For What Its Worth

The surface of political discourse in this country is roiling with frustration, despair and anger. This state of affairs is particularly attenuated in the progressive wing of the Democratic party. Within the greater progressive movement, there exists a full spectrum of views on the path to be charted out of the wilderness created by the corrupt, megalomaniacal and war obsessed Bush Administration and Republican party; further enabled by a genetically feckless Congress.

The vast majority of progressives have determined to start effecting the removal of the craven and corrupt Republican regime and machine through the auspices of the greater Democratic party. They have extremely legitimate complaints on the spineless acquiescence of the Democrats to the Republican perfidy; but they have nevertheless determined to maintain solidarity with the party as the best hope for change. Other progressives, some historically Democratic, and some historically independent and/or other third party affiliated, are so disenchanted, even with the Democrats, that they are determined to break away and work and vote for change anywhere but within the traditional party structure.

The disenchanted citizens, typified by our colleague Socratic Gadfly want to place their hopes in the hands of independents, third parties and attempts to change the Constitution to install European parliamentary style governments and instant runoff voting. The linked article by Socratic Gadfly gives a good overview of some of these ideas. Mr. Gadfly, a self proclaimed progressive, is so disenchanted that he has gone so far as to boast that, even today, he would would not have voted for a Democratic candidate in Florida (Al Gore 2000) or Ohio (John Kerry 2004) in spite of the living hell this country has suffered at the hands of George Bush and Dick Cheney during their time in office. A living hell that could have been avoided but for literally a handful of "principled" votes for laughable independent and third party candidates in those two states.

These ideas are extremely interesting suggestions; all worthy of discussion. Not a one of them, however, stands the thinnest chance of being meaningfully discussed, much less implemented at this time. Not with the roiling waters the country sails; not with effectively only one year until the next Presidential election. Given that fact, the proponents should consider helping the majority of the progressive movement, seeking to effect the best change practically possible within the framework of the Democratic party. The combined effort is necessary to insure that the Republican robber baron pillagers, that have put our country in the lurch it is currently in, don't stay in office and authority one second longer than their current term. Because, if the Republican/Conservative cancer cannot be excised, there will not be any country remaining within which to voice the more esoteric and revolutionary ideas, nor an infrastructure of personal freedoms necessary to dream them.

Since this country was founded, indeed in order for the country even to be founded, millions of American citizens, no different than the breakaway progressives, have subordinated their personal desires and dreams to the fight for the integrity and existence of the whole; and then given their very lives and souls to insure that integrity maintained. They thought, fought and died so that we might be here today; perhaps the breakaway progressives might postpone a few current pipe dreams so that the children of this country might have the privilege of living in a country still worth fighting for tomorrow.

The video here is absolutely breathtaking. It may be the most appropriate and powerful video posted here to date considering the times we are living through. I urge everyone to watch it. Hat tip to the video creator, Scott Frasure.