“I wrote a law that we’re not going to enforce!”
- The lady who passes her husband insider info on deals being made in congress such that his stock trades are near-miraculous despite insider trading being horribly unethical for a senator and also illegal, too
Edit: ooppps. wrong senator. (Didn’t pelosi say something similar?)
The political discourse here is horrible. There’s 30 people agreeing with that person’s incorrect statement.
Yeah, I’ve heard this claim about pelosi repeated but I’ve yet to see any evidence of her husband’s miraculous stock trades.
This community is just perpetually disappointing. How the fuck are you someone interested in progressive politics and not know the difference between Nancy Pelosi and Elizabeth Warren? Especially on corruption and stocks. She’s one of the main voices leading the effort to ban stock trading by electeds and their families. And this is the most upvoted comment in the entire post!
This was the last time i vote for a dem candidate. they pay mouth service to progressive policies, but at the end of the day, they do next to nothing for us.
back in in the 2010s when obama was president, there was a time when the dems controlled the house AND the senate at the same time. we still didn’t get any real progressive shit passed. the only thing i can think of is daca and obamacare. we didn’t get single payer, universal nationalized healthcare, we didn’t get robust protections for the working class, we didn’t responsibly pull out of iraq or afghanistan, the environment is fucked and there’s nothing that we can do about it anymore, big banks got bailed out at the expense of the working class, university cost was and has continued to be at an all time high. They didn’t fix the gerrymandering the gop has been getting away with. They didn’t set term limits on justices. they didn’t fight back when the Rs blocked merick garland. They did nothing to fix the broken electoral system. They did nothing to fix the economic policies set in the reagan era. they did nothing to set a law banning PACs, lobbyists or special interests. the only thing the dem party has going for it is that they are not literally the party of fascists.
2 weeks before the election wasn’t the time to start getting excited about a third party. The time for third partying is now, and keep it up until the next one. I’m not going to forgive the dem party for their inaction and they should absolutely be punished by no longer existing as the opposition party.
This was the last time i vote for a dem candidate.
I’m sure that’ll fix things right up!
This reformist sentiment is how we got here with the Dems.
I could understand reform to an extent but holy fuck come on. They’ve demonstrated they really truly don’t give a fuck about the leftist ideals they carry around like a vestigial organ.
Kamala “Do Not Come” Harris Joe “Nothing will fundamentally change” Biden (Bonus) Joe “Strongest union president ever until it might impact the economy” Biden Nancy “Insider trading is cool when I do it” Pelosi
They exist as the last wall between more serious leftists and actual change.
They co-opt and absorb grassroots movements and then talk them down into a whimper. (e.g. BLM, defund the police, single-payer, etc.) Usually the discourse devolves into “well it might be hard and take some time, and it’s something we’re not used to, and some people might be mad too, and oh the economy and jobs or something” and that’s that. Dismissed until the next crisis, where we’ll rinse and repeat.
Notice the verbiage when they’re talking: “middle-class” this “middle-class” that. How often do they talk about the lower class? They usually don’t, because they primarily want to appeal to the affluent and educated. Meanwhile actual leftist organization meet people where they are on the regular - hungry, unsheltered, endangered - instead of sitting at galas and fundraisers sucking the big green dollary dick and feeling really sad and concerned about those people on the street. But hey maybe more spikes on a bench and more camp raids will solve the problem. After all, they’re making the place unsightly for their affluent, educated friends.
“When they go low we go high” is a hollow appeal to civility they use to say “aw shucks guys we tried real hard but then Republicans said no”. How many times have Republicans whipped out that “one simple trick” to leverage their position? How many times are Democrats gonna say “hey man that’s not cool” until they realize that honor or decorum are like boyscout merrit badges in the face of an opposition that demonstrates they don’t give a fuck about any of that?
Right or “left” or anything in between - any time there’s a labor dispute you can bet (and you’d be quite succesful) that within the first WEEK they’ll be drumming up distrust amongst the working class:
They tell their fellow workers through the media “these union workers are making your shit cost more. Here’s how much their asking for in wage increases.”
To ask “well, couldn’t the company just make a little bit less” is heresy. How could you suggest such a thing? They’re a business dummy, they have to make money! Line goes up! Line go down is bad! Jobs and yadda yadda.
They frame the majority of the conversation in terms of monetary or fringe benefits for the workers. They report very little on the safety and PTO/QOL demands of the union.
In the case of Biden and railroad workers, they say “hey just play along and let the rail companies strategize and undermine you for a few more years while we try really super megahard to get you what you want”. Newsflash if you didn’t know: the element of surprise (within a short time frame) is important for strikes. Now that the companies know the union is willing to take it to that level, the railroad companies being in a position of power and control are in an advantageous position with that knowledge. And by the way nothing was ever done about the safety concerns the rail workers had with PSR or lean operation (or the being on call constantly), and shortly after Biden put down that strike the East Palestine disaster happened. And yeah those people aren’t done with their suffering either. But hey at least you, out precious affluent, educated voter didn’t have to do anything to support your fellow workers or deal with any upset in your life.
And then there’s the laser-focus on identity issues. WHILE IMPORTANT, you know what most helps people in these groups fight for their rights? Better working conditions. Better benefits. Better healthcare. Better work-life balance. More time off to organize, more time off to participate in politics, or spend time with family, or do hobbies, or relax, or do anything that might give them solid footing against the ebbs and flows of capital and fight for themselves and their own rights and communities. Not that help from more advantaged people isn’t useful, but when that’s step one instead of step four or five it comes off as a “white man’s burden” approach. Give them the foundation that every working person deserves.
No one’s required to vote for your dog shit, milquetoast party and their old crusty ass kingmakers. And before you start coming at me with the usual stuff, I voted for Harris to buy more time for vulnerable people, leftists, and whatever semblance of free expression and journalism we have left. I sucked it up and put my opinions aside for a bit.
And wow what a fucking waste. How could that party fuck up so bad? Maybe they didn’t pay enough money to political consultants? Surely that’s the reason.
I’m really sympathetic to all you say. I get the frustration and anger - I’ve had it for years.
Alas…
They exist as the last wall between more serious leftists and actual change.
It’s not a wall. More of a roadblock that can be moved or even removed. We’ve seen progress, which I get is easy to forget.
The issue is this: pointing all this out and being vocal about the issues is important but does not itself solve the problem. We can protest and complain all we want and it does not result in actual change. And this is kind of the central problem - folks such as yourself (and me, at one time) harp on how bad things are under both parties and even refuse to participate. We don’t get politically involved, don’t vote, and just complain.
That does not move the needle and never will.
As many have pointed out, with Democrats you can move the needle. You can elect and re-elect progressive candidates and push elected officials to enact progressive legislation. It does actually happen but too often this fact get’s forgotten or ignored in all the doom and gloom. Meanwhile, because we didn’t get 100% of what we wanted and kept complaining about how nothing changes (when in fact it does) we end up with a neo-fascist authoritarian regime with which there will be NO negotiation, NO active or meaningful protests and during which we will take many many steps backward. Seriously, we are looking at a Christian Nationalist takeover of government and all that entails. This is REALLY bad.
A cynical and less tolerant person would say “stop complaining and do something about it”. I would say “ok, I hear your complaints and agree. What are we going to do about it?”
If you truly want to see how much effort the Democrat party wastes punching Left, then stick with your convictions about organnizing and voting third party up through the next presidential election.
I’m done. I can’t with them anymore. I’ve voted dem every single election since 08 and they can’t seem to beat a literal fascist 2 out of 3 times. It’s not because they aren’t the progressive party, it’s because they don’t actually do anything. they talk, but don’t act.
I get it. I came to similar conclusions sometime between Hillary’s loss and the end of the 2020 primaries. -Trump is not some intellectual mastermind, it takes a special amount of arrogance on behalf of his opponents to lose a presidential campaign against him. To think the Dem party lost to him twice…
they talk, but don’t act
The main messaging from the Harris campaign seemed to consist of:
- the economy is fine
- immigrants are fentanyl carrying criminals and we need to build the border wall
- fracking good
- war good (continued expansion of Israel, keep arming Ukraine instead of pushing for a diplomatic resolution, and let’s invade Iran next with the most lethal fighting force in the world)
- what, do you want a DANG CHEETO in the white house?
They don’t walk the walk of a pro worker party, but they sure as shit don’t talk the talk either.
This was the last time i vote for a dem candidate. they pay mouth service to progressive policies, but at the end of the day, they do next to nothing for us.
I’m genuinely hoping (but not holding my breath) that this is a come to Jesus moment for the Democratic party and that they start actually representing the left side. They need to get it through their heads that trying to play the “lesser evil” isn’t going to work anymore. If they didn’t learn from this election, they will never learn. I’m expecting the latter, btw.
Nick Fuentes address is public and he’s still breathing. Tells me all I need to know about liberal activists.
You could say that about all activists. It’s not like the leftists don’t think Nick Fuentes is a Nazi shitstain. You know it, why are you here posting rather than carrying out the assassination you’re condemning others for not performing?
Actually apparently he is: https://www.newsweek.com/nick-fuentes-address-marla-rose-pepper-spray-women-1985059
How about we do something about it instead of expecting someone else to?
I went to DC and yelled at a bunch of brutalist buildings. I’m sure someone in one of those knows a guy who knows someone who sometimes gets close enough to see a representative. I did my part!
There’s a reason peaceful protest is legal, and that’s because it seldom accomplishes anything meaningful.
I don’t even know what this text is in reference to and I have no concrete suggestions immediately. But I will be thinking, connecting, and sharing in the coming months as a strategy emerges. Trumpism can still be defeated. The election was plan A but it’s time to come up with plan B. I am thinking that it’s going to take massive organized civil disobedience. We directly disrupt their ability to govern and harm marginalized people.
But it’s going to take more than just me, so I ask everyone here to be ready and participate in whatever capacity you can.
My “text” is a direct response to your comment that proceeded it. Im not sure how that’s confusing.
The fact of the matter is the election results are legal, certified, and recognized by every country on Earth. As much as I hate it, and I really really hate it, that’s reality.
Unless things get ridiculously out of hand, which has yet to be seen, the only real thing anyone can do is create protests and marches, and vote for change when the time comes.
If you think you’re going to create a “resistance army” you’re going to be checked very hard by reality. Your little keyboard warrior “massive organized civil disobedience” will be as lame as Jan 6.
if you want things to change, first you have to find a way to be able to confidently say “I’m ready for things to change”. Then, you have to help other people find a way to say it too. And when there’s finally enough people, nobody has to “go first”.
I mean that’s a nice sentiment, but it’s not the late 19th century anymore. Even if it was, that’s not really how revolutions worked in the past.
The majority of revolutions that have been successful in the past have sprung from pre-arranged hierarchical bodies like the military. There is a reason the US military was developed to be domestically apolitical, and is forbidden to operate in any real sense within the United States.
If there is some sort of revolution it’s perfectly reasonable to assume there will be Martyrs, it’s also perfectly reasonable to not want to willingly participate in martyrdom.
It’s the perennial coordination problem. Consider these truths: 1. Anybody who stands up alone will get viciously hammered down. 2. If a large number of people stand up together, they can make a difference. 3. People have to trust others to stand up with them, otherwise see #1.
How do we organize a large crowd of people that trust each other without the people in power catching wind of it and viciously hammering down the organizers? It sure would help to have some support from people already in positions of power…
This is part of why, as much grief as it gets, the 4B movement is something that can plausibly gain traction. Because it doesn’t really require anyone “outing” themselves and thus putting themselves at risk, it can be done without coordination, leadership, and trust. Boycotts function on a similar premise.
They are a useful tool in some ways, but the issue is the relatively limited scope of what these sorts of efforts can accomplish.
Yet another reminder that most Americans don’t understand how the government works. What is one Dem senator going to do in a government that is 100% controlled by Republicans?
Voters need to do something and actually give the Dems a majority before complaining that they don’t get anything done.