The October 2011 Movement in the US

I haven't seen any discussion of this: http://october2011.org/ They appear to be trying to establish a functioning American political presence on the left.

Thoughts? Too much, too little, or just right?

Well the United States needs a left wing party to counter the tea party and the general right shift of the country.

I'd be all for this if I wasn't broke and currently job hunting.

$5 says this will be flash in the pan.

Didn't they say the same thing about the Tea Party?

That's what they said about the tea party.

America needs a left wing answer to them.

You can't beat the two party system, unfortunately. But an organized front of left wing voters, maybe mobilizing behind the more leftist Democratic candidates — and other parties in local elections, could make some change.

As for the Tea Party, they've only been prominent for a few years, they can still drop off the map (their approval rating dropped some amount for keeping the debt ceiling negotiations hostage). Remember Ross Perot in the 90's? He got up to 30% of the votes in two states, and 18.9% of the total votes in the 1992 presidential election. Of course, in 1996 he only got 8,4% with the Reform Party, and faded out since then.

edited 29th Sep '11 6:22:02 AM by JethroQWalrustitty

They could doexactly what the Tea artty does - pull cantidates way from the American center (only this time into the international center, where the good shit is).

Needs a serious Colbert Bump, and strong Democratic candidates to stand it up. Third parties don't do much, but in-party movements have demonstrated themselves to be successful at garnering support.

It will be as successful and well organized as occupywallstreet.

Personally, I don't want a left wing Tea Party and will strongly oppose any attempts to establish one.

edited 29th Sep '11 7:55:42 AM by Pentadragon

The tea party wasn't a bunch of people who just managed to get a lot of support from other people. Fox News basically catered to them, advertising the rally for weeks and then treating it as national news, an all day event. Fox news doesn't have a left wing equivalent in that there is no other news group with such national following. As such, there's very little chance of actually creating an equivalent to the teaparty in terms of size and vitriol.

Wait... I thought the tea party was a blessing for the left....

Why would they want to create their own?

^^Not on TV, but on-line there's MSNBC and on the radio there's NPR.

edited 29th Sep '11 11:33:26 AM by DeMarquis

I don't see a far left movement being bad for the states, considering your far left is our center.

Yeah, but right now the tea party is draining votes from the right, why would the left want to even that out?

The point, I think, is provide an actual option rather than "Anyone but them".

That, and I don't think this group is necessarily trying to shift the political center; it says right there in their pledge that what they want is to stop spending money on this war (which is what a lot of right wing Libertarians also want, by the way) and to start spending more on domestic programs and basically help at home.

With no one in the political field visibly trying to say that they're doing those things,(besides Obama on healthcare) there's not actually a specific option for people to vote for these days.

Which is why Occupy Wall Street has been the head story for over a week now...

Oh wait, no, they only picked up the story now, a dzen days into the protest.

You mean Occupy Wall Street is still alive? The only doc I saw of it was a photo with a fatass Anonymous on the right corner...

Meh, I like some of what they have to say, but other parts are too whiny and peacenik-y for my taste.

New Whigs all the way.

Only a single third party has ever gotten past "flash in the pan" status. We call them the Republicans today, although we could theoretically switch the party platforms of the two groups and it would be more representative of how they were when they were formed.

They really need to update their website.

Responses to fads (AKA the Tea Party) never go anywhere.

Look at any fad in history if you want to prove me right.

Good luck to these morons. They'll need it far more than the Tea Party to upset established Democrats like Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi.