Psyobabble analysis from a distance is not a substitute for political discussion -- Nathan
On Fri, 21 Jul 2000, Dace wrote:
> Nathan:
>
> >What bothers me
> >is that all the organizational energy of Green or other third party
> >activists goes only to those general election campaigns, while bypassing
> >the real opportunity to elect people in the primary.
>
>
> It's inconceivable that Nader could have defeated Gore in the primaries.
> The money-people decide who will get the nomination before the primaries
> begin. This is true of both parties. Just look what happened to McCain,
> who should have easily wiped out Bush in the primaries. Nothing has changed
> since the smoke-filled backroom days except appearances.
>
> Whether you run in the Democratic primaries or against the Democrats in the
> general election, you're going to lose. But if you run in the general
> election, you might also force the Democrats to lose, and this will cause
> them to take notice. Next time around, they will think twice before running
> a rightwing candidate for President. If they still fail to see the light,
> they should be replaced by another party.
>
> >If Nader had run in
> >the Democratic primary, I would not only have voted for him, I would have
> >been out there campaigning for him.
>
> When a candidate works within the Party, you support him. But when he
> threatens the Party, you turn against him. Instead of rationally appraising
> the best method of moving politics to the left, you blindly follow your
> group-identification. You're letting your ego do your thinking for you.
>
> As Brett Knowlton asked, how far does the Democratic Party have to sink
> before you abandon it?
>
> >I know, you will say IF labor and other liberal/progressive groups
> >supported Nader, his campaign would be different, but the point is that
> >they are not seriously supporting him. And they are not supporting him
> >because Dubya and his Supreme Court appointments and his willingness to
> >sign any crap promoted by Trent Lott is too dangerous.
>
> This is very revealing. There are two elements in the narcissistic
> universe: Authority and security. In your mind, the Democratic Party
> represents authority and thus can never be questioned, for this would
> sacrifice security. The narcissistic ego is dominant in the United States,
> particularly among "middle class" white men, and it's the reason so many
> liberals became virulent anti-communists during the Cold War. Anything
> which threatens authority must be opposed.
>
> Ted
>