[lbo-talk] good night, Ned

[Yoshie Furuhashi]

On 10/5/06, Marvin Gandall <marvgandall at videotron.ca> wrote:
> Eric wrote:
>
> MG: >>Whether US leftists want to work inside the DP or the Greens is a
> tactical
> >>matter for them to decide.
>
> > Manichean choices don't get much more dismal than this! How about a
> > different party? or no party? or not offering uncompensated counseling
> > advice to the state and the war machine at all? That's the kind of victory
> > that would give me confidence.
> =====================================
> I don't understand your point. Mine was simply that it is stupid to ridicule
> and attack the main body of antiwar protesters in the US who support the
> Democratic party, and to look forward to their hopes being dashed, even if
> you choose - as Yoshie, Carrol, and others do - not to participate in the
> efforts of antiwar DP'ers to change the party's leadership and direction.
> It's common sense you will only be heard when you approach others with
> respect rather than contempt, and invite them to join you on issues of
> common concern - much the way the left has always approached church groups
> and individuals without succumbing to the compulsion to denigrate their
> religious beliefs.

I agree with Marvin on the point of respect.

If both sides -- those who want a third party and those who want to
change the Democratic Party -- were well organized, they could forge
an alliance: divide up districts between them, pledge to support third
party candidates where that's the best choice, and pledge to support
left-wing Democrats where that's the best choice.  But the thing is
that neither side is well organized nationwide, so it's impossible to
create such an electoral pact at this point.

-- 
Yoshie
<http://montages.blogspot.com/>
<http://mrzine.org>
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