I got a call from the DNC today

[LittleClarkie]

They wanted me to renew my DNC national membership.

I said "Oh, I've been meaning to do that. Hang on, let me get my credit card."

We went through the usual rigamaroll that goes with paying for something over the phone with a card.

He then finally remembered to ask me if I wanted to give more than the lowest ($25) which is what I volunteeered right away. I declined at first, then asked what the next teir would be. $37.50, he said. Eh, big deal. What's another $12.50 or so.

He was supposed to ask me for $50 at first. But he said he was so taken aback by how nice I was being that he didn't want to spoil the call by asking for more. As it was, I upped it myself.

I really had planned to renew, but was waiting for my federal funds. Oh well. They'll be showing up in a couple weeks anyway.

I guess I just don't understand the mentality that suggests withholding funds from the DNC for one vote or another. It is still us against the Republicans. And personally I reckon that if I don't like what the DNC is offering, I can always work to get a different candidate in there. Still, I feel the need to work with the foundation the DNC is offering, even if I don't care for all their decisions.

I am battling the right wing agenda, and I STILL feel like I'm on the side of the "good guys". And I still need to feel as if I'm doing SOMETHING on the side of right and good, or I'll just go bananas. The DNC is still the strongest game in town. And so, here I am, year two, a member of their ranks.

So, Gov. Dean, use my $37.50 well. Gain us a few seats come November. We need them.

[Katherine Brengle]

1. why give $ to an organization that is failing to make progress in any of

the areas it is supposed to?

It's like paying someone for a job they haven't done and show no signs of ever doing.

Might as well throw $$$ in the toilet and flush.

[LSK]

3. how do you judge that it is failing to make progress?

:wtf:

[Katherine Brengle]

5. Well, what have the Dems done that needs to be done in the last year?

Nothing that I can think of off-hand.

Listen, all I'm saying is you don't pay someone for a job not done. I don't have enough money to throw it away on a party that has become entirely ineffectual.

I'm done with empty promises, and I'm done with funneling money into candidates who can't get anything done.

[patrice]

8. Do you go to local organizing meetings?

Vet candidates?

Educate yourself and others? Work pro-actively in your community with any and all groups?

That's what is going on here. Lots of "new" people involved. Not all as precinct coordinators, but still involved.

[Katherine Brengle]

13. I've been a DFA Meetup host, a member of my city's Peace and Justice

Committe, a member of Military Families Speak Out, and a volunteer for MA gubernatorial candidate Deval Patrick.

I spend every day hacking away at this keyboard trying to educate myself and others.

I'm not talking out of my ass.

[patrice]

21. Maybe you need to try new things.

Get away from this board more.

[Katherine Brengle]

24. that was highly uncalled for...

I found that comment both offensive and unnecessary.

[patrice]

28. Why?

[Katherine Brengle]

30. Um, it was rude?

I've had enough of fighting with people on my own side for one night.

Congrats, you're rid of me now.

[patrice]

33. It was offered as a suggestion.

If something doesn't work, you do something else, right?

I am really puzzled why you think it was rude.

[LittleClarkie]

36. Well, first of all, it assumes that our friend here does nothing

Which I've found that people here on DU will do on occasion. I'm not sure why they thing they can tell by how someone types whether or not they are active or just hanging around DU posting and not much else.

It might have been better to ASK if they are active, rather than assuming they are not. Just sayin'.

[patrice]

60. Re what my post "assumes": Maybe. Maybe not.

It could be taken either way. My comment does not specifically say she does "nothing" but hang around this board. It is indeterminent on the issue of "doing nothing but DU". It could imply that, but it doesn't necessarily imply it and of the other ways it could be taken, it is interesting that it was taken as it was.

I'd also like to point out that my post was in response to her post listing what else she does, so my suggestion was based on that.

It is true that a lot of people expect to accomplish tooooooooooo much digitally, so they hang around here blathering about this and that instead of being more concretely active - and that includes me sometimes, though somewhat less so lately.

It would be good if all of us were more *creatively* politically active.

[The Backlash Cometh]

53. Welcome Katherine.

I find it amusing that Patrice, at over 1000 posts is telling you to get off this board more often.

Thanks for working so hard for the cause. I understand your frustration. But I also trust that Dean will find a way to win us back.

[LSK]

16. and what about their program to build up local parties in 50 states

What about their improved fundraising in the past year?

[LittleClarkie]

19. Social Security for one

If they accomplish anything, they accomplish it IN THE MINORITY. Why punish the minority for the actions of the majority? It only takes a few Dems voting in the majority to kill anything the Dems might have had planned. That STILL leaves a majority voting correctly.

They have little chance of stopping anything, except for the occasional stalling tactic or two. My blame goes to the MAJORITY, not the MINORITY.

What DO you expect? Now, if they had the MAJORITY, and still voted in favor of the Repub agenda, I'd have to think about it.

Really. Get real. I'm in this thing to gain a majority.

It's like asking why Custer had such a problem on Wounded Knee. Well, gee, shouldn't he have just fought harder?

[Katherine Brengle]

25. WE did that. It was only pressure from people like you and I that saved

Social Security.

WHY IS EVERYONE SO IRRITABLE TONIGHT?

[LittleClarkie]

32. Bah. That was the ONE thing they were prepared to fight for

even without us.

Pissed off senior helped, mind you. But Social Security wasn't going anywhere.

Now, if you wanna look for something WE did, that would be the fact that eve 25 Senators voted against Alito, when there was nearly NO opposition a week before.

We are in the minority. We can't do shit. Why blame us over the Republicans? I hang the blame on them.

Sorry if I'm coming off as irritable, but the prospect of becoming a permanent minority will do that to a person. Earlier, someone was saying that it was hopeless and we should give up.

I'm here to battle defeatism. I will also battle misplaced blame where needed.

We need to focus on beating Republicans, not on applying purity tests to our own at every turn.

[patrice]

6. Self-fulfilling prophecy.

Dean is asking that we give money AND work for change.

It isn't about "they".

It's about us.

[Katherine Brengle]

9. Sorry, but no it isn't.

I've bought this line again and again and again...

It hasn't proven true.

If I give money this year, it will be to individual candidates who honestly deserve it, not to the DNC or any other large organization.

(I'm not trying to piss anyone off, I just don't have faith in the Democratic Party as a whole to accomplish the things I want accomplished in this country.)

[patrice]

15. Oh yes it is indeed.

You exclude a near infinitude of things that could happen, because you have a certain concept of what is supposed to happen and if your thing isn't happening, you, apparently, think nothing is happening. "It's either this . . . or it's nothing." False dichotomies are obsolete.

I'm as mad as anyone else about the Alito vote. I put a solid month into phoning, writing, and calling and some "Democrats" did the wrong thing, but that doesn't mean that those thousands who did as I did added up to 0.

[Katherine Brengle]

18. I'm just living in reality...

In reality, the Democrats haven't done squat to forward an aggressive progressive agenda, as a whole.

Certainly, some Democrats have, and those deserve our money.

But those who have not, do not, and likely will not, don't deserve a dime.

Sitting and hoping for change from people who aren't interested in effecting change is pointless.

[patrice]

22. I give money and I would like to figure out a way not to give a dime

to folks who voted to trust * with War Powers and to those who voted for cloture on Alito (btw, I didn't expect to stop Alito, I just wanted a show of strength in a filibuster), but I'm not going to let them harm the *Issues* I care about, so I give anyway.

[LittleClarkie]

35. A reality that includes a permanent minority, it seems

I do hope you're also working to put encourage candidates who WILL fulfill what you want the Democrats to become.

Are you?

[madfloridian]

44. If you are sitting and hoping, then you are wrong.

Most of here are not doing that. We are working locally for change.

This kind of stuff is hurting all of us....which of course is the intent.

[LSK]

17. Deans been head for a year

How could you buy that line again and again and again?

[LittleClarkie]

26. Now, if the Dems were in a strong majority

I could see being pissed. But we haven't had that for a long while. And we never will with if there are too many with our friend's attitude.

I think that's why my caller freaked out. I was reacting so positively he forgot his script. I assume that means mine was not the usual reaction.

Why would the party expect great things out of the minorty, and forget to work for a majority. I don't get it. It's like they prefer to tilt at windmills and play purity games. Seems like an overly romantic stance to me? I need something more practical.

[400Years]

54. Even if the dems were in a majority you would never see

convictions for lies leading to the iraq war, war profiteering, or a limit on the govt. spying.

I hoped for that type of action back when Clinton ran the first time. I had hoped that he would make an issue out of Reagan's bloody murder all over Latin America but I quickly saw that would never happen.

There is no real opposition from the democratic political hacks. The only real opposition is in efforts to break the media monopoly and that is not coming from the likes of anemic corporate whores with a D after their name.

[LSK]

55. i dont believe that for a second

If the Dems had the Senate, there would be no Alito appointment. He would have been rejected and Bush would have been forced to nominate a moderate.

Also the Dems would be able to call hearings. Imagine a full blown downingstreetmemo hearing instead of it in the basement on a Friday.

We wouldnt have this non-swearing in BS like what is going on right now with Gonzales.

[400Years]

57. if it makes you feel better you are free to wallow in delusion

I don't have time for it.

[LSK]

58. and what do you have time for?

I guess if having a Dem majority isnt important, what is?

[400Years]

59. Sorry I'm not a blind team player, I care about issues not teams

Dem majority means squat if it is dominated by corporate stooges.

[madfloridian]

41. Can you have your own opinion, and not try to influence others?

Some of us here are truly concerned about getting our country and our party back, and too many are trying to advocate against the party here.

[Crazy Guggenheim]

7. Dean is really trying. Ok? I'm not saying that because I supported him.

Remember he still takes a lot of heat for his beliefs.

[LittleClarkie]

14. So what then? Give money to an organization

that has no chance of gaining anything at all?

When a few spoilers in the party muck up a vote, the majority still votes correctly. Why punish the many for the actions of a few. Or hadn't you noticed we're in the minority here.

Plus, why punish Howard Dean, who is trying to make things better? "Hey, love ya Howard, but I didn't like the way Landreiu voted last time, so fuck you all. Sorry if you were trying to make over the party and stuff. You'll have to do it on a shoestring."

I'm not looking at this as the reward system. I'm looking at this giving money to the group most likely to get us out of this shit. That is STILL the Dem Party.

To me, giving my money to ANYONE else would be flushing it down a toilet, albeit a more pure one.

I'm not into purity tests.

[Katherine Brengle]

20. I'm not basing my opinion on one vote, or even one year...

but on years of experience watching them blow our money.

All I'm saying is, donate the money to the candidates who deserve it, not the DNC. I didn't think that was going to start a battle amongst generally intelligent and fair-minded people...

I expected better.

[LittleClarkie]

23. Oh well, I've the enthusiasm of one just beginning

This is only year two for me, membership wise.

Not to worry. I'll take up your slack.

But I still believe the only way to change an organization is from the inside. And any organization outside is going to take to fucking long to get their act together.

And whatever happened to the belief that Howard Dean would transform the party? Do you not think that his 50 state strategy could work if given enough resources and time?

[patrice]

27. It's not a battle; no one has insulted you. I just disagree.

I understand your point of view, and recognize some validity to it, it IS GOOD to give money to local candidates, but even that won't work if you don't "ride herd" on them and that's what is needed at the national level too. And what good will come of your local candidates who get into office if the federal level screws them?

I'm just saying there is a near infinitude of things that can happen if we accept responsibility for making them happen.

[Katherine Brengle]

31. I am so lost...

This comment was completely reasonable--so why the need to be coy in the other?

I agree that we can't abandon the fight in the national level, but it is not a national election year, so I'm zipping my wallet for now unless I donate to the Patrick campaign here in MA.

[LSK]

56. uhh, every House seat is up and 1/3 of the Senate

How is it not a national election? Let alone the most important one in this history of this country???????????

[madfloridian]

37. Can you differentiate those who are trying to change things?

Or not. I do. I see the changes going on in the DNC, and I appreciate them. I donate monthly, so does my husband.

I have several posts about the accomplishments in GDP forum.

[kutblok]

2. Gain us a few seats come November.

And a few backbones.

[LSK]

4. you are confusing the DNC with the DSCC and DCCC

[LittleClarkie]

45. Dean is hiring local positions in each state

to help with the local organizing. Plus, when he fundraises in a state, that state keeps the money. Under McAuliffe, the national party would come in and suck the money out of an area, without thinking of the local party.

I am giving my money to Gov. Dean, not to any one candidate.

[Crazy Guggenheim]

10. Thanks LC!

:popcorn:

[Dr.Phool]

11. I got one from the DSCC last night

I said "Oh Goody"!!! Did you call to send me some money"?

The guy was a little confused, and kept trying to get a donation to re-elect Bill Nelson.

I said, "Oh, you don't understand. Last week I filed to run against Bill Nelson in the primary".

He still kept trying to get a donation.:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[Crazy Guggenheim]

12. LOL.

:popcorn:

[clitzpah queen]

29. Right On Dr. Phool! I'm sure the guy was totally confused as in

"It does not compute" -- participatory democracy? what's that?

[LittleClarkie]

34. I don't see the nobility of fucking with a telemarketer

but that's just me.

It was just some low-level, possible volunteer dude or dudette who has no power in the party whatsoever. I don't consider it either cool nor brave to fuck around with such people, but that's just me. Now if someone wanted to come at Dr. Dean right to his face, I might say they had guts. But with a telemarketer, not so much.

[Dr.Phool]

39. Lighten up a little bit

I told him I knew he had a script to work from, and that he was handling it well. But, cordially declined to donate, as I have my own campaign to work on.

[LittleClarkie]

42. That's fine. But that's not how you presented yourself in the first post

You presented yourself as confusing some phone person, quite proudly indeed. So that's what I reacted to. I'm glad if you were cordial.

[madfloridian]

43. If you are running as a Democrat, you should not bad mouth...

the party as a whole.

That is just wrong.

[Dr.Phool]

46. I didn't bad mouth anybody.

I just thought of a humorous response.

The reason we get these calls in the first place, is because WE ARE ALL DONORS. First rule of fundraising, keep going back to verified sources. I donated all I could afford to both the Dean and Kerry campaigns. Not to mention all the hours of ground work I put in. I also donated previously to the DNC, DSCC, and DCCC. I will continue to donate to the DNC, but I've cut off the DSCC, and the DCCC after all the dirty tricks they've pulled over the last year or so. But, what doesn't go to those 2 organizations, will go to candidates I like. I just attended a fundraiser in Tampa the other night for Jan Schneider. And, Rahm Emmanuel pulled a nasty stunt on her a couple of weeks ago.

[EST]

47. That really is a LOL! Heheh! Still chuckling at the scene.

I do hope your campaign is going well. I am sure, as busy as you, no doubt, are, it's not nearly as busy as it's gonna be.
I'm pretty tapped out at the moment, but there will be some way we can all help. Nelson needs to retire.

Has the DNC arranged to help you out, yet?

[Dr.Phool]

49. They won't

It's their GENERAL policy not to get involved in primary campaigns. However, they do bend the rules on occassion, and with Nelson being the incumbent, I'm sure he would be their boy.

And, I had a bad experience with the DCCC in 2004. You spend a week in Washington with these people, and they promise you the world. You get back home, and they don't return your calls.

The DNC is a little different, and Howard is working hard to build a permanent, nationwide organization.

I have a short explanation on my temporary website at www.rickchapmanforsenate.com

Check it out.

[EST]

51. Thanks for pointing me toward your site.

I read and bookmarked it. Will check for updates, from time to time.

I became a political animal only fairly recently and was initially impressed by Nelson, then came the Iraq war and the 911 hearing bs. He seemed like he really talked the talk but then, with sinking heart, I watched him make choice after choice that just didn't fit.

It did not take long, even for this neophyte, to figure out that he was no friend. The worst experiences of my life have always included someone who, in one way or another, pretended to be of like mind and then sold me out.
For this reason I prefer a sworn enemy, whom I can predict and allow for, than a false friend, one who worms his way into favor then sells you out. This, IMO, is the most despicable of human beings and, in spite of his friendly, liberal, progressive demeanor, Bill Nelson is precisely that worm-in-the-soul sort that particularly sickens me.

As a resident of Illinois, I can't do a lot, but I can assure you that I will be writing letters and talking to people in support of your challenge. Do keep us all informed, as I'm sure you will, and call on me If I can help.

[madfloridian]

38. Nice to see this post.

We are tearing each other apart here. I hate it, it makes me furious to see people come here and condemn all our Democrats equally. I hope that is not what this forum will be used for.

Thanks for donating, we do also.

[LittleClarkie]

40. Well, I've seen enough posts about the DNC calling

where the person speaking took special glee in telling them to fuck off.

So I thought a post about someone who freaked out the telemarketer calling because she were so damned willing to donate was in order.

No problem. How can we give up on Dean and his 50 state plan when we haven't even seen the fruits of his labor yet. And if people aren't willing to help out, I just better not hear them bitch about him if the results don't come through. If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem.

[EST]

48. Truer words were never spoken.

The threat to self-determination has never been greater, the cost, to the US and the world, never higher. The story about 60+ new Iraq vet dems running for national office is thrilling, especially in the face of so much bad news.

[anitar1]

50. I will donate to the DNC , but the rest is local now. n/t

[seabeyond]

52. ty clarkie. i give monthly. i agree with you. i want repugs out n/t