[lbo-talk] Why Liberals Lose Elections

[R]

hi yoshi.  there needs to be a betty ford clinic type of environment for
democrats suffering form deep seated prejudice against ralph nader.  it's a
clinical malady that can't be reached by reason alone and festers in an
oxygen free climate of denial which only can be broken when the victim is
ready to seek therapy.  then a regimen of professional help to reestablish
the throught patterns, reasoning ability and defenses free of prejudice and
denial which characterize the nader challenged needs to be instituted over a
period of time.

R


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Yoshie Furuhashi" <furuhashi.1 at osu.edu>
To: <lbo-talk at lbo-talk.org>; <furuhashi.1 at osu.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, March 31, 2004 10:35 PM
Subject: [lbo-talk] Why Liberals Lose Elections


>[lbo-talk] Nader Trending Up, Jon Johanning jjohanning at igc.org,
>Wed Mar 31 21:33:07 PST 2004
<snip>
>I was interested in your use of the term "browbeating," i.e.,"'to
>bear down, discourage, or oppose with stern, arrogant or  insolent
>looks or words, to snub, to bully," to quote the OED. Also, your
>insinuation that people who voted for Nader and then changed their
>mind were cowards who were intimidated by this alleged bullying.

On this listserv, Mike Larkin compared my criticism of Anybody But
Bush pundits to Pearl Harbor ("A Day That Will Live in Infamy,"
<http://mailman.lbo-talk.org/pipermail/lbo-talk/Week-of-Mon-20040315/006118.
html>
-- cf. <http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5166/>), knowing that I am
Japanese, and one Harry Levine compared Ralph Nader to a suicide
bomber, knowing that Nader is an Arab American:

*****   WHY LIBERALS LOSE ELECTIONS

ONE RESULT of the Democrat's hate campaign against Nader and his
supporters is a bit more sympathy for born-agains, hunters and others
who have likewise been expunged from membership in humanity by
hyper-righteous liberals. Here's one recent example from a
sociologist at CUNY, Harry Levine: "In the year 2000, Ralph Nader
strapped political dynamite onto himself and walked into one of the
closest elections in American history hoping to blow it up. He wanted
to punish the Clinton-Gore Democrats for having betrayed him and the
causes he believes in. His primary campaign mission was defeating Al
Gore, but Nader concealed this from his supporters, even as he went
after votes in swing states like Florida. On the day after election
day, when everyone else was grim, and many Democrats were furious at
him, Ralph Nader was a happy man."

Isn't there anyone in the Democratic Party who understands that you
don't win votes with that sort of nastiness?

The Democrats did not do one thing after the 2000 debacle to improve
relations with Greens and other Nader supporters. Among the
possibilities: adopting some Green programs, avoiding holy wars
against Green local candidates such as carried out against Matt
Gonzalez in San Francisco, easing ballot access laws, and allowing
fusion voting. Instead, those who supported Nader were subjected to a
steady stream of blame and insults based on grossly incorrect
assumptions. . . .

If the two parties make such a mess that it is hard for any
self-respecting citizen to support them, it is simply a further sign
of their corrupt arrogance for them to blame someone else for being
mad about it. What possible reason is there for someone deeply
troubled by the Kerry-Bush choice to change their mind knowing that
they will be joining those who hold them in such contempt? . . .

<http://prorev.com/>   *****

With friends like Mike Larkin and Harry Levine, the Democratic Party
needs no enemy.  :-)
-- 
Yoshie

* Bring Them Home Now! <http://www.bringthemhomenow.org/>
* Calendars of Events in Columbus:
<http://sif.org.ohio-state.edu/calendar.html>,
<http://www.freepress.org/calendar.php>, & <http://www.cpanews.org/>
* Student International Forum: <http://sif.org.ohio-state.edu/>
* Committee for Justice in Palestine: <http://www.osudivest.org/>
* Al-Awda-Ohio: <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Al-Awda-Ohio>
* Solidarity: <http://www.solidarity-us.org/>
___________________________________
http://mailman.lbo-talk.org/mailman/listinfo/lbo-talk