dagblog - Comments for "The Democratic Party is Either Asleep at the Switch, Intimidated, or in Collusion with the Domestic Enemies of America"

The Democrats use to use gut

cmaukonen — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 21:30:59 +0000

The Democrats use to use gut issues and quite effectively. But since the early 70s they have been trying to use head issues and have been loosing ever since.

There is a message there somewhere, I think.

Call you names? CVille, I

TJ — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 20:22:26 +0000

In reply to is this a zero sum game? Do

Call you names? CVille, I wouldn't do that. I'm a Wahoo.

And it's not a zero sum game. I'm am merely observing that for most people voting is not an intellectual exercise. The Recons have been successful because they have exploited a gut issue for many different groups: Pro-Life, Gun nuts, Fundamentalists, Racists, Neo-Nazis, Chamber of Commerce and of course, the uber-rich. Pro-lifers may not be racist or anti-tax, but they're going to vote that one issue. And so it goes.

Dems struggle to hold on to what should be their core constituency: the working class.

No; I said it wrong and tried

we are stardust — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 16:04:00 +0000

In reply to Stardust, Question: How does

No; I said it wrong and tried to explain somewhere on the thread. I was woofing at you for not challenging his ideas, but instead his personality and motives ('self-serving; WTH??), and keeping company with a man you don't like. My premise I stand by, but I was making an attempt at humor which failed. The threads (which I did foget you don't even look at other diaries here it seems) were full of heated discussions of the ways we could address each other in comments. I was trying to turn bigotry on its head a bit: Black Man Disses Black Man; Is Bigoted Idiot.

Sponsors? I dunno. Questionable or worse sponsor environmental organizations now; it's a problem if affects the content of the show, or the hosts pull their punches. GE/MSNBC: You and I may disagree on its corporate influence. Dunno. Sorry to rile you; guess I got it wrong.

Stardust, Question: How does

Wattree — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 15:54:03 +0000

In reply to p.s. The rules say I'm not

Stardust,

Question: How does having little respect for Cornel West constitute bigotry? Cornel West in the pocket of Tavis Smiley, a man who fronts programs touted as "The State of the Black Union" with the sponsoring logos of not only some of the worse exploiters of the Black community emblazoned in the background, but are also the worse exploiters of America as a whole. One Black man pointed out that one of Tavis' sponsors told him that they couldn't pay him for the destruction of his home after Hurricane Katrina because "Katrina wasn't windy enough."

So you call me a "bigoted idiot" if you like, because I hold such people in disdain, but that's alright. I'll just have to live with that.

I agree, Stardust. The bigger

Wattree — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 14:52:06 +0000

In reply to His failures run deeper than

I agree, Stardust.

The bigger favor was done for the military/indusrtial complex - $600 million and counting for one weeks work - so far.

Desider, Obama has only had

Wattree — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 14:46:28 +0000

In reply to Well I don't think Bush Sr.

Desider,

Obama has only had two years to reverse eight years of GOP destruction. In addition, he's already saved the nation of another Great Depression. But give him at least one term before you pass judgement on him.

That's exactly right,

Wattree — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 14:41:49 +0000

In reply to Yes, sorry to chime in again

That's exactly right, Richard.

In addition, as his very last act of office he warned the American people to beware of the corruption of the military/industrial complex. In other words, the current Republicans and their Democratic crime partners.

E. says above; and I'd

we are stardust — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 14:32:20 +0000

In reply to So what's Mr. Wattree's beef

E. says above; and I'd forgotten he's said the same things about him a year or so ago, so he's consistent. Tavis Smiley seems to be regarded poorly, even waaaay downthread. But as to his being self-serving, I don't get it. I mean all these folks have some ego, so I wonder if some on the thread see him as too critical of Obama. A-man says below that he was critical of him even as he was helping him get elected (he was also on Obama's Black Advisory board).

His criticism was what prompted me to play around with my 'don't diss The Brother' thing; I see I failed spectacularly at it by doing it short-hand. But it fit with the recent spate of accusations on other threads about 'uncivil remarks to opponents here' thing. One trouble: I'd forgotten that E almost never gets on other threads here, so he likely wasn't even aware. (Sorry, E.) ;o)

Shoot, though; Dan K was even asked below if he were calling the President an Uncle Tom; we do seem to have trouble communicating at times, and mine here was my fault.

So what's Mr. Wattree's beef

Obey — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 14:12:04 +0000

In reply to Me, too, Obey. 'You have to

So what's Mr. Wattree's beef with him?

Besides smart, I think he's

we are stardust — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 14:09:54 +0000

In reply to I can't really imagine

Besides smart, I think he's pretty wise, too; shoot, if I could go to a church with a man like him up front, and some damned fine singin', I just might! ;o)

You might like to watch Michael Eric Dyson on DemocracyNow! later; he's discussing Manning Mirabale's new book on Malcolm X, which seems to be of a whole new caliber with first-hand accounts and a much wider perspective. (Mirabale died a few days ago before the book's publication). I've been so frustrated by the fear his name brings up at websites when I, or others, try to remind people how incredibly important he was to the civil rights movement.

And today is the day MLK was assassinated, and the anniversary of his speech at Riverside Church (transcript here); "Beyond Viet Nam: Time to Break the Silence" (hate to put up another video).