.
Thanks for the conversation, everyone.
i agree, we don’t have to have a leader, that will come and one will emerge. For example for the first 3 month, we target two websites and two radio shows, and two liberal tv host one day per week with, and bombard them with our plan, at some point others will pick up on it. You see if 10-20 people keep hitting the same targets with the same message it will start to get noticed. We pick the days and the targets. We should have an idea after three months if we start to hear buzz words that are coming off tactic. Depending on how well this works we modify and go for another three months. If we start hearing for example ” Fair Taxes, Responsible Government” then we know we are having an affect.
We start working on the Get Out to Vote, we start by knowing and understanding voter suppression in each state and what has to be done. And using the same tactic, at some point a leaders will start to emerge. In other words we start the conversation now about getting out to, not right before the elections. I understand there are a lot of great ideas out there but where is the strategy and tactics to put them in affect. Great conversation we look forward to seeing some of your ideas. Instead of us always complaining we have to come up with strategy and tactics for a long hard fight. The Constitution wasn’t written in a day and I am looking at the long game. Gotta go, but great conversation.
Get out the Vote? Who are you kidding? HaHa
Voter suppression isn’t the main issue. Dems had the power. And gave it away with crap and weak policy. They still have the presidency and the senate. Night train wants us to forget that. Another Con.