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Edited on Fri Feb-20-04 06:05 AM by jazzsammich
I have used this term "republicrat" before in debate, although not recently, and while I admit it to be inflammatory, I would like to take a moment to defend what I believe to be a kernel of insight therein.
We do not denounce for denunciation's own sake. We denounce from an expansive vision of what this nation could be and what it could represent in the world. We denounce from an impatience with those elected officials who, from obstinance or sloth or lack of imagination or whatever reason, cannot conceive of a world that is better than it is, do not listen when we expound on such a conception, and insult us with dismissive and prejudicial charges of "impracticality" or "fantasy" despite the wealth of research and scholarship backing up our ideas. We denounce because we value diversity of ideas as much as diversity in ecology or the marketplace. We denounce because the spectrum of political beliefs among the elected officials misrepresents the beliefs of the electorate in both range and focus.
Among those inhabiting my region of the political spectrum, the problem in politics is seen to be less a matter of individual policies, and more a matter of fundamental structures of economics and governmental infuence. Those with the money to influence policy do, those without are excluded, and the net result of this system is a series of policies that largely benefit the wealthy and either exploit or disenfranchise those of more meager means. This is not a new problem, to be sure, but it is one whose dimensions have taken on a frightening magnitude and acceleration within the last two or three decades. One needs look no further than Halliburton or Bechtel or Enron to see some of the more egregious and flagrant examples in recent memory. The fiscal irresponsibility of B**h's tax cuts and social security privatization plans serve as further illustration, as does this administration's environmental policy. ("If it moves, grill it. If it grows, chop it down. Otherwise, dig it up or dump in it.") This administration, while deplorable in the extreme, is merely a part of a larger pathology in the political and economic spheres. Like a tumor, these entities are concerned with nothing more than their own unchecked growth, regardless of whatever consequences may ensue.
The term Republicrat is used not to connote extremism of this sort, but rather to indict those Democrats whose legislation, voting records, and other acts while in office have served to enable or even promote these policies. Such a Democrat may offer a fine and principled rebuttal to the prescription drug plan, but yet lend his or her support to Free Trade Agreements that perpetuate an economic neocolonialism and degrade the rights of workers both here and abroad. Such a Democrat may take a stand against drilling in ANWR, but yet lend his or her support to gutting the fundamental civil liberties of citizens through the Patriot Act. Such a Democrat may write a best-selling book espousing the ideals of environmentalism, but repeatedly and willfully do nothing to rectify a notoriously polluting incinerator within spitting distance of an elementary school. (Here, as you may have gathered, I am referring to somebody very specific.) Such a Democrat may give lip service to the rhetoric of freedom, democracy, or sustainability, but when pressed, puts his or her work in the service of the Fat time and time again.
To be sure, my immediate enemy is B**h, and I have vowed to do everything in my power to make sure he receives a long respite in November, either in Crawford or, preferably, in some high-security correctional facility. Yet my larger enemy is that enemy of every healthy democracy, the enemy of those gentlemen who led the rebellion against English monarchy and framed our government, and the enemy of every citizen who has given up liberty and property to the contract of social order: Unchecked Power. And those who call themselves Democrats but repeatedly, by either omission or action, continue the concentration of power in the hands of wealthy individuals and cancerous corporate entities thereby restrict the scope of public discourse, betray their electorate, and besmirch their party.
Such a Democrat is hardly worthy of the name.
--Jim K.
(Edited to add the byline at the bottom. If I'm going to write a missive like this, I should at least sign my name to it. ^_^ )
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