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Edited on Fri Nov-12-04 09:50 PM by PrpgndBrdcstingSystm
Liberals should not be thinking about attacking this or that politician. Instead take the longterm ideological perspective. Build first. That is what the rightwing machine does. THat is the undergirding for the GOP's politics. THat is why the Democratic party is a failed party--the economic narrative has been shunted aside for a social narrative, one that is inherently alienating to the majority of white Americans.
Think instead about how to explain liberal/progressive ideas to the crucial segments of the voting public, like white rural swing state residents.
The Dems have to develop a compelling economic narrative. THat should center around raising the income tax rate on the upper income earners and the wealthy.
Think about how to persuade white rural swing state voters that high taxes on the rich is a good idea. Think about how to persuade white rural swing state voters that taking money from upper income earners and rich people, and spending it on providing universal healthcare to all Americans is a Good Thing.
Think about how to demonstratre to white rural swing state voters that social democracies like Sweden, Norway, Denmark have higher standards of living.
Instead of worrying about how some rich senators and congressmen in DC are holding up, here is a plan to get regular Americans like you and me cheap healthcare and more time off and a more stress-free lifestyle:
Collaborate with other liberal activists online to develop prototypes of video and audio infomercials. This can be done very cheaply with computers and cheap electronics by informed volunteers. For example, an audio or video informercial might consist of informed activists like you or me interviewing one of the MANY well informed progressive academicians (e.g, PhD in Economics) who could explain how progressive taxation is used in Scandanavia to provide for the social safety net and healthcare for all citizens. This should be the centerpiece of the Democratic economic narrative in 2008.
No expensive media consultants or celebrities. Just plain Americans, unpaid and plain spoken.
Don't talk about gender or racial politics, affirmative action or gay rights or other wedge issues that both Dem and GOP politicians and the media are so fond of (gee, I wonder why...).
THen once we have some halfway decent prototypes of infomericials, organize withwell known websites like moveon.org. Set up a donation interface to get money online to run these informercials. Put the infomericials online so that potential donors can see what they are paying for. Tell them that all the donations will go for buying media time, except for a small fraction for legal help to set up contracts.
Run these infomericals as much as we can in the coming years. Run them in the cheap rural media markets in these states: OH, PA, IA, NH, WI, MN, MI, NM, CO, and FL. THose are the general election swing states, which also include the first Democratic primaries in IA and NH.
Get time in off hours in late night teevee. Buy time on radio in small rural markets in those states. Buy full page ads in small town newspapers.
The Democratic voters in blue states already are in agreement with these ideas. We still have to convince the white rural voters in those swing states.
This is what the rightwing propaganda machine has been doing for years, except they work through Washington DC, and big media outlets such as PBS, CBS, CNN, Fox, etc, and big newspapers and other outlets using products created and funded by their think tanks and foundations (studies, essays, news stories, etc.). But they have billions of dollars and have been at it for decades.
We do not have that kind of money or time.
But worrying about conventional politics is not productive. You wind up with Presidential DINOs like Clinton. Instead, concentrate on moving the crucial rural white swing states voters to the left. The media markets where they live are cheap. In addition to late night tv and small town radio, throw in full page ads in rural newspapers (Really Cheap!).
I bet we can do it for 200 million dollars in the next 4 years. Are there 10 million committed liberals in America? That is $20 apiece.
THen, in the 2008 Democratic primaries, a big chunk of the voters in IA and NH will be primed to vote for a Democratic candidate who is a real liberal. And in the general election, there will be a good sized chunk of the crucial swing state voters who will be ready to elect that same progressive, real liberal Democrat.
Or you can just go back to conventional politics, which has produced what we have today.....
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