THE WHOLE CHICKEN

[Laelth]

THE WHOLE CHICKEN (Part 1)

Way back in 1928, Herbert Hoover's surrogates bragged that Republican policy had delivered to America the greatest prosperity the nation had ever seen--a chicken for every pot and a car in every garage. Democrats, led by Al Smith, responded by noting that Hoover's wealthy friends all had chickens in their pots and cars in their garages, but that America's newfound wealth was not being equally distributed. The working class was not getting a fair share of the national wealth, these Democrats argued.

Welcome to modern, American politics. This debate from 1928 remains at the heart of our political discourse.

The "original recipe" chicken story is older. King Henry IV of France wanted to insure that every peasant in his realm would have a chicken in their pots (on Sundays, at the very least). He didn't want his people to be any poorer than that. Suffice it to say that the working people of the Western world have been looking for that chicken ever since. We were promised it. We haven't gotten it yet--not by a long stretch, especially not in the United States.

Those of us who voted for Elizabeth Warren or Bernie Sanders in the 2020 Democratic primaries voted for these politicians because they insisted that the working people deserve THE WHOLE CHICKEN. It didn't matter to us whether or not these politicians could actually deliver THE WHOLE CHICKEN. We were simply pleased to know that they agreed that the American people deserve THE WHOLE CHICKEN. We voted for Bernie and for Elizabeth because they were willing to fight for THE WHOLE CHICKEN ... for the American people.

Here's THE WHOLE CHICKEN:



That, my friends, is THE WHOLE CHICKEN that most Americans want in their pots! It's what the American people need, and it's what they deserve. We know that we're the wealthiest nation on Earth. We also know that we're the hardest-working people on Earth. The primary purpose of the Democratic Party is to give the people some economic justice--to spread the wealth and to make capitalism work for all of us and not just the rich folks.

If the Democratic Party can just give us the neck (Eliminate the Filibuster), I have every reason to believe that Joe Biden can and will be a transformative, liberal President. So I hope. Give us the neck, and we can make some Real Democratic Soup that will lead us to THE WHOLE CHICKEN. Go JOE!

If you're with me, simply respond (here and elsewhere) by saying:

I WANT THE WHOLE CHICKEN.

The American people deserve it.



-Laelth

Part 2 will follow with a careful examination of each part of the chicken and why the American people deserve THE WHOLE CHICKEN and not just the bits of chicken that the Democratic Party has served up since the Age of Reagan.

[Turin_C3PO]

1. I'd like the whole chicken too.

But it’s going to take time and coalition-building for us to get it. We need strong majorities in the House, Senate, and, of course, we must have the presidency. I think Biden will set us on the right track for getting the whole chicken.

[onetexan]

3. The whole chicken will take 8 years of Dem rule

We need another 4 years after this one to accomplish all that + green new deal. First term focus on the chicken; 2nd term focus on Green New Deal.

[Laelth]

6. 8 years of Dem rule wouldn't bother me.

I'll even up the ante on you. 20 years of Dem rule would be quite nice.



I WANT THE WHOLE CHICKEN!



-Laelth

[onetexan]

9. long as Dem party doesn't morph into something as ghastly as the GOP i'm good for perpetual Dem rule

it's very doable to achieve the whole chicken, but need to be spread over 2 terms. We need to forge on but with patience. Just reversing the damage this horrendous administration has inflicted will take much longer to get back to normal.

[Laelth]

29. Us? Morph into some kind of Nazi-tyranny party?

Not likely. We’re not organized enough—never have been and, one imagines, never will be. Our “big tent” is chock full of contrarians. We usually fight amongst ourselves harder than we fight against Republicans.

“I am not a member of any organized political party. I am a Democrat.” - Will Rogers



For better or for worse ...



-Laelth

[onetexan]

32. LOL i hope that is the case, that Dems remain true to our ideals as Dems

And dont lose sight of the fact that we put country first.

[Laelth]

33. I'd be more worried about COVID-19.

The Democratic Party has done its job, to the best of its ability, for a long time. Nearly all of us are devoted to putting the people first. We regularly disagree, however, about the best way to do so.

Our first and foremost duty is to ensure that capitalism works for all the people and not just the rich people. If we can't do this, we're useless as a party, and there's no reason for the people to vote for us.



-Laelth

[Laelth]

4. You're saying, "Yes, we can."

And I thank you for it. That's way better than saying, "No, we can't."

It may take a while, but as long as we can honestly tell the American people, "Yes, we can," we will actually have a shot at getting THE WHOLE CHICKEN. If we say, "No, we can't," there's no reason for the American people to vote for us.



-Laelth

[PatSeg]

2. Well done!

Did you write that? Great overview. Look forward to Part 2!

[Laelth]

5. I did. Thank you.

Here's to THE WHOLE CHICKEN.





-Laelth

[PatSeg]

7. That was so impressive!

Yes, to the whole chicken, even it is one or two parts at a time!!!

[Laelth]

13. I'll take one part at a time.

So long as we are working to give the American people what they want and what they deserve, we are doing our duty. When we don’t, we’re useless, and there’s no incentive for the people to vote for us.

No?

-Laelth

[PatSeg]

16. Exactly

Government's role is to serve the people. Those who end up just serving themselves, need to be voted out.

I know people get impatient with one or two parts at a time, but if we look back, we can see the progress of those individual steps. Progress comes with persistence and patience, and acknowledging how far we've come, while looking ahead to more progress.

[Laelth]

22. Change comes in rapid bursts ...

... punctuated by long periods of dormancy and regression. Our last period of rapid change occurred under LBJ in the 1960s. We have been slowly regressing (on the economic issues) since then.

We’re overdue for a liberal correction.

-Laelth

[PETRUS]

23. I see it similarly.

Rapid change is also almost always preceded (or perhaps "precipitated" would be a better word here) by years of activism involving highly visible - and often disruptive - people's movements. There have been spikes of activism in the last decade (including more vigorous labor activity, BLM, Occupy, etc.), but I'm not sure the bottom-up pressure has built to the point it needs to. My perception (which could be wrong), is that the general response to dissent and discontent is to "manage" it, rather than grant many (if any) meaningful concessions.

Your OP is cool, btw.

[Laelth]

28. Excellent point.

I am not sure, either, that the bottom-up pressure you describe is at a level yet where it can be usefully harnessed, but I certainly hope it’s getting close.

Thank you for the kind words.

-Laelth

[PETRUS]

30. Sure!

What worries me is that history isn't a linear narrative of "progress," even though it's sort of taught that way. What comes next could be a revival of New Deal-style answers (or some kind of left-leaning politics), but it could just as easily be an authoritarian nightmare or a social/political collapse. I'm cautiously optimistic about the near to medium term future, but far from certain.

[PatSeg]

24. Yes

It definitely feel like we've regressed a lot on economic issues and the income inequality just keeps getting worse. We are overdue and what we really need is Democratic control of the White House, the senate, and the house for a prolonged period of time. Democrats need to pay more attention to down ballot races and always vote in the midterms.

[Laelth]

25. You're not getting any argument from me on that. n/t

-Laelth

[LakeArenal]

8. Funny you should mention it. These came with our recent purchase.

Never happened before:

[Laelth]

11. You've got some GREEN NEW DEAL.

Be careful with those parts of the chicken.



-Laelth

[MyNameGoesHere]

10. That whole chicken born without a head?

[Laelth]

12. Argh!

I couldn’t find a good image with the head, but I can assure you that I want the head too.

I WANT THE WHOLE CHICKEN!





-Laelth

[zackymilly]

14. You voted for Bernie as per your daughter, but now you're for Biden.

I told you about letting your kids run over you!

[Laelth]

17. I am a team player, even if Bernie isn't.

Democratic voters spoke on Super Tuesday, and they spoke loudly. I heard them, and I followed the team.

As for my daughter, she hasn’t posted for days. If you see her online, be kind, please.

She isn’t taking the party’s rejection of Bernie well.

She wants THE WHOLE CHICKEN.

-Laelth

[zackymilly]

15. The whole chicken? Don't come crying when you don't get the Vegan vote!

[Laelth]

18. LOL. You got me.

I am CERTAIN that I just alienated the vegan and the vegetarian vote.

Mea culpa.





-Laelth

[wyldwolf]

19. I want the whole chicken...

... between two glazed doughnuts.

[Laelth]

20. Right on!

But what are the glazed doughnuts?

I probably want them too.



-Laelth

[LaelthsDaughter]

21. YOU RIGHT FAM!!

Agreed! I want my WHOLE chicken and I’m mad at the possibility that I will not in my life time get my chicken.

To all the scaredy cats, bok bok!

[Laelth]

31. Thank you, my daughter. n/t

-Laelth

[Beartracks]

26. I WANT THE WHOLE CHICKENCHILADA!

I think there's a whole chicken in there for everybody.

=============

[Laelth]

27. That's the spirit. n/t

-Laelth