Swan Song for the Democrats for Supporting the Iraq War
Politics / US Politics Jun 09, 2007 - 06:46 PMBy: Mike_Whitney
The truth is, no one is surprised by the recent vote. We have one party in America – "the War Party" – the Dems are just a junior partner in that system.
It boggles the mind that so many so-called "liberals" continue to be hoodwinked by the Democrats. After all, what do they have to offer – a slight boost in the hourly wage? Better management of foreign massacres?!?
What else?
They're are even giving ground on a woman's "right to choose", which used to be their signature issue. Now they're even caving in on that.
So, what do the Democrats really stand for?
This is not the party of F.D.R., my friend. This is the party of Bill Clinton, the Master of Triangulation. Clinton was nothing more than the flip-side of George Bush. The bombing of Belgrade was as big a crime as Shock and Awe – although it was cleverly disguised by Clinton's "Aw shucks" charm and the ever-compliant media.
Clinton sold out the American worker when he passed NAFTA. He dismantled the social safety net with Welfare Reform. He destroyed the last vestiges of the free media by signing the Telecommunications Act. And he revealed his utter lack of principle by refusing to sign the Land Mines Treaty – a document that would have saved the lives of thousands of children every year.
In other words, he was the best Republican president we ever had. Which is fine, unless you voted for a Democrat!
Clinton never did anything that wasn't politically calculated. Hell, he probably had his slide-rule out during his visits with Monica to figure out the exact amount of gratification he could have without feeling guilty. Sure, he was bright and good natured but, his critics are right – he was utterly devoid of principle. And yet, this is the Democratic Party's "big hero"; a man who has become the shining example for the future leaders in the party.
What a joke!
The Democratic Party is not the party that people think it is. This is the party of Rahm Emanuel and the DLC. The leadership is unwaveringly pro-war, pro Israel, and pro free trade. There's no room for anything else. The Democrats have no intention withdrawing from Iraq. It's all just bluster and gibberish to dupe the Party faithful. It means nothing.
In fact, the Dems plan for Iraq is even MORE IMMORAL than the Republicans. They want to redeploy outside of the country while reducing the number of troops on the ground. In other words, they want to create a "sustainable" model for stealing the world's second largest petroleum reserves.
It's a more calculating and immoral strategy than Bush's bloody "surge"!
It would be better for the country if the Democratic Party just called it quits right now. The party is a bigger obstacle to progressive reform than the Republicans.
As long as the Dems continue to trick people into believing that they represent substantive change – or even a serious defense of their basic economic interests – the charade will persist and things will get worse.
Real progressive reform should address the central issues facing, not only Americans, but the entire world – nuclear proliferation, global warming, peak oil, population growth, food supply and disease.
Reform isn't even part of the Democrat's agenda.They are mainly focused on enriching their corporate donors, facilitating free trade, and chasing shadowy Islamic groups through Central Asia and the Middle East.
Real reform would restore progressive taxation by reinstating the brackets that were used during the early 1950s; that is, everyone making over $200,000 per year ($1 million by today's standards) pays 93% of their earnings! Without a concerted effort to narrow the massive wealth gap through redistribution"the country will continue to slide towards tyranny. Those who have benefited most from the security, infrastructure and prosperity provided by state should naturally pay more. That is the fundamental tenet of progressive taxation and it is essential if we want to strengthen the middle class and "raise all boats" (as the Republicans like to say)
Besides, who's going to lose sleep over taxing the rich?
A progressive platform should also include a plan to nationalize the oil industry. The record profits from oil production should be going into infrastructure, education and alternate fuels – -not fattening the foreign banks accounts of obscenely rich oil moguls. In an age of resource scarcity, we cannot allow the market to decide who will get access to the energy that everyone needs to maintain minimal standards of living.
We've already seen how big oil is willing to use our children as cannon fodder in their wars of aggression. We've also seen how much effort they put into confusing the public on crucial issues such as global warming. (They've pumped millions of dollars into bogus science and misleading public relations campaigns to keep the people from understanding the truth about "man-made" climate change) The oil industry operates without a conscience putting its bottom line above the very survival of the species. The best thing to do is "return the favor" by seizing the industry – Hugo Chavez style – -and putting it to work for the people it is supposed to serve. If the oil executives still want to continue the fight for Iraqi oil; we should provide them with sidearms and Kevlar vests and turn them lose in Baghdad. Let them fend for themselves – -everyone else comes home.
The country doesn't need two War Parties. The current system is broken and needs to be replaced. What we need is a Labor Party that addresses the issues that are important to working class people. Labor Party affiliation should be the equivalent of union membership; providing a clear statement of support for pensions, universal health care, maternity leave, yearly wage increases tied to productivity, profit sharing, collective bargaining rights and 50% representation on all corporate boards. The goal of a Labor Party should be to achieve a power-sharing agreement with management that will combine the objectives of both parties in a common vision for the future. It's worked in Europe and it can work here. It's the only way we'll succeed in rebuilding the middle class and avoid unnecessary conflicts.
Anyone who thinks politics is just about "making money" is nuts. Politics is about power – and that should be the goal of Labor – raw political power. Nothing else will do.
What's needed is a broad coalition of leftist organizations which represents the basic interests of working people.
Labor needs a voice in government and the Democrats are not that voice.
By capitulating to Bush, the Democratic Party has signed its own death warrant. Good riddance. Now, let's push the rusty hulk out of the road and go forward.
By Mike Whitney
Email: fergiewhitney@msn.com
Mike is a well respected freelance writer living in Washington state, interested in politics and economics from a libertarian perspective.
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