Hug a Progressive
Demanding fair and equal treatment for all people regardless of their race, class, profession, religion, age, etc. etc. etc. has always been appealing to me. And it may be a cliché, but some of my best friends are liberals. Apparently half the voters in America are progressives.
As a progressive myself, I have always felt that progressive participation in government has traditionally kept the cruelest of the conservatives in check. And I have personally found that the majority of progressives and conservatives are capable of intelligent discussion and honest compromise that honors the inherent worth and dignity of everyone involved.
Progressives have pushed forward some of the most heroic changes in our laws and our perceptions. Any list of progressive victories must include Civil Rights, workplace safety, clean air and water, fair labor laws, and much more. Many social privileges and rights that we take for granted here at the turn of the century exist only because some brave progressives fought the established attitudes and laws of their time. And I think many of us began to believe that things would keep on progressing.
But the political and social pendulum has swung away from progressive issues. The corporate consolidation of the press has meant that exposing corruption in business and government is harder to do. And while we took our progressive gains for granted, some conservative pundits and politicians made a career out of mocking liberals and manipulating the fear of change many conservatives were feeling. And at the same time corporate money was buying the press and the political right, they were buying the political left as well. Democrat and Republican politicians have both gotten rich by selling their representation to corporate interests instead of standing by the people who elected them. And while the progressives were used to fighting fat-cat Republicans, they did not notice that the Democrats had all gotten fat too.
So please hug a progressive. Even though we have had the emotional outlet of screaming at the Neo-Cons and the multi-national corporations and the military-industrial complex, we have been betrayed by our political leaders as well. Progressives are just beginning to see how their best ideals have been used as a shield to conceal the true violence being done to the world, to the constitution, to the environment… The hard truth is that the very Progressive voters who gave power to the Democrats have been used, abused and raped by those they trusted. The Democratic leadership has constantly caved in and rubber stamped the worst actions of the Neo-Cons. And progressive voters have enabled and empowered this cowardly treatment.
Please hug a progressive. We are still angry and in denial. But we are getting ready to move on and build a new life. Progressives may have been more vocal and had more public temper tantrums than conservatives, but that is cold consolation. Our leaders went along with the lies and abuse. We had high hopes that Democrats would stand up to the Neo-Cons, but they didn’t. Hug a progressive because they feel bad—they tried and failed and they wonder if they did everything they could.
Hug a Progressive. Let them know that Conservatives care about them. Let them know that Conservatives are genuinely interested in life, liberty and freedom. I hope that Conservatives are looking forward to having honest debates with honest Progressives once again. I hope that Conservatives look forward to building a more honest and compassionate America where every citizen is afforded rights, dignity and opportunity.
Hug a Progressive. They have become trapped in a bad relationship, and they have been treated badly. When Progressives return to their core values, they will begin to heal.
------XXXOOO-----
True Majority
http://www.truemajority.org/
As a progressive myself, I have always felt that progressive participation in government has traditionally kept the cruelest of the conservatives in check. And I have personally found that the majority of progressives and conservatives are capable of intelligent discussion and honest compromise that honors the inherent worth and dignity of everyone involved.
Progressives have pushed forward some of the most heroic changes in our laws and our perceptions. Any list of progressive victories must include Civil Rights, workplace safety, clean air and water, fair labor laws, and much more. Many social privileges and rights that we take for granted here at the turn of the century exist only because some brave progressives fought the established attitudes and laws of their time. And I think many of us began to believe that things would keep on progressing.
But the political and social pendulum has swung away from progressive issues. The corporate consolidation of the press has meant that exposing corruption in business and government is harder to do. And while we took our progressive gains for granted, some conservative pundits and politicians made a career out of mocking liberals and manipulating the fear of change many conservatives were feeling. And at the same time corporate money was buying the press and the political right, they were buying the political left as well. Democrat and Republican politicians have both gotten rich by selling their representation to corporate interests instead of standing by the people who elected them. And while the progressives were used to fighting fat-cat Republicans, they did not notice that the Democrats had all gotten fat too.
So please hug a progressive. Even though we have had the emotional outlet of screaming at the Neo-Cons and the multi-national corporations and the military-industrial complex, we have been betrayed by our political leaders as well. Progressives are just beginning to see how their best ideals have been used as a shield to conceal the true violence being done to the world, to the constitution, to the environment… The hard truth is that the very Progressive voters who gave power to the Democrats have been used, abused and raped by those they trusted. The Democratic leadership has constantly caved in and rubber stamped the worst actions of the Neo-Cons. And progressive voters have enabled and empowered this cowardly treatment.
Please hug a progressive. We are still angry and in denial. But we are getting ready to move on and build a new life. Progressives may have been more vocal and had more public temper tantrums than conservatives, but that is cold consolation. Our leaders went along with the lies and abuse. We had high hopes that Democrats would stand up to the Neo-Cons, but they didn’t. Hug a progressive because they feel bad—they tried and failed and they wonder if they did everything they could.
Hug a Progressive. Let them know that Conservatives care about them. Let them know that Conservatives are genuinely interested in life, liberty and freedom. I hope that Conservatives are looking forward to having honest debates with honest Progressives once again. I hope that Conservatives look forward to building a more honest and compassionate America where every citizen is afforded rights, dignity and opportunity.
Hug a Progressive. They have become trapped in a bad relationship, and they have been treated badly. When Progressives return to their core values, they will begin to heal.
------XXXOOO-----
True Majority
http://www.truemajority.org/
posted by Jay Larsen at 3:30 PM
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