I read on Huff post that Bill Clinton wouldn't attend the clinics yesterday....
Reference: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...
and
http://news.firedoglake.com/...
And I wondered why? I believe I know the answer, and am convinced it is tied to his belief in his idea "of the third way", as the solution to all ills that bedevil us as a society.
I am not going to go into the details of the idea; there all sorts of references out there, both scholarly and bizarre, and I leave that to the reader. What I do want to say is that I believe this is what motivated Clinton. He is heavily invested in this idea, and convinced of its accuracy and righteousness.
Well Mr. President, I beg to differ. Clearly, people are suffering and trying to create broad consensus through "responsible and reasoned compromise", just doesn't work (the quotation is mine, I am just trying to give clarity to what I see as the essence of that approach's intellectual foundation). The current Senate debate is the clearest example of the weakness inherent in this approach. Consensus is co-opting solution. I believe, by the way, that is a process that is reflective of the current President's philosophical approach to governance, but that is for another diary.
What is clear, however, is that the current debate over health care is reflective of just how severe has been the impediment that has been placed in the path to real reform as the result of this third-way approach to governance, and that, I believe is what drove Bill Clinton's comments. To extrapolate further then, clearly the idea of using pressure, such as created through the work of Keith O and others, is anathema to Bill Clinton and the so-called consensus he and his ilk are trying to convince us is the way to effective governance.
I am not going to take path at this point to discuss what should be done next other than to say that we should just simply ignore Bill Clinton's entreaties. What I am going to say is that his rejection of what Keith and others are trying to do is both unfair, and misguided. Sometimes you have to simply take a stand and call out injustice for what it is. This is what I am convinced is what is driving Keith and others regarding this clinic movement and the effort to bring attention to the un-needed, and deplorable suffering we allow to continue to be inflicted on our fellow citizens.
So, I say simply, keep it up Keith; I fully support what you and others are doing to try and bring this tragedy to the center of the consciousness and solution. And as for President Clinton, Sir, I say, you couldn't be more wrong.