grassroots progressivism

The problem is that at a core point, you're asking people to work towards "Us" rather than "Me. And for a large enough section of the population, that's a non-starter. It's a massive culture fail.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coffee_Party_USA

I remember seeing this on the news when the Tea Party started getting attention. It's Facebook seems to have half as many people as the Tea Party. The promote clean energy, tax reform, immigration reform, environmentalism, and weakening the political power of corporations.

edited 1st Aug '11 8:14:38 AM by Grain

Eric: It's also telling that the unions' power also went away about the same time we started closing down most of the Rust Belt. About the only old-school industrial union left is the UAW, and they don't exactly have the best of reputations.

I've always thought that relying on China to make most of our stuff was a bad idea, and I think that investing in high-volume manufacturing in distressed Midwestern towns would be a good idea if environmental controls and worker safety could be assured. I don't know if people would go along with that, seeing as how basic human rights apparently make people lazy now, but if someone is willing to take the risk, I'm sure something good would come of it.

Even ignoring heavy industry, service jobs and white collar work are also squeaky clean from any union presence today. Oh, and nonlabor unions like consumers or small business? Also not present. If people aren't organized economically, they're not organized politically.

edited 1st Aug '11 8:25:05 AM by EricDVH

@ Eric: Dean lost his support after the "I Have A Scream" incident. People thought of him as more of a loony than a Presidential candidate.

Though some forms of manufacturing are in danger due to 3d printing.

I remember that, live by hype, die by hype. That was still incredibly dumb, everyone arguing about “electability” while ignoring the fact that Kerry and Edwards were completely lacking in any kind of agenda, there was no real political will on the Democratic side.

Personally, I distrust grassroots movements in general, and think that the Tea Party is bad enough without having a left-wing equivalent too.

Eric: I remember all that. I was in the "anyone but Bush" camp in 2004, and I remember being disappointed when Kerry chose Edwards as soon as the talking heads on CBS Radio started calling him "electable". I was like "I'm still going to vote for you, but I know you'll have a snowball's chance in Hell of winning now because you look like a milquetoast compared to Bush's cowboy swagger."

edited 1st Aug '11 10:57:46 AM by lee4hmz

Wasn't that "Rally to restore sanity" Jon Stewart had a kind of grassroots movement?

It wasn't progressivism more than it was anti-extremism though.

Unless you're a republican. Then it was totally a liberal rally because John Stewart is a liberal mouthpiece.

I seem to recall that anyone was invited, left or right.

But Fox News hates Jon Stewart because he calls them out on their...insanity is too light of a word...

So they use their most vile insult they can give him....Liberal!

DUN DUN DUNNNNN

So another important question is how can the negative connotations of words like liberal or government be removed?

By Yelling really loudly and constantly.

edited 1st Aug '11 11:30:20 AM by Alichains

Hey its how it became a curse word in the first place.

The right kept using Liberal like the word "communist" or "terrorist" and it basically seeped its way in.

Find a better word, maybe? "Liberal", in the modern American sense, denotes a particular left-wing stereotype which a lot of people aren't going to be happy to rally around. But strip away those American connotations and you're left with a very vague word meaning "pro-liberty" that gets applied to people on both sides of the political spectrum.

Rather than try to reclaim a word with that much baggage already attached to it, why not use a different one?

People are using the term Progressive now, which is getting the same treatment.

Or "uncultured".

Well, I'm not surprised "progressive" is getting that treatment. It's really arrogant sounding. Like calling yourself The Smug Party. The Smug Party of Smugness from Smuggington, SM.

That said, I suppose any word that denotes a political position is going to be used negatively by people who dislike said position.

How is "wanting to move forward" smug?

How about the "VROOOOOOM" Party. That'll get the attention of all the retards in our country.

Progressive? Pro-choice? Reformist? The euphemism treadmill's a chump's game. Just call it what you like and feel will fly for a given audience, leftist, humanist, socialist, realist, intellectualist, sane, good, whatever.

Oh, sorry, I forgot the intention was to make a left-wing Tea Party equivalent. So yeah, actually, it makes sense to give it an equally presumptuous name, I suppose.

I vote for the "Intelligence party" or the "We have brains that we actually use party".

Using your brains?! Thats elitist!

Yes that's right. I am an Elitist. Shout it from the mountaintops people. Alichains is elitist and proud!