Salon's Bill Curry says it very well here:Bernie Sanders really matters: He doesn’t have to win to build a progressive movement
Stop thinking about winners, losers and the dumb horse race. Let's build at the grass roots and debate what matters
This fits what I have been thinking for years. Until we change the political "climate" (pun intended) we will be doing the same insane things again and again. The real change has to be in the people and in order to achieve that the political discourse must change effectively first. Read on below for more.
There has to be realism here. Another dream of change being burst is more than we can take:
Wouldn’t it be great to put America on a path like the one Vermont took? It could happen, but only if this latest Sanders campaign is as fearless and selfless as the first — and only if progressives see the opportunity and honor it with wise choices. The opportunity is the chance to define an agenda, build a movement and engage the nation in a real debate. A few preliminary thoughts on the choices:
1. Sanders promises to mount a strong grass-roots campaign. In building it, he can’t expect much help from the progressive establishment. Politico’s ‘labor strategist’ is right. Faced with a choice between the union-baiting Wall Street water carrier Rahm Emanuel and his well-qualified, progressive challenger Chuy Garcia, 90 percent of Chicago labor unions stuck with Rahm. Hillary should do at least as well.
In other words power trumps ideology. Things like that do not change easily.
Another point well worth noting:
2. Sanders vows to finance his grassroots campaign with small donations. It’s a promise he must honor. Progressive Democrats tolerate their party’s corruption because they believe its leaders must make awful compromises to get the money they need to win. But their compromises destroy their credibility and erode their support. The power of ideas is greater than the power of money. Given the odds, Sanders doesn’t have to win the race to prove the point. He just has to win the debate.
People may not believe it, but you can raise enough money to win without selling your soul. Sanders did it in 2012. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, the top three “industries” that gave to him then were the retired ($502,170), “Democrats/liberals” ($229,530) and public sector unions ($114,400). Finance and real estate interests combined gave him just $78,000; a sum any self-respecting bank lobbyist could easily drop on a weekend golf outing. Sanders raised $7 million and spent less than half of it to win with 71 percent of the vote.
I'll let you read the rest of the article. The comparison it makes between Bernie and Hillary is very accurate and meaningful. This should be a very invigorating campaign. I'm for Bernie all the way because he comes closer to representing what I think than any other candidate ever has. I hope you will join me in supporting him. More important I hope you will help build the movement.
11:24 AM PT: Thanks for the rec list. This needs to be discussed carefully. You can tell from the misconceptions in the comments.