Notes on purging

[Vattel]

I am not a fan of the third way but, like almost every other progressive at DU, I recognize that the Democratic Party is not about to take a 180 degree turn towards a more progressive agenda. Given that a complete purge of the party is not in the cards, what can progressives do? I want to make three simple points, all of them sort of obvious but maybe worth mentioning anyways.

First, there are upcoming political races that progressives have at least some chance of finding a progressive candidate for. Even the next presidential race might be one of those. I think that in the coming months progressives should be relentless in pointing out the flaws in candidates like Clinton, Biden, O’Malley, and Cuomo in the hopes that a progressive candidate will step up to the plate, win the primary, and then win the presidency. I am not sure whether that candidate is Elizabeth Warren or Sherrod Brown or Al Franken or ______ (fill in the blank), but we ought to try.

Second, much if not most progressive change comes from the people. MLK didn’t wait around for progressive politicians to show up to pursue change. Once enough people believe that change is needed, politicians will institute the change, as we have recently witnessed in the case of marriage equality and are beginning to see in the case of the war on drugs. So keep on doing your part to change people’s minds.

Third, success does not always depend on the government doing the right thing. Even before slavery was ended, the underground railroad helped one person at a time achieve freedom. To some degree, then, we can correct for the mistakes of government. Let me offer one example I just came across in my neighborhood. In Maryland recently, the government decided to redo the waiting list for section 8 housing. The problem is that they set up a system where you had to go online to get onto the list. A private organization (Healthcare for the Homeless--http://www.hchmd.org/) recognized that the homeless community in Baltimore (the ones who need housing the most!) couldn’t just grab lattes at Starbucks, take out their laptops and go online to sign up, and so the organization set up computers and invited the homeless community to come and get assistance getting their names on the list. This is an instance of the people helping the government to do its job.

The bottom line is that, whatever your pony is, don’t wait for government to give it to you. If you are like me and care deeply about the plight of undocumented workers in the USA, then don’t wait for comprehensive immigration reform. Just volunteer in an organization that addresses the problems immigrants face. If you are appalled by how many animals are euthanized at animal shelters, join (or create) an organization that seeks to get those animals adopted. Whatever your pony is, saddle up and ride.

I know most DUers are probably already doing this sort of thing. But I just wanted to emphasize that there is no reason and no time to be all mopey about the election results. Individuals need our help now. If the majority elects Republicans and DINOs, then we need to rely even less on government to make the world a more progressive place.

[Vattel]

1. not my best post ever, but geez