The Definition of Insanity: The Rise and Immediate Fall of the Democratic Party
Do you know what the definition of insanity is? It’s doing the same thing over and over again, all the while expecting a different result.
Imagine poking a brick wall and expecting it to move. Now, imagine poking a brick wall a million times, getting angry that the wall hasn’t moved, and screaming at the mason who pointed out the fact that a brick wall can’t be moved simply by poking it.
The wall pusher is the Democratic Party.
The mason is the progressive wing of the party.
The wall itself is American voters.
And what’s that coming over the hill? It’s an Elephant carrying dynamite. Kaboom.
The party of the jackass is truly living up to its name. Corporate donors pull the puppet strings of the party, all the while its elected officials portray a thinly veiled, and easily dismissed, persona of progressive liberalism. In reality, the party currently serves as a weak and impotent doorstop to a minority party that is currently preparing to rip the door off of its hinges.
To avoid any semblance of impartiality in this piece I will state loudly that I am a dues paying member of the Democratic Socialists of America and view the Democratic Party as a well-shined tool of the ruling class. That being said, I’m also a registered Democrat.
What’s that old saying? “Between a rock and a Nuremberg Rally?”
America and her people are currently stuck in an abusive relationship between two cruel spouses, albeit one is a danger to its very existence. The other, the Democratic Party, is merely maintaining the awful relationship and offering little in the way of genuine growth. The watered down promises offered by the party’s watered down candidate have been in turn watered down by party members who may very well drown the party.
Then, post-drowning, we’ll be stuck with the party that intends to end this “great experiment” of ours. We need to ensure this doesn’t happen.
This country is a failed state, I say that in all sincerity. Our system of government is inherently anti-democratic and has only become more and more corrupted by special interests as time marches on. The fact that the state of Wyoming (~580,000 residents) has an equal amount of representation as California (~39,000,000 residents) in the upper chamber of the national legislature is enough evidence that the name of the game ain’t “democracy.” A minority party, one that has wholly embraced fascistic ideology and practices, currently dominates our politics and has managed to convince even those slightly left-leaning on the opposing side of the bench to kowtow to their warped vision of America.
The losers in this game are the 99% of Americans who are under the thumb of the wealthy elite who use our so-called “democracy” to enrich themselves and temper us only to the extent that we don’t openly revolt. The corruption of the Democratic Party, and the continued devolution of the Republican Party, are leading our nation to the brink. All the while, this forever conflict between the blue and red teams has been wildly successful at getting working people to fight among themselves, rather than working together to bring about the “more perfect union” millions of Americans have died in vain for.
This is not meant to equate the two parties as equally evil, far from it. At the end of the day America currently has two parties: one neoliberal, one fascist.
Obviously, this is not an ideal situation. We would be in a far less dire position if our system of government mirrored those of our European allies, such as Germany’s Bundestag. This would curtail the extremists takeover of larger parties and allow a much more genuine balance of power. That being said, even the best governmental systems in our modern world are merely the tools of the ruling class — they’re just not as openly brazen about it as the American ruling class is. Regardless, immediate reforms and dramatic changes in messaging needs to occur if there is to be any hope of saving our republic.
Democratic voters have rightfully grown frustrated with their party. All of the common sense policies promised on Election Day have faded in the wind. Compromise is the word of the era, but the compromising is being done by those already enriched and empowered by a corrupt system. The working class and middle class, i.e. the majority of Americans, are not present at the negotiating table. And when a populist candidate, such as the previous occupant of the White House, promises the world to voters and a chance to flip the metaphorical table, how can we be surprised when they say yes?
Propaganda and the wide-reaching and deadly affects of misinformation have merely assisted in the downward spiral of our democracy — the canary has been dead long before their arrival.
Failings of the public education system, increases in the cost of living, stagnant wages, the unaffordable nature of healthcare, lack of confidence in our institutions, inflated cultural conflicts, unresolved issues regarding structural and societal racism, hyper-partisanship and tribalism, and many, many other issues are what is leading America down a very dark path.
It is easy to point fingers in a multitude of directions, but I can only offer one solution to the ranks of Americans who truly wish to forge a more perfect union — we need to reject the elites, as well as the system that they have put in place to keep us perpetually fighting each other.
If the 99% of Americans recognize the severity of their situation, and organize along class lines rather than artificial or exclusionary identities, we will be able to provide to the world a shining example of a true people’s democracy.
A genuine “city on the hill.”
To the Democratic Party — stop poking the damn wall.
If Democrats wish to be the saviors of the republic, as they are currently trying to position themselves as, they need to offer tangible relief to the millions of Americans suffering under our current system. This would require the party to reject corporate donations and to instead approach their voters at an equal level. I am not entirely confident the current crop of leaders (many far older than the Americans who will live with the effects of their failings) will be able to rise to the occasion. If they prove themselves incapable of what in reality is the bare minimum we should expect of them, perhaps it is now time for a change in management.
We need another FDR, a bullish progressive who is unwilling to compromise with a party that would sooner burn down the nation than return the favor. No more milquetoast moderates, no more kowtowing to conservatism. Every day we fail to move forward we end up falling 5 steps back. At this rate we might as well prepare for the return of colonial rule from London, King George the III would probably fare well in a modern election based on how things are going currently.
Rule Britannia.
— Sincerely, a very worried man.
