Perhaps it is all wishful thinking - But if Bernie Sanders did run for President in 2016 - would you

[MADem]

61. We'll wait a long time, I suspect. The best hope is gains by steady inches, not by leaps and

bounds.

Any time you go too far in one direction or the other, you have people who feel bitter, resentful, not-listened-to, and disenfranchised. You've got to pull those people along, and that takes time, because a lot of them have been sold a bill of goods, and they will feel foolish for a bit while they process the fact that they've been fucked over by their "heroes." Trying to shove an agenda down their throats just won't work. They'll dig in and double down, rather than admit they were deceived. Looking for a "savior" who will "talk sense" to the masses and make them see things your way just isn't going to happen.

There's a real divide in this country. A lot of the wingnuts on the right feel that anytime you give a poor person something, it TAKES something from them. They don't realize that what it "takes" is the likelihood that they will get robbed, burgled or otherwise ripped off by people who are desperate in their poverty. Their likelihood of injury or death by violence goes down with every person lifted out of poverty. People who are doing well are far less likely to engage in petty, or other, thefts, or any other crimes, for that matter. So these folks on the right with their "I've got MINE" 'tudes need to be disabused of that notion, and once they see the ACA working, they just might start to grab a clue.

Once the ACA takes hold, people will eventually figure out that it's a good deal, and they'll embrace it. It will become the paradigm, and then the trick will be to take it to the next level, and "offer" a government-centered program. If that works well, people will migrate on their own.

I think a lot of people just don't realize that even passing the ACA was a HUGE game-changer (well, a few people realized it--those assholes who kept trying to repeal it forty times in the House). It is going to change the way people think and feel about the role of government (albeit government-lite) in our lives. No more "drowning in the bathtub" talk--now it'll be more about "A rising tide lifts all boats."

It's not going to happen in a minute, though, it's going to take a while--we have a long journey down a rough road. It's more important, IMO, to support the folks who are trying to shepherd us down that long road, rather than b-word at them that the process isn't happening fast enough. The nation isn't going to suddenly lurch to the left and the whole process of pulling them towards a more just society where everyone has a modicum of dignity in their lives ain't gonna happen any faster; we need to nudge, not shove, and when possible, praise, not blame. All excessive griping or infighting does is give the far right something to sink their teeth into (see, the left doesn't like it EITHER, e.g.) and give them cheap shot opportunities at trying out the "Divide and Conquer" game.

Probably TLDR, this essay, but it's my POV on the issue!