archived: 31 Oct - 5 Nov, 2005 Back Next
JERRY LOBDILL
“Tired Advice”
Rick Ryan's advice is the same old tired and failed prescription the "centrists" have been delivering since the DLC came into being. There is nothing "centrist" about the DLC. It is Republicanism with a phony name. And it doesn't work as an alternative to the Republican Party. It is Republican-lite.
He is right about one thing. We must be pragmatic-- and reject the DLC if we are to have a chance of attracting the votes of those who should be voting against Republicans.
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Junkie: Lobdill is a frequent contributor to TPJ. He is responding to Rick Ryan’s article in last week’s TPJ. Ryan wrote:
I think Carville's advice has some truth in it. [See TPJ’s article on Carville’s advice here: TPJ, ADVICE FOR THE FORLORN DEMOCRAT]. We can hold all the lofty ideals and pure liberal positions we want, but if we don't win elections to implement policy what good are they? The Democratic Party needs to run candidates that fit their district for Congress and state for Senate.
We are as guilty as the GOP when it comes to litmus tests. WIN, WIN, WIN, regain the majorities in the Congress so we can roll back the most heinous of the right wing agenda. I know that some Dems feel that winning with centrist candidate is as bad as losing. The Gore v Bush election shows the stakes involved when Progressives think they will teach the Dems a "lesson" voting for Nader etc.
The stakes are too high and the consequences are too great to allow liberal purity to prevent us winning elections. Sometimes we must be pragmatic and come together to WIN!
Lobdill’s comments continue the debate between progressives and centrists within the Party as to the fundamental principles on which the Democratic Party should be founded. It is a worth debate.
Jay Greene has authored a wonderful piece today outlining the principles that should guide Democrats. Greene’s thoughts could reflect principles on which progressives and centrists can agree. Read Greene’s article in THEM DEMS.
MJH
“Bamboozle”
What I'd like to know is how come only about 10% of Americans were smart enough to see through the bamboozle job Colin Powell did in his UN speech and Bush and company pulled off through the mainstream media propaganda machine? Are the other 90% so fickle, ignorant, uninterested, uneducated, or brain-dead to see they were being sold a very large mythical Iraqi bridge?
Is it:
A reflection on our educational system?
The radical right wing propaganda machine?
Our toxic- metal tainted brains?
Wishful or magical thinking?
Too much self-centered religious teaching?
Too many Arnold movies?
If we could bottle the answers to these questions and put the result in the nation's drinking water, caring thoughtful Democrats could create a wonderful country in short order.
Meantime, one can only feel grateful as the trap closes around the arrogant hubristic White House gang of Keystone Kops. Too bad it won't last as the 90% fall for the next bunch of lying con-men.
There's little pleasure in saying I told you so, even when justified. It just ain't a Democrat's way.
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Junkie: Actually, there is a much simpler explanation here in TPJ’s estimation. Most Americans are busy every day just trying to earn a living, take care of children and a myriad of other responsibilities. Most instinctively trust their elected leaders.
Some of the debates that dominate American politics filter through, but not at the “junkie” level of attention. Junkies “represent” a tiny fraction of the citizenry. But, after his (s)election in 2000, Bush and the neoconservatives were not making major headway with their foreign policy objectives.
9/11 changed the normal balance of power in the foreign policy debate that was developing. Bush pointed the finger at Afghanistan and Iraq. Most Americans, rightfully angered, trusted their government and provided the support for war.
The Democrat Party and the mainstream media largely failed to offer the necessary counterbalance. Why? Many reasons actually. Fear to question an administration whose popularity skyrocketed immediately after 9/11, fear as to the consequences if they were wrong in their opposition and fear of being labeled as “unpatriotic” by and radical Republican administration adept at branding its political enemies.
Last Update: 03/23/2006