I saved this Bluesky quote from Kumail Nanjiani, as it speaks to the "We just take turns" attitude of the oligarchy:
"I did an event in DC & there was a party for donors etc after. Was talking to 2 ppl & I said 'Things are so bad.' They said 'No this is how it is. Things swing one way, then another. It's normal.' That's when I realized why Dems are toothless. They have no idea what this is. Frogs boiling in water."
And I also saved this quote from you ;^)
"Democrats fundamentally don’t understand why their brand has suffered the most among demos that once supported them in large numbers.
It’s because they come across as out-of-touch elites, and well-off members of the same country club hanging out in the name of 'bipartisanship' doesn’t inspire anyone except maybe their donors."
How to make the oligarchy actually fear us instead of just saying "Oh, they'll get over it" - anybody got some ideas? Anybody?
Here's a thought: don't quit voting Democratic. Take over the party instead. Show up at precinct meetings. Someone there is the rep to the national organization. Tell 'em what for.
Or, it could be you if you get enough of a posse together.
“Oh how will we avoid the fallout of a shutdown?”—gee, I dunno, maybe just say “Republicans control both branches and if they want to pass anything they can do it without Dem votes just like every other fucking thing they passed, you won’t give them one Democrat because they not only cut essential services and fund an ICE run rampant, they also let Trump illegally refuse to spend whatever Congress DOES appropriate, so it’s stupid to vote for any budget”?
Is that too fucking difficult to understand? These idiots have no idea what they’re doing and are right now telling voters that everything is cool, relax, in fact all that talk about Trump ending democracy was just talk. Fuck them all.
Democrats are hopeless. Republicans just got done passing their “cut healthcare yet manage to jack up the debt” without a single Dem vote and here these weak asses are thinking anyone gives them points for bipartisanship. Citizens are being put in foreign jungle camps without due process, federal agencies were illegally gutted, Congress’s authority was completely usurped, and these pathetic bags of sand are worried about a shutdown?
Fuck it, this party deserves to be destroyed. It’s not like they’re even trying to stand in the way of the Republicans. Why on earth would anyone bother voting for them?
What deals do you think Donald J. Trump is going to honor, Chuck?
If you somehow get agreement from Republicans to restore funding to critical research and services, what are you going to do when Trump just says, "No. Not going to do that," and tells you to go fuck yourself?
We have no Lincolns. We have no Charles Sumners. We have weak-kneed cowardly quislings.
Thank you, Stephen. Chump Schumer is the Merrick Garland of the Senate.
Heaven fucking forfend that we defend ourselves against these MAGA fuckwits. I mean, after all, they’re not kicking Chump Schumer in the teeth, just the rest of us poor saps. Besides we must maintain a collegial atmosphere in the Senate at all costs, anything else would be uncivilized.
Oh, and sorry about your teeth, you should do something about that.
“And you know, from my perspective, I’d like to make a bipartisan appropriations process work again.”
What she seems to deliberatly ignore, is that we lack the prerequisites for a bipartisan appropriations process. Namely, an opposition party that 1) is willing to negotiate in good faith, B) actually wants to solve a problem or two, and iii) isn't completely full of shit.
I think democrats will be blamed for not doing enough, and then for doing too much in opposition, as we hold them to a different standard. Still, I agree, they should not support anything and proactively go after republicans very bad ideas. We have some fighting dems here in Oregon, and I appreciate their work.
We need firebrands not old men who are so comfortable and out of touch with their constituents to just in essence roll over and allow the extreme right to run roughshod over our constitution. We need fighters. I see this in younger candidates and this old lady is totally for that. We are the ones at protests that have fought hard for access to reproductive healthcare and are the nurturers trying to protect those who have come after us.
I would love to hear a Democrat in the Senate say "this is some BULLSHIT. These people are lying and think you're stupid..." etc etc etc
Talk to people the way we talk to each other about this mess. My 82 year old mom says "fuck Trump" all the time, and she's a good Mexican Catholic lady. We are DONE.
The Senate needs some Crockett and AOC to juice them up. Good grief, what a bunch of wienies.
I say again, AOC, darling of the Internet, could've scored a kill shot on Schumer when he fell ill recently (as Schumer is Old and also Got Sick) which violated Rule 1. Why didn't she say "Look at this guy! He's unwell and he has old, bad ideas. People like me are the future of the party!"
I'm starting to think sometimes some of the Internet Faves just deal in outrage bait and stick to their safe districts knowing that they'll never have to sully their reputation.
How can we turn this shit around? I've called both Senators and my rep and told them how disappointed I am in some of their votes and reminded them of the McConnell strategy of blocking everything, for all the good it did. Who do we have to get behind? They all suck.
One thing is the incentive structure has to change. Part of the problem is that all of the groups that rely on Democratic administrations to exist relatively safely in their lives have their protections from statute. This is true for me, for example, as I am a Black man that's not part of the original. This is also why Democrats when elected are legislators first, and very rarely may sometimes happen to be social media influencers. (Also true for "Independents" who many times...but not all...may caucus with Dems)
The Republican ethos is to destroy the functioning of the federal government. Entropy is their best friend; they can do their job by doing nothing. This is why you get social media influencers first, legislators second (or even fourth because there's also grifting and creation of pogroms before that).
You couldn't have a Nancy Mace in the Democratic Party; that person would get turfed out of office very quickly. Unfortunately as only Democrats can face accountability for behavior, they have to generally bring more to the table than Pretty Words What Democrats Like. I remember the spectacular flameout of Alan Grayson, for example.
I saved this Bluesky quote from Kumail Nanjiani, as it speaks to the "We just take turns" attitude of the oligarchy:
"I did an event in DC & there was a party for donors etc after. Was talking to 2 ppl & I said 'Things are so bad.' They said 'No this is how it is. Things swing one way, then another. It's normal.' That's when I realized why Dems are toothless. They have no idea what this is. Frogs boiling in water."
And I also saved this quote from you ;^)
"Democrats fundamentally don’t understand why their brand has suffered the most among demos that once supported them in large numbers.
It’s because they come across as out-of-touch elites, and well-off members of the same country club hanging out in the name of 'bipartisanship' doesn’t inspire anyone except maybe their donors."
How to make the oligarchy actually fear us instead of just saying "Oh, they'll get over it" - anybody got some ideas? Anybody?
Here's a thought: don't quit voting Democratic. Take over the party instead. Show up at precinct meetings. Someone there is the rep to the national organization. Tell 'em what for.
Or, it could be you if you get enough of a posse together.
Quit taking politics like a spectator sport.
Not partisan hardball, it's Calvinball. The only way to win is to make the rules.
“Oh how will we avoid the fallout of a shutdown?”—gee, I dunno, maybe just say “Republicans control both branches and if they want to pass anything they can do it without Dem votes just like every other fucking thing they passed, you won’t give them one Democrat because they not only cut essential services and fund an ICE run rampant, they also let Trump illegally refuse to spend whatever Congress DOES appropriate, so it’s stupid to vote for any budget”?
Is that too fucking difficult to understand? These idiots have no idea what they’re doing and are right now telling voters that everything is cool, relax, in fact all that talk about Trump ending democracy was just talk. Fuck them all.
Democrats are hopeless. Republicans just got done passing their “cut healthcare yet manage to jack up the debt” without a single Dem vote and here these weak asses are thinking anyone gives them points for bipartisanship. Citizens are being put in foreign jungle camps without due process, federal agencies were illegally gutted, Congress’s authority was completely usurped, and these pathetic bags of sand are worried about a shutdown?
Fuck it, this party deserves to be destroyed. It’s not like they’re even trying to stand in the way of the Republicans. Why on earth would anyone bother voting for them?
“Maybe if we’re really nice to them today the bullies won’t try to take our lunch money tomorrow”
-Democratic Senate Leadership
Good luck with that brilliant plan
What deals do you think Donald J. Trump is going to honor, Chuck?
If you somehow get agreement from Republicans to restore funding to critical research and services, what are you going to do when Trump just says, "No. Not going to do that," and tells you to go fuck yourself?
We have no Lincolns. We have no Charles Sumners. We have weak-kneed cowardly quislings.
Thank you, Stephen. Chump Schumer is the Merrick Garland of the Senate.
Heaven fucking forfend that we defend ourselves against these MAGA fuckwits. I mean, after all, they’re not kicking Chump Schumer in the teeth, just the rest of us poor saps. Besides we must maintain a collegial atmosphere in the Senate at all costs, anything else would be uncivilized.
Oh, and sorry about your teeth, you should do something about that.
I don’t know that bipartisan bills are inherently bad for America, but any that include MAGA support are.
“And you know, from my perspective, I’d like to make a bipartisan appropriations process work again.”
What she seems to deliberatly ignore, is that we lack the prerequisites for a bipartisan appropriations process. Namely, an opposition party that 1) is willing to negotiate in good faith, B) actually wants to solve a problem or two, and iii) isn't completely full of shit.
I think democrats will be blamed for not doing enough, and then for doing too much in opposition, as we hold them to a different standard. Still, I agree, they should not support anything and proactively go after republicans very bad ideas. We have some fighting dems here in Oregon, and I appreciate their work.
We need firebrands not old men who are so comfortable and out of touch with their constituents to just in essence roll over and allow the extreme right to run roughshod over our constitution. We need fighters. I see this in younger candidates and this old lady is totally for that. We are the ones at protests that have fought hard for access to reproductive healthcare and are the nurturers trying to protect those who have come after us.
I would love to hear a Democrat in the Senate say "this is some BULLSHIT. These people are lying and think you're stupid..." etc etc etc
Talk to people the way we talk to each other about this mess. My 82 year old mom says "fuck Trump" all the time, and she's a good Mexican Catholic lady. We are DONE.
The Senate needs some Crockett and AOC to juice them up. Good grief, what a bunch of wienies.
Oh well.
Where's the Internet faves?
I say again, AOC, darling of the Internet, could've scored a kill shot on Schumer when he fell ill recently (as Schumer is Old and also Got Sick) which violated Rule 1. Why didn't she say "Look at this guy! He's unwell and he has old, bad ideas. People like me are the future of the party!"
I'm starting to think sometimes some of the Internet Faves just deal in outrage bait and stick to their safe districts knowing that they'll never have to sully their reputation.
They ALL suck. The whole bunch.
It's the least he can do.
Literally.
How can we turn this shit around? I've called both Senators and my rep and told them how disappointed I am in some of their votes and reminded them of the McConnell strategy of blocking everything, for all the good it did. Who do we have to get behind? They all suck.
One thing is the incentive structure has to change. Part of the problem is that all of the groups that rely on Democratic administrations to exist relatively safely in their lives have their protections from statute. This is true for me, for example, as I am a Black man that's not part of the original. This is also why Democrats when elected are legislators first, and very rarely may sometimes happen to be social media influencers. (Also true for "Independents" who many times...but not all...may caucus with Dems)
The Republican ethos is to destroy the functioning of the federal government. Entropy is their best friend; they can do their job by doing nothing. This is why you get social media influencers first, legislators second (or even fourth because there's also grifting and creation of pogroms before that).
You couldn't have a Nancy Mace in the Democratic Party; that person would get turfed out of office very quickly. Unfortunately as only Democrats can face accountability for behavior, they have to generally bring more to the table than Pretty Words What Democrats Like. I remember the spectacular flameout of Alan Grayson, for example.