My Thanks to Bernie Sanders

[malthaussen]

105. Fascinating thread...

... not least because several of the responses IMO amount to "kicking someone when he is down." Pour moi, I will await events... should I live so long to reasonably assess the value of the next President and Congress, I'll do so then, not before the event when everything is a pig in a poke. The Democratic candidate hasn't even made it to the WH yet, it is rather premature to evaluate.

Mr Sanders harked back to a different age, one that it will be up to the rising generation to resurrect or not, as they please. I liked that analogy of a rear-view mirror with "Objects may appear closer than they are." It sums up beautifully the sense of disappointment many feel when they view this year's primary results. I'd also suggest, though, that the rear-view mirror might be more rose-tinted than otherwise. In the words of Bergman and Bergman, "Can it be that it was all so simple then?" That's a fraught question. We were all so much younger then (those of us were alive at all), and perhaps our experience lacked the nuances that are a consequence of piling up the years. Or perhaps the sorts of energy and hope sent in the direction of Mr Sanders are the province of the young, and hold for us of a more weathered appearance the virtue of reminding us when we were young. However it occurred, it seems a singular accomplishment that an old fart like Bernie could arouse such enthusiasm among people young enough to be his great-grandchildren (and a few more contemporary old farts who see in him the embodiment of principles that matter to them, and that have been given short shrift in politics for a generation or so). Usually, it is younger leaders who attract the attention of the young.

That the GOP has experienced a revolution even more profound than the Democratic Party is something that should interest us. Both Mr Sanders and Mr Trump have this in common: they have served as a focus for those discontented with the way things are done. And it is pretty clear that those voices are a substantial part of the U.S. electorate, if not an absolute majority. There are many possible reasons for this discontent, and time will tell if our government, whoever is at the helm, and whoever is sitting in our legislature, will address these reasons or ignore them as usual.

There is this morsel of comfort for those who are voting against a candidate, rather than voting for their candidate of choice: never in U.S. politics of the past 50 years has the person to be voted against been so completely reprehensible. It is not much comfort, but those who see voting as an act of conscience can, if they will, be satisfied that the other candidate can not be borne. (This presumes the GOP goes ahead and nominates Mr Trump; if they stage some sort of coup and present another candidate, he will assuredly be less of a stinker than Donald. Well, unless they nominate Cruz)

-- Mal