The DLC, the Democrats, and "The Law of Diminishing Returns"

[Totally Committed]

In another thread, I was challenged about my avowed refusal of support for any candidate, for any office, who is DLC. Since I am at a point in my life when I, literally, do not have the time for bullshit any longer, the exchange left me thinking... How do I best explain my position in a way that it will be, once and for all, understood?

"The Law of Diminishing Returns" is what came to mind:

Law of Diminishing Returns - The tendency for a continuing application of effort or skill toward a particular project or goal to decline in effectiveness after a certain level of result has been achieved. A law affirming that to continue after a certain level of performance has been reached will result in a decline in effectiveness.

In common usage, the “point of diminishing returns” is a supposed point at which additional effort or investment in a given endeavor will not yield correspondingly increasing results.

I have been a lifelong supporter of the Democratic Party. I have spent 35+ years supporting this Party with my vote, my money, my time, and my effort. I did so with an open heart, and the belief that this Party supported all the things I supported: Civil and Human Rights, Women's Rights, true Equality for all, Religious Freedom, Personal Privacy, Equal Education, Affirmative Action, Anti-Nukes, Peace, Universal Healthcare, the End of Poverty, and the Care and Protection of the Environment.

If you notice, nowhere in my concerns is the robust health of the bottom line for large corporations, and their shareholders, at the expense of the least fortunate in our society. Like most Americans, I am all for an economy that supports The American Dream, and all that entails, for all its citizens. As an Economic means to that end, I have always seen the following as necessary: Good, decent jobs with a workable minimum wage. An equitable Welfare System, not only as a safety net in bad times, but as a hand up and out of poverty in good times. Yes, corporations have, in the past been the foundation of our economy, providing the jobs, the wages, and support for the safety nets, mostly through Unions, but even without Union involvement, there was always the sense that employees were to be valued and treated with dignity and respect. That was then, this is now:

Sadly, this is no longer true. In this era of "The Merger"... Corporations are getting bigger and bigger by sending more and more jobs overseas. Their bottom line is the all-important variable in what has made, for me at least, "The Law of Diminishing Returns" part of my personal political equasion. How so, you may ask? Well, at the same time that this Merger-Mania has made corporations grow larger and more wealthy, Democratic politicians have seen the need for larger and larger amounts of money to secure re-election against an ever more powerful, and frankly, more wealthy Republican Party. The corporations, seeing a chance to jump into the breech and provide the enormous funding sought by these Democrats. In exchange for a candidate's dedication to the interests of the corporations that supported them, came not only the money for their re-election campaigns, but votes for Bills like the 1996 Welfare Reform Act, NAFTA, The Bankruptcy Bill, and CAFTA, among many.

To insure this Party's continued support for the Corporate Interests over their constituent's interests, the DLC was created during the Clinton Administration, and headed by President Clinton, himself. His election, and subsequent re-election is touted as the sole triumph of their "Corporations-First" philosophy, and it is upon this one triumph that they claim more and more power within our Party. Quietly at first, they amassed their power, adding more and more politicians to their roster. This was accomplished by a cynically conceived ideology that involved voting with the Republicans, placating the Republicans, going along with the Republicans... cooperating with the very entity that sought to destroy us. Instead of fighting along with us and coming up with better strategies that would have won us elections against the Republicans, the DLC -- I believe -- cynically and methodically sought to amass enough power, so that when the RNC had sufficiently beaten down the "real" Democrats, they would be in a position to move in and seize the Democratic Party from our hands.

Those of us who have sweat blood to build this Party, with hope and desire for a better life for all Americans, are beginning to see the DLC and their Corporate Agenda making their move to steal the heart and soul of the very Party we helped grow. For all our hard work, we are seeing all our hopes and dreams being trampled into the political ground for the sake of bottom lines of the corporations that seek more power through the DLC.

There are those who will roll over and let that happen. What good will it do, they will say, to oppose those with all the power and all the money? A Democrat, any Democrat in the White House is better than a Republican, after all. Excuses will abound. But, I am here to tell you that if it is justice for all Americans -- both economic and political -- is what you desire from a White House, a DLC candidate will give you as much of that as a Republican one will. The face of that White House will probably not be as angry and as ugly as the Republican one, but make no mistake, those Americans of color, in poverty, female, or LGBT will be screwed just as much no matter which candidate (the DLC or the Republican) prevails. I cannot countenance that. I will not be a part of that system or reality, and this is where The Law of Diminishing Returns comes in... I will take what chips I have left on the table (my money, my effort, my time, and MY VOTE) away with me (The DLC has made it clear they don't need them, anyway...) Staying and participating, at that point, will be akin to shoveling shit on the incoming tides, so why bother? I WON'T. Count on it.

I will not support any candidate who is DLC. I won't work against him/her, I will just go away and refuse to participate in the charade any longer. The diminishment of my returns stops here. No amount of insulting me, threatening me, cajolling me, reasoning with me, or dismissing my opinion will change my mind. I am drawing a line in the sand, and I will refuse every effort to drag me over it. And, I am heartily ashamed it has taken me this long to come to this decision.

TC