Are you a member of the Third Way?

[runaway hero]

Are you?


Here, for starters
In politics, the Third Way is a position akin to centrism that tries to reconcile right-wing and left-wing politics by advocating a varying synthesis of right-wing economic and left-wing social policies.[1][2] The Third Way was created as a serious re-evaluation of political policies within various centre-left progressive movements in response to international doubt regarding the economic viability of the state; economic interventionist policies that had previously been popularized by Keynesianism and contrasted with the corresponding rise of popularity for economic liberalism and the New Right.[3]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_Way

[Lunabell]

1. Nope.

[Faux pas]

2. The third way

is the WRONG way.

[MohRokTah]

3. Proudly!

ALL THE WAY WITH THE THIRD WAY!!!!!!!! *



* The Extremist Leftist Socialists always call me "Third Way", so I might as well embrace it.

[AgingAmerican]

43. There are extremist leftist socialists here?

My friend from Australia says Sanders policies would be considered 'centrist' there.

[cali]

4. I don't think of myself as a member in any school of political thought

I don't buy my ideas wholesale.

But I can't think of anything from the third way pile, that hold any appeal.

[joshcryer]

5. I voted for and campaigned for my Third Way Senator.

He lost his seat due to coming out against high capacity magazines.

Hint: he broke the surveillance state before Snowdan was even on the radar, and was a strong advocate for renewable energy.

I remain a fierce supporter of Mark Udall. And I defy anyone to say I'm Third Way or a neoliberal or whatever such bullshit I've been called here repeatedly. Thank god for the new jury system, or I'd still be called totally nasty crap without merit.

[cali]

6. I don't know enough about Mark Udall, but what I do know, I like

I don't think of O'Malley as third way either.

[joshcryer]

8. Mark was literally on the Third Way board.

I hate broad brushing people. Maybe he was there for political expediency, I don't fucking know. It surprised me when I found out. But I still support him. And I can't completely write off anyone who associates with the very real Third Way movement. There's OK stuff there. It's not all bad. Life is not black and white. I take the shades of grey. And I find it difficult to discuss anything of import with those who don't.

[cali]

9. I like nuance on many issues. I certainly understand people

voting for third way or conservative democratic candidates in red states where they stand a chance of winning. BUT (big but as you can see), as a whole, when one reviews the third way movement and what they accomplished, I make a general assessment: Overall, I see it as having done more harm than good. By a considerable amount.

[joshcryer]

14. John Bel Edwards

Disagree with him on choice, but he literally saved lives by expanding Meficaid. Literally. And I look at the stats and see that Louisiana is literately the most 'pro life' state and go "huh."

Yeah, sucks, but it is what it is.

I know you do nuance, which is why I like you.

[cali]

19. Yes. Having to weigh things and parse things is often uncomfortable

The Theory of Apparent Paradox: Wherein two seeming disparate facts or ideas coexist within the same frame at the same time.

thank you very much for the kind complement. I enjoy discussing issues with you as well.

[Kip Humphrey]

7. no way.

The third way opened the doors to a host of non-tea party republicons who moved in and have taken over my Democratic Party.

[AntiBank]

24. so true

[bemildred]

10. Never.

Last edited Sun Jun 26, 2016, 11:37 AM - Edit history (1)

We get social concessions with increased economic inequality, as one can easily see, and that is very bad for the USA. The former class and ethnic/racial hierarchy is replaced with a simple winner-take-all economic class system, Hobbesian to the core.

We need both, economic and social progressivism, only that will pull us out of the swamp we are in.

[vintx]

23. Well said. nt

[CharlotteVale]

32. +100000

[justiceischeap]

11. I'm gray-way, 100%

I think there are so many shades of gray in policies and politics that to totally eschew third-way politicians is short sighted and slightly egotistical--it also reeks of purity tests, which I want no part of.

As an example, in the East Coast in major metro areas you could and should have progressive politicians but in areas that can't withstand progressive candidates, then I believe third-way or moderate Democrats are needed. If we ignore all moderate democrats, we do so at the democratic parties peril because there aren't enough progressive voters to sustain the Democratic Party.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

12. No. I'm not a neolib, centrist, capialist, or hawk.

A thing moderately good is not so good as it ought to be. Moderation in temper is always a virtue; but moderation in principle is always a vice. Thomas Paine

[AntiBank]

25. great quote

[TexasMommaWithAHat]

13. Third way? No way!

nt

[Stinky The Clown]

15. Im a proud member of The Stinky Way

[John Poet]

16. I am a Peace progressive

and a lifelong Democrat fighting for a more progressive Democratic party.

[LWolf]

17. Nope.

I am not now, never have been, never will be, a member of the Third Way.

[Scientific]

18. Screw the Third Way. I'm Fifth Dimension

[Amishman]

39. excellent! someone else who can properly appreciate space whales

[Scientific]

41. +1

Make way for whales, I always say.

[Odin2005]

20. Nope, I'm a Socialist.

[Dr Hobbitstein]

21. I'm on their payroll.

Along with the BFEE, Monsanto, the Clinton Machine, the Illuminati, and Big Pharma. Checks come in on the 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month. Trying to get hooked up with the Bilderbergers, but they're not on LinkedIn. Anyone have a contact?

[zappaman]

37. Ask Tammy in accounting.

I think her step dad can hook you up.

[Nye Bevan]

22. Most DUers would describe me as "Third Way", simply because I agree with President Obama

on most economic issues.

[cali]

28. Perhaps it's odd, but I don't.

But that's probably because you appear to me as someone who is more reflective than reactive.

[FLPanhandle]

26. There are hundreds of issues

I decide myself, using my own brain, what is the best solution for each.

I don't ask what position I "should" take, I don't ask what is "liberal position", I think for myself.

For some issues I'm way to the left, for some issues, I'm "third way", for a few issues, I'm center-right.

Fuck labels. People use labels so they don't have to think.

Decide for yourself your position on each issue and don't give a damn what anyone else labels you.

Think for yourself.

[840high]

29. .+1

[leftofcool]

27. I am voting for Hillary

[GummyBearz]

30. Thanks

Thanks for that extra special glimpse into your life

[jamese777]

31. 3rd Way Social Democracy

A variant of the Third Way exists which approaches the centre from a social democratic perspective. It has been advocated by its proponents as an alternative to both capitalism and what it regards as the traditional forms of socialism, including Marxist socialism and state socialism, that Third Way social democrats reject. It advocates ethical socialism, reformism, gradualism - that includes advocating the humanization of capitalism, a mixed economy, political pluralism, and liberal democracy.

It has been advocated by proponents as a "competition socialism" - an ideology in between traditional socialism and capitalism. A chief social democratic proponent of Third Way, Anthony Giddens, has publicly supported a modernized form of socialism within the social democracy movement but claims that "traditional socialist" ideology referring to state socialism that involves economic management and planning are flawed and states as a theory of the managed economy, socialism barely exists any longer.-- Wikipedia

[runaway hero]

33. In the Greenwald thread.

A lot of people laughing at glenn would get so mad if they were called "third way"

[Hekate]

34. As a meaningless all purpose slur at DU I've been accused of same a number of times....

Last edited Mon Jun 27, 2016, 03:31 PM - Edit history (1)

It's a contentious term here, amounting to flame bait -- but recently dropped in favor of neoliberal.

I am a Democrat, have been one all my life. It's a big tent. The day we allow all those to the left or right of ourselves to be tossed out of the big tent so the remainder can be pure, we will have a very small, marginalized tent full of intolerant people.

[JustAnotherGen]

42. Well said Hekate

[silvershadow]

35. No, I do not think of myself that way, nor to I support any such agenda. nt

[fleabiscuit]

36. I drive on the right-hand side of the road. eom

[Rex]

38. I always have been and always will be for fair trade.

So that would be a no.

[Meldread]

40. No, I'm a Leftist or a Liberal--however you want to define me.

I do not believe in centrism as a political tactic. Either it means that you are abandoning our principles for political expediency, or that you never had Leftist/Liberal principles to start with.

Where I am different is that I dislike populism. I feel that it promises too much to the people. Change is hard. If the people aren't leveled with about this fact, and they believe that an election is going to change their lives in some dramatic way, then they are going to be disappointed. It hurts the Leftist/Liberal cause in the long run. Being a populist is easy, but governing is hard. I am fighting to govern. Governing requires compromise. Sometimes governing requires you to choose between a really bad choice and a really shit choice, both of which you know will be unpopular.

I take the long view of things. I don't look at things in terms of election cycles. I look at things in terms of victories. My goal is to advance the Leftist/Liberal agenda forward. That means helping our people get into positions of power and influence within the government and the Democratic Party (since we are a two party system), and then having them advance our agenda. If we only manage to get 1/4 of what we want this time--that is fine--that is 1/4 more than we had before. The goal is to keep taking bites at the apple until we get 100% of what we want. That means 1/4 becomes 1/2 and 1/2 becomes 2/3rds and 2/3rds becomes the whole damn thing--100% of what we originally wanted.

Some people hate this because they want everything now. However, their desire does not change the reality in which we live. Change remains hard, and we are severely outnumbered in all places of power.