The DNC Contenders Are Not Interested In Your Populist Moment (Huffpo)

[PatrickforO]

3. I hope that when you go, you will take some of these ideas -

not just from this article, but from other things I and others have written about the utter tone-deafness of our party this time around. I don't think anybody really knows what to do. We have Sanders and Warren, both aging, thundering from their Senate seats in the face of accelerated Republican attacks on everything Obama did during his term and more.

But I'll be honest - many times on this very site, I have found myself discouraged because so many on here (and I know there are some party bigwigs who post on here) just don't seem to understand the profound anger of the [populist, New Deal socialist, democratic socialist, worker's wing, whatever you want to call us] wing of the party. This anger amongst Democratic rank and file voters will continue to grow, too, as the GOP rides roughshod over many of the things we fought for over long decades of struggle when our party is powerless to stop most of it.

The New Deal, for instance. It worked. It really did. It saved capitalism. I have said often to those in power, "Hey, just be like FDR and throw the middle class a few bones - single payer healthcare and strong, guaranteed Social Security, and you can go on screwing us for decades to come..." but no one really believed me. Of course, that 'decades to come' may be moot because of global warming...

I'm not gonna say anything about Hillary. She's a good person but the wrong person at the wrong time. I can remember how very, very angry I was at some of her tactics during the primary season. Oh, social justice is more important than economic justice, they said, which implies that Sanders is a racist, they said...geez. And then this November we got what we got. And it's a shitty gift that's gonna keep on giving and giving and giving...or perhaps I should say 'taking.' Because these people want to do away with the concept of 'public good' and make everything private, for profit without any of those pesky regulations to affect cash register operation.

I'm furious. I get 20 emails a day from various Dems, all insisting I give money so they can 'continue the fight against (you fill in the blank). You know, when Americans generally realize how deeply they are going to be screwed by these bozos now in power, they might resort to pitchforks.

I hope not because I'm too old for that shit.

By the way, you'll be happy to note that my friends and I here in my state are trying to form groups to pressure our state legislature and governor into enacting 'national popular vote' legislation. That's a little thing, but it is something.

Sorry for the rant. Good luck in Houston.