So the scholarship deadline is coming up for this years netroots nation. The task I’ve been given is to write about my netroots nation experience in order to inspire you to apply for the DFA scholarship, and to inspire you to send in some money to help fund a scholar if you haven’t sent any in yet.
To do this I’m supposed to tell you all about my scholarship experience.
I’m supposed to Madlib a list of things about my trip telling you how it rocked (it did), how I met some pretty amazing people (I did) and how my life has changed because of it (tis true tis true).
I could start by telling you one of the many anecdotes from my scholarship experience last year in Pittsburgh–doing an interview with Dean Baker, having a beer with the DFA crew, or [insert description of one of the great discussion panels here].
I could go on and on about last years experience but I’m not going to.
I’m going to start out by talking about Sisyphus, and how politics is kind of like rolling big rocks up big hills. I’m going to point out that, in this never ending struggling of rolling rock ups hills; its kind of important to meet with like-minded people every now and then to learn some new skills, have a few laughs, and make a few new friends.
If you are up on your mythology you may get why Sisyphus comes to mind.
If you don’t here is a thumb sketch... I’m not sure which version is right–or if I even have my story straight–but here it goes:
Zeus carries off Aegina, the mortal daughter of Asopus. Sisyphus is hanging out in Corinth, sees the kidnapping take place and informs Asopus that it was Zeus. He does this so that he can be rewarded by getting the citadel at Corinth a fresh-water spring.
Or maybe....
Sisyphus is hanging out with Hades and ties him up in his closet for the weekend. This causes the whole great chain of being to be thrown out of wack–nobody can die, teenagers are polite to their parents, tea party folks stop hating Mexicans
Anyways whatever it was that Sisyphus does to be punished the point is he ends up being condemned to an eternal life of rolling a boulder up a hill in the underworld, only to watch it roll back down. This he does for eternity.
What does this have to do with anything?
In the past 4 years of active political engagement I’ve found Sisyphus to be a fitting narrative to help explain the struggle that individuals trying to engage in the political process must face.
If you’ve been involved in politics in any way shape or form over the past decade I don’t have to tell you a thing about rolling big rocks up hills. You know what its like to put your heart and soul into something and watch it all fall apart or fail to succeed.
Feelings of frustration, hopelessness, and futility are found in spades within political circles—why do you think right wingers lash out at anyone that looks, thinks, or feels differently then they do?
Political engagement isn’t glamorous and--if your name isn’t Arshad Hasan-- things aren’t always positive and hopeful.
Politics happens in the trenches: at meet ups where no one shows up, canvassing in an unexpected downpour, trying to influence the vote of a bought and sold blue dog. Its not fun and a lot of times you’ll want to give up. In fact I see people give up all the time cause, well, nobody like rolling big ass rocks up big ass hills only to watch them roll back down so that you have to start back over again.
You spend a lot of time pushing this massive rock up the hill–-be it working on a campaign, issue advocacy, or just organizing your community through meet ups and house parties. Whatever you are doing is something you are doing for free, after hours, and because you care. It’s a lot of heavy lifting, sacrifice, and struggle. In some form or fashion you are going to watch that big ass rock roll back down the hill and have to start all over again from scratch. You won’t always be able to put a positive spin on it.
This can be unbelievably disillusioning.
Okay Jim, where are you going with all of this and what does this have to do with your netroots nation experience?
Its pretty simple. The netroots is formed of progressives–at least the nice lady on tv said tahts what we are called. We don’t like corporations or rich people buying and selling our democracy and we want to do something about it.
Many of us come from the seedy underbelly of the Reagan Revolution where we saw up close and personal as friends and family turned into the human debris of underfunded schools, outsourced jobs, and a "war on drugs" where we all got to take part in our pathological need to lock people up and throw away the key.
Many of us in the netroots come from deep in enemy territory, so to speak. But we have a common tool that keeps us going—the Internet.
The challenges we face are daunting. But they aren’t hopeless and the net has provided us a way to educate ourselves, organize more efficiently, and network with others beyond our little neck of the woods.
Politics isn’t rocket science. Elections are won with 50% + 1 of the vote. Voters don’t magically appear. You have to go inspire them to the polls by going door to door, making calls, and if your lucky enough to raise money online you can send stuff in the mail.
But politics is undertaken by human beings trying to influence massive institutional structures, with major systemic flaws in them; and the gosh darn cards are stacked against you if your priority is to protect and empower citizens rather than political insiders or your big business buddies.
Human beings that jump head first into this massive storm and expect to make it to the other side must do three things... get better educated, get better skills sets, and take a freakin break and have a beer with some friends every now and then. Netroots nation is one of the very few lifeboats we have around that allows you to check off all three things on the list.
The netroots are the lifeblood of a generation of everyday citizens fedup with the status quo of insider politics and big money. The netroots are life support for activists working in the trenches to turn red districts blue and everyday citizens into engaged activists. The netroots are [insert your warm and fuzzy quote here]. The netroots are all of these things and more because it is what you bring to it and what you decide to get out of it.
Netroots Nation is just a chance to come together and celebrate what progressive politics is all about—everyday citizens taking their country back.
I was privileged to attend as a DFA scholar last year and I can’t tell you how many times during the past year as I have campaigned down here in GA that things I learned, or laughs I had, kept me plugging along.
In 38 days 21 hours 4 min’s the polls open in GA and between now and then I planning on working my butt off so that in State Senate district 17 a progressive democrat is on the ballot who will give the Republicans a fullcourt press this November. In 40 days I plan on catching a plane to Vegas to see old friends and make some new ones and I hope you join me.
I truly hope you apply for the scholarship and if you can give some money so that someone else gets an opportunity to come along.
I have a great admiration for people that roll big ass rocks up big ass hills and as they watch it roll back down they start making lists of what went right, what went wrong, and how to improve for next time. Last year I walked into a convention hall full of them.
We have a lot of heavy lifting to do between now and November and there are a lot of great people who are going to be in Vegas July 22nd-25th. Please join us. You won’t regret it.