Mdgr

You echo Palin when she said, “How’s that hopey changey thing workin’ out for you?” Let me borrow the phrase. How’s that hopey changey thing workin’ out for you? Where is the leader of the “Monster party”? Reality is what it is, and not what we hope it to be. I will, and do, support the formation of a “Monster party,” When that party becomes a reality I’ll be the first in line to vote for that party. Until then I’ll deal with reality the way it is. People are impatient with gradualism, but sometimes gradualism is the only alternative. It’s a matter of political reality. Accepting the lesser of two evils is unacceptable to many. Facilitating the greater of two evils is unacceptable to me.

I just heard Obama say, “America should not, and will not accept second best” In the context in which he uses that statement, I find it repugnant. Using it in the context I’m offering it, makes perfect sense to me. The greatest evil will be the greatest evil, a second best that is the most dangerous will be the most dangerous. The consequence of allowing the greater evil to achieve power will be greater evil.

This is just another article made of the same tired cloth. Progressives are never invited to even imagine jettisoning both parties. They are never invited to imagine creating the kind of **monster** third party that the times would support right now based on the principle that “nature abhors a vacuum.” Instead, we are led by the nose back into the DNC’s favorite stomping ground, imagining we would get our jollies from a GOP defeat.

It’s really quite shameful. After Obama, there is no way many progressives would ever vote for another Democrat again. Anyone progressive Democratic Senator/ Representative would first need to publicly resign from that party in order to get my vote.

So when is Truthdig going to begin to serve as a focal point for a discussion of a **real** third party, not a 4% party but one that has the gravitas to prevent someone like Palin (or Beck, et al) from getting the access codes to the nuclear football in 2012?

Isn’t that kind of important?

I’m so tired of hearing ridicule and kvetching from the left. I’m tired of pandering to it when it’s framed by DNC constituents. That’s what operators like Rove (and Emanuel) are counting on the day before the election. We can expect to be very deflated the day after, and there will be no reprieve.

Instead of scratching our butts and doing what Democrats do all the time, wouldn’t it be nice to ride the wave in (public anger and disillusionment) and simultaneously create a “monster third party” while yet driving a wooden stake through the DNC’s heart?”

Am I the only one who is calling on progressive internet groups to host such a focal point? What about Truthdig and other progressive websites? If people really want that sort of thing, they need to ask for it and loudly.

How hopeless is the progressive cause? How doomed are our goals? How politically inept are we?

A left wing website posts an article critical of our worst enemies, and it turns into a rant against our only allies.

Some say the only way to stop the drift into fascism is to turn the government over to fascists. No joke, it’s a strategy advocated by some.

How stupid are we? It seems our frustration and anger has turned us into nihilists who will revel in our own doom.

As our nation moves farther and farther to the right, they’ll be saying, “I told you so,” but when the consequences of that rightward shift become evident, remember, I told you so.

If it weren’t for their mindless malevolence I would be inclined to believe that the reactionaries, baggers, and cancervatives are just misinformed or at worst, ignorant! But alas, they are so anti-everything but their petty little concerns that there is no mistaking their goal of turning this nation into a wasteland only they and their pathetic kin can call paradise!

If corporate media is trying to make people in the US ignorant and uninformed
they can rest easy they are more than there.

Those damn republican Homo sapiens! They’re just like all those other Homo sapiens; they are greedy, avaricious, abuse power, lie, cheat, steal, and murder. They are equally oppressive, bigoted, discriminatory, prejudicial, and always hold other Homo sapiens who are beneath them in the pecking order to standards that they cannot and will never adhere to. 

Change the names, the political and/or religious ideology, the race, the country, whatever, it simply doesn’t matter, it always ends up the same –no left, no middle, no right, just different levels of “haves” and “have nots.”  

The “Status Quo” and its Henchmen will always work to maintain the “Status Quo” at all costs.

How stupid a race are we that the few—who are greatly outnumbered—are allowed to oppress and dictate to the many.

Wealth (the few) dictates to society, rather than society (the many) dictating to wealth.

On the day when Mr. Steele made his homily about the war in Afghanistan Mr. Robinson was interviewed by Keith Olberman. Robinson grinned from ear-to-ear. Little did he know that the Democratic National Committee was about to broadcast the following:

RNC CHAIRMAN MICHAEL STEELE BETS AGAINST OUR TROOPS, ROOTS FOR FAILURE

  “Here goes Michael Steele setting policy for the GOP again. The likes of John McCain and Lindsey Graham will be interested to hear that the Republican Party position is that we should walk away from the fight against Al Qaeda and the Taliban without finishing the job. They’d also be interested to hear that the Chairman of the Republican Party thinks we have no business in Afghanistan notwithstanding the fact that we are there because we were attacked by terrorists on 9-11.

  “And, the American people will be interested to hear that the leader of the Republican Party thinks recent events related to the war are ‘comical’ and that he is betting against our troops and rooting for failure in Afghanistan. It’s simply unconscionable that Michael Steele would undermine the morale of our troops when what they need is our support and encouragement. Michael Steele would do well to remember that we are not in Afghanistan by our own choosing, that we were attacked and that his words have consequences.”

This statement makes every opponent of the war in Afghansistan unpatriotic if not a traitor. It is a “foxglove” right out of the quiver of Karl Rove.

Has Mr. Robinson criticized, let alone distanced himself from this statement from the DNC? No!

Correct FIFTY G!!  It is our inability to place leadership for “—We the people—” in office that holds us on this road to doom. The VOTE is undermined because of malicious manipulation and control of the electoral process by the major political parties. As another poster says, “Tweet Jebus”!! How can someone like S.Palin even be discussed , much less presented, as a candidate for national office. That in and of itself speaks volumes.

      Again, my feeling is, the VOTE can cause political turnover in Washington. It, as you say, is our inability to elect “good” leadership that “screws the pooch”. And repeating myself, and others, both our Democratic Congress and President O came to power pretending to be populists on our votes. Both betrayed us.

      The filthy hucksters are trying to sell us apocalypse, and they intend to deliver.

    HOPE YOU ALL GET A “BANG” OUT OF THE 4th!!

Dear FiftyGigs,
How close are we liberals to ‘getting everything we want’?

In the last eighteen months, here’s what the administration and the current crop
of Democrats have given us liberals and the nation:

1. Ignored previous Republican profligacy, crimes, misdemeanors ?(Effectively,
allowing torture and rendition to stand as precedents for future Presidents and
Vice-Presidents to use at their discretion)-

?2. Supported a stingy stimulus that was a third tax breaks (Contributing to the
current 9.7 % unemployment)-

?3. Doubled-down, the accelerated the Bush bailouts (Effectively closing off any
other options to address the recession) -

?4. Escalated a meaningless and fruitless war (“Oops, they’re not in Afghanistan
anymore, they’re in Pakistan!”-

?5. Gutted real financial reform (no Glass-Steagle, no ‘too big too fail) –?6. Not
helped people with bankruptcy & mortgages remediation (record foreclosures
and more ‘help’ for Freddie and Fannie measured in billions)-

?7. Fiddled around & not passed a jobs bill and fumbled around passing no
unemployment insurance extension -

?8. Rejected the only option that would have simultaneously extended coverage
and cut costs (Single payer) -
and more recently…

?9. Promoted off shore drilling (Think he won any ‘moderate’ or Republican votes
with that move?) -?

It seems pretty ingenuous to declare to liberals that “you are THAT CLOSE to
getting everything you want?”.

Accusers of the Democratic Party are apologists for
the Republican Party. That’s the bottom-line.

What is happening is NOT that the Democratic Party is
scamming people of good conscience, trying to dupe a
fractious liberal, environmental, libertarian,
independent coalition so they can pass laws to
benefit special interests.

What’s happening is that said coalition is composed
of spoiled brats who want “pie in the sky” or
nothing. As a result, our representative democracy is
efficiently producing representatives of special
interests, who are busy developing strategies to
create laws which make things really nice for them.

The difference between the parties is that the
Democratic Party doesn’t want to do it, but doesn’t
have a solid base of raw political power (a coalition
with any long-term tactical sense or strategy for
incrementally achieving practical goals) to make it
happen fast enough, while the Republican Party makes
it overtly clear that they could care less about you
and your causes, that you can have all the Roe v.
Wade you want, you just ain’t gonna a doctor.

Now, the “enlightened” among us think, given the lack
of political power, the best strategy is to elect
more Boehners—that’ll teach the Democrats—or
maybe just stomp our widdle feet until other people’s
representatives do what we want.

It’s the representation, stupid!

If we hold the Democrats we’ve got now, and just add
a handful more liberals, do you realize how earth-
shatteringly different EVERYTHING would be? Do you
realize you CAN have pie in the sky with whipped
cream on it?

Do you even remember that a mere two years ago
conventional wisdom said it was impossible to elect a
black man to the Presidency?

Do you realize you are THAT CLOSE to getting
everything you want?

It’s looking to me like progressives are about to
snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Now, which
party have I heard that attached to before!

Republicans have caused nearly 100% of the increase in the National Debt since 1981,  they have an 80 year record of crushing job creation, their economic policy comes in a distant second in EVERY measuable standard to “Bubble Up” economic policies of the Democratic Party, and 9 of the last 10 recessions have started under Republican economic leadership.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=433x358068

But for many Americans empty rehtoric,and disproven idealogy, carries more weight than actual accomplishment. Happy Birthday America!

Please, excuse the lack of metaphors in the following.

90% of the nation’s wealth is controlled by the top 3% of the people.

This was accomplished, aided and abetted by the laws passed by Congress
favoring the wealthy.

In other words, the law has been used very consciously and systematically by
Congress to ‘transfer wealth’ to the wealthy and from the middle class.

The issue is not really about metaphors of ants or leaks etc, whether the law
‘should be’ used to transfer more wealth to the upper 3% or whether the law
should be used to ‘level the playing field’, with education available equally to
all, with health care available to all, etc.

Here is what appended recently:

$ 3,400,000,000 = Obama & Democrats’ Bailout of the Financial Industry
Bailout
$  700,000,000 = Obama & Democrats’ Assistance to Families via ‘Stimulus’

The issue is: How should the law be used to transfer wealth more equitably,
from the wealthiest 3-10% to the middle class.

We need a Democratic administration that governs with the intent of providing
for the general welfare, not simply the corporate welfare.

Boehner is a buffoon and poor poet, but journalist is wasting our time and
aiming his criticisms in the wrong direction.

It is the Democrats and Obama who are selling out the middle class right now;
Boehner and the Republicans are just trying to score political points (and who
can blame them).

Journalists who care about what’s happening should use their positions to keep
the public’s eye focus on what matters. And what matters is the middle class is
being pushed under the bus.

The deficits have been produced in large part by giving welfare to the rich and
the financial institutions and the Democrats and Republicans have been
instrumental in the robbery.

If the Democrats had a lick of sense, they’d be out declaring themselves for the
people’s interest and not those of the wealthy and the financial institutions. The
Democrats cannot or will not do that , so their apologists, like our journalist
here (Eugene Robinson) is left to criticize the Republican’s rhetorical style.

Since the Democrats present little substantive contrast or alternative, what else
can poor Eugene do?

Loved the column. It seems to speak the truth. It certainly frames the idiocy of the day in the very words of the idiots that uttered them. It got me to search for The Little Dutch Boy. Check this out:

http://drboli.wordpress.com/2010/06/20/the-little-dutch-boy-who-saved-holland-2/

The site is full of humorous nuggets. I think you’ll like it, too.

Dejavu all over again.  “Seat belts won’t prevent accidents.” “The government is taking over the car manufacturing business.”  “Cars will no longer be affordable for most Americans…”  Republican blather, of course championed by Detroit, when the government was on the brink of requiring auto manufacturers to include seat belts in all new car models.

Wonder why Republicans haven’t in all these years sought to repeal the seat belt law.  I’d like to ask one.

BARBIEQUE: That Tauzin is breathing is testimony to the power of corruption at play within the entirety of the D.C. “thugocracy”.

      I’ve seen the FRONTLINE documentary you mention twice. I thought I was watching an insiders report on a Nevada cat house. I find it impossible to believe, that the DEMS are the gutless victims of the evil REPUBS. It’s my understanding, the two party “good cop/bad cop” scam was a political invention of Andrew Jackson, to dupe the electorate and consolidate control of the system, for the shared, vested interest of the rich.

        That many posters at TRUTHDIG feel, apocalyptic collapse is the only event that will return power to the American people, and remove the megalomaniacal narcissistic psychopaths, (Boehner is the poster child), who are now looting the country, underlines the frustration, hopelessness and belief, that reasonable sanity has departed American politics.

        I’m sure the citizens of Rome felt, the archetypal forces of the gods had been unleashed upon them, (the nutcase Christian Right), as the moral center of their Republic crumbled. It’s hard to accept. that the criminally insane are just that. “—We the people—” are no longer a consideration, for an American leadership that aspires to membership, in a new world aristocracy. They are bound in total denial and disintegration. No light is in them, and, we can expect no help from them.

        We’ve all come too far together, and paid way too many dues, in real blood, bone and soul to allow cheap hoods to take this country. Some scoff, but I still hold faith in the power of the VOTE!! Despite betrayal, we can, though it may be slow, effect change. D.C. is an enforced lie!! Forget DEM OR REPUB. There isn’t a nickels worth of difference between them. Look to the heart!! Novembers coming. Be heard and VOTE!! VOTE!! VOTE!!

Yes,

That’s right Gene, just continue playing “democrats and republicans.” That way we can focus on “republican inanities” rather than on Obama’s “limp-wristed” responses to corporate pressure.

You know as well as we do that the Wall Street Bill has been ghost written by Wall Street (why else would the Stock Market go up instead of down as a result of it?) and is shot through full of loopholes, just as the Obama Healthcare Bill was ghost written by Big Pharma only slightly better than the republican abomination of a few years before.

Who are we kidding here? The Republic has been hi-jacked by corporate greed, and part of the reason it has been allowed to happen is that journalist like yourself have abrogated your responsibilities as independent agents and have instead joined in and chosen a “team jersey.”

For once, I would like to see some serious “ballsey” non-partisan analysis rather than just more “Obama cheerleading.” And I am a Democrat. The republic depends on it, get it?

America’s greatest days may lie ahead but only if America gets out of the Middle East/Afghanistan and forces Israel to make peace with the Palestinians and let them have their own state. And only if the US Air Force refuses to fly bombing missions over Iran and America turns to renewable energy and gives oil the flick. In other words: they don’t. Israel and the oilogarchy will see to that.

“It’s all good.”

I seem to recall Obama telling his fellow citizens during the state of the union address that “Amerca’s greatest days lie ahead”.

They’re ALL a pack of wankers and they’re ALL full of it, Obama and the Democrats most certainly included.

Gene, as usual, you are fooling no one but your inner circle, who are so willing. We
know who the real socio-fascists are.

I think its the order out of chaos thing the Republicans salivate over.

Dear Hulk2008:

Thanks so much for taking the time to write and tell me about Kool-Aide. Surely you are Very busy so it means that much more.

You say: “Their 2 wars (unpaid for) and their Medicare Part D (unpaid for) and increased subsidies to the oil barons (unpaid for) have cost way more than a Trillion bucks”

Enough Democrats voted to pass both wars and Medicare part D. 82 Democrats voted for the Iraq resolution. That’s a lot of Aye. Obama campaigned on more war in Afghanistan, which is the main reason that I couldn’t support him. You remember him calling it “The GoOD WaR”. Of course you do. Maybe you even agreed!  We could have had all that good stuff you listed if enough Democrats resisted. But they did not.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Resolution

Thanks for your well wishes. Very thoughtful. Here’s hoping you and your kids and their kids get hassled by the IRS for the rest of their lives for not having acceptable health insurance. Imagine how a typo or something could cause hours of run-a-round or maybe even have to hire an attorney! :D

We could have had a bill that actually helped people and put some kind of cost control incentive in place but it ended up a gift to Big Insurance and Pharma. They bought it after all. You should check out the PBS Frontline called Obamas Deal. If, after watching that 45 minute expose of the dirty dealing that went into that horrible bill you still support it then you should save your well wishes for yourself. You’re going to need it when the IRS calls…

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/obamasdeal/

Why not enjoy the documentary with a glass of Kool-Aide®? I especially like the Cherry. But it has to be chilled just right-preferably with little chunks of ice and frost. I’m sure you know exactly what I’m talking about.

Oh just one more thing, if you don’t know who Karen Ignagni is you should. Because she might have been the one person to create one of the biggest precedents in this countries history (you know what that precedent is of course, and when your arch rivals re-take power they’ll use it in ways you don’t want, but… ). Here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_Ignagni

You may not care, but sooner or later one of your grandchildren might wonder how the IRS got into their Health care business. And you’ll know! Let me leave you (i mean the lurker silly) with one last linky dinky to more sunlight on what will be known as one of the dirtiest sellouts of the American People everl:

http://blog.sunlightfoundation.com/2010/02/12/the-legacy-of-billy-tauzin-the-white-house-phrma-deal/

Happy 4th!

BarbieQue:

Thanks for drinking the Repugs’ Kool-Aid.  Their 2 wars (unpaid for) and their Medicare Part D (unpaid for) and increased subsidies to the oil barons (unpaid for) have cost way more than a Trillion bucks.  We could have had health reform, financial reform, the stimulus, unemployment benefits, and a bit more for the prior 8 years of bungle-dumb. 

My gripe with Obama is that he did not yank us out of Afghanistan and Iraq immediately.  Leave the poppy-growers back in the Stone Age. 

Yes, the Dems have numbers control of Congress and the White House.  I wonder why Bush Ist and the Repugs never reformed health care or Wall Street back in the 90’s.  Hmmmm.  Could it be that Newt and Friends actually believed annual 10% boosts in health costs were OK ?  At least Papa Bush got real help in the first Gulf War from other nations instead of the token forces that Sonny Bush got. 

I do wish the best for you - here’s hoping you and your family never get sick and need health care.  I worked for health care companies off and on for 42 years - I saw first-hand how corporations routinely shafted patients.  Remember that in spite of the financial downturn, more than half of all home foreclosures are STILL caused by medical costs.  Enslavement to insurance companies is NOT something a citizen ever wants for himself or his fellow citizenry.

“killing an ant with a nuclear weapon” has gladdened the hearts of Democratic political operatives from coast to coast.”..

that’s one way to look at it…

Still Democrats can stand and cheer, for if it was for the Anti Deluvian Rethuglicans, fighting even minimal reform, financial reform could be seen as what it is… Reform without Reform..

It’s those pesky Republicans fault again. They make any miniscule change seem like the end of the world, without that opposition, the Dems actions could be viewed in the light of reality.

It’s not reform at all, its just another cave in and sell out to Wall Street. As Krugman pointed out, it means, we’re in the beginning of a depression, because of the Obama adminstrations foolish caving in to orthodoxy.

I wonder how they’ll spin things when the government starts defaulting on T-bills?

Amerikans need to unanimously vote the Repubicans in one last time and that means from town hall all the way to the White House and beyond, if possible.  That way, we can all be assured that the last nail in the coffin of the Empire is in so that we can look forward to starting from scratch.

Shouldn’t the “Republican Worldview” be irrelevant to Mr. Robinson and his fellow partisan Democrats?

His party (and what a party it was) has control of the Presidency.
His party has control of the Senate.
His party has control of the House of Representatives.
His party can do (and did, see the Health Insurance Ripoff and Enslavement Act of 2010) anything it damn well wants to do.

Yet Eugene, Barack and the lot can’t keep from talking about Republicans.

It’s frustrating and sad. We really do need a true Uniter, not division.

For example- Take 1000 people at random from any phone book in any city in any state. Ask them if they think it would be a good idea to drop 1 TRILLION Dollars of BORROWED money (who gets the interest?) on 2 wars for 10 years 8000 miles away. What would the final tally look like? 995- 4, with 1 too stupid to register an opinion,?