Rebkeh
Rebkeh's JournalBernie or Bust is privilege? Nonsense
Utter bunk, and that's putting it mildly.
Bernie or Bust rejects the status quo. Maybe where one has the freedom to risk upsetting the apple cart, while the rest of us seem to have less at stake can seem selfish. Don't rock the boat! Security first, then progress. I can maybe see that. Maybe but... No. Here's where they're wrong:
The status quo is not as secure as you think it is. In fact, unless you are part of the very top in terms of wealth/power, the status quo is failing you. The longer it continues, the worse it gets.
The privileged want to keep the status quo. People with privilege want to keep things exactly the way they are, or roll it back even more. They are invested in inequality
So, no. It is the other way around, Bernie or Bust is the opposite of privilege. Somebody's got to take a stand. (Full disclosure: I have not taken any pledge or committed to withholding my vote. I simply defend B or B's right to vote as they see fit.)
Or, put another way, read a post of mine from a few weeks ago:
Connecting the message of economic populism to social justice concerns
From Venn to Circle: Economic Populism and Social Justice for POC
( http://www.democraticunderground.com/12511397357 )
Let me break it down for you:
The first priority of business is to make a profit.
The first priority of government is supposed to be to serve its people.
When big business “merges” with government, its priorities take over. People no longer matter, then democracy starts to become more perception than reality.
We know this. But, hang on…
PEOPLE ARE NOT COMMODITIES! Black people know this better than anyone, seeing that this is how most of us ended up here on the continent in the first place.
The wealthy class needs “others” to be a peasant class because that’s how we were taught. “I get mine, you get none” or the softer version, “I get more, you get less.”
But how have the people up top kept this trick going for so long?
Easy. They break our legs and then call us lame, and people believe them. They blame the poor for being poor, like they had nothing to do with it. Please. They use bigotry, in all its forms, to keep people down.
But now? Their wealth has expanded so much, there aren’t enough poor black folks to support it. Not enough poor white folks either, they need MORE. They need new “others,” so what did they do?
They broke up the unions.
Now blue collar middle class folks are part of the peasant class. They are getting a little taste of what poor blacks been feeling for generations and they don't like it. Nobody likes it.
See, structural racism secures this model that keeps people commodified, income inequality is a result of that model. Now that the pool of the people getting screwed has grown, we need to come together.
The working poor getting fucked and the poc that have always been getting fucked should be natural allies. They should have been allies a long time ago but now… we REALLY got to do this. Our government has been taken over by our “friends” in big business. Nobody is safe anymore, not even the semi-rich. They will be next if we don't put a stop to it. Everyone has a dog in this fight.
Bottom line:
The commodification of people – when business merges with government and profit comes before people – is a terrible model for everyone.
Long held patterns of exploitation of poc (from slavery to now) for profit is still exploitation.
Newer patterns of exploitation of middle class whites for profit is still exploitation.
It’s the exact same model.
Well, there's a thought
Could Bernie Sanders be our First Write-In President?Why not utilize the sheer will of the people to force the revolution we want to see happen?
By Pamela Elaine - March 2, 2016
I doubt it but hey.. I've seen stranger things happen. Apparently, it's complicated to get on the ballot as a write in but it's still worth consideration as a strategy. I live in a red state so as it stands, IF it comes to it, I probably will write in Bernie as my vote if I can. My state is decidedly going to go red, it's a pretty safe bet, so my party line vote would be meaningless anyway. November is a long way off so I am not committing to anything at this time.
:snip:
Why not utilize the sheer will of the people to force the revolution we want to see happen? As people square off, trying to decide what they will do if Bernie doesn’t win the party nomination, they only seem to see two options; to vote for Hillary with gritted teeth or stay home and not vote at all. The problem is gathering enough momentum behind the process to actually mean something, and that means dealing with the apathy that seems to beset Progressives and Liberals on voting day.
If the status quo or the establishment refuses to work for the will of the people, the people have to force their hand and maybe we have reached a point in history where the write-in vote can move the political process out of those dark rooms and into the limelight.
More: http://progressivearmy.com/2016/03/02/bernie-sanders-first-write-president/
ICYMI - Bernie Sanders and #WhichHillary
Bernie Sanders and #WhichHillaryBy Michael Graham - March 22, 2016
More: http://progressivearmy.com/2016/03/22/bernie-sanders-whichhillary/
If you blame Bernie or Bust, call it what it is
Blaming the victim. See how far that goes. (I hope you don't)
If the democratic party fails to get votes, the onus is on them and nobody else.
I may get an alert ...
I hope not but I'll take my chances. I'm done walking on eggshells.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/12511539834
About the issues
Cross posted from gd-p
About the issues
If your vote is determined based on the issues, there's only one candidate that meets the highest standard. The majority of the people align with Senator Bernie Sanders on nearly every issue, he's no "radical," as they like to label him. His positions are not only mainstream, but overwhelmingly supported by the majority. But that's still not enough, you have to trust that your chosen candidate will follow through on what he or she says he or she will do, regardless of the issues. So trust is part of that package, yes? Again, only one candidate scores high in trustworthiness, honesty and integrity. Only one candidate has a strong record of ethical behavior, even when it was politically painful. He still stood on the right side of history in nearly every instance.
If your vote is going to be based on effectiveness and experience, again, Senator Bernie is no slouch. He's been fighting for main street, for regular folks for decades. And winning.
If, however, your vote is to be decided based on other reasons such as practicality, that's your right. Your inalienable right to vote however you see fit is still legit. And Bernie is a practical choice, regardless of the rumors.
Many will try to frame the debate in terms of the general election, but last I checked, we are still in the swing of the primaries. You still have a choice for the democratic nominee, regardless of the math. Your options are still open.
Edited to add: I almost forgot another reason to vote for Senator Bernie Sanders. If voting against Trump is your thing, according to polling, Bernie beats every republican by huge margins, including Trump. Especially Trump.
Lastly, let's be real - on the issues, Bernie is clearest choice.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/12511535901
About the issues
If your vote is determined based on the issues, there's only one candidate that meets the highest standard. The majority of the people align with Senator Bernie Sanders on nearly every issue, he's no "radical," as they like to label him. His positions are not only mainstream, but overwhelmingly supported by the majority. But that's still not enough, you have to trust that your chosen candidate will follow through on what he or she says he or she will do, regardless of the issues. So trust is part of that package, yes? Again, only one candidate scores high in trustworthiness, honesty and integrity. Only one candidate has a strong record of ethical behavior, even when it was politically painful. He still stood on the right side of history in nearly every instance.
If your vote is going to be based on effectiveness and experience, again, Senator Bernie is no slouch. He's been fighting for main street, for regular folks for decades. And winning.
If, however, your vote is to be decided based on other reasons such as practicality, that's your right. Your inalienable right to vote however you see fit is still legit. And Bernie is a practical choice, regardless of the rumors.
*Edited to add: If voting against Trump is your thing, according to polling, Bernie beats every republican by huge margins, including Trump. Especially Trump.
Many will try to frame the debate in terms of the general election, but last I checked, we are still in the swing of the primaries. You still have a choice for the democratic nominee, regardless of the math. Your options are still open.
Lastly, let's be real - on the issues, Bernie is clearest choice.
How Trump Dog-Whistles the Business Establishment
How Trump Dog-Whistles the Business Establishment:He cleverly woos the GOP base on issues like trade, but this working-class hero is actually a willing agent of the 1 percenters.
William Greider
3/18/16
snip
Trump says he would change all that instantly as president. The deal maker would introduce a cooperative spirit of compromise. “If I sat down with a few of the senators, or a few of the congressmen, you could make a deal on that in 10 minutes,” he said.
Like so much of his campaign rhetoric, Trump turns reality into baloney. The multinationals can bring their profits home anytime they wish. Like right now. They merely have to pay the taxes they already owe. The threat to American citizens is that both Democrats and Republicans will cave in and collaborate in giving the corporate tax dodgers what they want. The rest of us will pick up the tab.
http://www.thenation.com/article/how-trump-dog-whistles-the-business-establishment/
Bernie is the better contrast, and he is the better choice for the "temporarily embarrassed millionaires" that think they will get to that level of wealth eventually and want to keep the system intact for when they finally arrive. Bernie is also the only democrat talking to these people, Trump supporters.
I don't want to talk about Trump, personally, unless it's to demonstrate the better alternative for this particular demographic.
Democrats used to talk about the decline of upward mobility. What ever happened to that?
(cross post from Bernie Group)
What I am listening to
I have a feeling this is going to be really good, I thought I'd post it now even though I haven't heard it yet.
http://www.thenation.com/article/start-making-sense-bernie-isnt-finished/
What’s left for Bernie Sanders after Tuesday’s primaries? Plenty of opportunities, says John Nichols—he’s The Nation’s National Affairs correspondent.
Plus: North Carolina’s new voter ID requirements, the most restrictive in the country, went into effect on Tuesday—Ari Berman explains the problem. He is the author of Give Us the Ballot.
And Thomas Frank asks the question: Whatever happened to the party of the people? His new book is Listen, Liberal.
Start Making Sense is hosted by Jon Wiener and co-produced by the Los Angeles Review of Books.
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Gender: FemaleHome country: USA
Member since: Sat Oct 17, 2015, 10:59 AM
Number of posts: 2,450
