Winston Churchill, when a member of the opposition in the British Parliament, rose to speak after the Munich Agreement between Neville Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler had been concluded. In his opening remarks, he said, "We have sustained a total and unmitigated defeat." That's exactly how I'm feeling tonight. I feel betrayed and let down by the Washington, D.C. Democrats--again.
The cloture vote to stop debate on the Alito nomination has won, with the help of a substantial number of Democratic Senators. This paves the way for Samuel Alito--perhaps the most radically rightwing member in the whole federal judicial system--to be confirmed as an associate justice of the Supreme Court. It means that reproductive rights will be sharply curtailed. It means that workers' rights will be consistently ignored and crushed. It means that Bush will be allowed virtually unlimited executive power. It is, in short, a disaster. It was a disaster made possible by cowardice and lack of moral character. And America will pay for it by being stuck for decades with a quietly-spoken radical who will help the Republicans smash what's left of the Bill of Rights.
The Democrats caved in when THEY HAD THE VOTES TO BLOCK ALITO. They caved in to a President THAT A MAJORITY OF THE COUNTRY IS READY TO REMOVE FROM OFFICE. The Democrats who did this are cowards, weaklings, and appeasers. But why should I be surprised? The only battle we've won in recent times was over saving Social Security, and ordinary people and the netroots led that fight. The DC Democrats got beat in the recount in 2000 and failed to contest Bush's "certification" in the Senate in 2001. They failed to contest Ohio's results in 2004, despite clear and overwhelming evidence of fraud. They have allowed the most brazen criminals in modern American history to run rings around them--and now this.
Damn it, it makes it so hard to fight for them when they won't lift a G-d damned finger to fight for me.
5 comments:
Your last statement is the truest thing I've ever heard.
This is the voice of the apathetic voter - the guy who's thrown in the towel because he's sick of getting beat, over and over again, by an inferior team.
These Republicans have dominated politics so long it's hard to believe there was a time when they didn't. I am hoping and praying that liberals and militants across this great country will rally together to oppose these lunatics, but at the same time, I know that the right-wing in this country has a lock on what ordinary Americans are seeing on their television screens.
I have been monitoring television coverage of this situation all day and have seen almost nothing of substance, other than Barbara Boxer speaking on the Senate floor. These lame-ass Democrats continue to disappoint, and yet the most powerful interests in society, that of organized labor and the women's movement, have refused to take a direct stand in moving this country out of danger and into newfound success. We need politicians that can deliver on their promises, not play dice with our futures.
It's like I always say, who do you turn to when your only friends let you down? In the case of Senate Democrats, we now know who our real friends are. Let's support them in 2006, and 2008. And let's let all these cloture-voting sissies know that their days in government are numbered.
This event caused me to research a quote from Nader I recall hearing during the 2000 election. Here it is from his site, clearly written by someone else, but pertinent to the topic at hand, nonetheless:
Didn't Ralph say that there was "no difference between the Democrats and Republicans?"
Ralph did not say, as has been repeated ad nauseum, that there was NO difference between them.
He said that overall there were few major differences for which the Democrats were willing to fight -- differences not just in rhetoric but in reality.
The Republicans have become very good at electing extreme Republicans, and the Democrats have been very good at allowing them to do so.
Do you still think there are few major differences between the major parties?
Yes, compared to their towering similarities (including selling elections to commercial interests), and Ralph's agenda to move this country forward. Both parties keep getting worse.
...deciding that just as discretion was the better part of valor, so was cowardice the better part of discretion, he valiantly hid himself in a closet. (Douglas Adams)
The Democrats in a nutshell.
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pain, frustration, and disillusionment.
Its not just the feelings of the apathetic voter, but of a people awakening to realization that Something has got to give. I can't sit and watch it all happen, these decisions being made are not abstract, arbitrary notions, far removed from the reality we stare into every waking moment. These are decisions resulting in serious impact upon our own lives, and the lives of those around us, and as the repercussions of the Republican stranglehold upon government come into being, I refuse to be one of the removed, one of millions of individuals torn from the democratic process, torn from the basic human right to liberty, justice, and the persuit of happiness. We the people have been elbowed out of the political arena, out of the light which was cast upon us by the founding fathers so many years ago. A light that we killed for. A light that we died for. A light which is growing dimmer every day, or is it simply we are finding ourselves in the shadows more and more? I believe the answer to this question is quickly becoming apparent, and as we struggle forward into the 21st century, I can only hope our reply to those that inhibit our role as citizens will be a magnificent one. But judging by current affairs, I am not hopeful.
Well said all around,although I continue to be angry with Nader. A clear Gore victory in 2000 would have put some backbone in to the Democrats (I think).
But who knows? They didn't stop Clarence Thomas, even when they had the majority.
Yeah, I know. I wasn't trying to present the Nader quote as coming from someone who, at the time, was in a race with Bush and Gore, but as a quote coming from a person observing the field.
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