Reply #23: Give up the hysteria; give up the despair; start doing it in the streets

[Bucky]

These options suck. The media isn't fascist, it's corporatist. You can pull out that old Mussolini quote if you like, the bad neighbor's unchained pit bull is still not a velociraptor. Learn the difference.

Quit assuming They are all out to get us. A healthy respect for your opponent's amorality is helpful. Paranoia is not. Learn the difference. This "fascist regime" is not fascist. They've got some real bad authoritarian leanings that will, in the long run and short run, hurt this nation. But they're still the gang that couldn't shoot straight.

Was the election stolen? I still don't know. Bev Harris says some real sensible things, but then goes and acts all marginal about DU.com as if Skinner, Earl, and Elad are part of some conspiracy out to get her. But we know for a fact that voting irregularities took place--some coordinated and well thought thru, others poorly executed.

We'll only fix that system by taking a principled reformist stance that every vote should count. That message will resonate with people, that's an argument we'd win: everyone has a right to have their vote counted. The message we'll lose on is this: the secret cabal of Ohio and Florida election officials and the Gallup Group stole the election by design.

What we need to do is take to the streets, make a noise, keep up the pressure and work the system. The victories will not be sudden and they usually won't be dramatic. Over the middle decades of the 20th century Democrats built up a great nation by believing in gradualism. Take the long view.

There's a balance between "live to fight another day" and "staying pure in face of evil." We should be both pragmatic and idealistic. We should take to the streets and sing the national anthem. We should proclaim universal respect for human rights and point out every time the Republicans disrespect the principles of our founding documents. We should be proactive, and hopeful, and fucking angry. But the heat should be contrained, because the successful message can only be: we can govern better.

Finally, we must purge Red State bashing from our rhetoric. It is offensive to every important feature of Americanism. From Patrick Henry to Ben Franklin to Abe Lincoln to Franklin Roosevelt to Mario Cuomo, the right message has always been "we're hanging together, we're fighting for everyone, especially the little guy."

That's what I'd say.