stuckinarut
24th May 2011, 14:32
Over the past few weeks in the United States, we have seen a change in the political tone of the country as campaign season 2012 begins to warm up.
The change I write of is the inevitable shifting of the Presidents influence away from the center/right, back to the center in a hopes to regain the youth/"progressive" vote that won him the election in '08. But is this possible? Hasn't the President that promised to "end the wars" and bring "hope and change" to the US done enough to prove that his administration was all bark, and no bite? Between a failed financial reform bill, An individual requirement to buy private, for-profit insurance under the guise of "Health care", the continuation/escalation of the worst of W. Bush's civil/human rights violations, and the gifting of approx. 700 Billion dollars to the private financial sector, how much more proof do we need?
Well it seems the self-proclaimed US "Liberals" have decided that anybody that actually holds true to their moral convictions, is "worse than a right-winger". This inability for the "progressive left" of the (D)emocratic party highlights it's willingness to sacrifice it's supposed beliefs in the interest of political expediency.
As Chris Hedges notes in his piece, Why Liberal Sellouts Attack Prophets Like Cornel West,
The liberal class, despite becoming an object of widespread public scorn, prefers the choreographed charade. It will decry the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan or call for universal health care, but continue to defend and support a Democratic Party that has no intention of disrupting the corporate machine. As long as the charade is played, the liberal class can hold itself up as the conscience of the nation without having to act. It can maintain its privileged economic status. It can continue to live in an imaginary world where democratic reform and responsible government exist. It can pretend it has a voice and influence in the corridors of power. But the uselessness and irrelevancy of the liberal class are not lost on the tens of millions of Americans who suffer the indignities of the corporate state. And this is why liberals are rightly despised by the working class and the poor.
Chris raises an important point about the "Liberal class" in American politics. They have been subjugated into irrelevancy by believing that the only way for change is within the system. They do not see that the system is the problem. Due to this blind spot, they will continually bargain for the middle, with a corporate opponents who have no interest in negotiation, and ultimately the "Liberals" lose valuable ground in the process.
And they defend it. One can read numerous posts on sites like DU.com where legitimate leftists are denounced as trolls or Rwingers for criticizing a sitting Democratic president. They see all criticism against the President as trolling, and WILL block/edit naysayer's posts. This censorship is what separates the Liberals from the Left, and there is opportunity in this disunion. We are seeing a natural faultline in the progressive base. A crack that had been attacked, de-legitimized, and slandered throughout the latter half of the 20th century with Gov. projects such as Co-intel pro. We are seeing a re-emergence of popular sentiment for the left, even if those expressing these differences are not aware of it yet.
My question is how can the legitimate left bring the honest, well-intentioned "liberals" who are being shoved away from their "party", into our ranks? Many on the left, including myself, have made the transition and did so through discussion, debate and learning/reading. I was challenged on my ideas, and being an objective person, went and researched them. Eventually the evidence becomes so overwhelming that you have to ignore it entirely if you truly see the current State/legislative system as the answer to our problems.
Just some thoughts to bang around. It seems we are seeing the small fissures that could lead to massive awakenings/splintering of the two-party system.
The change I write of is the inevitable shifting of the Presidents influence away from the center/right, back to the center in a hopes to regain the youth/"progressive" vote that won him the election in '08. But is this possible? Hasn't the President that promised to "end the wars" and bring "hope and change" to the US done enough to prove that his administration was all bark, and no bite? Between a failed financial reform bill, An individual requirement to buy private, for-profit insurance under the guise of "Health care", the continuation/escalation of the worst of W. Bush's civil/human rights violations, and the gifting of approx. 700 Billion dollars to the private financial sector, how much more proof do we need?
Well it seems the self-proclaimed US "Liberals" have decided that anybody that actually holds true to their moral convictions, is "worse than a right-winger". This inability for the "progressive left" of the (D)emocratic party highlights it's willingness to sacrifice it's supposed beliefs in the interest of political expediency.
As Chris Hedges notes in his piece, Why Liberal Sellouts Attack Prophets Like Cornel West,
The liberal class, despite becoming an object of widespread public scorn, prefers the choreographed charade. It will decry the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan or call for universal health care, but continue to defend and support a Democratic Party that has no intention of disrupting the corporate machine. As long as the charade is played, the liberal class can hold itself up as the conscience of the nation without having to act. It can maintain its privileged economic status. It can continue to live in an imaginary world where democratic reform and responsible government exist. It can pretend it has a voice and influence in the corridors of power. But the uselessness and irrelevancy of the liberal class are not lost on the tens of millions of Americans who suffer the indignities of the corporate state. And this is why liberals are rightly despised by the working class and the poor.
Chris raises an important point about the "Liberal class" in American politics. They have been subjugated into irrelevancy by believing that the only way for change is within the system. They do not see that the system is the problem. Due to this blind spot, they will continually bargain for the middle, with a corporate opponents who have no interest in negotiation, and ultimately the "Liberals" lose valuable ground in the process.
And they defend it. One can read numerous posts on sites like DU.com where legitimate leftists are denounced as trolls or Rwingers for criticizing a sitting Democratic president. They see all criticism against the President as trolling, and WILL block/edit naysayer's posts. This censorship is what separates the Liberals from the Left, and there is opportunity in this disunion. We are seeing a natural faultline in the progressive base. A crack that had been attacked, de-legitimized, and slandered throughout the latter half of the 20th century with Gov. projects such as Co-intel pro. We are seeing a re-emergence of popular sentiment for the left, even if those expressing these differences are not aware of it yet.
My question is how can the legitimate left bring the honest, well-intentioned "liberals" who are being shoved away from their "party", into our ranks? Many on the left, including myself, have made the transition and did so through discussion, debate and learning/reading. I was challenged on my ideas, and being an objective person, went and researched them. Eventually the evidence becomes so overwhelming that you have to ignore it entirely if you truly see the current State/legislative system as the answer to our problems.
Just some thoughts to bang around. It seems we are seeing the small fissures that could lead to massive awakenings/splintering of the two-party system.