Passivity is no solution

They won't do anything to
stop Alito

Look, this is really simple: as long as you call the Dems gutless and expect failure from them, that is all you will get.

The fundies voted for Jimmy Carter in 1976 and they were not happy. Did they whine? Hell, yes, and they whined effectively. They pestered Congressmen, voted for their people, raised money and drove voters to the polls.

The Alito vote was never going to be solved by some Perry Mason moment with Alito saying "women suck" at the committee. The guy may be creepy, but he's pretty smart.

Bork wasn't beat in the committee, but by ads after the fact. The pressure to defeat him grew externally.

Politicians are like any other person seeking public favor, they respond to their voters.

So the next act in this drama is to make a stink, call your elected officials, your Senators and ask them point blank about Friday's Times editorial, the one which claims Alito will vote to overturn Roe, and then ask them if they are going to do anything to stop him.

Now, personally, this moaning to the media is counterintuative, after all, why piss people off by claiming no fight. Not even DC Dems are that clueless. And of course, everyone expects them to fold. So why announce it so early, when you know the GOP is growing more unpopular by the day.

But regardless of a genuine collapse or gamesmanship, there has to be a sustained public outcry, win or lose. There has to be pressure put on the Dems to do whatever it takes to oppose him, and that starts with you calling your Senator.

You know, the rich and the fundies use democracy all the time, they work the Congress like it was second nature. But here, on the left, you have people waiting for the brown shirts to return and inventing excuses to be passive, or even worse, hoping for some pure party to come along and offer easy salvation.

There's a line from the Guns of Navarrone "You're in it, right up to your neck". Well, if you think you'll stop Bush by voting Green or whining or saying he's a dictator, you're wrong. Until the mobs are in the streets, you still have the law and your rights and the right to petition Congress. And if you think last year was ugly, that was nothing compared to what is coming.

You think this is the only fight? You think you can walk away from this one? Shit, this is nothing, because by the end of the year, we may be fighting to reclaim the Republic from, Bush and Cheney. If Congress won't act, it's up to us to try and make them act. And if they want to appease, we find new people for their jobs, if it takes years.

People say I'm optimistic. Fuck no. I know American history. Bush is a piker compared to the people who ran Mississippi in the 1950's. That was a police state, complete witrh secret police, disappearances and mob rule. Most American have forgotten that, but they shouldn't.

Bush's power came from our weakness and fear, we didn't protect what we should have when we should have. We gave him too much trust and he failed us all. Now, we have to reclaim it and that will not be easy. But is has to be done. Compared to the other challenges Americans have faced, it's not a massive thing, no one has to steal Tory land at gunpoint or dodge German bullets on Omaha Beach or face fire hoses and dogs, but it won't be easy either. But it needs to be done. And no matter how shitty it seems at any one moment, like reading the Times this morning, you don't get to lose heart. Why? Because if you can read this, you probably aren't doing that bad.

The people who need a different America, soldiers, Wal Mart employees, don't get the time to call Congress. We do. So keep in mind, if you do nothing, the people who catch it in the neck isn't you, but someone who's already struggling and doesn't need another burden. You aren't just fighting for yourself. Every time you read about Wal Mart, and get pissed, remember, you're not just protecting your rights, but a lot of people who have no voice. That's why we do this, not just to vent your anger and express your frustration. America has left a lot of people behind, and if no one else want to think of them, it is our moral duty to do so.

Senate phone numbers and mail addresses

posted by Steve @ 3:00:00 AM