Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: People versus Money

"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura) 06/27/2018 at 09:33 • Filed to: None

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Watch this, if you haven’t already. And visit her !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . I gave a few bucks to her campaign just now. I shudder to think of the amount of hatred she is going to receive from 45's base. Ocasio-Cortez spent $128k to her opponent’s $1.1m on their respective campaigns.

!!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! to Ocasio-Cortez on Politico.

!!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! is some good analysis of yesterday’s primaries, from Politico.

fintail > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 09:59

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If shameless toady SHS gets her own security unit, Ocasio-Cortez is probably going to need one too. These are deplorable times.

More power to her, the left needs some new blood or it’s all over, and we fall into insolent darkness.

Ash78, voting early and often > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 10:00

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I celebrate her win for the same reason as the Tea Party — even if it amounts to nothing, it sends a message and  diversifies the two main parties and might actually get us one step closer to a viable 3-party (or more) system.

B/Xmrrmvr > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 10:09

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As someone who’s been donating and helping her campaign, it’s hilarious to see sudden interest in Alexandria when stories about her were being buried prior to her win... It’s like we blew up the DNC/DCCC/Establishment Dem Death Star.

This is NYC, the General will be Blue.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > fintail 06/27/2018 at 10:13

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More power to her, the left needs some new blood or it’s all over, and we fall into insolent darkness.

It is already all over.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Ash78, voting early and often 06/27/2018 at 10:14

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I was thinking about that today, the need for a middle party.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > B/Xmrrmvr 06/27/2018 at 10:15

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All politics is local, right?

As for buried , what’s your best analysis as to why or by whom?

fintail > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 10:18

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Some days it feels like that. It will take generations to undo the mess of the past 18 months - if it happens at all.

But hey, now Canada and Germany can be the leaders of the free world.

MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 10:21

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For more than 2 parties to be viable long term we need to change our voting system. I’d personally think instant runoff is the best option.

facw > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 10:24

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A third party really isn’t sustainable in our system. Really what I’d like to do is weaken the party system by moving to ranked-preference balloting with instant runoffs, and eliminate primaries (I guess parties could still have primaries if they wanted, but they could pay for them and set their own rules).

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > facw 06/27/2018 at 10:28

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But threat to entrenched power holders.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s 06/27/2018 at 10:28

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I could not say nor opine because ignorant.

B/Xmrrmvr > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 10:28

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I just mean the usual mainstream sites, CNN, MSNBC, NPR, etc... Politico was ignoring the fact Crowley even had a race a month or two ago when they wrote up an article about how he was most likely going to be replacing Pelosi.

And as to why? Same reason progressives in general are minimized in media... It’s just amusing that this story isn’t at the bottom of CNN’s/NY Times’s/MSNBC’s/etc’s Politics page like it was about 24 hours ago. Also cute how these News Orgs are doing their best to tie Female Establishment Dems in their analyses, considering most of them endorsed Alexandria’s opponent.

someassemblyrequired > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 10:29

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I don’t agree with her platform 100%, but I do know she’ll represent the people of her district well - the dems have completely blown it for the last 20+ years by ignoring the working poor and lower middle class. They need to be the T-Mobile of parties - make life simpler and less stressful for working people. That means things like Medicare for all - it works, it’s cheaper, and the outcomes are better. It means not having byzantine programs and requiring 50 applications to different programs designed to help the poor/middle class - you already have to file taxes, and everything should automatically flow from that. It means simplifying and streamlining regulations for business - so you don’t have to be a multinational with an army of lawyers to start your own company. It means protecting consumers from predatory practices and business models.  It means limiting tax avoidance schemes for the wealthy.

The problem is that’s basically everything that the Dems have avoided doing since the 80s - even when they had opportunities to. They are too damn afraid to stick to their principles when the media/lobbyists start to criticize - when they should be saying “we don’t care, we’re going to try it - because we think you’ll like it eventually . ”

Anyways, enough of a rant - she’ll be elected in that district, so the Dems better get used to having her around.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > B/Xmrrmvr 06/27/2018 at 10:36

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I’d like to dialog with you some more. I am assuming you to be more of a progressive Liberal; am I accurate in that assumption? That I would send Ocas io-Cortez a few dollars should say something about my politics, but I also subscribe to a large Christian faith with a fairly conservative reputation. Like Ocasio-Cortez, I am also an educator.

I have a brother-in-law who is as liberal as anyone and we both dismissed Bernie in 2016 as being electable, though I also found HRC loathsome and had to pinch my nose to vote for her.

Also cute how these News Orgs are doing their best to tie Female Establishment Dems in their analyses

Would you expound upon that for me, please?

ttyymmnn > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 10:36

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However, can an avowed Socialist win against a Trump candidate? Are anti-Trumpers, who may have voted Republican in the past, going to vote for her?

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facw > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 10:36

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Yep, it’s why it’s going to be very hard to make any fixes to our system...

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > someassemblyrequired 06/27/2018 at 10:42

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I like your list. To it, I would add that Welfare needs to be a program that promotes independence and self sufficiency rather than being a dole. Folks gotta have some skin in the game... There’s also an education labor reform — teacher union collective bargaining — that I’d like to see forced by the fed that I’ll explain to you if you’re curious.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > ttyymmnn 06/27/2018 at 10:43

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However, can an avowed Socialist win against a Trump candidate?

Idk.

Are anti-Trumpers, who may have voted Republican in the past, going to vote for her?

Idk.

B/Xmrrmvr > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 10:49

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In the “takeaway” articles I’ve read this morning from WaPo, NY times, CNN, they keep mentioning how her being a woman was key and how people like Kirsten Gillibrand and Kamala Harris are similar. Kirsten Gillibrand endorsed Crowley and I don’t know of any female Dems in NY who endorsed Alexandria. Just an observation on how the party treats women who aren't in the circle.

B/Xmrrmvr > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 10:50

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And yeah I would consider myself a progressive liberal.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > B/Xmrrmvr 06/27/2018 at 11:01

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Politico is my go-to each day and their daily email serves up synopses from NYT, WaPo and others, all of which reside behind pay walls. What I find interesting in the face of your observation about how these media review women, the fact that Politico has several prominent women writers.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > B/Xmrrmvr 06/27/2018 at 11:02

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How about the SCOTUS ruling today in the Janus case?

For Sweden > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 11:27

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Where does she stand on metal tar if fs?

For Sweden > ttyymmnn 06/27/2018 at 11:28

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I always wanted to drive a Trabant.

B/Xmrrmvr > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 11:41

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Politico has several prominent women writers.

That may be true but they certainly seem to have specific biases depending on the subject they’re reporting on. The writer of the article I mentioned is Heather Caygle . And it’s not as if women aren’t reported on, but certain women are highlighted and others are minimized... until they win and can’t be looked away at, apparently.

And I am against the SCOTUS ruling. It seems that fair-share fees took care of issues pertaining to potential 1st Amendment Violations. I admit I’m not well versed in Labor Laws though.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > B/Xmrrmvr 06/27/2018 at 12:04

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As for unions, how does 1% of your gross salary for union dues sound as a take? In my case, it’s actually a bit more, and I earn $104k per year. I’m a teacher. The new teachers, who earn half that much, pay 2% per year of their gross in union dues. I think Janus is going to have a large impact on union politicking.

someassemblyrequired > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 12:07

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Yep, I’m sick of seeing working people struggle and hardscrabble because they take personal responsibility and want to provide for themselves. Those are the folks that need the help, but you need to be on the dole to navigate the bureaucracy and BS of many of these programs. So their work ethic actually makes them worse off in a perverse way.

CA teachers don’t have collective bargaining?   Or is it just at the district level there?

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 12:30

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I like any time somebody wins when being thoroughly outspent. Here in Rhode Island a few years ago, we had a guy run for governor who spent $27 on his entire campaign and won 23% of the vote...if people who didn’t vote for him because they didn’t think he could win had voted for him, he would have won.

I don’t agree with Ocasio-Cortez’s politics, I’m pretty staunchly anti-socialism , but I have a ton of respect for what she’s done.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > someassemblyrequired 06/27/2018 at 12:31

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So their work ethic actually makes them worse off in a perverse way.

My daughter draws food stamps and qualifies for the ACA premium benefit because she earns very little money, but earn money, she does.

We do have collective bargaining in California, at the district level. Unions negotiate experience caps, typically at around 7 years where, if a teacher changes districts, the hiring district is capped at how much pay they can offer the new hire. So a 20-year teacher takes a pay cut back to 7 years if they change districts. Unions negotiate this so as to to keep the money flowing to their own long-serving teachers, and also to indenture the rank and file. If I could force one change, it would be that districts must pay full experience pay to any teacher they hire. The teacher has to re-earn their tenure; the district can choose whether or not to hire the applicant, but the applicant must be paid their full years of service credit.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms 06/27/2018 at 12:34

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Thanks for the comment. I appreciate your candor. I wouldn’t be surprised if Ocasio-Cortez herself didn’t completely understand what it is to be a socialist.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 12:46

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A party of reason.

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 12:57

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In fairness to her, socialism and democratic socialism are different things...or at least they’re supposed to be. My sister in law claims to be a democratic socialist libertarian, and just typing that makes it feel like my brain is going to explode because the three are all perfectly at odds with each other.

Government in general, I think, is more about the people running it than it is about the actual system.  Get good people running a free market capitalist system, it’ll work...bad people running the same, and it’ll fail.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms 06/27/2018 at 14:06

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I rate people by their motivations and how honest they are about them. In the case of Candidate Cortez, hers seem pure and honest and that's what appeals to me.

someassemblyrequired > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 14:13

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That’s good, it’s what it’s there for. But there’s a lot of folks who are too proud to take it - they feel a stigma and just won’t because they want to be self-sufficient - even when it would really help. If everyone gets it (like with Medicare for all), there is no stigma, and everyone has an interest in making the system function.

Re collective bargaining I can see why you would want that fixed, that’s horrible. I figured if any state had statewide bargaining it would be California, which would make this stuff moot . Unions can be a great thing, but they screw up badly when they start to play favorites instead of advocating for their whole membership .

B/Xmrrmvr > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 14:22

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Damn, yeah those rates do sound steep I guess... and the regressive rate the newer teachers.. that sucks. I support u nions in principle, but I’m aware of how some (a lot?) are less focused on workers...

I personally don’t think I’m knowledgeable enough to debate anything related to the ruling and I’m afraid to admit that I’ve actually never been in a union, despite supporting the general idea of it.

At the very least, the unions that focused more on fees than the satisfaction of their membe rs will be forced to address that.

B/Xmrrmvr > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 14:28

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I just hope this doesn’t lead to the break down of unions in the US in general.

duurtlang > ttyymmnn 06/27/2018 at 14:39

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I don’t understand the American fascination with the word ‘socialism’. The extreme right wing uses it to dismiss everything that’s not extreme right wing, normal right wingers and centrists and some moderate left wingers think of communists (communism = bad) and left wingers might or might not like the word. So why use it? It seems poisoned.

What does 'socialism' mean in this context? Theresa May socialism? Swedish socialism? Canadian? Soviet? Chinese? It can be interpreted in so many great and horrific ways it seems to me it's not a useful description in any way and only works against you if you do use it.

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 14:40

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Same. The last Presidential election put me in a weird spot...the only person I was sure was in it for the right reasons and had the well being of the country at heart was Bernie, but again, socialism. Cortez is basically the same, she seems really genuine and I respect that. If she winds up running for federal government stuff (at 28 years old, I’m sure she will eventually) I’ll likely put some effort into trying to get over my distaste for anything labeled socialism.

ttyymmnn > duurtlang 06/27/2018 at 16:03

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Asked “what about socialism appeals to you,” she told Vogue magazine last week: “To me, what socialism means is to guarantee a basic level of dignity. … And it’s also to say that we need to really examine the historical inequities that have created much of the inequalities — both in terms of economics and social and racial justice — because they are intertwined. This idea of, like, race or class is a false choice. Even if you wanted to separate those two things, you can’t separate the two. They are intrinsically and inextricably tied. There is no other force, there is no other party, there is no other real ideology out there right now that is asserting the minimum elements necessary to lead a dignified American life.” ( WaPo )

The right in the US has managed to turn every word that describes something other than their ideology into a dirty word: S ocialist, liberal, Democrat, etc. Americans only equate Socialism with Communism, and you can’t ever count on the American electorate to understand the nuanced meaning of the word. It would be best if we could just avoid labels in general, but the growing sense of tribalism makes that impossible . The right is going to have a heyday using her own words to smear her. Whether or not she can attract people in the middle remains to be seen.

B/Xmrrmvr > ttyymmnn 06/27/2018 at 16:34

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Have you ever visited New York before? We’re not Pennsylvnia.

ttyymmnn > B/Xmrrmvr 06/27/2018 at 16:37

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If I’ve learned anything in the last few years, it’s that nothing is safe. The only certainty is uncertainty.

B/Xmrrmvr > duurtlang 06/27/2018 at 19:04

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Baby boomers tend to equate that word with Joseph Stalin, completely unaware of the fact that fire departments , police departments , and public schools are considered socialism.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > someassemblyrequired 06/27/2018 at 19:56

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I think Janus will require all unions to put their membership first and actually recruit their membership, at the same time, lowering their dues and streamlining their activities. If they play their cards right, they could wind up stronger in the long run.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > B/Xmrrmvr 06/27/2018 at 19:59

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I pay $105/mo in union dues. If they want me to keep paying, they’ll have to stick to their basic role of collective bargaining, lower the dues, and get out of general politics.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > B/Xmrrmvr 06/27/2018 at 20:00

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It’ll force them to streamline and lower their dues, but I think that if they are smart, they can come out stronger in the end.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms 06/27/2018 at 20:08

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I’d like to think that BHO had some pure motivations as well. POTUS 45 is the antithesis of this idea. The Mormon Jeff Flake, IMHO, has pure intentions, as does the other Mormon, Mitt Romney . And John McCain. To name a few. Their politics are all way more conservative for my taste, but I see them as honest men. I wouldn’t agree with Flake or Romney much, but I’d trust them.

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 20:20

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Oh yeah, I definitely think Obama did. I liked him a lot, I voted for him his first term. I voted for Romney his second term, and I voted for Hillary this past election because I thought she would be a steady, if unspectacular, hand on the tiller. I’m something of a centrist, if you couldn’t tell, haha.

Trump...I don’t have the hatred for him that a lot of people do, but this is definitely all about his #brand. I’m actually not convinced he’s going to run for reelection, because by the GOP scorecards his term so far has actually been a rousing success. He could say he accomplished everything he wanted to in 4 years and leave as something of a hero to the sort of folks who would consider him a hero.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms 06/27/2018 at 20:48

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I’m glad we’ve met. I voted for Obama twice. I’d vote for Romney, but he was running against Obama and nobody could have wrested my vote from Obama. I consider myself somewhat centrist as well since, as a public school educator, I have some broad social views, but I also have one or two fairly conservative stances, including that folks should be working, even it it’s at Taco Bell, if they wanna draw welfare. They need some skin in the game.

Regarding POTUS 45, I try not to hate the guy, but attacking the media and the DOJ when the skeletons in his closet are more like a burial crypt bothers me greatly. And color me liberal, but I have difficulty with the idea that if someone is unlucky enough to be born on the other side of a line drawn on a map by some (white) guy, then it’s too bad for them.

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 20:56

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When it was Obama/Romney, I’d have been happy either way.. .I don’t remember why I favored Romney at the time, but I’m pleased with how Obama’s Presidency went so I don’t mind having been on the losing side there. I’m agreed on your welfare stance, although I understand there are some people who do stuff like care for elderly/disabled family members or volunteer, and thats good enough for me.

And same on the border thing, really. I mean I think you need to have a border, and I think you need to know who’s coming in, but you also need to make it easier for people to get in here and become citizens. I want more tax payers, and most of the people coming here are coming here to work, not to loaf...those are people I want here.

Politics is weird, man.  And I think its especially weird from the center.  Like if you’re on the left, you can look at the people on the other side and go ‘they’re wrong, we need to do the opposite’ but I’m sitting here looking at everybody else being wrong and its impossible.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms 06/27/2018 at 21:25

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I understand there are some people who do stuff like care for elderly/disabled family members or volunteer, and thats good enough for me.

Me too, and good point.

I want more tax payers,

I’ve never understood that bit. As well, we do not tax the remittances that people send home to Mexico; what’s up with that ? Also: do we really pay entitlements to illegal immigrants?

Please stay in touch.

gmporschenut also a fan of hondas > ttyymmnn 06/27/2018 at 21:54

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it is the same reason it bugs me when I hear Bernie fans say that Bernie would have ben a shoe in . Had they not paid attention to the previous 8 years?

someassemblyrequired > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/27/2018 at 22:25

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We went through that in the union I was in a few years ago . It was mainly a vehicle for the lazy to stay employed at the start , but we made a hostile takeover and got a lot of stuff fixed. It’s a two way street too - a good union will happily toss troublemakers under the bus, and help with policy transitions and point out inefficiencies and waste . A big problem now is that a lot of younger folks have no idea what the union does, or how it works, or what it can do. So they don’t join, and when management starts to wrong them, they have no help until they confide in someone who knows what the union can do . That being said, w e always helped everyone who was eligible to join, even if they hadn’t paid dues. And 95% of the time we got involved it was because a boss was being a racist/sexist jackass to someone they thought had no power .

ttyymmnn > gmporschenut also a fan of hondas 06/27/2018 at 23:38

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I just don’t understand why there is such a dearth of viable candidates in the Democratic party. The DNC made an extraordinary blunder in forcing HRC into the nomination, a mistake that we will have have to live with for perhaps a generation now that Trump gets to pick another SC justice. It’s hard to believe, but I think she was actually the more flawed candidate, and I say that as a Democrat. It looks like, going ahead, that the Democratic party, with its new young Socialists, will be as split as the Republican party with the Tea Party. But the GOP tends to keep its voters in a bloc, and the Republicans have the country gerrymandered to hell. So it’s ver y likely we’ll have four more years of Trumpism. God forbid, but I hope I’m wrong.

gmporschenut also a fan of hondas > duurtlang 06/27/2018 at 23:45

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communist_Control_Act_of_1954 Mostly due to 90 years of paranoia. Hell in the 50s it was illegal to be a communist in the US. Like words like liberal, or fascist it has been used in every minor and major situation that the meaning is usele ss.

when you add in a population with low to poor understanding of political thought you get a recipe for shitty arguements.

I used to have a french co-worker in his early 50s and a he would get so angry and just go “y ou have no fucking idea what a communist is! Obama would be center/right to right wing in France. ”

duurtlang > B/Xmrrmvr 06/28/2018 at 02:34

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Absolutely true, but the reality is that boomers are still an important voter block. So you have to take them into account. If they agree with your arguments but are scared away by that one word you use to describe yourself (and your opponents will use as ammunition against you) you might want to reconsider your wording. Use something else that means the same but which doesn’t have the historical and societal context, and isn’t so easily misused.

It’s not about what a word actually means, it’s what people think it means and are easily made to think it means . That’s the problem here. Perception.

duurtlang > gmporschenut also a fan of hondas 06/28/2018 at 02:51

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From my Dutch perspective Obama is center right wing as well. Both economically and socially. And I consider myself as center left wing, from my Dutch perspective. Yet, even I balk at the word ‘socialist’. Not due what it actually means, but by who typically use it. Here it’s only really used by the hard left, the unrealistic ‘free money’ dreamers if you will.

My point is that, if you use the word ‘socialist’ to describe yourself you become unelectable in many parts of the country world. Both because some voters have negative connotations to that word despite supporting the platform, and because it provides ammunition to your opponents. Wh en you use the identical political arguments but refrain from that description your chances increase. So why shoot yourself in the foot? I don’t get it.

B/Xmrrmvr > duurtlang 06/28/2018 at 07:33

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You make a good point... at least people are beginning to learn. I hope. As to your original question I think I misread... I don’t think it should be a word that the right (and the Democratic Party) gets to weaponize when our society is already socialist in many regards.

And tiptoeing around the word doesn’t work. It’s already used for anything and ever ything (ex: right wingers automatically call single-payer healthcare, the idea of making the internet a utility, or something completely unrelated as solar panels “ socialism”) , might was well “take it back” or start making it acceptable to the next generation of voters .

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > someassemblyrequired 06/28/2018 at 08:45

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The union I belong to is in the power of some people for whom that political power is their religion. I hope the Janus decision brings about some real upheaval.

someassemblyrequired > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/28/2018 at 09:06

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Ugh, that is the worst.   Yep, that may be the silver lining in Janus.  

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > someassemblyrequired 06/28/2018 at 09:29

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I pay $108/mo in union dues. That’s a whisker more than 1% of my gross annual salary, only to be thrown under the bus because I am insightful enough to recognize a conflict of interest and have the temerity to point it out. Still, I am seriously considering serving as the union rep next year in order to have a role and show some leadership among the faculty I belong to and try to make the union actually relevant to my group of 40 or so educators. Or maybe there will be a wave of people quitting the union to save $108/mo and I’ll just join the wave. Or maybe they’ll streamline their political activities and recruit members... None of those would be bad things.

someassemblyrequired > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 06/28/2018 at 09:31

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jeez, ours were $120/yr.  Yeah sounds like you got the upper hand in all eventualities.

gmporschenut also a fan of hondas > duurtlang 06/28/2018 at 20:35

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Oh i agree. I put it in the same category as the tesla autopilot. If you need a 2 paragraph discription to clear up what it is/does then you ha ve already failed the “branding” game.

I have the same reservations when I hear people say that Bernie would have been a walk in the park in 2016 had he been picked . Yeah he may have carried more voters in the rust belt, but he would have also perfect target of 20+years of fox news fear mongering of a leftist takeover. 

gmporschenut also a fan of hondas > ttyymmnn 06/28/2018 at 20:39

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“I just don’t understand” I would say because no one throws away the initiative or narrative faster than the DNC. And the left in general has no hesitation of eating itselt.

I feel like the DNC needs to take one part of Reagans playbook of “go for 80% and get the rest next week”