Don't Mourn, Organize

[no yu begin wher i end]

OK. I read thousands of comments and dozens of Diaries last night and this morning. And you know something? I’m going to forget I read most of them. Just erase them from memory along with the names of those who posted them. Chalk them up to adrenaline crashes, too much rage and reefer and booze.

 

Because what I found in my reading was a plethora of bashing Christians, bashing Kerry, bashing gays, bashing Edwards, bashing Kos, bashing America and bashing each other. As well as a lot of people saying they’re abandoning the Democrats, abandoning politics, abandoning the country. This descent into despair and irrationality and surrender puts icing on the Republican victory cake.

 

Why were we in this fight in the first place? Because terrible leaders are doing terrible things to our country and calling this wonderful. Because radical reactionaries are trying to impose their imperialist schemes on whoever they wish and calling this just. Because amoral oligarchs are determined to enhance their slice of the economic pie and calling this the natural order. Because flag-wrapped ideologues want to chop up civil liberties and call this security. Because myopians are in charge of America’s future.

 

We lost on 11/2. Came in second place in a crucial battle whose damage may still be felt decades from now. The despicable record of our foes makes our defeat good reason for disappointment and fear. Even without a mandate over the past four years, they have behaved ruthlessly at home and abroad, failing to listen to objections even from members of their own party. With the mandate of a 3.6-million vote margin, one can only imagine how far their arrogance will take them in their efforts to dismantle 70 years of social legislation and 50+ years of diplomacy.

 

And we can't ignore history.

In 1964, the Lyndon Johnson beat Barry Goldwater by 23 points. Goldwater managed to carry just 6 states and Johnson won the electoral college 486-52. But the conservatives didn't give up. They didn't spend a lot of time wringing their hands. They regrouped and fought back. By 1968, Nixon crushed Humphrey in the electoral college 301-191 and won the popular vote by a million votes. 

 

All the defeatist talk is just icing on the Republican cake. Yes, I'm disappointed too. I am Canadian, so this may sound a little hypocritical; but I don't think that Bush winning the presidency for the first time should drive people out of their country when their country clearly needs them more than ever.

[S.E. Hardy]

Personally, I'm planning a coup.

[Moonlight_Graham]

thats a great point. Rather than disillusioned Americans moving to Canada, which many will and some already have since the the war, wouldn't it be better for the sake of the world to have these people stay in the U.S. and act as voices of sanity...rather than they all leave the U.S.

 

if this became the norm, i fear the U.S. would become populated by only the extreme right-wing...who would of course vote in the extreme right-wing candidates who would pander to them every 4 years.