What do you Berners think of this. It was on my FB and another Bernie Site...is it gaining

[dreamnightwind]

60. OK, but who here is arguing to not stay in the fight?

I think we're just discussing different ways to go about that fight, as is the OP.

What you write in your 2nd paragraph is basically the work-within-the-system approach, right? It's what we've always been doing, and we've been largely ignored by the powers that be.

We now, presumably, have greater numbers, yet still are ignored by the powers that be. We have to change that, somehow.

Our own party leadership fights everything you are advocating for. Primaries of Democratic incumbents are all but forbidden (I think they'd only approve of primarying a leftist in favor of a corporatist). Publicizing betrayals, trying to shame them or scare them to respect the people's demands, those are good actions, nothing we haven't been already trying though, and our track record is not good.

I read the linked article. I liked the part about citizen lobbyists, I think, not entirely sure, dislike the whole lobbyist thing but we have to influence our representatives somehow. I'm wondering how you see that happening? Usually such things are institutionally driven. Who do these lobbyists work for, under what name or organization?

I'm more of the mind that it's ultimatum time for the party. We need very substantial change, and the party needs to show us, now, that they are part of the solution and not part of the problem. By pushing Hillary on us, they have pretty much sealed their fate on this. Most unfortunate.

So, given that, what next?

I think the main problem here is corporate money, and I think a very large percentage of the voting public understands at least that much. We have over 40% of voters who are refusing to affiliate with a party, corporate money is one of the biggest reasons for this.

I am thinking more and more that we need to see a non-partisan party that defines itself on issues of full public financing of elections and of any money elected officials receive (no paid speeches, for example, with a long window of none before and after political employment). Such a political entity would have a platform of no corporate money, retooling our economy to use renewable energy and fight climate change, reversing monopolistic trends, and ending the U.S. empire. Within this entity, there would be separate entities (caucuses or parties, I'm not sure) that would be allowed to position themselves anywhere along the left-right spectrum. The Democratic Party could exist as a center-left entity under that umbrella, or more likely it would be on the outside and we'd be fighting against it, since the party has doubled down on its corporatist agenda.

Anyway, this would connect to the vast disaffected electorate, and give them and anyone else room to be who they are along the left-right spectrum while fighting the issues that transcend all other issues as a united people.