> there's no purpose there other
> than to get democrats to do certain things. the better world, for her, is
> to create the kind of democrats she wants.
Precisely. The only thing that remains to add is that there is no possibility of getting more than a handful of the kind of Democrats Hamsher wants, or says she wants, or thinks she wants.
The institution has a life and purpose of its own -- it's not just the arithmetic x-bar of the people in it. Expecting the Democratic Party to start producing, say, Bernie Sanderses in abundance -- assuming, in Jane's favor, that Bernie isn't too "extreme" for her -- is like thinking Microsoft might start manufacturing precision optical gear.
> the reason why the religious right can exercise the power it does is
> because those folks *are* perfectly willing to skip voting if they have to.
Yep. There are things more *important* to them than who's in the White House or who controls the Senate. This cannot be said for Jane.
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Michael Smith mjs at smithbowen.net http://stopmebeforeivoteagain.org http://fakesprogress.blogspot.com