Jane at FDL recommended this series via: “Can Anyone Here Play This Game?”
She's right. We all should read Paul Rosenberg's terrific Political Duality Series.
Here are the links:
The Political Duality Of Rep and Dem
Why Conservatives Can't Govern (The Political Duality Of Rep and Dem, Pt 2)
The Big Lie And The Rightwing's Neo-Feudal Vision (A Supplement To The Political Duality Series)
Lib/Dem Political Ineptitude--A Prelude (The Political Duality Of Rep and Dem, Pt 3a)
Liberals And Conservatives Switch Places--Sort Of (The Political Duality Of Rep and Dem, Pt 3b)
Reid Betrays Dodd On Telco Immunity Hold--The Political Duality of Rep and Dem, Part 4
Cleanup Hitters Needed! ("Can't Anyone Here Play This Game?" Edition)
Are there more editions coming?
Keep reading and find out.
I agree deeply with Paul Rosenberg in what I've read so far (and I've not finished the series.)
For example, when I said (loudly) that Hillary was electable in No, No, NO! it was precisely a case of what Paul is speaking of; I was attacked over and over and over again. And this isn't the only case of our bloggers being attacked on stuff.
(I'm not upset at all about people attacking us for stuff. I'm making an example. Don't defend yourself please. Stick with the example. Anyone whom is sitting there going, "But... grrrrr!" ...just know you're coming from the personal place Paul's talking about, not from the abstract place he says it is possible to get to. Which is precisely my point.)
Consistently, we have four or five regular commenter's who get angry and yell at we bloggers about how we're not doing enough to satisfy you, what we're doing is wrong, we've pissed you off, you're upset, we're making mistakes, or what-ever-the-hell-it-is, whenever we publish something you don't like.
What Rosenberg is pointing out, is this is dealing with the abstractions of politics as if they are personally based, rather than policy based. We get personally offended, instead of dealing with the politics with the same level of abstraction with which we do such a damn fine job of dealing with the actual policy issues.
The people of the United States LOVE our policies over those of the Republicans. Yet the Republicans keep whupping our asses at the political level. One reason is, we keep reacting as if these issues our personal, instead of abstractions. When some of you were yelling at me aout Hillary, you simply hadn't heard what I was saying; you misconstrued your opinion for what I said. Even when I repeated what I was saying over and over and over again in comments, some of you kept hearing something I didn't say, and attacking me for words you put in my mouth.
Rosenberg is saying, at a general level, we Democrats are being done to by the Republicans JUST LIKE THAT, overall at a political level.
That BLOWS.
Because of this I am certain...
It don't matter if you've got the best policies evah. If you lose the political fights, you don't get to implement your policies, and you end up at best, looking the sore loser.
Americans love a winner.
Please go read the above links, and start to figure out for yourself, and any organizations you represent, how to deal from a level of abstraction, instead of from a level of personality.
Throw your comments and thoughts down below.
Laters.
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