The Democrats are pussies.
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That's not quite the same as saying it was wrong. But could you explain what is meant in the second sentence?Honestly, I don't like that article very much. First, it ignores that what they call "identity politics" is an important part of any relevant socialist movement.
The very specifics of identity politics - proposing a unified identity within an oppressed group - is central as a starting point of any struggle. It is just that among socialists, class identity is so obvious for them, they don't call it identity politics.
What various left-wing groups often refer to as "identity politics", often in a degoratory sense, are important parts of very real political movements such as those of anti-rasism and feminism, movements that should have an obvious place in worker's struggle as a lot of workers are women and racialized people (in fact, those groups are overrepresented among the working class). One can't deny that the working class struggle has had loads of issues with racism and sexism, that have no doubt alienated large parts of the class.
In addition, racism, sexism, homophobia etc are powerful tools of the owning class, probably their main weapon in the "divide and conquer" scheme.
We cannot have a successful revolutionary struggle while alienating large parts of the class.
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The Democrats are pussies.
I was raised Republican. I stopped once I realized the intellectual contempt they hold most of us in. Fox News in particular, once I started checking the sources and the claims, and finding them bogus, caused me to lose a massive amount of faith in them.
I've never liked the Democrats though. I like some concepts of liberalism, and some of conservatism, but I don't really have a party who represents me, or who represents enough of what I believe in to justify voting for it. It seems like the Republicans are trying to do things I don't like and the Democrats are too incompetent to do anything I do like.
What various left-wing groups often refer to as "identity politics", often in a degoratory sense, are important parts of very real political movements such as those of anti-rasism and feminism, movements that should have an obvious place in worker's struggle as a lot of workers are women and racialized people (in fact, those groups are overrepresented among the working class). One can't deny that the working class struggle has had loads of issues with racism and sexism, that have no doubt alienated large parts of the class.
In addition, racism, sexism, homophobia etc are powerful tools of the owning class, probably their main weapon in the "divide and conquer" scheme.
We cannot have a successful revolutionary struggle while alienating large parts of the class.
Documentary I saw on my Facebook feed last night about the League of Revolutionary Black Workers whom I mentioned recently in another thread.
I honestly don't think Nader would have been that good of a president. Better than Bush, but only by nature of being ineffective. I don't think he could have actually led the nation towards any sort of goal.
He's a great man and is responsible for millions of people being alive to day. That doesn't necessarily translate into great leader though. He would have (possibly still) been a good cabinet member.
Alas, Nader doesn't run for president anymore, so no chance of a supernova explosion, I'm afraid. :(
Not that I ever voted for him.
Bummage.
Neither did I.
It would strike a major cord of fear in both major parties... the Republicans because Nader is a man of their nightmares, and the Democrats.... even more so.
It would strike fear into them, regardless of who was actually voted in. Historically, the rise of a 3rd party (a true rise, not merely existence) means the end of one of the current parties.
If you ask me, he's one of the most important and influential people of the 20th century. I'm still not convinced he'd be a good president. I'd rather see him as Secretary of the Treasury and given a lot of latitude to harass the banks.
Just because I don't think he'd be a good president doesn't mean I don't admire the man. I think he's very smart, with strong principles.
The only thing I really liked about Nader was that, according to my drunken anarcho-syndicalist hetero life partner--who did vote for Nader, so maybe he isn't that anarcho-syndicalist after all, was that he proposed to rip up the National Labor Relations Act since it was nothing except for a fetter on the power of the unions.
I certainly agree with him there.
If you ask me, he's one of the most important and influential people of the 20th century. I'm still not convinced he'd be a good president. I'd rather see him as Secretary of the Treasury and given a lot of latitude to harass the banks.
3 Better ideas:
Head of the Consumer Protection Bureau
Head of the EPA
Secretary of the Interior
Just posting it for shiznit and giggles. Also, I noticed that he's got a new book, Unstoppable: The Emerging Left-Right Alliance to Dismantle the Corporate State.
I haven't read it, but Occupy NH was half social democrats and half libertarians. It fell apart pretty quick.
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Just posting it for shiznit and giggles. Also, I noticed that he's got a new book, Unstoppable: The Emerging Left-Right Alliance to Dismantle the Corporate State.
I haven't read it, but Occupy NH was half social democrats and half libertarians. It fell apart pretty quick.
Social democrats? Does that mean socially liberal but conservative about something else?
Oh, and as long as I'm actually posting, Comrade, why don't we like Elizabeth Warren? I would have thought that she'd be right up your alley, except not far enough. Is she not as cool as I've heard?
Why, yes, Comrade X, I will go dig up those posts...
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Social democrats? Does that mean socially liberal but conservative about something else?
I guess so, if that something else is international proletarian socialist revolution.
I'm sure Comrade Jeff, maybe Comrade Pravda, maybe others, will be happy to tell you all about it.
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Gotcha. Thank you. The visit to the line incident was not terribly impressive.
By the way, thanks! This reminds me that I thought of you and other Paizo board-folks last week when I was reading a conservative forum. They were so far right that they'd think I am a communist and their brains would blue-screen if they tried talking to you.
So, thanks for not being ~*}!ing nuts, even when I disagree with you. :)
How I Wish I Had F$#~ed Hillary Chabot: The Derail
EDIT: Woops, nevermind, link through the link no longer works. :(
EDIT: Objectification of Hawt Right-Wing Journalists back on
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Social democrats? Does that mean socially liberal but conservative about something else?I guess so, if that something else is international proletarian socialist revolution.
I'm sure Comrade Jeff, maybe Comrade Pravda, maybe others, will be happy to tell you all about it.
Got it, I was trying to fit it into US style Democrats, not euro-style social democrats. (Note capitals)
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You still here 8th? Maybe the seppos could get their own thread on the relative merits of their two wings of the same bird political system... (Joke - we have the same thing here in Oz)
Anyway 8th, Those are some great new anti-protest laws in Victoria - should help with some scorched earth policies. After Tony's mates have "husbanded" the forests right up the Regional Forest Agreements...
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I am on line at random times OSW. Mrs The8thDwarf (she did all the hard work, I held her hand mostly) and I had a baby a week ago today, so between feeds, nappies and the witching hour (8:30pm to 3:30 am) I jump on and read and post if I am not cat napping.
It's funny I was thinking of starting a thread called "please hijack this thread and talk about American politics".
Did you go on the March in March... I was planning to go and protest our right wing nut job, but somebody far more wonderful and important altered my plans.
Huzzah for the 9th Dwarf!
[DJdD]Incidentally, as someone who is privy to The 8th Dwarf's FB feed, I've seen pix of Mrs. Dwarf, and...OHW--, well, you get the idea...[/DJdD]
For a true fanatic, "not far enough" is a cardinal sin. The Tea Party is a textbook example.
Oh, and as long as I'm actually posting, Comrade, why don't we like Elizabeth Warren? I would have thought that she'd be right up your alley, except not far enough. Is she not as cool as I've heard?
Hee hee!
"I've just spent the thread attacking people who are 'not far enough' to the left, now I'm gonna attack people further to the left.'"
Are you sure you're not also an ultraleft sectarian, Comrade X?
Hey congratulations 8d!
:-)
I am sitting with the 11th dwarf now, she is in one arm sleeping while I type with one hand. 1:30 is the next feed and my shift ends and I can go to sleep. She won't go to sleep in her cot until 2 am for some reason but she will sleep if I am holding her.
My internet is slow... I would normally be watching Black Adder on iVew :-(
Have to call my internet provider tomorrow.
I mean, Huzzah for The 11th Dwarf!
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Just posting it for shiznit and giggles. Also, I noticed that he's got a new book, Unstoppable: The Emerging Left-Right Alliance to Dismantle the Corporate State.
I haven't read it, but Occupy NH was half social democrats and half libertarians. It fell apart pretty quick.
Social democrats? Does that mean socially liberal but conservative about something else?
Oh, and as long as I'm actually posting, Comrade, why don't we like Elizabeth Warren? I would have thought that she'd be right up your alley, except not far enough. Is she not as cool as I've heard?
That she lied about her native heritage to gain advantage over others in the scholarship, grant, and admission process to get into a prestigious university has nothing to do with why people who value honesty and fairness dislike her.
Ah, I remember that.... Yeah that was ugly.
That's covered under "How I Wished I F&@+ed Hillary Chabot: The Derail."
I'm still unconvinced it was anything other than a Boston Herald/Scott Brown-campaign smear, but, to be honest, I wouldn't really care either way.
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That's covered under "How I Wished I F@$@ed Hillary Chabot: The Derail."
I'm still unconvinced it was anything other than a Boston Herald/Scott Brown-campaign smear, but, to be honest, I wouldn't really care either way.
The Cherokee Nation did the research and pretty much proved she's 100% European. They had a page on their web site saying they did not consider her one of them, and were insulted she used their heritage to get ahead. I think that's a bit more than just a smear.
Whether the Cherokee accept her or not is irrelevant. One has to show that she "lied about her native heritage to gain advantage over others in the scholarship, grant, and admission process" which, last time I looked it up, wasn't substantiated, even in the Hillary Chabot piece that broke the story (and, alas, is no longer on the web.)
Either way, I don't care. We're talking about the woman who sits in the historic seat of Ted "Where's Mary Jo?" Kennedy (who I also hate--f*+#ing "Hey I succeeded where my brother failed at crippling the Teamsters!"). Even if everything say you say is true, it seems like small potatos.
And while we're at it--Daniel Patrick Moynihan? The guy who came with up the theory that black people are locked in poverty because black women are emasculating ball-breaking matriarchs? What the f&~~?
The ever-delectable Hillary Chabot geeks out.
The guy who came with up the theory that black people are locked in poverty because black women are emasculating ball-breaking matriarchs?
He had obviously just come back from Essence-Fest weekend in New Orleans. Nowhere else have I ever seen so many domineering BAPs mercilessly browbeating their despondent boyfriends into submission.
And that's what's kept black people in poverty, huh?
And that's what's kept black people in poverty, huh?
I see no connection there at all, to be honest -- these guys were loaded down with enough shopping bags so that they couldn't carry them all. So unless they're spending all their money on designer shoes, leaving them with none for rent -- yeah, not seeing much poverty there! (I was commenting more on the "ball-busting emasculation" part.)
In 1993 Moynihan said "there is no health care crisis."
Hadn't popped over to socialistworker.org in a while and, lo and behold, they've read Comrade X's Harper's piece.
More leftie liberals bemoaning themselves:
For the record, I dropped out of college. Three times.
I watched Robert Reich's Inequality for All last night. I dug it.
More leftie liberals bemoaning themselves:
For the record, I dropped out of college. Three times.
I think that one misses the forest for the trees.
The country as a whole has shifted to the right, so the center of the Democratic party has as well. And yes, that does mean that the progressive agenda is being left behind.
One of the interesting things I wasn't aware of was how cheap education was in the 1950's. Some state schools were still free. The ones that charged usually ran around $500-900 a year, or $4800 to $8700 adjusted for inflation.
The author bemoans the monopoly of professionals, but doesn't acknowledge the simple solution to break it is to provide free/cheap higher education.
More broadly, I love unions, but the concept needs to be changed. Workers definitely need to organize and support each other, but the specific model of how that happens is outdated. I don't know what unions should look like, but something about them needs to change. Things shift faster and faster in the economy these days, the underlying principles and structure is the same, but the speed of it is ever increasing. The collective bargaining structure is too slow and enduring.
Wooooooow, Lazar is pretty old.
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I think that one misses the forest for the trees.
Of course it does. To quote the Socialist Worker piece:
"From the vantage point of the Obama era, it's easy to remember this Democratic Party as the party of Social Security, Medicare and the National Labor Relations Act. But it was also equally the party of Jim Crow, Japanese internment and the Vietnam War. Even at a time of Democratic ascendancy, the seeds for organized labor's defeats in the postwar era were sown with the 1947 passage of the Taft-Hartley Act and the anti-communist witch hunts of the McCarthy era.
"The Democrats were never a party for 'our side,' and they won't be won over to our side in the future. The big business interests that control it will assure that--regardless of how 'social democratic' the aspirations of its 'base' are."
Well, "simple" in regards to solving that one problem. As with most solutions in a complex system, it brings with it its own problems.
Seriously though, if we're having a doctor shortage in this country and medical costs are too high, why aren't we spending more money to train doctors?
It would help solve the rural doctor problem. As doctor wages in urban areas go down, rural jobs become more attractive than they are now. As doctors have a harder time finding work in one area, they find work in others.
You could even do it like they do for some teacher training programs. Be a doctor in a low income or rural area for X years after school and all loans are forgiven.
Initially it is costly. But at the very least, you're increasing the tax base by adding more skilled jobs (doctors) as the years go on. Plus you reduce spending on health care, since people will get more and better care then they currently are, again providing future savings.
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For open admissions, free tuition and a living stipend for all students!
Vive le Galt!