They got it all wrong: New data shows how Dems can win back America [View all]

[DonViejo]

Turns out conservatives are getting crushed in family values debates. Here's 5 other findings the left should know

ANAT SHENKER-OSORIO AND JEFFREY PARCHER

To everything there is a season and now is the time for election dissection. How do we reconcile an electorate that raised the minimum wage everywhere possible and opted for Republicans who profess not to believe in it? And what do we make of the – even for America – pathetically low turnout?

One-third of Americans struggle to make ends meet. That’s 106 million people who often don’t know how they’ll pay rent, get childcare or retire. Even in our fractious America, that’s a large group with shared interests – decent wages, reliable work hours, affordable child and health care, and the means to enable a livable last couple of decades.

Never mind the 99 percent, why don’t we see the bottom 33 percent rising up? They’re the ones with the sharpest ax to grind with our current economic policies. We know there are major structural and economic impediments to them organizing and voting, but are there other reasons they’re sitting on the political sidelines?

We recently completed an investigation to understand why and what to do about it. We wanted to know if there are new and better ways to describe poverty, its origins and fixes that could compel people to challenge the economic status quo. We sought unfiltered language from the people most affected and focused on frames that move those people to action rather than merely meeting the mushy middle where they are.

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http://www.salon.com/2014/12/03/they_got_it_all_wrong_new_data_shows_how_dems_can_win_back_america/