Stand back! I think he’s gonna hurl!
Ned Lamont’s victory last night was bigger than Fitzmas.
We have a tradition around here, a sort of people’s pastime: celebrating the arrival of a new post with the gleeful exclamation of the word "Fitz!" (or some such variation). It bothers some people, but not me. I’m glad people here, who as commenters are the best on the web (am I biased?), exult in what we do together. Shouting "Fitz!" is, for many, a recognition of virtue, an expression of hope.
However, following Ned’s victory last night, in my opinion, the "Fitz!" exclamation is outdated. More fundamentally, I believe it has always been misplaced.
Last week in our FDL Late Nite Saturday edition, we held a fantastic discussion about our heroes. If you have not yet had time to peruse those comments, I encourage you do so. Brilliant, inspiring stuff there.
If you take a gander at those comments, you’ll see the greatest, most influential heroes in our lives are people we’ve personally known. "Ordinary" people. You can bump into them on the street and not know they are heroes, worthy of emulation. What’s the lesson to learn here?
We can be heroes.
Patrick Fitzgerald is doing exemplary work, and it’s truly a joy to watch him proceed. In a time when honesty and justice seem perilously rare in our government and media establishments, his investigation is more than a breath of fresh air. It’s water in the desert. And yet, there’s always been a trap inherent in Fitz! worship: it helps to keep us passive. Every minute we wait for Fitzmas makes us spectators, hoping for something to happen, instead of becoming actors who make things happen.
Most people in the world sit back and wait for someone else to come riding a white horse to change the world and save us all. It’s wired into our imaginations, like some scene in Lord of the Rings where Gandalf leads the cavalry to the rescue. But we’re not the fantasists: we’re the reality based community. Leave the Xbox worldview to the Yellow Elephants and 101st Fighting Keyboardists. Their cluelessness is our advantage.
Ned Lamont’s victory last night was our collective victory in the netroots and grassroots. His is the first major campaign wholly conceived and developed through our movement. It’s a bigger victory than Fitzmas will ever be because Fitzmas is temporally focused on a few scummy perps. But even if or when those perps are brought to justice, nothing about our government will fundamentally have been changed. Patrick Fitzgerald can’t do that, but we can.
Ned’s victory is bigger than Fitzmas can ever be because it’s about the rise of a new movement that can upend the Democratic establishment, change the country and even alter the course of world events. Fitzmas represents a negative, defensive action, but the movement pushing the rise of Ned Lamont is positive and staggeringly more potent.
I’m as hopeful as anyone that justice will be served in the Plame investigation, but it’s time for us all to outgrow searching for heroes elsewhere. We ought look no further than toward each other. For ourselves, we can be heroes.
Yes, we all have flaws. We all have good days and bad days. We’ve all, I’m sure, made mistakes in our lives, let some people down. No matter. Now is the time to step up. Ned’s victory is important, and yet the unglamourous work of building a sustainable movement has just begun.
Tomorrow, members of the Roots Project will get together for a conference call that will include not only a basic group orientation, but also some preliminary thoughts about movement building and the rise of people-powered politics in the wake of last night’s victory in Connecticut. If you’d like to join your neighbors in the Roots Project, please follow instructions you can find here.
If I can counsel anything, I’d say let’s stop waiting for political messiahs, resolving instead to become better organized and active. That’s the surest, shortest way to taste more sweet, savory victories like the one over Rape Gurney Joe last night.
Oh, and one more thing: there’s a new word I’d like to propose we adopt for the beginning of each newborn FDL thread, a word that I think best reflects where our collective hopes truly reside:
"Fitz!"
"ROOTS!"
(Photo credit to CTblogger at MyLeftNutmeg.)
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Fitz!!
Fitz twice as nice!
ROOTS!
erm, Roots!
Fitz-pialidosuis!
Some news from the CO conventions:
Dems United and Fronting a Powerful Slate of Candidates
and
Republicans Sucking Wind
Fitzmont!
Pach:
I’m with your larger idea totally, but you might want to reconsider that “war cry” change. Traditions serve a purpose and “Fitz!” is one of ours. Since I’m writing this when only the first “Fitz!” has gone up I don’t know what anybody else thinks. It will be interesting to see.
You’re absolutely right about it being up to us to carry things forward. Weve got to take the fight to them and be ready to take some dirty punches. We’ve also got to keep giving money and recruiting others to our noble cause. We are in the right, and if we are tenacious we will prevail!
Rotz!
Okay,
ROOTS-A very old schoolyard ditty
Rooty toot toot
Rooty toot toot
We are the boys
From the institute
We don’t drink
And we don’t chew
And we don’t hang with
The boys that do
Our class won the bible
But I’m hopes that you lose the primary…Joe
You go Ned
Fues
Power to the people!!
Here’s my own contribution for the roots, a lazy song that was throw online anonymously for a reason, I ain’t even close to a musician.
The People, not the bosses, should rule.
Ditto fahrender at 8.
Fitz!… er … ROOTS!
Agreed.
But as for “Patrick Fitzgerald is doing exemplary work,” relative to the Plame/Wilson case, we don’t know that do we? Nary a leak. Not one. Nada. Or, I should say, no leaks from the prosecution side. And, I’m sure that everyone on his staff knows how to contact Steno Sue.
But given his history of “exemplary work” I think it’s reasonable to assume that that is what he is doing now.
Fitz! You go boy!
Great post, Pach. There are so many things about the Ned triumph we can be proud of participating in. I think the blogs do a lot to shape the dialog about Plame too, and we do a lot of watchdog/oversight stuff that prevents another Whitewater from happening, but that’s different than working for progressive change within the Democratic party. It’s been a really enjoyable day, made all the more pleasant knowing that those who were confident it couldn’t be done are having to rethink many of their assumptions today.
Fitz!!! Justice first. Without it, small inroads won’t last — the cancer on this presidency and the country is much too great.
dang it– lost my comment:
Pach– great post and thoughts. I love the roots and the fitz. I have often said that there is way too much on Pat’s shoulders, but I want the justice and the truth to come out and expose them all while we work at the roots. It will be a perfect storm! In the meantime, I will offer the words to a melody I love and a singer I respect and miss, Bob Marley. I would love to capture his joy for life and his truths again here in America.
>>>>>
Play I some music, this a reggae music (repeat)
Roots rock reggae, this a reggae music (repeat)
Hey mister music, sure sounds good to me
I cant refuse it, what to be got to be
Feel like dancing, dance cause we are free
Feel like dancing, come dance with me
Roots rock reggae, this a reggae music (repeat)
Play I some music, this a reggae music (repeat)
Play I on the r&b, want all my people to see
We bubbling on the top 100, just like a mighty dread
(repeat)
Roots rock reggae, this a reggae music (repeat)
Play I some music, this a reggae music (repeat)
FitzRoots!
Helden!
I’m glad Lamont did well.
But Democrats have to beat real Republicans, and soon, and in real numbers. So let’s do that, too.
Jane: It’s like reading Before the Storm in real time, and mirror image. Fun, indeed.
hurm!
Back in 2003, I was still getting my news from CNN, MSNBC and even Fox News. I had no idea how misinformed I was. But sites like FDL and dKos and TPM have changed everything. We are part of a revolution.
Win or lose, the CT convention today is like the shots fired at Lexington and Concord! Dem Establishment best wake up…
You don’t have to sell me on the fact that getting people with principal elected – who will stand up and be for something – is a far more important thing in the overall scheme than Rove/Scooter – roots v. rooter.
OTOH, this site has been all about the coverage and has a lot of people who really enjoy watching the proceedings unfold with Christy’s insight and who just flat out love Fitzgerald and I don’t think that is something that needs change. I’m not much a heroes person and someone like Feingold fills the bill for me more, but I really like seeing people have fun and faith and trust and tradition and hope.
ON any given day, as the sands shift, the Opening Fitz is sometimes a Colbert or a Murtha or a Conyers or a Feingold or a Lamont or I would bet now a Roots and many the combinations thereof– the hat tip to diversity. But on every day here it will always be, I think, for a long, long time, Fitz leading or mixed in. It’s part of FDL and while I can’t imagine ever being the one to post it, I’ll be a little sad if it goes away. It’s gone a bit beyond keystrokes to an energized feel – a “Remember the Alamo” call.
Great post though and it captures me on a lot of different levels. I was hoping for something rousing from you Pach and you delivered. I’ve been heartsick over a big bay and feeling bad about being so upset about something that is not the most important thing in the greater scheme of many things.
For just tonight and in honor of the
Roots
I’ll tack on:
MiracleGro!!
FOOTZ!!!
“Victory”? He got his ass handed to him by a 2 to 1 margin.
Moderator’s note: This comment has been altered to delete offensive namecalling directed at community members, which we will not tolerate. Repeat offenses invite banning.
Rootz!
JP:
Apparently you are lake to this party.
I guess “principal” in the capital sense would be nice for the run, but what I meant was “principles”
Somethings burning? Hurry! Denial runs deep but not fast enough, JP!
Pach-
Is it still OK to call my goldfish Patrick?
Brilliant, Pach. Thank you for sparking this fire…
shoot, lost an apostrophe somewhere @ 30– help, feels just like losing a contact…
found it!
You have a point in suggesting a more definitive or characteristic battle cry, but since this web site has been so successful in going to the commentors for suggestions and winnowing out the ones that seem to fit the question best, perhaps it would be productive to find what the troops think would best serve as one for FDL commentors. Your suggestion of “roots” may turn out to be the popular one or the one that people identify with most…maybe not.
RITZ!
Rootz rock reggae!
Rude boy post Pach – you Rawk! ROOTS!
Phenominal post Pach. Thank you.
I am so moved.
I personally despise the Democratic Party almost as much as I do the Republicans because of their contemptible cowardice, smarminess, and enabling of the Republican agenda. I left the Democratic Party last fall in the wake of the Roberts cave-in, and henceforth the only Democrats I will vote for are ones who I believe will show spine and resolve in opposing Bush.
That said, I strongly believe the fight to flush Joe Lieberman down the toilet is the most important race of 2006. As much as I would like to see the defeat of Jim Talent, Dogfuckerboy Santorum, and Conrad Burns, I think it is FAR more important that we not only defeat Joe Lieberman, but that we humiliate him, crush him, shit on him. Why? To send a message to other Democrats that they can either support traditional Democratic values and oppose Chimpco, or face similar humiliation and defeat — the wrath of the roots.
In short, it’s about accountability. The base has failed to hold Democrats accountable, and as a result we now have an epidemic of waffling, cowardice, appeasement, and triangulation. We need to clean house, and get rid of the deadwood — NOW. We need to throw Lieberman, and then Hillary Clinton, Ben Nelson, Dianne Feinstein, Joe Biden, Upchuck Schumer, and plenty of others into the toilet and flush, flush, flush that motherfucker until all of those worthless, useless assholes are nothing but a bad memory.
Really, other than Russ Feingold and Barbara Boxer, I’d be hard-pressed to name any Democrat in the Senate who I have any respect for. It seems like lots of folks here like Barack Obama, but I just don’t see it — he is a HUGE disappointment, another triangulating let’s-not-rock-the-boat Hillary Clinton wannabe. Every time he opens his piehole, I just want to scream at him to shut the fuck up.
This shit has to stop. If this country is going to survive, it needs a party that will stand up to the Repukes. The Democrats as they stand today don’t have enough spine to stand up to a trio of ants at a fucking picnic. Throwing Joe Lieberman out a window and down the stairs is only the first step in the long road to making the Democratic Party what it should be.
Thank you Jane, Kristy, and Pachacutec for continuing to keep this issue — and this extremely important race — front and center.
You’re absolutely right (as usual) Pachacutec. We, the People need to make our voices heard and our presence felt among the Entitlement Monsters that are currently running this country. Most people don’t believe that they can affect real change in the world. The fact that Lamont has upset the apple cart and cleared the way for a primary vote in CT is HUGE.
It’s an exciting time to be a Progressive.
Good point about passive vs. active; prior to the advent of netroots, participation in our democracy was a passive thing. We passively read the news stenographically recorded for our consumption and voted according to the most valid propaganda avaliable.
Now with the internet, we can actually be informed and active (with a little help from our friends, like FDL!).
Regarding your radical proposal, just “roots!” doesn’t do it for me, what about “Fitz-Colbert-Roots!?”
I’ve been waiting for some Progressive candidate to whip out an old Lennon tune as a rockin campaign song.
But it could serve nicely as a ROOTS theme:
~~~
“Let’s Go!
Only people know just how to talk to people…
Only people know just how to change the world…
Only people realize the power of people-
well a million minds are better than one so come on.
Get It On.”
~~~
Also a spooky rallying cry thrown in:
‘WE DON’T WANT NO BIG BROTHER SCENE!’
Off the MindGames record, a hidden gem.
Sure seems to sum up what we try to be about.
‘Let’s Go’
stevie:
I’m purposely hanging back to let the community wrestle with the bit of perhaps shocking contrarianism I’ve injected into our vibrant FDL culture. I have full confidence in the wisdom of the community.
Let me emphasize, for all, I mean in no way to dim the light shed on Fitz or the work he’s doing. . . or the work we’re diligently doing here at FDL to provide accurate coverage of the crimes against Plame and against the country.
I only point out that as we shine the spotlight there, we can be lulled into the position of viewers of events on a screen as if in a movie house. When we do that, we lose time and power; we are less organized than we might be. Not everyone notices this, or counts the opportunity cost involved.
And I really do believe that the rise of the progressive left, evidenced by the Lamont victory over the Lieberman machine last night, is bigger than Fitzmas. I mentioned this in a comment last night and virtuoso Plameologist emptywheel implored that I turn that sentiment into a post. And so here we are.
‘Schew’
that’s a load off.
Uh. I thought that “Fitz!” was just a variant of “First!” – as in “first post!”. You see that at Slashdot all the time.
“Wholly conceived by the netroots”? Didn’t Mr. Lamont have something to say about it?
The “Fitz” call evolved naturally from “first” to “frist” to “fitz”. We have fun with it. Declaring a new word to start the thread feels contrived to me–a PR gimmick that takes a lot of the fun out. Why not let this continue to evolve as it will.
In all honesty-
Waking up this morning to 33.4% was the best news i’ve received since taking an interest in progressive electoral politics.
(i began working with the Kucinich campaign because he was Vegan).
I think Ned’s victory is a huge touchdown for ‘Us’.
But you are absolutely right, Pach.
It’s gonna be a long season.
And it’s time for us all to get in the game.
Thanks for this post.
Pach, you can’t use “Roots”…Alex Haley’s family just filed a Cease and Desist order. heh heh
Great job on the Lamont coverage here…it was fun to report from the convention. Today’s session was electric; I can totally understand why some people become political junkies.
I’ve got a ton of video to go through, and I’m still kicking myself over the lost opportunity to question Joe Lieberman when he walked right by me on the media platform. When I asked his Communications Director if I could have a word with him, she said he had to get home for the Sabbath and gave me her card. Then he was hustled off with the TV news cameras following…Damn!
I’m grateful to CT Blogger for ensuring that I received my media credentials…there’s nothing quite so cool as having an “all access” pass.
LL: I dictate nothing. A “proposal” is subject to community approval or rejection.
tatere: Of course, and he has run the campaign as a netrootsenabled/grassroots driven campaign, building it through the netroots to gain momentum, including signatures endorsing him to run in the firts place. No party machine or DSCC involved. This is a new campaign model.
i like FIRTS better than ROOTS.
LL
Good idea.
Remember, Joe: if a state won’t give nominations to rapist supporters for principled reasons, other states are just a short ride away.
Troll who thinks using another name fools someone
OT– LOL– the SNL snarkiness on bushco with a Neil Young impersonating singer and band… Rachel Dratch is an amazingly funny and fearless lady!
Just working my way through some earlier threads.
OT – but MattO, the Bechtel piece is wonderful. The thing is, for a lot of massive projects – Bechtel and Halliburton are the most logical normal selections. OTOH, the absence of accountabiity and penalties in the contracts, the no-bids and add on contracts that don’t prohibt stairstepped affiliates, etc. – it’s all an embarassment. What ever happened to Bunny? Our whistleblowers get creamed and if Hayden has his way, it will be worse. *s*
Rayne – if you are around and if your question has not already been addressed. Right now, bc of recusals, Gonzales cannot directly fire Fitzgerald and you don’t just undo recusals. What happened is that after the Ashcroft recusal and Comey delegation to Fitzgerald, Comey in his slot – Deputy AG and acting AG for the matter on which Ashcroft and Gonzales recused – transferred his supervisory “acting AG for the recusal matters” to Margolis. Per the affidavits Comey and Fitzgerald, everyone is pretty comfortable that a) Gonzales cannot remove Fitzgerald, b) Margolis could remove Fitzgerald, c) McNulty – who now has Comey’s old slot (meaning, in part, that when the Mousaoui DP case tanked he got to handle the pressers that Gonzales was lined up to handle if DOJ had won) could also revoke the delegation to Maroglis that was made when Comey was leaving and there was no DepAG in place, d) if McNulty did take the suerivision back, he could fire Fitzgerald.
So it could happen, but only through Margolis (which apparently no one thinks would ever happen) or through McNulty if he takes it back from Margolis. I believe several people weighed in that those things are just not going to happen. I don’t know the personalities involved at all, so I am just going with the flow on the “it won’t happen”
Nothing really would surprise me (other than a unified show of moral fiber). ???
I’m much more disapointed about the dismissal of the rendition/torture cases than I think I could be about something as bleak happening on the Rove/Libby front. I think that getting Bush exposed as leaker in chief and getting the Cheney notes out are standalone accomplishments, whatever else happens. I though that with the leaker in chief, so Cheney’s notes were gravy. If anything else comes of it – we’ve moved on to spoon bread, sweet corn and cherry pie territory.
…”unless you freeze and don’t utilize it ;)…”
I didn’t so much freeze as I failed to act quickly; sort of like JFK’s driver after that first shot rang out.
Next time, no second guessing…I’m hitting the accelerator and if someone gets run over, tough titty. LOL
The Decider loses another ally. Saynora Egypt.
Heckuva foreign policy.
http://english.aljazeera.net/N…..17B1B1.htm
Bob Adams- next time, just trip the b*gger. Thanks so much for all of your contributions.
“We can be heroes, just for one day“
-David Bowie, covered by the Wallflowers
I think of that song when stories break about people like Harry Taylor, Jean Sara Rohe, and everyday people just take their opportunity and make the most of it.
“spoon bread, sweet corn and cherry pie territory.”
Gives me the munchies.
-GSD
p.s. that would be a video encounter I’d like to see! Accidents do happen!
Pach, you are, of course, right (wait a minute – are you sure you’re not Armando? ;) about the importance of Ned’s victory and the dangers of passivity. On the other hand, the Fitz is part of the spirit of FDL, and I’m not sure how much impact changing it will actually have, activity-wise.
But if the consensus is for change, I like Tom DC/VA’s “Rootz,” because no matter how involved we get in other things, we’ll still be rooting for the tall man.
OT but outrageous : via Jeralyn at TalkLeft: for the first time in American history, the FBI raided the offices of Congressman Bill Jefferson in the Rayburn Bldg in DC.
Was Lieberman getting back to this Sabbath?
“Generals gathered in their masses
Just like witches at black masses
Evil minds that plot destruction
Sorcerers of death’s construction
In the fields the bodies burning
As the war machine keeps turning
Death and hatred to mankind
Poisoning their brainwashed minds
Oh lord yeah!
Politicians hide themselves away
They only started the war
Why should they go out to fight?
They leave that role to poor”
-GSD
JP, if Leibermann “handed” Ned his “ass,” why won’t
the Vichy DemJoementum commit to supporting the winner of the CT Democratic primary?OT, my copy of BEFORE THE STORM still hasn’t arrived, sorry.
OT, I am behind on the threads, just wanted to make sure this hadn’t slipped by unnoticed: “Specter to Feingold: “I don’t need to be lectured by you.” From Wonkette: “Dammit, there is no juicy stuff going on at the Hayden hearing and meanwhile, the rest of the Senate is getting all catty about gay marriage in the next room. We are so pissed at ourselves for missing Russ Feingold and Arlen Specter (the original Odd Couple) yell at each other. Specter, who is an ass, is voting to send….”
GSD, yeah, it gave me the munchies too. I may have to go get a milkshake.
By the time we got to Rootstock
We were half a million strong
And everywhere there was song and celebration
And I dreamed I saw the Dinos
Heading straight to exits nigh
And we were turning to say buh-bye
And reclaim our nation
(apologies to joni & Punaise))
“the unglamourous work of building a sustainable movement has just begun.”
Pacha you have laid out so clearly how absolutely fundamental the need for an infrastructure is – learned a lot here by watching what happens in it’s absence -
so sign my ass up, give me the most tedious, unsexy stuff you have
*ilson,
That is how the Republicans will win the Black vote. I am sure Tom Delay will decry this as the “criminilaztion of politics”.
Boy, things are getting off the hook nutty as of late. The Decider and Rover and Pickles all entering their willful fantasy land where everyone loves George and no one connects him to the war that has unsettled so many is a big creepy. I want my leaders to have a better grasp of reality. They are entering Kim Jong Ill territory.
-GSD
Folks, in truth, I don’t care how people start the threads. I was being purposely provocative to dramatize a larger point, that Ned Lamont’s victory is extremely significant, and also giving us all a chance as a community to look in the mirror and ask ourselves if we have truly recognized our own collective power and potential.
I’m beginning to regret, however, my rhetorical strategy because I think my main points are getting lost in the “to Fitz! or not to Fitz!” discussion. My bad I guess.
Anne Haygood #37:
POW!
Damn, girl! WONDERFULLY articulated post. I think copies of your post should be sent to EVERY Democrat in Congress.
“Nothing really would surprise me (other than a unified show of moral fiber). ???”
LMAO.
You son of a Fitz.
-GSD
Re battle cry. Since there is a certain amount of exhuberance in expressing one, and since Fitz evolved because his was the first hint of victory for our side in recent years, and since this site harbors mostly progressives… how about a progressive battlecry that gives credit to #l Fitz by retaining the “z” as a contrived contraction for “is”. As each new winner comes along hers or his name could be recognized and used as a marker, more or less, of our progressive victories.
Hence: Nedz!
Meaning Ned is our current charger, winner, challenge, hope or whatever.
Throwing Joe Lieberman out a window and down the stairs is only the first step in the long road to making the Democratic Party what it should be.
I know it’s wrong, but that mental image made me feel all yummy inside.
Pach, your post here says that the next conference call is tomorrow, but the email says it’s next Sunday, the 28th. Which one is right?
Why don’t we compromise with: KAZUZA.
We should also, once and for all, give the administration of George W. Bush, the republicans who lead Congress, and their supporters, allies, friends and enablers their definitive name:
TEAM LOSER
No more trying to be cute or witty; sarcastic, sardonic or ironic; or anything else. And it goes with the photo for the last article.
I’m already at work on T-shirts.
Leslie: check your email for the clarifiaction/correction!
“defenestration
One entry found for defenestration.
Main Entry: de·fen·es·tra·tion
Pronunciation: (”)dE-”fe-n&-’strA-sh&n
Function: noun
Etymology: de- + Latin fenestra window
: a throwing of a person or thing out of a window”
This definition for elucidation only. No harsh conduct is recommended to any public official.
-GSD
Pach, re: your larger point, I don’t think it’s getting lost. It’s just that the Fitz thing is a small concrete detail, and therefore easy to respond to in this forum, whereas the response to your main message, which was wonderful, will be largely manifested offline rather than here.
Leslie, 10:27
Fair eough – thanks!
Oops, nevermind – your correction on the date hadn’t posted yet when I viewed the message just now. Okay, tomorrow it is.
Once more into the Fitz! Dear Friends, Once more.
Or close up the wall with our English Ned.
Pach, everyone knows you’re just making a point, please don’t sweat it…the “Fitz” thing is fine; I’ve posted “Lamont” more than once in the first comment; and I’m sure we’ll see a “Roots” or two very soon.
But your post WAS the thing that mattered…everyone sees that. Good job.
…and 24 hours later, it stills feels awesome to know that Lamont is giving Lieberman “Fitz”!
OfT: New actor, same cue cards
By Swopa May 19 2006 – 7:53am
“One of the indignities of following Iraq news closely is being subjected to the same embarrassing clichés of spin from Orwell Bush administration spokesliars (or dutifully repeated by reporters) again and again.
For example, the Los Angeles Times tells us this morning: The U.S. military’s new chief spokesman in Iraq, Maj. Gen. William B. Caldwell IV, urged the media to focus on Iraqis’ improving participation in national security. He said Iraqis had been phoning in tips to a government hotline at a record pace, helping to prevent even greater violence.
The military didn’t need to hire a new spokesman to say that. They could have just replayed the tape from any number of past briefings, since the “rising number of tips” theme has been a staple of American PR fodder for the past couple of years. For instance …
February 2006:
‘Iraqi citizens are tired of insurgents and their violent tactics and are turning against them, providing tips to coalition and Iraqi security forces and, in some cases, taking action themselves,’ a U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad said today.
‘In January 2006, Iraqi civilians provided more than 1,300 tips to coalition and Iraqi security forces, Army Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch, Multinational Force Iraq spokesman said at a news briefing. That is a huge improvement from the 47 tips received in January 2005, Lynch said…..’”
reggae? classic rawk?
yawn.
sepultera–speed metal brazilian leftist lunatics who rock the fucking mike so hard it bleeds, that’s more my speed:
if you haven’t heard this song, seek it out–it’s a true motivator to go out and kick ass and make a real difference.
Well said, as per usual, Bob Adams in 81.
Rootz
EPU, I remember seeing some kid with a T-shirt of the Bush’s and the caption was “Meet the Fuckers”.
I do like the Team Loser, meet The Losers.
-GSD
How big of a psycholigical shift is going on with the “in your face wingers” these days? They are calling Bush a liberal so that they can distance themselves from him. What a hoot.
You guys, Pach is right. And there have been times through all of this waiting for Fitzmas when I wondered if putting so much of our faith and hope for the Triumph of Truth and Justice on the shoulders of one man was a little (just a little) misguided. Go look in the mirror if you want to see the face of the person who can save America. We are all Harry Taylors and Jean Sara Rohes. Together, we can not only speak truth to power, but lend Power to the Truth.
That’s what I feel like Pach is trying to say. Correct me if I’m wrong. This post is not meant to be a dicussion about what we say at the beginning of a new thread, but about what we do in our daily lives to help make America great again.
‘F-oots’
;>)
Nice work, Pach.
GSD – my dad was a government teacher and also wrote a political column for the local paper. And he found “defenestration” a very useful word. ;)
Howie Klein has been EPU’d, but I wanted to repost this. It was in response to my question as to what out-of-staters can best do to support Lamont
Howie Klein says:
May 20th, 2006 at 10:27 pm
Valley Girl (#42), thanks for the warm welcome. I think the best thing out-of-staters can do is to volunteer for phone banking, call friends and family who live in Connecticut and engage them in discussion about why Ned would make a truly great U.S. Senator and, if possible, donate, here at FDL’s Act Blue page. And watch this site. If I know Jane, Christy and Pach, there will be some take-action alerts before the August primary.
Casper,
You did see the Tom Friedman–”6 months and we should know where Iraq sits”–chronology.
That propaganda works for a long time, but, it catches up to you after a while. Thanks especially to the net.
-GSD
Bob Adams — thanks so much for being our intrepid reporter, for calling in with your dispaches. They were most valuable, I was absolutely THRILLED when you called me and let me listen in to the final few votes being cast that Ned needed to put him over 15%. That was such a wonderful experience and I am eternally grateful — my fingers were shaking as I typed the words “NED DID IT!” on the keyboard and hit “publish.”
We hope we can count on you for further reports from the front ;)
Speaking of Jean Rohe, she has a post up at HuffPo. Apologies if this was noted here already; I haven’t had time to go back through all the comments.
“Ban pornography and stop the sex industry,” they shouted. “Down with liberalism and secularism,” read one banner in support of the bill, which has become a rallying call for the country’s growing hardline fringe.”
Name that country:
http://english.aljazeera.net/N…..9324EE.htm
-GSD
How about “Unstoppable!”?
I thnk these two bits would look good at the top of the blog. PE and John Adams go well together, doncha think?
Unstoppable
You better ask yourself
What do you want, what do you need, what will you find
Don’t be afraid, don’t fall asleep, open your mind
******
What do we mean by the American Revolution? Do we mean the American war? The Revolution was effected before the war commenced. The Revolution was in the minds and hearts of the people; a change in their religious sentiments, of their duties and obligations…This radical change in the principles, opinions, sentiments, and affections of the people was the real American Revolution.
John Adams to H. Niles (February 13, 1818)
Jane, calling you from the convention floor and giving you the final vote counts as Ned approached 15% was terrific fun. And hearing you scream when I told you that Ned topped 15% is by far my favorite memory of the entire event. Of course I’ll be happy to report from Connecticut when things like this are happening! You can count on me.
And the fun continues…tomorrow I’m going to meet Markos and Jerome at a CtG book signing in New Haven, where we’ll all get together and have some convention analysis.
“Fitz!”“ROOTS!”
It’s like the end of an era.
Thanks GSD.
Yeah, one of the many things I am grateful to FDL for is that before I started reading FDL, I labored under the mistaken impression that Freidmann actually knew something about Iraq. IMO, the fact that he still won’t admit how much damage we’re doing to Iraq, the ME, our armed forces, and our reputation in the world, is very disheartening. Freidmann had me buying it’s about “democracy” not oil
bullshit.Freidmann has been good about educating people on our dependence on China and the ME buying our T Bills. I don’t know how a guy that smart could still miss so badly on Iraq, but he has.
More serious me – although I was serious about TEAM LOSER.
Pach – I don’t think they are mutually exclusive; and thus don’t think the “Roots” are more important than the “Fitz,” or vice versa. In fact, both are important.
The Roots is taking back the Dem party; getting rid of DINO’s like TEAM LOSER’s waterboy Little Joe; having candidates (and ultimately elected officials) who stand for traditional Democratic values, as well as honesty and integrity; who won’t sell out.
Fitz (and all of the investigations, not just the Plame outing) serves another purpose – weakening the enemy; exposing them for the frauds they are to the entire nation. That is something that the Roots can’t really do, and it is as important as having real Dems as candidates. In fact, it probably will be very important to getting the real Dems elected.
this is it,people,and it doesn’t get any bigger than this.this is the big enchilada,i think.>fitz?/no,i think not,no offense intended to anyone.>roots?/no,that’s nice,earthy,kind of brings gardening to mind…
>THE WORD IS TRUTH>?/TRUTH IS WHAT WE WANT,WHAT WE NEED>?/TRUTH IS ONE OF THE CARDINAL VIRTUES AND NO OTHER WORD,NOT EVEN ROOTS IS BASIC ENOUGH
>the ancient romans were fond of depicting abstact ideas as semi-draped nubile young females>?/truth was depicted as a nubile,semi-draped female,standing on a rock surrounded on all sides by water.she stands with both feet firmly planted,though one toe is touching the water.her gaze is direct&unflinching.she holds a crystal clear glass pitcher which is either half full or half empty–that is one aspect of the truth which is debatable…eat a peach 4 peace,trashy
WIN!
WHEN IS NOW!!!
I have waited I have bitched I have moaned, I have watched as Bush played the coward not to defend the people but to bow to the will of the global oligarchy or mega corporations that is destroyed the dream that is what made the USA great! I am sick to death of this bullshit!!
I have volunteered for my local democratic party! My vote is not enough anymore!! If nothing else I do it for hope and to be proud of being a liberal!
“Coretta knew and we knew there were weapons of misderection right down here”.
-Rev. Joseph Lowrey
I think the Rev. might have beat out most everyone in brining the truth to Bush, Harry taylor, Colbert, not Mr. Marble though.
Speaking of heroes — interesting rightwing agitprop comic called “Liberality for All”:
It is 2021, tomorrow is the 20th anniversary of 9/11. America is under oppression by ultra-liberal extremists which have yielded governing authority to the United Nations [the figureheads being President Chelsea Clinton and Vice President Michael Moore]. It is up to an underground conservative group (known as F.O.I.L.) led by Sean Hannity, G. Gordon Liddy and Oliver North [each uniquely endowed with special abilities devised by a bio mechanical engineer affectionately nicknamed “Oscar”] to thwart Ambassador Usama Bin Laden’s plans to nuke New York City.
No, they’re not kidding.
Synopsis is here:
http://www.accstudios.com/f/synopsis1.htm
Page views here: http://www.accstudios.com/f/co…..covera.htm
Includes dialog such as (from a United Nations Command cop triangulating the hidden location of a Hannity broadcast): “Sacre bleu, that’s just up the rue!” Another nice touch is that the cover highlights the letters ALI in “Liberality.”
“Ned’s victory is bigger than Fitzmas can ever be because it’s about the rise of a new movement that can upend the Democratic establishment, change the country and even alter the course of world events. Fitzmas represents a negative, defensive action, but the movement pushing the rise of Ned Lamont is positive and staggeringly more potent”.
Boy have you got that wrong! Fitz may be our only hope for a democratic tomorrow. There could not be a more positive means for change.
John C (#98):
Friedman is smart but he has his biases. He sure doesn’t get it all right.
FITZ! FEINGOLD & FIRE DOG LAKE!
No more trying to be cute or witty; sarcastic, sardonic or ironic; or anything else.
EPU- you leave me with no reason for existence. *g*
Catching up on earlier threads and this one – GSD, as always, thanks for all the links and when they depress me too much, the one-liners. ;-)
John C – that is a great link at needlenose. Add in all the “number two man in al-Qaeda” reports and the “we will stand down as the Iraq
armypoliceforcearmyPolicestands up” reports as well, and it ties right in with *ilsons earlier link to how dismal it all is. And after the 3 day wonder, there are never even any reports anymore of civil war. *s*More to Pach’s post – vis a vis the politics at hand, what makes for a hero? I am more and more convinced, as I watch the Vichy dems and the calls to back the party no matter what this fall, bc otherwise we have more unimpeded GWB — while at the same time the party leaders publically commit to unimpeding GWB in an rush to appeasement that makes an ambulance chaser (who at least waits for the accident) look tortoiselike, that we get the leaders we tolerate.
When we see one awful excuse after another, but line up on the ‘but we have to vote for them’ side of the line, I wonder if that doesn’t make us Vichy Voters? How is it different for our Dem leaders to rush to be first in the grovel line, last with facts, and most incoherent with the reasons – and for us to rush to support them?
I’m not comfortable with this one at all. I will still bite the bullet this year – I’m at a loss for what else to do, but I do know I won’t feel good about it, whatever fire Pach and others can work up in hotter beds like CT where there is a real choice. Bc to me it is the same caving I see with the Dems in Congress, the Eyorian “well, I guess we gotta go along” foot drag. If we opt for that as our path, then how do we get a party and candidates that do differently?
OTOH, if we go green or otherwise buck the status quo – it’s a gift to the Republicans. I’m a Vichy Voter this fall, but I don’t think I can stay one after this round. It goes too against the grain.
Rcauthen,
Those comics…I don’t whether to laugh, cry or fling feces like a monkey.
-GSD
Franks=many wieners
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/200…..ranks_iraq
mary #106: politics is the art of the impossible, so it is always messy and full of difficult choices. A Democratic party with a renewed grassroots base is the only viable third party that I can see in the near term.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/200…..ranks_iraq
Gen Franks explains that soldier’s deaths in Iraq are just a cost of security. Not so much how Iraq’s chaos has create more security – but it’s not nice to point.
“What we’re talking about is neither 2,400, 24,000 or 240,000 lives,” Franks said . . . “Terrorism is a thing that threatens our way of life. It doesn’t have anything to do with politics.”
Nice to be able to ignore that the terrorists were not based in Iraq, that we are not catching them, bin Laden walked out of Tora Bora bc of Franks’ incompetence, and on that poltics thing . . .?
It makes me think about going into politics,” Franks said. Uh, gee, what a surprise.
And luckily we’ve found the guy who wants all the credit for the success in Iraq.
We haven’t got any generals here. They’re all in front of TV cameras complaining about Don Rumsfeld,” Franks deadpanned. “Difference is, I know what I’m talking about.”
Awww, isn’t that cute – that he “deadpanned”? And cuter still – he knows what he’s talking about. The guy who thought it was a great idea to go in with less than a third the troops we needed to secure the area and who create a nice big disintegrating mass of chaos and corruption to hand over. Gosh, it’s nice to hear from the guys who know what they are talking about.
*s*
That Many Wieners link had a chilling quote right at the top:
Franks: Soldiers’ Deaths Cost of Security By COLIN FLY, Associated Press Writer
49 minutes ago
MILWAUKEE – Those who count the increasing number of American soldiers killed in Iraq are missing the bigger picture, retired Gen. Tommy Franks said Saturday night.
“What we’re talking about is neither 2,400, 24,000 or 240,000 lives,” Franks said at the National Rifle Association’s annual banquet. “Terrorism is a thing that threatens our way of life. It doesn’t have anything to do with politics.”
Theat last sentence is the Bush/Cheney/RumDum “Iraq because of terrorism” lie, and explicitly connected with the deaths of over 2000 US soldiers. He honors our soldiers deaths with a partisan lie and then claims that people who question the Iraq because of terrorism” are playing politics. Absolutely chilling.
Nix@101-
you got that right.
WIN! should be the first word, and thought on all our minds.
seems there is a strong active community gathering here. we share plenty of common values, goals and ambitions.
Keeping our eye on the ball is what it is all about right now.
WIN!
Much as I love him I can’t see throwing energy into something like a Feingold ‘08 effort anytime soon. America is not ready for a (twice) divorced jew to be President and I have to face that.
Lamont can win in CT and that will be HUGE for us. Throwing what little money I have from Colorado to Connecticut is a winner right now. Even and especially if my $50 goes to helping CT Bob get trashed at a Lamont victory party come august.
WIN!
Sorry GSD – I cross posted.
Wesgpc – I understand that point. I guess I feel that by choosing viablity over principle, I’m not doing anything differently than the Congressional members I am starting to loathe. I will do it again this year, but I think it is as enabling of the Vichy Dems as they are of the GOP/GWB admin. It makes me very unhappy to make that compromise, and I don’t see how I stay with it .
easy for me to say from the middle of the country
BUT… it would be oh so nice to see to see a mass abstention from democrats in CT should Leiberman survive the primary.
From here it’d be almost refreshing to have some junior republican senator pissing inside our tent rather than that stale old DINO piss stinking up the joint.
Abstinence only in CT!
(helps avoid having to take that short ride to a friendly hospital)
Whatever you say toots, as long as we put the boots to the guys in cahoots.
Many I just point out that in the Australian variant of English “a root” means “a fuck”. And the verb “to root” has the analogous meaning. So in the unlikely event that the wingnuts have any familiar with the last remaining non-US member of the coalition of the willing, every time you shout “ROOTS!” it will cause their teeny tiny anti-sex screwed-up heads to explode.
I like that idea.
Regarding the broader point, this long-time reader on the other side of the world agrees whole-heartedly with Pachacutec. Venting on a website is about as useful as standing in the park singing along to Twisted Sister’s “We’re not going to take it” at the top of your voice. It feels good, but accomplishes nothing. Taking that energy and actually using it outside of the blogosphere is what matters, and it’s what distinguishes the liberal blogosphere from the wingnutosphere. For that you should all be congratulated.
As a small example from my own experience, I used to read Little Green Footballs back when it was a web design blog, pre 9/11. I watched in horror as it spiralled from the “angry and concerned about Al-Quaeda terrorism” stance that characterised some early warblogging, to the extremist swamp we all know and mock today. For about a year or so after 9/11, I’d check back in every so often and try to encourage a less hysterical tone. Naturally I failed, but I learned a valuable lesson.
Following the Jenin massacre in 2002, the LGF denizens worked themselves into a lather against the UN. I suggested that if they didn’t like what they UN was doing, they should organise to put pressure on it to respond to their concerns. Join the UN Society. Form a lobby group or similar kind of organisation. Get off their butts and do something. I even helped them come up with a name. Not that I agreed with them or anything. But I hoped to encourage something positive out of all that energy. Maybe they would realise some of the good stuff the UN does.
You know what they did? They started yet another blog. It lasted about six months but is still there for posterity, or mocking as the case may be. And they achieved precisely nothing towards their goals — either the narrower one of influencing the UN, or the broader, reflexively pro-Israel goals they soon adopted.
That’s yet another difference between the progressive blogosphere and the wingnuts (aside from the obvious ones, like we aren’t pissing our pants every time we see a swarthy person). We progressives are making a difference in the real world, instead of just singing along to our favorite refrains in our basements.
It’s hard to do much for progressive change in the US when you live on the other side of the world. But I hope you all know how many people all over this planet are …er… rooting for you to succeed.
Warm regards,
D.U.G.
This belonged on Matt O.’s thread but better late than never:
A city boy, Kenny, moved to the country and bought a donkey from an old farmer for $100.00. The farmer agreed to deliver the donkey the next day. The next day the farmer drove up and said, “Sorry son, but I have some bad news, the donkey died.” Kenny replied, “Well then, just give me my money back.” The farmer said, “Can’t do that. I went and spent it already.”
Kenny said, “OK then, just unload the donkey.” The farmer asked, “What ya gonna do with him?”
Kenny: “I’m going to raffle him off.”
Farmer: “You can’t raffle off a dead donkey!”
Kenny: “Sure I can. Watch me. I just won’t tell anybody he is dead.”
A month later the farmer met up with Kenny and asked, “What happened with that dead donkey?”
Kenny: “I raffled him off. I sold 500 tickets at two dollars a piece and made a profit of $898.00.” Farmer: “Didn’t anyone complain?” Kenny: “Just the guy who won. So I gave him his two dollars back.” Kenny grew up and eventually became the Chairman of Enron.
http://nonsequitur2.blogspot.c…..onkey.html
Please forgive the fair use violation, A Rational Being. To atone, I’ll send anybody who is raising a special needs child (or, if you’re just a decent human being) to check out your touching series on your bipolar son and the family dynamic. I have no connection to that blog.
http://nonsequitur2.blogspot.c…..posts.html
Mary #113: Lamont has pledged that he will support the Democratic candidate, whoever it is. Does that make Lamont a sellout? Nader as a Green candidate had no position on many issues, including gay rights, and his foreign policy ideas were pretty absent, so there were whole areas of his platform that had no principles, in the sense that there was nothing there at all. So in that sense, he lacked principles too. I see it as a lack or principles to vote for people who have not prepared themselves for office, and having such huge gaps in policy positions as Nader did showed he was unprepared.
My take is that FDR/Truman liberalism became an exhausted force in US politics. This was not becuase the ideas behind it were exhausted, but because there were no truly visionary leaders who could take the next step in the battle of ideas. So crackpot reactionary BS, backed by big corporate $ moved in.
Democrats are not totally corrupt. Otherwise we would have lost social security and medicare by now.
Exhuasted idealess Democrats started shaking down corporations for money back in mid 80s, when Dems were still worth bribing ’cause they had Congress. It was easy. Did it behind back doors. Didn’t have to go public and do battle of ideas with crackpots, which they would lose because they had no ideas, and no ideas lose to even nutty ones.
So, 50% of party being corrupt is certainly a big enough remnant. And it can be rebuilt. If grassroot can win a few elections then the company men and women will run back, since they run wherever they smell cheap success. If grassroots can be successful in winning a chamber, then the bullyboy apparatchiks can be kept in line or defeated one by one.
So, I think there is hope as long as Dean has the money to work his 50 state plan.
So maybe Dean is the most important hero, if you want to have one. What is radical about Dean is not his positions, he is moderate. It is his faith in the grass roots. And he should inspire much more confidence than the idiot consultants, since he has actually won a few elections. Maybe the consultants are envious and fearful of that and that is why they hate him so much.
re #118
I meant to type:
So, 50% of party being corrupt certainly leaves a big enough remnant (the other 50%)
Just so nobody panics — I put up my usual midnight reminder for the FDL book club tomorrow and there’s no commenting turned on, so the fun will still be here tonight.
Jane 119, well it’s your blog, but that sure is befuddling to a drunk just rolling in at 3:00 a.m. on the east coast.
op99 #120 – LOL!
I liked Fitz, but o.k. . . . so it’s Roots now.
Roots!
“…….help others out of this chaos–not in the future, not to-morrow, but now.” J Krishnamurti
stevie (114). Being from that state, I admit I am pretty shallow when it comes to . . . A good whatever is a good whatever, regardless of political affilaition.
catching up … wanted to thank Matt O for a great post – very important work and so well done!
While I am not a fitzer or a rooter, I do enjoy seeing what new variations each new thread will bring and what is the tenor of the day.
and Mary – as always, right on!
?/no indication as yet that anone has ever actually read one of my posts,here or elsewhere,except for entire threads being?/ripped out on[name redacted]?/because,i suspect he did not like anyone to put up posts funnierthan?/his…?/that is as maybe?/nevertheless once more into the breach?/the cardinal virtues,of which there are 4?/:truth(already discussed)?/justice?/strength?/temperance?/justice pictured as follows:a sturdily built yet nubile female dressed in the toga of a male citizen of the roman republic//she stands in classic contraposto pose with her weight on her left foot,both feet firmly planted on a rock in the midst of a briskly rushing stream?/her feet dry?/although she is blindfolded,she is reputed to have ultra keen hearing the which is of course both a blessing?and a curse?/her left arm is raised&holdig an empty scale which is slightly off balance?/we are thus reminded that perfection eludes her?/her right arm is down&she holds a very large and apparently heavy double edged sword the which would be very hard to wield responsibly…?/***!?//:eat a peach for peace,live to see that justice is done,you know i will,trash
I vote for rootz!
Evening. A simple question: is Mr. Lamont an ally of union labor, or not? I just don’t know where he stands on the issue.
Ghostman
Caution:
‘Rebranding strategery in process…No peeking’
;>)
Ghostman (128). The Lamont campaign has rapid responders: to Info@nedlamont.com.
Darkblack at 129, you are a national treasure. Go Joe Wienerman!
to further illustrate pach’s point, here’s what the good folks in pittsburgh PA have to say (in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Herald), after their own upset victoies this week- WOW:
the lieberman debacle is starting to get press- there’s a long article on bloomberg, just posted:
“…A loose network of organizations, ranging from women’s groups to Internet bloggers, is pressuring incumbents such as Senator Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut and Representatives Jane Harman of California and Melissa Bean of Illinois, in some cases by backing insurgent candidates in primary elections.
The groups charge that these and other Democrats have been too supportive of Bush on issues like Iraq and trade, and say they’re trying to energize voters disillusioned with a party that has failed to draw clear distinctions with Republicans.
With Democrats holding a wide advantage in public-opinion polls six months before the congressional elections, the party must define its identity, said David Sirota, a Democratic activist….”
well, i can’t refresh- and i’m too tired to troubleshoot. night all- much love…
For Extension of remarks on Wellstone-Lieberman, go to “The Next Hurrah” and my recent posting.
“Roots” as a word is flat, flat, flat on the tongue. It’s a word with meaning but little character.
“Fitz” just leaps from the mouth and wants to be repeated.
Say roots out loud several times and then say fitz. Now, which one felt better?
FITZ it is!!!!
Fitzroots…….Our roots go back to the integrity that Fitz has shown. This man is certainly no Ken Starr.
I will continue to honor his work and I will honor the work of the Roots Project.
FDL….the blog community that is the heart and soul of the *NEW* Democratic party.
It took the repugs 40 yrs to build their machine….our machine will be built and running within 4 months.
Markos
Jane
Jerome
Christy
Pach
Taylor and
all the other fantastic examples of progressive intellectualism…..YOU ARE MY HEROES
darkblack @ 129
you’ve outdone yourself — no small feat, that! har!!
now our joey can really work that tool-thing he’s been practicing for so long …
I’m sorry to every one here at FDL, especially Pachacutec, for trying to get my selfish question answered. Apparently , as I have been definitively been told, that Pachacutec is not Jerome Armstrong. I will leave this as the truth. Again apologies to all. Sincerely, Scott Ely 060521
I completely agree with your post Pach. I like Fitzgerald. He seems like a decent, hardworking prosecutor. But he can’t turn this ship around, WE all have to do that. And if we truly want this administration held responsible for its misdeeds – including Plame. Then we have to win back Congress.
Just a heads-up for Christy, the NYTimes ran a long piece this morning about West Virginia and how its people leave the state because they have to, not because they want to.
It’s here.
the lieberman debacle is starting to get press- there’s a long article on bloomberg, just posted Woo Hoo! Gee, I almost feel kinda bad. Like mean daddy came home and found the family divorced him. Go Ned!
ahhhhh and I remember the old days when frist was first
FROOTZ !!
Read the Bloomberg piece linked in 134. It’s the first one I’ve seen that focuses on activism rather than a position on the political spectrum. We’re not “liberals” (the word doesn’t appear in the piece) anymore.
This is the first sign that the media is reading our content rather than reporting the Beltway’s interpretation of our content. This is the first step in the process of converting the “loony left” characterization into the “influential base” characterization.
There is the obligatory quote from Ed Kilgore, but it reads as defensive rather than dismissive in this context.
The CtG action on Tuesday couldn’t come at a better time. You can still join us, and deliver a book to an elected official on Capitol Hill.
argh.
Left out my email. If you do want to join us, email me at jay at ackroyd dot org.
Morning, all!
I just looked atthemorning line-ups for the blabfests.
Surprise!! No Joe Lieberman!!
I wonder if he cancelled…. Or if no one wants to talk to him anymore.
Mui,
It is so nice to see you so happy!
Pach~
very nice post. I really connected with the substance and the thoughtfulness.
I haven’t ready many of the comments, as I just got up from a very long day and night.
I especially liked the thought that by using Fitz! and placing so much hope in his ability to
rid us of the bad guys, we become spectators. I might add that for some, becoming spectators is a step forward. Many people still aren’t even watching. Don’t know who Fitz is, don’t know who Abramoff or even care. When I mention attending a Murtha talk, or a Cindy Sheehan vigil, they look blank.
So I’m thinking that becoming a spectator for some is movement. And maybe the use of Fitz! might attract.
I know your post was more about us sitting back waiting, but I don’t think that’s happening much anymore. Do you? I’ve contributed $$ to Ned, to Francine Busby, to Russ and others. I live nowhere near most of them. This is movement for me.
If I hadn’t been a “spectator” for a while on FDL, I might not have known about them or others that offer hope. My “known knowns” were Jan Schakowsky, Dick Durbin and Barak (I want everyone to like me) Obama. Now I know much more and am even more compelled to act in even more proactive ways. While I still protest in the streets as well as on the *internets* and I still try to educate others, I have begun to put my money where my mouth is. And I give my time when I can.
Well, I notice this has become more about me than about the post. Sorry.
I want to thank you for the post. It was well done my man! I may start using Frootz!
134
brkily
I saw the mention of Melissa Bean in Illinois. I’ve been opposing her since her first House vote.
I continue to send her e-mail, am on her mailing list and receive her updates regularly. I was present as Jan Schakowsky, and Joe Biden campaigned for her. I wonder now whether Jan regrets that choice. They have been on opposite sides of the vote more than they have been on the same side these past 2 years. (I fear Jan would never say this was a mistake, though. She is a Democrat with a very BIG D)
But she has almost never let us down. I have had much contact with her and her staff. They are really dedicated to getting it right (in the best sense of the word.) Melissa Bean won the spot from Philip Crane in the 8th. He was just as guilty of sitting back, taking people’s $$ and doing little as anybody. But he didn’t pretend to be otherwise. Melissa pretends.
Leslie, 5:56 AM
You make an excellent point; much appreciated. Being an engaged spectator is for many a preliminary stage to becoming active. It was for me. Not everyone will make the jump, but some will. Some need to be asked, even, more than once.
That’s what I’m doing, I guess. I’m inviting people in.
One of the things these online communties can do is reconnect us with communities that take us outside ourselves, helping to add meaning to our lives and our work, challenging us to grow, to spread our wings, to uncover and develop latent talents, to make a difference.
I believe that’s vitally important for all of us in the modern world. Economic conditions make stable communties hard to find. The information age brings confusion and disclocation and challenges to people’s worldviews. Gone are the days of the stable tribal community drawing nurture from a stable, binding mythology and worldview. That adds much stress to people’s lives.
What’s more, we spend a vast proportion of our waking lives as adults at work, and yet not all of us enjoy jobs that we really love, that make us feel valued, that help us discover our talents and grow. For many of us, our situations of employment make us feel more alienated from ourselves and our neighbors, like cogs in a machine. People talked about this during the manufacturing revolution but it is no less true in the revolutionary knowldege, service based economy.
One of my goals in my facilitation of the Roots Project is to help people connect their lives and their work to a sense of purpose larger than themselves not just as individuals acting alone, but as part of a community. I’m trying to create the conditions where people have the latitude to stretch out a little bit to discover and develop their talents in an encouraging environment. Yes, it’s about making a difference in the world, but I fundamentally believe you can only do that by helping people to grow. While RP activists are focused on making a difference in their communities, my focus, as facilitator of the RP networks, is to serve and nurture tha activist community.
So, you are absolutely right that being a spectator can be a developmental step on the road to activism. Or not. Everyone has their own path to tread. For my part, I wll consistently invite people to make that step to join the activist world, inside or outside the Roots Project. Your point is well taken, and I thank you for making it.
I have long disliked starting threads with “Fitz,” though he has, to borrow Jefferson’s phrase, been like a firebell in the night, trying to arouse the nation with honesty when others had sold out. The reason is that we cannot put all our eggs in his one basket, nor rely on him alone to get us out of danger. His name is not a battle cry, it is a ray of sunlight in the darkness.
Ned’s victory, inevitably inviting comparison with Gene McCarthy’s 1968 New Hamshire primary win, shows that we have moved to the next step- not merely fighting back, but effectively. Our battle cry is really, “Rally ’round the Constitution.”
Pach: Wonderful post. Lots to chew on!
Anne 37
I just gotta disagree, bigtime, over what you propose – tho I share a lot of your feelings of frustration — & could probably rival you in anger, disgust, & impatience to move beyond the hideous status quo in D.C.
At least re: 2006 election,I think we just absolutely HAVE to do whatever we can, including voting for less-than-stellar Dems., if that’s all that’s available here & there across the land. Gag if you must, but it’s critically important to break the hammerlock repugs have on this country ASAP.
I’m really leery of any 3rd-party or Indy efforts on the liberal side, since they almost always dilute the vote and virtually guarantee a loss. (Related: If a catfight splinters the repugs,let ‘em rip eachother to shreds! Go ahead and smirk behind the curtains, if you must, but do NOT cross over & waste your vote for any repug of any type — “Be careful what you [pretend to]wish for!”)
This particular year, I’ve been urging all my buddies to vote straight Dem.– all the judges, sludge-scooper, moth-zapper — top to bottom.
Exception: if there’s a [Ned Lamont] available, do the work NOW & get him/her that Dem. label on the ballot, just as you’ve done in NJ. BRAVO! holyjoe needs to go!
But I think we have to be really careful not to trigger anything like a “throw ALL the bums out” surge. That possibility seems to me far more dangerous than voting for the occasional so-so weenie. I regard term-limits efforts, or wholesale “tossing the whole gang-of-thieves” mentality, as a sure way to entrench the current scourge of lobbiests: rummys & rovers & negropontes & deadeyedicks & wolfies & & & in power forever – sometimes rotating in & out of office, but always pulling the strings of power that make the others dance.
Sorry to blather on, but there it is.
Disclaimer: No, I’m not a pol., but I do have a degree in animal behavior, & years of experience in animal training. Frightening/heartening (depending on your point of view, heh heh) how “helpful” it’s been,sigh.
Related to disclaimer:
Mary 24
I share your pain over big bay. So sad…
LOL at Leslie, “FROOTZ!”
LOL at Leslie, “FROOTZ!”
FitzRoots 4TW!
Ich bin ein Fitzgerald.
Fitz leading Wrath of the Roots
WE!
Adie 154:
Interesting thoughts, but straight ticket voting is what has enabled Democrats to sell out the base and treat the netroots like an ATM machine. Shame on them for selling us out, but shame on US for allowing them to evade accountability.
I held my nose and voted for John Kerry and Barbara Mikulski in 2004, and I’m not going to do it again. It simply doesn’t work.
The Democrats will have to EARN my vote from now on. I am on a CRUSADE to hold these fucking pantywaists accountable.
Perch!