And dammit, I'm tired of being mad. We're stuck with this jackass for another 4 years. Another 4 years of being denigrated. Another 4 years of being called unamerican. Another 4 years of gutting good federal programs. Why?
Because politicians are afraid of pissing me off.
Let me begin this by saying I think John Kerry is a wonderful guy, and I'm proud to have voted for him. I think he would have been a very good president, if not an excellent one. The problem here is an institutional one, and not necessarily with him or his campaign.
More below.
I firmly believe that we lost this election because we are afraid of pissing people off. Sen. Kerry did a good job of pointing out what the Bush administration has already done wrong. But what I think cost him the election was clarity. He rarely spoke in specifics about what he was going to do, and when he did, there was too much to it to be considered "simple". I know, I know. His health care plan was outlined in the debates. But what about his plan for social security? Okay, he wanted to go into bilateral talks with North Korea. But what beyond "reaching out to our allies" was his stated plan for Iraq? "I will not privatize social security" is not a plan, just like "PAYGO" is not clear. You have to be simple, clear and straightforward. And it starts with how you identify yourself.
I used to be a Rockefeller Republican. A socially liberal fiscal conservative. No more. I am liberal. I believe in using the federal government to help people. I believe in a foreign policy of engagement. I believe that abortion is wrong, but I also believe that it should remain legal. I believe that the death penalty should only be used in the most extreme cases. I believe that we should use our economic power to improve the quality of life not only here, but around the world. I believe that all humans are created equal. Not just crusty old rich white men. Iraqis. Blacks. Hispanics. The French. Texans. Californians. The Japanese. The Irish. Nigerians. Russians. Even the neocons. And as such, we are all entitled to certain things. The right to freedom. The right to work my ass off to make my life, and my childrens' lives, better.
And these assholes are going to take that away.
I can't make my life better if I'm putting half my paycheck into a forced savings account for some future illness.
I can't make my life better if I'm putting a quarter of my paycheck into a small yield, volatile forced savings account for when I retire.
I can't make my life better if our economy keeps hemorrhaging jobs because the only way profits will go up is through layoffs and outsourcing.
I can't make my life better if I'm audited by the IRS, while giant corporations keep dodging their taxes without penalty.
I can't make my life better if I'm forced to pay for thousands of mothers and their kids, forced into the streets because they can't afford to have children.
I can't make my life better if I lose my job and have to flip burgers to make ends meet and don't have time to go find a new one.
I can't make my life better if I get hit by a stray bullet from an automatic weapon fight.
I can't make my life better if, because the federal government is too busy putting money into the pockets of their corporate cronies, my police department in New York can't hire new recruits and I die in a terrorist attack.
I can't make my life better if I'm spending all my time paying down irresponsible debt run up by a failed businessman. My children won't be able to make their lives better, either.
The fact of the matter is, I am more free with good health insurance.
I am more free with good social security.
I am safer with workplace protection. And I am more free with a good paying job that hasn't been shipped to India to squeeze another .01% profit.
I am more free with corporate tax laws enforced.
I am more free with welfare that helps people get back to work instead of beg on the streets.
I am safer with gun control laws. If you need an AK47 to hunt, YOU'RE A SHITTY HUNTER. Do something else. If you need an AK47 for "protection", why the hell do you pay taxes to the federal government? Shouldn't you have a government that does that for you?
I am safer because of federal funding for local police.
I am more free with a responsible government. Because I don't have to worry about how I'm going to fix these things.
I am a liberal. If that pisses you off, too bad. I will make this country better, more productive, and safer. Because I am liberal. And because we always have. If you don't think so, then don't vote for my party. You're already not voting for us.
But in order to do that, we have to be proud of what we are and clear on what we have done and will do.
I'm not running for president. So I don't have a plan to discuss. If I did, I wouldn't tell you because I'm not old enough to run yet and I don't want any of you stealing my ideas ::wink::. But I really feel that we need to start by being proud of what we are.