Kudos and huzzahs all the way around to the gutless wonders polluting the shell of the Democratic “Party”. Just when I think I can’t get more disgusted with their fawning, mewling behavior, they go and prove me wrong yet again.
Russ Feingold stepped up on this. He did his job, and a few -- very few – fellow Democrats had the courage of their convictions to do the same. Feingold is asking a question that is fundamental to this nation’s continued ability to function properly, and he deserves a serious answer, as do the rest of us. I want Bill Frist to stand up and tell the American people that he would have no problem with Hillary Clinton inheriting Bush and Cheney’s super-secret superpowers in ’08. I want Bullwinkle and the rest of the Vichy DLC to explain exactly why, after this administration has proven to be either incompetent or corrupt (or, more frequently, both) on everything, we should trust that the NSA’s secret domestic spy program begins and ends with al Qaeda members and those who are but one degree of separation from them.
Hell, while we’re at it, I’d like just one (1) prominent Democrat to hog every MSM mike in sight and shame God’s Own Party into either publicly owning or disavowing South Dakota’s stunt legislation, before this gets out of hand. You don’t kill that cockroach now, you’ll have a dozen more like by mid-summer. Count on it.
Yes, yes, I know the learned solons of the Party have A Plan. I can tell. It’s working fabulously. Apparently this plan involves waiting for Bush’s approval ratings to hit, oh, 25 or 20 percent, and then all hell breaks loose. Then perhaps they will feel empowered enough to unleash the beast, their secret weapon. And all will fear the raw strength, speed, and surgical precision of political ninjas such as Rahm Emanuel and Joementum Lieberman. It's the political martial art of Jeet Kune Joe -- The Way Of The Ineffectual Raised Hand In A Futile Attempt To Ward Off The Blows Raining Down Upon You.
You want to know why people keep voting for a proven dipshit like Bush instead of you, Dems, look in the fucking mirror. Nobody in their right mind wants to vote for a party who not only handed their balls over to their mortal enemies, long ago, they don’t even want ‘em back.
Dan, much as I love your writing, I must disagree with your conclusion that the Democratic Party is the problem. They are only reacting to the low common denominator of voters. They want in to office-unfortunately the people are, like Plato said, all stomach and no brains. If good ideas moved people, there wouldnt be a Republican party. That is why Democrats keep losing-the apathy and stupidity of the lever puller.
ReplyDeleteJesus. I thought I was the most pessimistic cat on earth. Realistic, I meant.
ReplyDeleteBtw, nice Valentine's Day screed, Heath.
p.s. There are a lot of Democrats that are splendid. But almost all of them are in congress and they have as much pull as a guy with no pull in a situation where pull is required. We have some good Senators, too, and I do think things would be a hell of a lot better with them leading the committees. As far as the System is concerned, ... I don't have the energy.
You guys certainly make some good points, and I definitely haven't shied away from pointing the finger at the apathy and cynicism of my fella 'merkins.
ReplyDeleteAnd believe me, I have played out the quantum events "what if?" game in my head quite sufficiently to know that there's a better than average chance that I'd have found plenty to critique about a Kerry administration. Indeed, to a large extent, the two parties really are just two sides of the same tarnished coin.
However, I submit that, without dipping too much into the "evil of two lessers" trope, that at the very least a Kerry administration would have had the trains running on time, barring Republican interference.
Does the Democratic Party heel to the corporate whistle? Sure. But they are also willing to engage in multilateralism, and they're willing to repeal the tax cuts. While they are not willing to step up and really do everything that needs to be done, they are at least willing to do something, and right now, that's better than nothing. It's not a good option, but it's better than all the other realistic ones.
Of course, until they actually grow a pair and decide to stand for something and stand together, it's all academic.
But I absolutely agree with your basic point -- nothing substantial will occur until American citizens look themselves and each other in the eye and realize that the root causes of all this is an unsustainable level of consumption of ever-scarcer resources. We have to kick our habit before it kicks us.