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November 2010

“If we amplify everything, we hear nothing.”  —  Jon Stewart

Progressives have not lost the 2010 election.

Democrats did.  Of the progressives, who ran as ‘principled’ real Democrats, only two persons lost the 2010 election.  More than fifty percent of most of other Democrats, who sacrificed their own principle to look different, lost the election—probably they did not have any principle, other than an urge to some-how-win an election.Since the election, there have been many a soul-searching discussions and commentaries on print, broadcast, Internet and other media.  We at Ramona Forum are no exception.  We are continuing our deliberations.  In the mean time, we have picked a number of good discussions.  We are reprinting two of them—one from Rabbi Lerner and the other from Ms. Helen Philpot—in the main body.  I believe you will enjoy the both.  We would like to have your comments through our comment or contact us links.  if you so permit, we will publish those for everybody’s benefit.  Later we will put them in separate pages, but linked.

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Rabbi Michael Lerner

Editor, Tikkun Magazine

1. Don’t let the media frame this as a defeat of progressives. Had Obama embraced and fought for a progressive agenda, even if he had passed none of it, he would have entered the 2010 elections as the champion of the huge idealism of the American people that was elicited in 2008 and which would have led the Democrats to an electoral sweep in 2010. Being seen as fighting for the needs of ordinary people — never letting anyone forget for a moment that he had inherited the mess that Republican and pro-corporate Democrats had created, positioning himself as the champion of those who resented the Wall Street and corporate interests — his popularity would have grown; he could have won a much bigger victory for the Democrats in 2010, and that would have allowed him to actually legislate the policies of a progressive vision.

Had Obama refused to give more money to the banks and Wall Street unless equal or greater amounts were allocated for a visionary New Deal-style program for jobs and a freeze on mortgage foreclosures; had the Democrats refused to fund the escalation of war in Afghanistan; had they advocated for “Medicare for Everyone” instead of passing a plan that forced 30 million people to buy health care, but puts no serious restraints on the costs that insurance companies or pharmaceutical can charge; had Obama fought courageously for a carbon tax and ended the bargain taxes for the wealthy; had the Democrats insisted on stopping the harassment of immigrants; had the Obama Administration called for a national effort to overturn Citizens United, such as the ESRA — Environmental and Social Responsibility Amendment to the U.S. Constitution–this election result would have been 100% different.
Had Obama set up public forums at which his supporters could give him public feedback and used the web creatively to allow his supporters to weigh in, and had Obama consistently spoken honestly to Americans about the constraints he was facing and who was putting pressure on him to do what — there would have been no electoral defeat. It wasn’t the progressive agenda that got defeated, it was the corporate-military accommodation of the Democrats and Obama who couldn’t address popular outrage, not only at the economic problem, but at the way we had been manipulated in 2008; and the humiliation many felt at having allowed themselves to hope that someone in politics would fight for what they said they would fight for.
2. Challenge the elitism in the Left. Whenever you hear someone saying that it is the stupidity or reactionary nature of Americans that led to this defeat, remind them of why, absent any other voice that they would encounter expressing their outrage, it was rational for Americans to be attracted to the right-wing voices that were expressing that outrage (albeit with programs that will actually make things worse). When Americans thought they had a chance at progressive change, they voted for it in 2008 — so they are neither stupid nor reactionary.
3. Challenge the religo-phobia in the Left. As long as the progressive world seems to be aligned with those who think that anyone who believes in God must be either stupid or at a lower stage of psychological development, we will get nowhere with an American public sincerely committed to a spiritual worldview. Allow yourself to explore the various spiritual progressive communities and movements that currently exist.
4. Do not demean those who disagree with us. Act as though every person, no matter what their politics, is created in the image of God or deserves fundamental respect, and only challenge their ideas and policies, but without attributing bad motives to them. And do not demean your own leaders — stop the back-biting and competition that so often drives the most creative thinkers and activists out of the movement! Make the progressive world focus more on taking care of each other in its meetings and public events.
5. Take time every day to rejoice in the grandeur and awesome mystery of the universe — and remember that the world is filled with loving people who would be there with us if they knew that we took love as seriously as we take critique. And try the ancient idea of a Sabbath–one day each week totally dedicated to celebrating the universe rather than acting upon it to change it (in my Jewish practice of the Sabbath–in Hebrew: Shabbat–  this includes: no work or thinking about work; no computer, no use of phones or cell phones or other technology; no shopping; no catching up on errands or housework or anything else you “have to do”–just 100% dedicated to fun, pleasure, thanksgiving, celebration of nature, and joy, nothiing else let in. Who has the time? Well, I do, and I also use the other six days to run a magazine, be a rabbi of a synagogue, chair the Network of Spiritual Progressives, and write books. Try Shabbat–it will give you a different perspective on reality, and make a progressive movement that can begin to speak to what is good in the religious world that the Right understands and the Left pooh-poohs to its detriment.
6. Build a unified political movement that calls for A New Bottom Line in American society so that instead of judging institutions, legislation or policies rational or productive only to the extent that they maximize money and power, they are judged by how much they maximize love and caring, kindness and generosity, ethical and ecological behavior and awareness, and the extent to which they tend to encourage us to be more caring toward each other and the earth and more able to respond to the universe with awe, wonder and radical amazement at the grandeur of being and consciousness and to experience true gratitude at being alive.
7. Build within the Democratic Party an opposition to the corporate-oriented leaders of that party, from Steny Hoyer and Nancy Pelosi to Diane Feinstein and Charles Schumner. Create a spiritual progressive caucus in every city. Run candidates in the primaries against that leadership — follow the example of the Tea Party in their effort to move the Republican party to the Right.
8. Build outside the Democratic Party a separate political party that talks about love, kindness, generosity, and The Caring Society — Caring for Each Other and Caring for the Earth. Let that party be based on the notion of A New Bottom Line as expressed in Commandment Six. Let this party talk explicitly about building a world that supports love and generosity! Stop speaking the language of the bureaucrats and the technical manipulators — start speaking the language of the heart. End the time in which Democrats believe that progressives have “no place to go” and hence will support their corporate-oriented candidates no matter how far they are from progressive ideals.
If the Greens are able to transform themselves to a party that puts love and caring and the language of the heart at the forefront of its public identification, rather than a primarily technocratic, issues-debating, hard-nosed “realistic” from the left, policy-but-not-love-generating social force, then it could be this. But at the moment it is not, and it may be easier to create something new than to reform the inner workings and political culture of the Greens,
9. Create a United Progressive Fund so that all the different progressive organizations stop competing with each other for funding and instead allocate according to how many people belong to any given progressive organization.
10. Don’t be realistic! The powers that be in the media, politics and economics define “realism.” The most important changes in our country have come about because people were willing to fight for what everyone supposedly knew to be “unrealistic” (e.g. ending segregation, ending ten thousand years of unchallenged male supremacy and sexism, legitimating gay and lesbian lives, building an environmental movement, and the list goes on).
Realism is idolatry — believing in God is believing that there is some Force in the Universe (some of us call it God) that makes possible the transformation from “that which is” to “that which could and should be.” Support a Global Marshall Plan to once and for all end global poverty, hunger, homelessness, insufficient education or health care — and pay for it through a Tobin tax on all international financial transactions of over $1 million. End the domination of money in politics and challenge the irresponsible environmental policies of corporations — through the ESRA — the Environmental and Social Responsibility Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
Follow these ten commandments and the progressive forces will finally be able to reshape this country before it is too late. If you wish to help us do this, please join and help create a local chapter of the Network of Spiritual Progressives here. But if you like these ideas but don’t want to work inside our organization, then bring these ideas into whatever organization you are already part of and insist that they debate these ideas, align with us in our campaign for the ESRA and for our proposed Global Marshall Plan, and insist that they develop the kind of broad strategy we are presenting here.

Please forward this to everyone on your email lists, paste it onto your Facebook page, put it up on any webpage or Yahoo group in which you are a part. It will help undermine despair!! Thanks.

Rabbi Michael Lerner is editor of Tikkun magazine, a Jewish and Interfaith Critique of Politics, Culture and Society; chair of the Network of Spiritual Progressives, and rabbi of Beyt Tikkun Synagogue.

web: www.spiritualprogressives.org
email: info@spiritualprogressives.org
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Higher Ground

Margaret, you tell Howard that I’ll close up shop when he stops watching FOX.  I may be old, but I am not dead and this sure as hell isn’t my first time to the rodeo.  My voice just got louder and my fat ass isn’t going anywhere until Jesus calls me home.

The thing about politics, Margaret, is that these days there really is no middle ground.  Not a single candidate won their seat with a mandate.  Show me a candidate who took 100% of the votes and I’ll show you a candidate with a mandate.  For example, even Mr. Coons up there in Delaware represents 40% of voters who preferred a witch.  And Governor Perry down here in my state is still the Governor for over 2 million Texans who voted for the other guy.  Which one do you think  is looking for middle ground today?

Senator Coons told people,  ”I’m honored and humbled by the confidence expressed by the voters of Delaware today, but now the hard work begins. I’ve said all along that this campaign is about Delaware’s families and the challenges they face.”

About that same time Perry was telling reporters, ”When the outcomes of this election are certified, we will see a substantial conservative presence in both the Texas House and Senate.  We are one day closer to seeing the changes we want in Washington.”  He then set out to do the hard work Texans elected him to do… sell his book.  By the way, in his book he writes, “If you don’t support the death penalty and citizens packing a pistol, don’t come to Texas.  If you don’t like medicinal marijuana and gay marriage, don’t move to California.”

Now that’s bringing the country together …

For there to be common ground, both sides have to be looking for it.  Kind of hard when the new Republican leader John Boehner has declared that Republicans will not compromise.  Funny.  They’ve been compromising on their principles about smaller government for years.  Why change now when compromise is exactly what we need?

Sometimes I just scratch my head and wonder how much better life would be if Americans still had to turn a page in a newspaper rather than flip a channel on the boob tube to get the news.   But such is life.  You live and you learn.  And at my age you learn too  much.  For instance, I have learned that when Democrats over-reach, we end up providing health insurance coverage for children who have pre-existing conditions.  When Republicans over-reach, we go to war.

When a liberal activist judge over-reaches, a disenfranchised group of Americans have their constitutional rights restored.  When a conservative activist judge over-reaches, the country’s elections get handed to corporations on a silver platter.

Sour grapes?  Maybe.  I never said I was without prejudice.  In fact, I have openly admitted to being a bitch.  But the difference between my being a bitch and Sarah Palin being a bitch is huge.  When I am a bitch,  a few people get a good laugh over an old lady’s blog writing.  When Sarah Palin is a bitch, some of God’s most beautiful handiwork gets reduced to a line item on Exxon’s annual report.

I have lived all my life speaking my mind.   And I don’t intend to stop now.   You want to know what I really think?  I think Fox News has no problem telling lies.   And I think a whole lot of white people don’t like having a black President.  And I think gay people scare straight people.  And religious people forget the basic teachings handed down by the founders of their religion.  At the crossroads of every major religion, you’ll find the Golden Rule.   Too bad they’ve deleted it from their GPS.

Do you really expect me to believe that a bunch of Republicans were swept into office because Democrats covered pre-existing conditions for children?  Or because Health Insurance Companies can’t drop you when you are no longer profitable?  Or that Cap and Trade is killing our country?  Please.  I bet you can’t find 10 Tea Party voters who can even tell you what Cap and Trade is.  I know for damn sure that bitch from Alaska can’t.

Michele Bachmann is a lunatic who wants Democrats investigated.  Sarah Palin quit her job as Governor so she could get rich.   Sharron Angle told a bunch of hispanic students that they looked a little Asian – as if the Asians got together with the Hispanics to create a bigger voting block ???  I mean what the hell was that all about anyway?

Wake up America.  John Boehner is orange for goodness sakes.  Orange people don’t have to be asked because you can tell just by looking at them.   Where is Michele Bachmann’s investigation on orange people?

And this lot is better than Obama?  I’m not buying it.

Ten percent of the vote came out of a nation frustrated by unemployment.  The other 90% remains divided.  As soon as the jobs return we’ll be back to dealing with the hard problems:  Racism.  Sexism.  Ageism.  Religious fanaticism.  Ignorance…ism.   And Sarah Palin.

Two years ago, the pundits predicted that the Republican party had become a regional party reduced to the southern states.  Clearly they were wrong. Why?  Because hate has no boundaries and Sarah Palin found a flight out of Wasilla.

Today the pundits are saying that Democrats are out of touch with the main stream.  Guess what?  So were abolitionists.   Pundits come and pundits go.  I’ve been around for more than 80 years.  Deal with it.

For everyone who is currently considering removing their Obama sticker from the back of their car… for every Democrat who made the effort to get out the vote and today is feeling a little down… for every progressive American who is thinking about moving to Canada…. I say this:

Christine O’Donnell might not have been a witch, but Sarah Palin is definitely a bitch.   Three steps forward.  One step back.

We’re still two steps ahead of the game with a Senate and a White House.  Washington will be grid-locked for the next two years, but the ground war just came to the States.  Democrats need to stop looking for middle ground and start looking for higher ground.  And for goodness sakes, grow a pair and quit apologizing for it.

As I see it, the Democrats have one job between now and the next election -   figuring out how to get those who stayed home mad enough to get off their asses.    Democracy isn’t a spectator sport.  I mean it.  Really.

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Posted: November 8th, 2010 under Uncategorized.

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