That's true, but as I mentioned, this article was sent to me by not just one but two people whose political views I highly value and in one case they said it was "the best thing they'd seen." So I was expecting to get something great out of it and was disappointed. Then I thought maybe there was something I missed. I don't expect that from most posts to LBO. There's plenty here I disagree with but I can't argue it all. I'm grateful to those who can and do, you included. Me, I have too many commitments IRL, or I don't write fast enough, or something. Mostly I'm selfishly looking for ways to move on problems in conceptualizing and organizing.
The whole thing with Burnham (who I respect, by the way--another reason for disappointment) is I think at base she's arguing for timidity. This whole thing about building relationships--and who could be against that?--but 1) If you didn't make those connections during the campaign it's a little late now and 2) instead of making connections we need to be fucking making some clear, radical points about now, expanding the debate, not keeping quiet because of pragmatic considerations. What's progressive in Obamaism, and there's plenty, will fail and falter if there's nothing to the left of it making strong arguments. All the pull is the other way.
>However, it is truly bizarre for lefts to be upset with _Obama_ because somehow he and his people figured out how to win Florida, Virginia Carolina, et al, by some small margin.; Truly bizarre misplacement of frustration. Way bizarre. Obama is not what is wrong with this picture.
Well, my point there was that we're (she's) overestimating the Obama 'movement' and the cracks in the solid South. It wasn't about Obama or the conduct of the campaign, it was about looking critically at where we're really at on defeating the Southern Strategy and how much there is of a movement for the left to really coalesce with. And, frankly, how much the movement that elected Obama actually consisted of the left, broadly defined, rather than a whole movement outside it that somehow sprung up like mushrooms unrelated to the hard work of the last decades. The shorthand of 'electoral victory' hides a lot, both making us overconfident of broad understanding and underconfident about our place in it.
Yes, my congressperson, Corinne Brown, supports the Employee Free Choice Act (and HR 676, she's a Brown, after all!) The neighboring one won't short of a brain transplant.
> My thought would be why don't you write that article.
Thanks for the vote of confidence. Sigh. Maybe next month.
I think Doug (and Liza and Christian Parenti) are definitely onto something on the problem of activistism and I sent Liza some notes at one point when they were revising their article about it. As Anne Braden once quipped, "the problem isn't left thinking or right thinking it's no thinking." But Burnham is setting out--modestly, she calls it "Notes on an Orientation..."--thoughts primarily on practice.
Shag: >/ why should anyone give obama credit for anything? /
Doug: > Cause he's, you know, somewhat black.
That's wrong on so many levels I wouldn't know where to start.
Jenny Brown