Blue VOTEFIRE: Rebooting the 50 State Solution and FDR

Democrats are STARVING for a 50 state BLUE VOTEFIRE and FDR-type progress.

See Dailykos: https://m.dailykos.com/stories/1745590

Ivanka's dirty secret in Panama

My new term for Republicans and "conservatives":

FANATICAL FEAROIDS

They certainly aren't conservatives (since they don't actually conserve anything – i.e. national parks and traditional New Deal legislation). And recent psychological profiles of so-called "conservatives" shows that such folks are distinguished by fear and simplistic thinking.

Yes, it sounds like sci fi, but we have entered a kind of Twilight Zone where none of the old labels are working. These people, these fanatical fearoids, support extremist positions on assault rifles, tax policies serving only multimillionaires, and believe Jesus condones sexual assault and white supremacy. "Reactionary" is not accurate enough a term. Until someone finds me a better term I'm sticking with fanatical fearoid.

Professor amazed: today's "conservatives" aren't actually conservative.

Jeffrey P. Kimball, Miami University professor emeritus, has finally articulated what has been needling me for years. So-called "conservatives" should be conserving the New Deal, national parks, polite manners, and other longstanding US traditions. They aren't, in fact, conserving much of anything – especially under the current Russian puppet despoiling the Whitehouse. Referring to dictionary definitions of conservative, Kimball states in Raw Story:

Ideals are central, not peripheral

We sometimes treat ideals as silly and impossible to implement. Some, like making all blizzards go away, certainly are ridiculous. But maybe we should separate the silly from the realistic and treat the formation and vivid articulation of achievable ideals as a critical operating system at the center of the hive mind.

Take democracy and the abolition of slavery. These were once considered out of reach, but became a standard for much of the world. Initially they had to be promoted as achievable – repeatedly – but what this framing did was actually quite critical to the functioning of group mind: a positive, well-defined ideal may actually function as a memetic seed or operating system... it provides a vivid, and achievable blueprint for the future. It isn't pie-in-the-sky at all. Ideals are actually necessary for a functioning society.

Here are some examples of how well-defined ideals actually leverage change:

– Women claiming their rights by marching in the streets during the women's suffrage movement. They embodied the concept of women's collective power and the institutionalization of the same came about: voting rights for women.

– A vision of scientifically advanced black culture in the new film Black Panther is breaking box office records and giving African American children new kinds of role models.

– The Parkland massacre survivors stating with intense emotion that enough is enough. It has catalyzed a ripple of sentiment for a ban on assault rifles and the linking of Republicans with funding from the NRA. These kids' vision of change is more likely to bring about change in gun laws than any efforts by the more wonkish set before them. They have fearlessly and passionately framed the ideal and it is working.

– Philosophical discussions about the usefulness of ideals (like this one) being swept up in the Democratic Underground and reminding us all that change comes through a combination of ideal-setting (philosophy and culture), platform articulation (social science and policy wonks), and action (everyone voting).

Really? We're falling for it?

Just witnessed, and rolled my eyes at, yet another Bernie v Hillary sandbox fight. The trolls did their wee divisive meddling during the campaign, and they are doing it now by getting everyone's panties in a twist.

My recollection of the primaries is that Bernie and Hillary were a gazillion times more considerate towards one another – at least in the debates and advertising – than the Republicans. They focused on issues that mattered. They learned from each other. ...Yes, there were DNC screw ups and games, but nothing remotely like the Republican mud fight —like Trump calling John McCain's service pointless because he happened to be captured. The Democrats did nothing like Trump calling all immigrants (except his German ancestors) rapists. Good grief.

All this divisive blather seems to be spiked by either Russian trolls, Republican trolls (who picked up the modality), or Democrats who just like a good, stupid fight.

WHILE CITIZENS CLASH
THE 1% TAKES THE CASH

Raw Story: Vocation-only schooling is a trap on many levels

This got my attention. Raw Story cites a podcast which correlates narrow-focus vocational colleges with tighter control over peasantry. Conservatives extol the virtues of such narrow schooling because "it's practical." But the real reason is that it keeps youth from thinking broadly like wisemen/women who would start to question why the USA has become so debased, so 3rd world, since Kennedy and Johnson.

https://www.rawstory.com/2018/02/conservatives-destroying-education-whittling-job-training-theyre-purpose/

A "well-regulated militia"???

Waiting for someone in the mainstream media to say what is CRAZY obvious:

1) The 2nd Amendment clearly states that a "well-regulated militia" is its goal. People, we don't actually have a "well-regulated militia" in the streets!!!

2) Furthermore, we don't have a "well-regulated militia" among the local police. Cell phones have begun to reveal the constant abuse, and tacit repression, of our BEAUTIFUL and long-suffering African American siblings.

3) The Pentagon is growing without restraint.

NONE of those martial domains are well-regulated. Therefore none are protected by the 2nd Amendment. Period. All three are worthy of a challenge in the Supreme Court. The 2nd Amendment was never intended to turn our streets, churches, schools indeed the world at large, into a war zone.

NOTE: That doesn't mean zero guns – although that SHOULD be a planetary goal. As long as human beings come outfitted with a reptile brain with its "fight or flight" impulses, we need to REGULATE the dangerous things. We've done it for automobiles, we can do it for guns.

"We failed"

That is what we will say if we don't get our self-righteous butts off the couch and away from the echo chamber of the web. We need to spend that daily news orgy in the neighborhood bar, bowling alley, etc., and talk to our fellow citizens.

Some talking points (please improve):

–Have you registered to vote?
–Are you planning on holding a motivational pre-vote party?
–Like I did for Hillary, I'm going door to door. Join me this Sept, October and November?
–Do join the blue wave that's actually VOTING in November –for Democrats. They are the only sane party left standing (and they are pro gun control, reproductive rights, Kyoto Protocols, regulating banks, etc)

Another action in the PHYSICAL WORLD: I've already got my homemade sign spread across my car's entire bumper:

WHILE CITIZENS CLASH
THE 1% TAKES THE CASH
Vote Democrats 2018

It reaches way beyond my echo chamber and I've received nothing but thumbs up.

Let's get off the web + talk to neighbors!!!

I have a thought:

Let's get off the web/Facebook/Twitter, even DU, and put the breaks on this insane slide towards fascism, civil war... or whatever it is we seem to be fumbling into. We need to spend that daily news orgy in the neighborhood bar, bowling center, etc., and talk to our fellow citizens.

Here's my talking points (please improve below):

–Have you registered to vote?
–Are you planning on holding a motivational pre-vote party?
–Like I did for Hillary, I'm going door to door. Join me?
–Do join the blue wave that's actually VOTING in November –for Democrats. They are the only sane party left standing (and they are pro gun control, reproductive rights, Kyoto Protocols, regulating banks, etc)

Another action in the PHYSICAL WORLD: I've already got my homemade sign spread across my car's entire bumper:

WHILE CITIZENS CLASH
THE 1% TAKES THE CASH

It reaches way beyond my echo chamber and I've received nothing but thumbs up.