DNC, you want money? I assume you're joking...
Sun Sep 09, 2007 at 07:27:09 PM PDT
Have you ever received mailings from Democratic organizations like the DNC or the DCCC or DSCC asking you for money? Suuuuuure you have...and so have I, and I'm not even a registered Democrat!
I've had a little time off from non-stop work recently and have been cleaning up my desk of various flotsam and jetsam. In doing so, I uncovered three letters from the above-mentioned organizations, all containing breathless prose such as:
(More after flip...)
"Americans have had enough of a mismanaged war, a do-nothing economic policy that puts more strain on working families, sky-rocking gasoline prices, and abuse of power in the White House." – DNC
or this one:
"What we must do is take strong, effective action against this Administration that has taken a wrecking ball to the very foundations of our democracy. We must stand together, with every committed Democrat who cares about this country and our future, and say to George W. Bush and his Republican allies in Congress that enough is enough!" – 'Al Gore' for the DCCC
or:
"I'm just as frustrated as you are that we haven't made more progress with a Democratic Congress. But Democrats have only a one-seat majority in the Senate and the GOP has used filibusters and veto threats to stop them from moving our country forward." – 'Paul Newman' for the DSCC
Well, each of these letters (of course) came with an appeal for money and a postage-paid pre-addressed envelope. I sat down and wrote a basic response to these organizations in five minutes, and mailed it back in said envelope, along with a pledge for '$0'. Here's the DSCC version:
Dear DSCC:
I've been cleaning up my desk and uncovered your letter asking me to donate to your organization, to give money to help elect Democrats.
I assume you must be joking. In case you haven't figured this out yet, the only reason that Democrats were elected in such overwhelming numbers in 2006 was to put a stop to the monstrous war-criminal enterprise called the Bush Administration. Democrats have been in control of the House and Senate for eight months now. Most Americans, including myself, would have assumed last November that the disastrous Iraqi occupation—the details of which would bring tears to a stone—would be winding down right now. You
claim that "I'm just as frustrated as you are that we haven't made more progress with a Democratic Congress. But Democrats have only a one-seat majority in the Senate and the GOP has used filibusters and veto threats to stop them from moving our country forward.". Uhm, are you forgetting the pathetic show of the FISA capitulation, or what will surely be the pre-capitulation on Iraqi funding this week? You people weren't hired
to make excuses—you were hired to get results.
Let me break it down for you very simply. Like the credit-card commercial goes, when the Bush Administration asks for something, "the answer is always NO":
- NO to more supplemental funds for endless war and occupation.
- NO to any budget that doesn't set a clear and certain date for withdrawal of all our troops from Iraq.
- NO to any 'deals' on FISA that further compromise the Bill of Rights.
- NO to any more disastrous cabinet-level appointments.
Until you start saying NO to Bush and not backing down, the answer from me regarding money or support will be the same: NO. Don't bother asking again until you can show the American people tangible results—not just posturing followed by capitulation.
I'd suggest you stop counting all of the electoral gains you perceive you'll get in 2008 and start focusing on making sure America and our Constitution are preserved through 2008.
Look, I'm a very intermittent political activist, even though I know we're all working for the same causes. I read Daily Kos nearly every day, but rarely have the time for either posts or diaries, due to the entrepreneurial nature of my business. Yet somehow, I found time to respond to these three letters in the most direct way I could think of. Can you do the same and maybe leverage some serious change at these organizations? Suuuuuure you can...
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