There has been so much going on this week. There have been major disappointments for the progressives, but I know that disappointments, even big ones, do not cause me to give up.
There is no shame in loosing a fair fight. And there is no shame in loosing to a power if it comes to pass that there was some sort of cheating. And to me, Citizens' United stuff is Cheating. Allowing big money like that to be poured into campaigns buries the importance of the singular vote with wads of cash and revolving door political corruption.
So in effect, the victory for the other side is fleeting and expensive. We made them expend energy, and lots of it, and money. And we can make them expend more. And hopefully during that process, they will show their hands in such a way, that no one can ever doubt the level of corruption this ruling has lead to, and perhaps that will lead to more progressives coming together to push to overturn Citizens United, and create a new amendment: One that creates a wall of separation between corporation and State.
This is a long haul fight. It might go on for years. No corrupt power is going to willingly step away from an advantage like this. This is the time of small rebellions, of hunkering down and digging in, of being an annoyance, until we can pool our resources together again, and act as a larger coherent force of change.
Now is not the time to give up or give in. Now is the time to take a break, to reorganize, to regroup and to rethink what our strategies are going to be.
The problem is, that the Theo-Plutocracy has been fighting a very deep game, and collectively, most of us have missed that, failed to recognize it for what it is, or to comprehend the complexities and kinship roles.
What we are up against came from below and from within. And it spread itself throughout our country like a fungal mycelium. It's threads are everywhere, in everything, outgassing spores whenever possible through the media and through churches.
Progressives often refuse to sully churches with political activity, because it's unlawful and unethical. But what we are up against, has no such compunctions. So they are using tools and kinship connections that we lack.
Progressives truly are big tent; many who count themselves progressive, are not religious at all, or are non-church going, or of religious minorities. So these members simply lack the resources [churches] to mimic this abuse of religious institutions.
And that is something that I believe that we need to change.
Why is it we rely on Unions to do all the hard work? Because their meetings create powerful social connections, they have regular meetings, and social functions, and a membership.
But many progressives possess no such institution that affords them these connections other than the internet. And sadly the internet is just not enough. It's great for conversing, and letter writing, but it's not going to be conducive to creating the kind of strong social relationships that we need to stand against a unified, coherent, organized force[s] that are tearing our country down.
Churches are giving our rivals marching orders. They have been since the late 70s. Their shared religion strengthens their shared political identity. That is why values voters are such a force to contend with.
I propose that Progressives need to create local socializing clubs that meet regularly, not only for business, but just to hang out and create a sense of unity and community. We don't have to be of the same religion, but we can agree on certain ethical concepts.
I have often complained that, where I live, most of the social activities are organized through churches. Which often means I simply do not go. I am in no mood to suffer through conversion attempts or lectures or sermons. I want to trick or treat at Halloween, and not trunk or treat at a church filled with Harvest-Fest Bible figures. And I celebrate the 4th of July too, but not for God, Mom and Apple Pie, but for my First Freedoms, BBQ and Firecrackers.
What this means is that I and others like me often celebrate alone, or surrounded as a minority. There are others out there like us, but we don't meet. And I believe this affects our feelings of the kind of power we think we have, and how we can best utilize it as citizens.
Progressives need social clubs that meet regularly, that are family friendly, that offer a secular alternative to churches if we are going to organize ourselves in a meaningful way to take on the Pluto-Theocrats.
This diary is sort of raw, so much development will happen in the comment section, and I might update this a few dozen times as my thoughts mature.
It is in churches, that these groups come together to decide to take over school boards. It is in churches, that groups come together and decide to smear local politicians.
It is in churches, that these movements are organized.
I don't want a church, but want to offer a viable counter to their antics and to do that we need a very strong sense of community.
Pluto-Theocrats put out their own little yellow pages, so they know who to patronize for business and who not to. They decide who to shun or shut out or freeze out in churches.
I know some will say, but we already have Democratic Party groups, etc., yes we do, but they do not meet regularly. Churches meet every Sunday. They are there not only as religious institution, but also to offer community support to the needy members, to provide charitable giving, and to network.
One of the main reasons we have been loosing is a lack of something comparable. My only hope is that we can do this, and it can be without it being *religious in nature.
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A friend and I were talking tonight and he had something important to say about this. He told me that, the way Capitalism is now, it dissolves all the ties that create community and replaces those ties with commodities. [I am paraphrasing here--I wish I had a pencil and paper so I could have quoted him directly].
All the accusations made against feminists, and homosexuals, and religious and racial minorities, that *We are out to destroy capitalism and the family unit. But in reality, if one sees, the Theocrats and the Plutocrats as essentially one entity, then it is, just another case of projection.
People take the jobs that are available, and do what they have to, to hold a job. So explain to me, if workers have fewer individual and collective bargaining rights, if they have lower pay, and fewer benefits and less free time--how exactly anyone who works, could be powerful enough to destroy capitalism and the concept of the family? When would they find either the time or the money?
How different would Progressive movement look if we met regularly in communities to socialize? If we had local communities where people of a like mind could be supportive of each other? Big seminars and the like are great, but if those only happen occasionally and in one location or two, then for many people they will be time and cost prohibitive.
In a bad economy and a climate that is in trouble, local progressives need a place to meet that they can walk to. Networks= Survival, but also networks [read local communities] are a means to thrive. Where knowledge can be spread, where support can be found, where ideas can have a sounding board, real time.
The internet is wonderful, but it is not a good replacement for genuine, face to face human interaction.
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