Jeezes, we need some actual Democrats in office

[MannyGoldstein]

Last edited Fri Jul 19, 2013, 12:39 PM - Edit history (1)

Reading this morning's news on DU, it's a fucking catastrophe out there. Kids getting killed for Walking While Black, money scammed from kids trying to get an education, the 99% still being economically sodomized, but ginormous torrents of cash are being showered on the 1%.

Every American is being spied on, and the most decent living American President says that Democracy is kaput here.

Wow!

This is vexing.

We need some help from our elected officials, if they can pull off of Wall Street's teat for a few moments.

Regards,

First-Way Manny

[HardTimes99]

1. Motor City declared bankruptcy. Un-friggin-real. GOP Governor appoints

a henchman to do the deed. Get ready for forced liquidation of public assets to vulture types like Romney and the fucking over of city retirees.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/record-bankruptcy-detroit-103200430.html

[corkhead]

9. Shock Doctorine in action. On the bright side, I have always wanted my own Piccaso

http://www.wxyz.com/dpp/news/region/detroit/detroit-institute-of-arts-disappointed-by-city-bankruptcy-committed-to-protecting-art-collection

[HardTimes99]

15. Detroit could make for a 'tipping point.' Since Detroit's police forces will

get the shaft along with every other municipal employee, the police should now have very little motivation to protect the interests of the 1% any longer. You'll know the revolution has come when the police stop serving the 1%, turn on them and start serving the 99%.

Like your sig-line, btw

[duffyduff]

75. It's coming. This is the end game.

These gangsters need to be rounded up and imprisoned.

Even Pinochet knew better than to piss off the military.

[markiv]

24. it's a motor city madhouse

i know ted's politics arent popular here, but this song says it all

[delrem]

63. That was just plain awful. derivative and shallow.

[markiv]

68. no it wasnt nt

[Maedhros]

87. This is more on-topic for this thread.

And by better musicians:

[Le Taz Hot]

2. We have Democrats in office.

Doesn't seem to have done us much good.

[MannyGoldstein]

3. Emphasis on "actual"

Very, very few of those in office!

[Le Taz Hot]

7. And that's not by accident.

There was a reason we ended up with Obama and Obama-in-a-pantsuit as our "choices" in 2008. Any discussion of any, more liberal candidate, is met with instant rejection by The Party. Why is that? Because both Parties are controlled by the 1% and "representatives" must be responsive to the needs of the 1% and only the 1%.

[Scuba]

19. +1

[bvar22]

61. What else can you say?

The only reason we go through the motions of elections is to keep up the ILLUSION of a choice.

The Conservative Big Business PARTY Leadership even controls elections on the LOCAL Primary levels.
Elections are too important to leave up to The People.






You will know them by their [font size=3]WORKS.[/font]

[duffyduff]

77. He was and is a total fake. I told people this. All they had to do was look.

No more rigging of elections and manipulating of the Supreme Court was needed. All that was needed was to infiltrate the Democratic Party with a fraud.

For 2016, look for "Democrats" Cuomo and Booker being crammed down our throats, provided we still have a country left.

[DeSwiss]

93. Bingo!

[LWolf]

105. And those 2 choices were all that were left

a full 5 months before my primary rolled around.

The two that I clearly stated wouldn't earn my vote. And neither did. I wrestled with writing in a better Democrat on my primary ballot, and finally cast my vote for the pant suit that was finally, clearly, losing. Not because I wanted to see her nominated. By then, I'd listened carefully, and she was the "lesser evil."

The last "lesser evil" vote I ever cast.

[azurnoir]

88. what we have are Raygun Democrats what we need would be

FDR or even LBJ Democrats

[pocoloco]

31. Very few real ones!!

[RC]

42. That (D) doesn not mean much anymore.

The Democratic party has gone so far to the Right, whole herds of Republicans have become Democrats and they have not had to change any of their positions or policies to do so.

[ReasonableToo]

83. Rec. graphic!

[nxylas]

91. Love the way the elephant has been made to look like a teapot

+2 for the graphic.

[spooky3]

95. Can you make your graphic an OP? It's fantastic.

I think you'd get on the greatest page quickly

[RC]

99. Maybe and that's final. I'll see about working on some verbiage.

[bullwinkle428]

4. Once I perfect that cloning machine, I'll get E. Warrren & B. Sanders on the line ASAP!

[tridim]

5. Chill out dude, they're only spying on YOU, Manny.

Because it's all about you.

[MannyGoldstein]

53. Why?

[delrem]

66. If that were true there'd be no issue,

since everyone knows that Manny, in particular, deserves all he gets. Because he's a bit of a critic.

But an universally applied spying program (and yes, Cinderella, we are discussing spying programs) isn't all about *anyone* in particular, even about particular terrorists, it's about general sweeps of all data and software that sifts through that data, using metadata as a means of pushing those searches through multiple "hops", from any of which can be continued another multiple of hops.

You don't seem to understand the significance of this, of the need for regulation.

[Recursion]

6. Yeah, somewhere out there are a mystical bunch of politicians

... who will solve these problems in a fell swoop. Because they are "real" Democrats, unlike the ones who are actually elected.

[tridim]

17. I've been waiting for Third-Way Manny to announce his campaign...

Since his brain apparently contains all the answers to all the world's problems. All easily solvable, if it weren't for those meddling, elected, non-"actual Democrats" who never do anything he wants.

[annabanana]

45. No no no. You have it backwards.

Third Way Manny is completely in sync with the moderate Dems of reasonable mein who are eager to reach around, I mean ACROSS the aisle to meet the Repubs squarely in the center of the Beltway buckle and do what must be done down there around the Corporate Zipper.

THIS Manny thinks there might be another way to go...

[mick063]

26. Yes there are real Democrats out there

And your post sounds a bit condescending.

If Obama is your man, you have no credibility with me.

[tridim]

43. Neo-DU in one sentence: "If Obama is your man, you have no credibility with me."

Wow.

[mick063]

48. Yep

Too many defenders of bullshit here. No different than the Tea Party I suppose. What matters most is having a place in the hierarchy. Establishing pecking order is the priority.

I abstain from your agenda, if it is the same as our President's.

Fortunately, I am doing well enough to enjoy a comfortable standard of living and a planned retirement. My "skin in the game" is personal conviction based on fairness as opposed to that of feeling "wronged" on a personal level. I am just as inclined to bow out and let you follow this forsaken path.


The rationalization that I have read here, the satire spin of "magical Democrats will drop from the sky and fix everything" angers me as much as anything Limbaugh has ever said. In effect, it declares the Democratic Party to be powerless.

For those that truly believe the Democratic Party is powerless, perception is reality. You have earned this distinction.

[Recursion]

52. I believe in gradual ameliorative progress when possible

and doing as little harm as possible when it isn't. As far as I can tell that seems to be BHO's agenda too. Not sure anyone would be against that, other than not believing in gradualism.

[NorthCarolina]

55. +1

[grahamhgreen]

97. ...Unlike the ones who received tens of millions from the 1%.

[BornLooser]

8. The Mystical Reps are entering stage left, seeing the big green aura stage right...

Taking care of "things" in one swell foop. Hello Walls!

[Hotler]

10. It's time to meet in the streets with........

pitch forks and torches and start fighting back. Voting ever 2-4 yrs is not going to do it by its self.

[AnotherMcIntosh]

38. Peterloo worked for the British -- the British 1%

Last edited Fri Jul 19, 2013, 11:05 AM - Edit history (1)

[madokie]

11. I'm going to have to side with Manny on this

Sometimes I have a hard time figuring out where you're coming from but not this time.
in other words I hear that whooosing sound a lot

[cali]

12. 2 of mine are actual democrats and the 3rd is a Socialist

[lobodons]

13. NO, we need less F'n Republicans in Office

We need to start with making sure we have LESS Republicans in office. If we can reduce the number of R's then the few DINO's we have will be less influential but important to have to regain and maintain the gavels.

[tridim]

21. +1 because Manny doesn't understand this simple concept.

[MannyGoldstein]

41. Why did Lincoln fire his losing generals?

After all, it was the Confederacy that was winning the battles.

[jazzimov]

109. You're comparing the average voter to Lincoln?

[Dustlawyer]

14. We need everyone to fight for publicly funded elections to get the lap dogs out and stay out!

All of our other problems can then be dealt with!

[ProSense]

18. Now,

"We need everyone to fight for publicly funded elections to get the lap dogs out and stay out!"

...there is a plan.

Carter: Unchecked Contributions 'Legal Bribery'
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023285488

[TheKentuckian]

107. No, it is a wish and a goal. A plan is how you get there and how you verify progress on the way.

I think to get there may well require a certain level of unrelenting single mindedness to the point of being mental torture for many.

I figure at least an 18 year laser focus weeding process at the local, state, and Federal levels. Probably longer because there will be liars to be thrown out, collusion between candidates and party leaderships to avoid consequences, for a movement to build, all kinds of uphill legislative efforts and court challenges, and the tough task of educating and galvanizing a population to such an aim with the opposition from both major parties, the corporations, and the corporate media throwing out all the stops to prevent just such a thing.

It can be done but it will require tireless and fiercely determined weeding of politicians, not just pulling the straight D lever and declaring victory. Lesser evilisim will not and cannot reverse this level of entropy or undo the shackles of corporate capture. It will take virtual absolutism because of the stacked deck of the forces in opposition to this concept and the sheer number of moving pieces and the ability to feign support in an impossible atmosphere that can evaporate the moment the rubber threatens to meet the road coupled with the roving villain/hero dog and pony show where when multiple parts are being juggled the pols use each other for cover and are able to undo any effort while GENERALLY looking like good guys while blame spreads so far around that it can't be squarely placed to allow for correction.

[Fuddnik]

22. The people who benfit from corporate funded elections are going to jump right on that.

They have to pass the bills, and that ain't gonna happen.

We're beyond anything that can be cured by elections.

And the NSA and the Thought Police already know who the people are who would try to change it.

[Le Taz Hot]

27. That's not likely to happen

in that those who would have to initiate the reforms are the ones who are currently the beneficiaries of that same system. Seriously, what are the chances they're going to turn off the spigot?

[Zorra]

54. Yes. It's a catch 22. The game is rigged, and is played in a maze that has no exit.

The only constructive solution I can envision is worldwide mass solidarity and democratic resolve, a focused and immutable non-violent direct action bloc of widespread non-participation in the game, surrounding the powers that be and rendering them incapable of subverting the democratic process, and politely but insistently and assertively kicking their corrupt asses to the curb.

This has to be done with a great deal of forethought, prudence and a relatively foolproof transition plan in place, mainly to insure that everyone can survive reasonably comfortably while all systems and resources are nationalized, and to prevent the greed driven sociopathic megalo-maniacs who currently control the system from interrupting and subverting the flow and evolution of democratic processes. They will do everything they can to regain control, and we will need to plan accordingly in order to gently restrain them from interfering with the democratic evolution that will maximize the possibilities for the future liberty and happiness, and comfortable survival of the 99% and the planet itself.

A formidable undertaking, but an undertaking that is now critical to having any possibility of present and future democratic self-determination, comfortable physical survival, and maintaining and improving what is left of the planetary environmental systems necessary to support physical life in this world.

That said, voting in as many real Democrats as possible may help buy us more time to fix what needs to be fixed, but like you said, most of "those who would have to initiate the reforms are the ones who are currently the beneficiaries of that same system. Seriously, what are the chances they're going to turn off the spigot?"

IMO, we really have limited options for insuring, to the greatest degree possible, the comfortable survival of the majority of human beings and other life forms at this stage of the game ~ something reasonably similar to what I described above ~ or we will be faced with an inevitable political catastrophe involving worldwide, iron fisted authoritarian control of the 99% by sociopathic plutarchs, and the unprecedented environmental catastrophe that would naturally follow iron fisted control by greed/ego driven sociopaths.

[mountain grammy]

37. Yes, this is the only anwer. We need Moral Monday protests nationwide

with this issue. Expose the 1% for the vultures they are, end "Shock Doctrine" politics, and change the supreme court. Five members will never allow this to happen.

[Volaris]

90. Agreed...the next election has to be about that SINGLE ISSUE, and NOTHING else...

on the argument that once we get that done, the demographics tip to getting the rest done in our favor. But we won't get ANYTHING useful out of Congress again, until that's accomplished.

If we MAKE the next election a single-issue election, I promise you, we'll see which politicians are on our side, and which aren't.

Every candidate.
Every Town Hall meeting
Every debate
Every QUESTION
Until the answer is the one we want

[ProSense]

16. Yeah,

Last edited Fri Jul 19, 2013, 10:56 AM - Edit history (1)

"Jeezes, we need some actual Democrats in office"

...they wouldn't vote to cut food stamps (http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022987698) or approve Comey (http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023290398)

"Kids getting killed for Walking While Black"

Jimmy Carter: Zimmerman jury got it right
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023279675

Living in the real world is tough.

Here's my suggestion for 2014:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023241850

We can pretend, sit around waiting of mythical saviors while Republicans continue wreaking havoc

Michigan Gov. Snyder: Bankruptcy Will Be ‘Foundation’ Of Detroit’s Future
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023294093

[xocet]

50. ProSense "reeking (sic) havoc" on message board; odoriferous blue links are everywhere.

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/wreak?s=t

[ProSense]

51. Yeah, sometimes my fingers get ahead of my thought process, but thanks for pointing it out.

[Fuddnik]

20. If Democrats in Florida can't find a Republican to vote for,

They recruit one to run as a Democrat. Alan Grayson stands out as an oasis in a desert of stupid.

It wasn't bad enough, but Bill Nelson (DINO) found a former Choicepoint Lobbyist, whose spouse was on the Bush-Cheney legal team during the recount to be our State Party Chair.

[MineralMan]

23. Betty McCollum, MN CD-4 - Al Franken, MN Senator

She's my representative, and I've supported her ever since I moved to Minnesota in 2004. It's good to check to see who's in Congress already. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betty_McCollum


Al Franken owes part of his razor thin win to the voters in my precinct and elsewhere in Minneapolis and St. Paul. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Franken

Both were elected through grassroots activism and GOTV efforts.

GOTV 2014.!

[Rebellious Republican]

25. Can you say Plutocracy, sure I knew you could.

Unfortunately that seems to be the world we are living in now. I believe that the majority of all parties are nothing more than corporate execs installed to keep up the illusion that we are still a Democracy.

[Bonhomme Richard]

28. Believe it or not. We are......

being played.
I'm not sure what we can do about it other than keep up the pressure.
The pressure though needs to be placed on the 1%. Their skin has to be in the game. As long as they are allowed to sit on the sidelines while the dirty work is done by others then nothing will change. The politicians are only doing what they are being paid to do and how do you compete with that?

[Safetykitten]

29. Correct.

[Progressive dog]

30. It really really really sucks

Are there no true Democrats left. We have such large majorities in the state houses and the Congress that we need to get rid of those impure Democrats. That will fix things.
Gotta stop those damn fake democrats from drowning government in a bath tub. Gotta stop them from getting rid of abortion rights on a state by stae basis. We might even be able to stop the stae's assault on voting rights. I sure wish those damn Democrats in the state governments would stop passing those SYG laws.

[treestar]

32. Passive complaining

I guess the politicians are just dropped from on high. Complain to God or pray.

[Fuddnik]

33. If people would quit apologizing for them and giving turncoats unqualified support.

Maybe we could find a few decent Dems who remember what the party once stood for.

[treestar]

36. Where are they going to come from?

Oh that's right, they will be elected by the voters.

The rest of the voters don't agree. So passively complain about that, don't do anything to convince them to vote for "real" Democrats. Blame the media, the bankd, anything but the fact people are not agreeing or being persuaded in large enough numbers.

[mick063]

57. 'Passively" complain?

So you have access to NSA data?

Obviously, you can distinguish "passive" from "active".

How else could you know?

[pocoloco]

34. Right on Manny!!

I love it when you spout the truth and get the trolls panties in such a wad
they can't help but come out in the open and post their bullshit!!!

[Major Nikon]

35. I clicked on this cuz I thought it said "orifice"

Carry on.

[zentrum]

39. City University of San Francisco..

...attended by 85,000 kids is losing its accreditation. Due to lack of funds for public education.

[CrispyQ]

40. I was surprised to learn there is only one senator in the Congressional Progressive Caucus.

http://cpc.grijalva.house.gov/caucus-members/

[Marr]

47. And he's not a Democrat.

God, doesn't that say it all.

[ProSense]

56. And he

voted to cut food stamps: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022987698

Roll call
http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=113&session=1&vote=00145

Senate committee slashes food aid, again
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022843017

We're doomed!

[Marr]

58. God, there's no one on the left you don't have a deceitful smear prepared for, is there?

Your lying Daniel Ellsberg smear job was probably my favorite since you were so thoroughly called on it-- but this one's pretty impressive, too.

[Hubert Flottz]

44. I feel you pain Manny...

Tis a foul wind indeed, that blows off of our ever present, ever rising, American shit creek.

[mountain grammy]

46. The number one best thing about ANY Democrat is she/he is NOT a Republican..

I don't expect every Democrat to be as liberal as me and, while I find this frustrating, I would not say these weren't "real Democrats," because I was raised by a family of "real Democrats" and they disagreed plenty. However, when one of my uncles became rich, then Republican, he was shut out (he was an obnoxious jerk anyway.) Even my mother marrying a gentile didn't bring as much wrath, after all, my dad was a Democrat.

I've never been one to pine about the "good old days." Realistically, we all know they didn't exist. But Republicans didn't used to scare me. I disagreed with Goldwater on many things, but that conservative understood the necessity of separation of church and state, was pro choice, and famously said "you don't have to be straight to serve in the military, you just have to be able to shoot straight."

Today's Republicans would impose their religious law on all of us, strip the few worker's rights we have, privatize social safety nets, and keep us in perpetual war. "If you don't work, you starve. Even children. Because Jesus...."
This is not the Democratic agenda... and, right now, that's enough for me, while I continue to fight for more.

I consider myself a "real Democrat."

[LWolf]

106. Neoliberals are just as bad as neoconservatives.

Maybe worse, simply because they have a home in the Democratic Party, so there is no organized opposition against them.

[great white snark]

49. I'll take less "advice" giving purgers/dividers pretending to be Democrats.

Any Dem in office is better than a Republican.

[felix_numinous]

59. K&R

Actual Democrats do exist.

The problem as I see it, is that the radical right are not behaving like any American we have known in-recent-history. They are behaving like they emerged out of an evil time machine that picked the worst sociopathic manipulators to this time period. People who have NO DESIRE for a democracy or in America as we know it.

The actual Democrats can see there has been a coup, while the status quo people are still convinced that we should continue to play nice by the same rules that time after time are being disregarded by these radical usurpers. Just let Lucy pull the football away again at the last minute.

Here are our options:

'Go back to the polls': Diebold is still there.

'Vote more Democrats in office': yes we have to do this, but redistricting and disenfranchising AA voters are just 2 ways the radical right are proving their disregard for America. We get to vote for the least corporate candidates of which there are very FEW.

While we argue amongst ourselves, the laser focused RW are hard at work turning America into a police state, positioning their forces to prevent any dissent, peaceful or otherwise.

WHY do we think that playing NICE is the way to go? We need warriors, on topic like Senator Warren, who is equally laser focused on task to take down the banks? We need to FIGHT these usurpers, tooth and nail, for everything they have taken from us--NO MORE APPEASEMENT to the right. NONE.

And IF there is no one to represent us, we will HAVE to represent ourselves. Desperate times call for desperate measures, an equal but opposite force. It is the law of physics.

The thing is we don't have the luxury of farting around through ten more voting cycles to straighten out this mess-- climate change puts us on a 50 year time table the way things are going, and the longer we delay the police state is crushing our country.

One more thing, I think it is a waste of time arguing with the willfully ignorant, or paid shills, their sole purpose seems to be to keep us in our chairs arguing with their stupid asses. Because it sounds like they would be the ones against any real Democratic candidate anyway.

[Matariki]

60. I hear ya'. I've been having this sinking feeling too.

[Corruption Inc]

62. Other than Warren and Grayson, maybe Cordray, they're all too corrupted

Most support torture, spying, civilian killing, branding whistle blowers as spies, for-profit wars and health insurance, laws that shouldn't be laws, propaganda brainwashing, corrupt regulators and getting as much money in their pockets and their crony's pockets as well.

And here's the most important part: the corrupt people need to be charged with crimes. If they're never charged with the crimes they committed they'll just keep committing more crimes. Too bad the corrupt people in D.C. choose to overlook that simple point and instead choose to just spew propaganda.

[forestpath]

69. +1000

[spooky3]

98. Sherrod Brown, Howard Dean

[silvershadow]

64. If by "actual" you mean old-school, yellow-dog, union-backing...I'm with you. Not sure we can find

them these days. The younger generation wasn't there, so they largely don't know how to be that. The older ones were there, but watched as the Republicans and the blue-dog generation wiped the slate clean. But, I'm with you, Manny.

[pasto76]

70. thats not what this guy means

hes a '3rd way manny' weirdo.

He really means lets get some raging liberals in there. union backing? not likely we'll ever see that again. 11% and dropping according to the DOL.

[BrainMann1]

65. Let's get one thing straight again

Our President never said we were ka-put, screwed, hood winked or bamboozled. Other than that I do not see your point. You republicans always trying to fool us. Nice try but we Got you!

[jtuck004]

67. Keep pushin' baby.

“Those who profess to favor freedom and yet depreciate agitation, are people who want crops without ploughing the ground; they want rain without thunder and lightning; they want the ocean without the roar of its many waters. The struggle may be a moral one, or it may be a physical one, or it may be both. But it must be a struggle. Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will.”

Frederick Douglass

I like you a lot better than your third-way cousin...

[Phlem]

71. Manny your a hater!

Did you have to cover my rainbow with black tar?

Now I've got to go live in reality and do the right thing and stuff and use critical thinking.

Can't you just lead me out to the pasture and leave me be?

-p

[Phlem]

73. Reading up thread

I didn't know you were a Republican.





-p

[MannyGoldstein]

85. And a racist Paulite ratf@#&er purity Liberal hater.

I'm a very, very busy man

[fascisthunter]

74. I'm surprised at the lack of Nonsense in replies

[Jakes Progress]

76. Help me. I can't get to the acceptance stage of grief

over my beloved Democratic party.

[dflprincess]

78. In the long wrong it's best we stay in the anger phase

acceptance will only make things worse.

[Jakes Progress]

108. Then I'm good to go.

[AlbertCat]

79. says that Democracy is kaput here.

It died in 2000.

[blkmusclmachine]

80. There's simply NO ROOM for liberals/progressives in today's Democratic Party

Sad, but true.

[Wednesdays]

81. Jeezes, we need some actual Democrats on DU.

[99Forever]

82. Just a fucking "D" aftrer their name doesn't cut it...

.. for me, ever again.

Be a strong progressive or go straight into the trash pile along with your Republican co-conspirators.

Period. End of debate.

[liberal_at_heart]

84. K&R

[MotherPetrie]

86. ICAM

[limpyhobbler]

89. Rush Holt for senate .

http://www.rushholt.com/issues/

[DeSwiss]

92. It's not the Democrats who need a changin'.....

...and not even the Republicans. They are the result of a mutated system, a cancer that is consuming its host. That's what all cancers do. It's in their nature. That's what fascism is, a kind of social cancer.

And it was all aided and abetted in its evolution to this point by every last one of us on the planet. Including yours truly.

What's that word again, for someone who keeps applying the same set of solutions to the same set of problems but expecting a different outcome?

- Cr... Cra... Craz... Oh, yeah. Screwed.

[JDPriestly]

94. As always, Manny says it right. Thanks so much.

[davidpdx]

96. Oregon 5th CD

Kurt Scharder, we need to get rid of him.

[loudsue]

100. We need LIBERALS in every office in the country.

LIBERAL isn't a dirty word as the media would have everyone believe. It's time LIBERALS started making a shit load of noise.

[orpupilofnature57]

101. John & Bobby and their little brother .

[Niceguy1]

102. I miss bill clinton

Maybe Hilary will save us.

[ananda]

103. Political saviorism.

I think it's like magical thinking.

Our only saviors are us, organized and well-thinking and activist.

[MannyGoldstein]

104. But sometimes, God smiles on us

http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1906802_1906838_1906979,00.html

[Safetykitten]

110. You mean old school Democrats, not Costco Democrats.