Hi! I'm Mark. I'm a recovering Democrat. It took me a long time to admit that I had a problem. I'm a registered Green now and I'm trying to make amends.
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Democrats Anonymous
By Mark E. Smith
I'm sorry, but you can't take back the Democratic Party. It wasn't given away, it was sold. If you want the Democratic Party back, you'll have to buy it back. And since they're used to getting millions of dollars for a single election, it would take quite a bit to buy back the entire party. You'd have to compete with multinational corporations, defense contractors, unions, PACs, and local Democratic Party machines.
Besides, why would you want it back? What has it done for you lately besides pushing through GATT, voting for NAFTA, forcing poor single mothers off welfare, voting for war, voting for tax cuts for the rich, refusing to back a single-payer health plan, and consistently acting in a collegial and bipartisan manner to let the Republicans walk all over them "for the good of the country?"
Do you want it back because it refused to back the Congressional Black Caucus when it tried to protest the fraudulent Florida electoral votes in 2000? Do you want it back because it refused to ensure that our votes were counted in 2004? Do you want it back because John Conyers and Maxine Waters had the courage to carry our signatures to the White House and stand outside the gates like every other citizen while the White House staff discarded the unwelcome petition before Bush or Cheney could see it and get mad?
I want peace, so I vote for peace. I want to end corporate rule, so I vote to end corporate rule. I want equality, so I vote for equality. I want a healthy environment, so I vote for a healthy environment. I'm a recovering Democrat, and needless to say I am now a happy and active member of the Green Party.
But, but, but, you say, the Greens can't win? Not if you don't vote for us, we can't. When Hugo Chavez ran for President in Venezuela, the mainstream media was against him, and there were two major mainstream parties who had previously won all elections and were very good at stealing votes. Both major parties together only got 5% of the vote in that election, which includes the votes they stole, and Chavez got something like 47% of the votes. Because the people were sick and tired of corruption and business as usual. Are we?
We're not going to take this country back by voting for entrenched, vested interests and the status quo. If you have a conscience, it is high time you stopped voting your party or your wallet and started voting your conscience.
If you don't have a conscience, you've got plenty of company -- the Democratic Party doesn't either.
In case you haven't noticed, there's a revolution going on. If you'd like to take our country back, please join us in the streets. We did it in Venezuela, we did it in Bolivia, we did it in Peru, and we're going to do it in Mexico, and the United States. Nobody is going to do it for us, certainly not the Democratic Party. There is only one power that can take our country back and that is the power of you and me and our neighbors and families and friends. Remember "We the People?" That's us. The Constitution didn’t say, “We the corporations of the United States,” it didn’t say, “We the political parties of the United States,” it didn’t say, “We the elected representatives of the United States.” It said, “We the People of the United States.” It is time we remember who we are and what we’re about.
If we are going to take OUR country back, we have to have the determination. We must be determined to end corporate rule. We must be determined to end the war. We must be determined to fight for equality and justice. And we are. By "we," I am referring to the Green Party. The Democratic Party, whether in its leadership or in its grass roots, has the organization and the money, but it lacks the values, principles, and determination.
The Ten Key Values of the Green Party are Grassroots Democracy, Social Justice, Ecological Wisdom, Non-violence, Decentralization, Community-based Economics, Feminism, Diversity, Responsibility, and Future Focus.. That's what we're all about. There is nothing comparable in the platforms of the Democratic and Republican parties. They don't have the vision and they don't have clear goals.
The job of the Republicans is to toady to the corporations. The job of the Democrats is to contain the left and prevent any real opposition to the Republicans. That's why the Democrats spent millions smearing Ralph Nader (who isn't even a Green -- we endorsed him in 2000, but not in 2004) and filing lawsuits to block Green Party candidates from ballot access.
Read "Indispensable Enemies" by the late Walter Karp, or "Dime's Worth of Difference" by Alexander Cockburn. Hillary Clinton wavering until the last moment, and then finally dashing out to speak to the immigrants' rights march in New York is a great example of, "Which way did they go? I'm their leader!" We Greens don't need to play catch-up, because we're always in the forefront of struggles for justice, human rights, the environment, worker safety, and everything else important to ordinary people. That's who we are, ordinary people, not a wealthy political/corporate elite.
As election reform moves forward, you may see an end to rigged voting machines, and the introduction of publicly-funded elections, instant-runoff voting, proportional representation, and many other reforms essential to a true democracy. We're tired of whoever has the most money buying an election. We're tired of the electoral college and judicial intervention. We want government of the people, by the people, and for the people, and we want every vote to count and be counted accurately. We want a level playing field, because once we have a game that isn't rigged, the Democrats and Republicans won't be able to compete with us. What it boils down to is that we care about people and things that matter, not just about what is politically expedient, and they don't even pretend to.
Most goodhearted people say that they agree with the Ten Key Values of the Green Party, or that they‘re Greens at heart. The feeling is that we're trapped in a two-party system so we have to vote the lesser evil for fear the greater evil will otherwise win. Well, there are two very large flaws in that reasoning:.
1) The elections are rigged. Gore got the most votes in 2000 and Kerry got the most votes in 2004, but neither one won the election.
2) When you vote for a little devil because their opponent is Satan himself, you've forgotten who that little devil works for.
The millions who are marching for immigrant rights have an apt saying: Si se puede! Yes we can! It is time for all liberals, progressives, and whatever else you might call yourself if you care about others, to stop being so negative. If you keep saying that we can’t win, we probably can’t. The idea behind positive psychology is to be positive. Those people outside your window may not all have college degrees, but listen to what they’re saying: Si se puede! Yes we can! I can’t think of a better example of positive psychology, can you?
I have some concrete suggestions for those who want to make the world a better place and take our country back:
1. Join the nearest election reform group you can find and help them gather signatures for ballot initiatives and lobby your representatives for election reform. Yes, it does seem a bit futile to try to vote for election reform when the reason for election reform is because our elections are rigged. But we’ve been making progress anyway, so if you want to see things change for the better, put your shoulder to the wheel.
2. Reregister Green and become active in the Green Party. Go to meetings, help out, and run for office. You’ll probably find it a very pleasant surprise to be around others who believe the same things you do. You won’t have to cater to the right on grounds of political expediency, and your voice will be heard. Make your vote count. A Green Party vote isn’t a wasted vote, it is a vote against war, against the Bush (mis)administration, for impeachment, for the environment, for justice, and for your own interests. It is a way to tell the powers that be that you will no longer compromise your anti-war beliefs and vote for a pro-war candidate because they’re the only ones who can win. I’m not asking you to break into defense plants and pour blood on missiles, or to chain yourself to the Pentagon, I’m just saying that if you want peace, the very least you can do is vote peace. Try it. I think you’ll like it and I know you’ll sleep better having done it.
3. Honor the May 1st General Strike: A Day Without An Immigrant. No work, no school, don’t buy, don’t sell. Get out in the streets and join the marches and rallies. If you’ve been waiting for leaders, here they are. Millions of people taking to the streets and demanding justice. Join us! Except for Native Americans, we are all immigrants or the descendants of immigrants. We owe a huge debt to those who came here fleeing U.S.-sponsored totalitarian governments, U.S.-trained death squads, and U.S. economic policies that wreaked havoc in their native lands. Immigrants aren’t to blame for job loss. Any CEO can outsource ten or twenty thousand jobs at a time, no immigrant has the same power. Members of Congress who spend most of their time asking for, begging, borrowing, stealing, or conning people out of money, have no right to attack people who actually work for a living. Immigrants contribute over $100 billion more to our economy every year than they receive in benefits and government services. Do you know who picks your fruit and vegetables, cleans your schools and offices, and works in the stock rooms of every large store and supermarket? On May 1st, you’re going to find out. So stock up on everything you might need by April 30th, and on May 1st join us in the streets. There won’t be much else you can do anyway.
A few weeks ago I attended a meeting of a local election reform coalition that happened to be held at the home of a Democratic senatorial candidate. I was the only Green there and all the rest were Democratic Party activists, the kind who have either run for or held office themselves as Democrats, or who are movers and shakers in Democratic Clubs and hold fundraisers for candidates. At one point my host said something about how terrible it is that the Republicans control everything. I responded that I held the Democrats equally to blame because they didn’t support the Congressional Black Caucus in protesting the fraudulent Florida electoral vote in 2000, and have consistently conceded early, voted with the Republicans, and caved in to the Republicans every step of the way.
My host responded angrily in an attempt to defend his political party. But everyone else there agreed with me. So a few minutes later I asked him if there was anything in the Ten Key Values of the Green Party that he disagreed with, and he said there wasn‘t. He’s not running as a Democrat because the Democratic Party represents his beliefs -- it doesn’t. He is running as a Democrat because he thinks that’s the only way he can win. But if he betrays his own beliefs in doing so, does the end justify the means? What will he have if he wins? Will he have to cater to the Democratic Party leadership because he owes them a debt for their support in his campaign? Of course. A rather pyrrhic victory if you ask me.
I ran for office once myself, in a nonpartisan city council race. I didn’t expect to win and my sole purpose in running was to get some media attention for my anti-nuke message. But there was an unexpected benefit. I voted for myself and I felt really good about being able to vote for someone I could trust for a change. I was a low-income person living in a rather wealthy town and I only knew about a dozen people there personally, most of whom weren’t even registered to vote. I ended up with 189 votes. These were all people who didn’t know me but agreed with my message. They knew I couldn’t win, but they also opposed building a nuclear waste dump in their town, and I was the only candidate who was against it. That was quite a few years ago. People are much angrier now and much more aware. But we have to start thinking positively. We can take our country back. We can elect candidates who will actually represent us. We can vote our conscience.
Winning isn’t everything. If you have to sell your soul and compromise your principles in order to win, it isn’t even anything at all but just another name for losing. And if you have to compromise your own principles just to win, how can you blame your elected representatives for doing the same thing? Our system is corrupt and compromised because we are corrupt and compromised. And if we want to change it, first we have to change ourselves. We can do it. Si se puede! Yes we can!
Authors Bio:I'm an anti-civilizationist and election boycott advocate in San Diego. For reasons not to vote in faith-based elections with secret vote counts for candidates you cannot hold accountable if they fail to represent you, check out the discussions, articles, and videos on my website http://noinnovember.ning.com