[lbo-talk] Sachs on Obama's budget for the rich and powerful

[Wojtek S]

Marv: "I agree a third party would have to be built patiently from the
ground up, where there is the possibility of electing local, state,
and congressional officials. The presidential bids are more visible,
but still only ephemeral propaganda exercises which leave nothing
behind."

[WS:] Yup.  The third-party presidential bids are nothing more than
self-promotion celebrity stunts.  This includes Nader, who imho is
another ambitious social climber riding on the wave of the American
celebrity culture.  People like that are a dime a dozen in the
academia, cultural institutions, NGOs, etc.

The way to go is two pronged.  First is to make changes to the local
or state electoral system to lower the entry barriers to the
outsiders.  California's Proposition 20
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Proposition_20_(2010) that
takes away drawing electoral district from the hands of politicians
(talking about foxes guarding hen houses) may be an example.  The
second prong is build a third party at the local or state level where
its candidates have the greatest chance of being elected.  Nothing is
more frustrating than a party that has no intention of putting
candidates to political offices (cf. Tony Mazzochi's Labor Party).

Wojtek