Okay I am a Democrat and I have a question..

[Peacetrain]

Why are people stating they will not vote for the Democratic ticket?

I do not understand.

As a Democrat I work hard on the local level to get our party platform pushed forward.

I am not going to stop doing that.

But if enough people decide they will not support the Democrats.. what is going to happen?

There are no third parties on a national level with a party platform that will get anything done.

That is just being honest.

Being critical and making changes to the platform.. I can understand that..

But letting go of the rope while the rest of us are pulling..I just don't understand.

[Warren Stupidity]

1. I can't think of any reason anyone would be pissed off at this administration

right now. So it all must be unreasonable crazy professional leftists who need to be drug tested.

[FrenchieCat]

2. I think folks should be pissed at some things, and really glad about others....

I don't understand why these professional "He's a sell out, a wimp, a coward, not a leader, lying down with dogs" hard hitting Lefties that want to believe that they are Intellectually informed on the ways of politics, our media and the nuance in our government are going all Black and White on us all of the sudden. It's like they are playing dumb and trying not to understand complexities in each and every policy issue that arises. They act like they could have gotten more done, when that's just their self serving theory. It's like they got fucking stuck criticizing one President for 8 fucked up years, and they can't seem to step back a little, and give somebody some credit some of the time. That's fucked up. And the fact that they are paid to do this ain't helpful in trying to figure out their true motives beyond benevolence.

[Kalun D]

9. I would be happy with 50/50

but Obama is siding with the corporations and against the workers about 90/10

he's not a wimp or coward, and he is a leader

but he's sold out so many times, and he does lie down with dogs, Rahm, Gietner, Summers, Bernanke, the list is long.

[FrenchieCat]

11. That's your take.

and please illuminate me how you came up with this 90/10.
Where in the fuck does that statistic come from?
I'm sure you have a link on that, otherwise, I'll have to call it
twisted hyperbole.

[Kalun D]

18. $700 BILLION for the bankers

they're spending the money buying up the smaller banks instead of giving out loans like the stated purpose of the bailout

$1.5 BILLION (One point Five Billion) for troubled homeowners with bad mortgages, and not even that much is being doled out cuz it's hella red-tape

what is that ratio? 700 to 1.5?

How much spent so far on wars for oil and defense industry profits? $200 BILLION since Obama took office? (guess)

how much for schools/teachers? Well Obama did just sign a bill for $26 Billion. Wondering what time frame that is, and where the money was taken from.

[Sheepshank]

20. oh you're comparing dollar to dollar spent

Phew, for a second there,I though you were talking about actual policies. A little weak on the original premise. I give you a C- for last minute justification of something else implied in your post 90/10 post.

[Kalun D]

21. If you're going to keep a quick score

what better way than a dollar amount?

and the $700 BILLIon serviced only a few hundred individuals

and the $1.5 Billion is supposed to service millions of people

I'm sure if you break it all down it comes out to 90/10 when you look at who benefits.

So tell us who you think has benefited more the corps or the workers, and tell us why you think so in numbers.

[Sheepshank]

31. dollar for dollar comparisons

simply don't work to compare policy enactments and the total number of people is affects good, bad or indifferent. It's silly to presume otherwise.

Policy enactments should stand on their own merit regardless of what money is spent, what money is saved or what money it costs. One prime example is the policy shift and lifting the ban on stem cell research.

[girl gone mad]

29. 700 Billion?

The tally so far is over 12 Trillion.

[sandnsea]

5. I can see reasons people should be organizing harder

Legislation can always be better. More pressure can be placed on some of these turncoat blue dogs.

But pissed off at the administration, or even Congress as a whole?

No. I really don't understand why anybody left of center would be pissed off with all the good that has happened since Jan 21, 2009. And I really do believe the ones that are pissed off, need to have their heads examined. Thank god Gibbs finally said it.

[stray cat]

3. If people disagree with Obama on an issue - they would rather throw the election to the GOP

conservatives are clearly smarter than progressives - they know to avoid dems like the plague even if they don't really like the GOP candidate. Conservatives deserve to own the US if dem voters don't care if the GOP is in office .

[Jennicut]

4. We are clearly more picky and have better standards. We also are less effective

at keeping out Repubs no matter what. Dems like to have their independence. Getting us to agree on some things is near impossible sometimes.

[Beartracks]

8. I guess all Dems would have to agree Repubs are in charge again...

... if enough Dems stay home on election day to demonstrate their displeasure and "stick it" to Obama.

If the Republicans regain control of Congress this November, that would be a fact that everyone could agree on.

And then Dems could unite and say they accomplished something together!


------------------------------

[rufus dog]

13. agree with your assessment with a big old BUTT to follow

But... this upcoming election may literally be the last chance. If the 'pubs win enough seats it will be all over in respect to a political fight.

The media and the pubs will say that Democrats policies are failures and it is very obvious what the Repubs will do, more tax cuts. And the Dems will go back to cowering. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to kill off an evil party and then focus on cleaning up the Democratic Party.

Most everyone wants change to occur faster, me being strongly in that camp. The issue is how to achieve that change. Either through the current process or through some other type of radical change. My gut feel is that those not caring or 'sitting it out' are not prepared to suffer through the radical change.

[Jennicut]

17. You are right. Many people get angry and post in anger.

If they really do sit out, and we do lose the House and the Senate, will it make Dems stronger in the long run? Sure, some people may lose that we dislike. But it is going to be gridlock 100 times worse then it is now. Really, the biggest issue is that the Senate just does not function with it's arcane rules being manipulated. Dems as a minority would have to learn to be as calculating at the Repubs.

[Beartracks]

19. "will it make Dems stronger in the long run?"

I think not.

And gridlock helps no one. Except that it buys the entrenched power elites even more time to squeeze.

---------------

[Kalun D]

6. Both sides

are disappointed with their respective parties

Obama won a lot of red states that were disgusted with the corporate republicans

and Obama is going to lose a lot of progressives because he is going pretty much in the opposite direction of their wishes

the corporations own both sides of the isle. That's what people are disgusted about.

[FrenchieCat]

12. That's what I keep hearing from the folks who keep saying it over and over and over....

Then, once it actually happens, they'll act like they had nothing to do with it.
Sounds like a plan. The actual result unfortunately, is them believing that they
were right was not worth what we will be left with. And who will pay the most
will be kids, minorities and women. But well, as long as the Nader Left made their point,
that's what is important. Seems to me like those who say they care the most about
others, actually care more about themselves and what they think should happen and how.

[grahamhgreen]

23. People are bitterly dissapointed, that's all.

[Clio the Leo]

7. It's simple ..... this is an internet message board...

..... and some of us are FOS.

[tularetom]

10. IMO Obama has made only one mistake

Unfortunately it was a big one. He hired a snake as his Chief of Staff. Whether he did this out of loyalty to another Chicago Dem or as a peace offering to the Clinton supporters I don't know. But I suspect Mr Emanuel is behind Gibbs's little hissy fit and behind a lot of the timidity shown by this WH. I think Obama should follow his own instincts and ignore the advice of this asshole who clearly does not have the interests of real Democrats at heart. Actually what I really think is Obama should throw him out on his ass right now.

Not only has he fucked up the WH he is responsible for the election of a lot of the so called blue dogs who are more or less republicans.

[Beacool]

14. Because people are not lemmings.

Until 2008 I voted for any candidate that had a "D" after their name. No more, now I vote for the individual.

It is arrogant for either party to assume that people are going to vote for any candidate they put on the ballot because "where else will they go". I'll tell you where they'll go, they'll either vote third party or sit on their hands.

:shrug:

[CakeGrrl]

25. And anyone with basic arithmetic skills knows how THAT will go

Obama will be fine if Rs are in office. He has money, he'll have security beyond this job, and he has a loving family.

Other pols like the Clintons and Edwards have FAR too much money to be personally impacted by Republican policies.

People who sit on their hands had better be able to live with the results. The politicians they hope to punish aren't going to suffer the way they or their friends or family might.

[Beacool]

33. I'm not worried about Obama's financial wellbeing.

Ditto for any other politician who ran for president. But my years of blindly supporting, fundraising and campaigning for any Democrat that the party shoves down our throats were finally over as of June 2008. Never again!!! From now on I only vote for the Democrats whose platform I support. I won't vote for a Republican, but the party can no longer count on my automatic vote. If the DNC doesn't like it, too bad.

:shrug:

[firedupdem]

15. They will probably continue to on the local levels, however,

there is an irrational hatred for president Obama. Some didn't vote for him last time and won't vote for him if he runs again.

[depakid]

16. Plain reason: Many Democrats- and particularly the administration and Senate "leadership"

Don't support or fight for traditional Democratic values- preferring "new Democrat" Rockefeller Republican (or worse) values and policies. Even in many cases when those policies have been shown to be dysfunctional and/or ineffective.

That creates a dissension- a disconnect and a political vacuum.

[grahamhgreen]

22. Because many people don't see any real difference, only minor ones calculated to get votes. nt

[FrenchieCat]

24. Yep....cause not having to go through Discover to get a student loan

is almost the same as going through the government.

Or being one of the 31 million that will be able to see a doctor
other than via the emergency room is, well, almost the same.

:eyes:

[grahamhgreen]

32. The student loans are a big A+ win! If health care worked the same way,

that would have been a win, as well.

[scheming daemons]

26. Because they have the emotional maturity of a 5-year-old

[K8-EEE]

27. +1

[ProgressOnTheMove]

28. Exactly we have to be practical to make progress as folks aboandoned politics Dems drifted right...

We have to huff and puff and pull them back left but walking away will get the same result.

[spoony]

30. Because enough of you have told us to fuck off. That's why.

We're insignificant. We never accomplish anything. We're whiners. We're not real Democrats. We're not realistic. But we must vote as you say. And donate. But shut up. We're retarded. We must be high to expect any results. Oh by the way, vote! But we're not the base. In fact we're not needed. But we'd better vote, goddammit.

"I just don't understand" how you could possibly expect the left to stay with you.

[Cherchez la Femme]

34. And they do more than us too

even without knowing us, they categorically state they are superior even in volunteering.

Seriously, I'm just going to walk away. The past couple days have been one hell of a wake-up call.

[iamthebandfanman]

35. because what you believe in is more important than any party.

personally ill be voting though, and for democrats.

but ill definitely be protesting any way i can.

they will get no money from me and i will vote for any primary challenges.

[Name removed]

36. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.