Friday, September 07, 2012

quote for the day

"People would have to be my age (61 next month) to get just what this post means to me. In the Spring of 1968, I was a high school senior, presented with the almost ridiculous luxory of choosing whether to campaign for Bobby Kennedy or Gene McCarthy (I chose McCarthy). Six months later, Kennedy (and MLK) were dead, McCarthy had been wiped out by the Democratic party machine in the aftermath of the police riot at the Chicago Democratic convention, Nixon was on the way to the White House, and the Viet Nam war raged on for five more years.

In the 40+ years since, the party of which I am ashamed to say I remain a member has marched inexorably to the right, chasing the Republicans in that direction, to the point where today's politics would be unrecognizable, I think, to people like Bobby Kennedy, or even to the plutocrat's own father, George Romney. Does anyone remember that Richard Nixon supported the establishment of the EPA? Can anyone imagine any Republican doing so today? Over the years there were brief rays of hope from Carter, and then from Clinton, but nothing altered the Democratic party's slow but steady abandonment of its FDR-inspired ideals, and its core constituents.

Then Obama was elected. When he stood before that crowd on election night in Chicago, with his black wife and two black daughters beside him, my wife and I watched from home and cried.

And now, virtually nothing remains from that euphria [sic]. In retrospect, it all seems like it was just so much wishful thinking.

I will vote for Barack Obama, and I will do what I can to get others to do so, largely for one reason - his reelection is absolutely necessary to prevent the complete destruction of the U. S. Supreme Court for the next 30 to 40 years. Apart from that, sorry to say, it's hard for me to care anymore.

Sorry, folks. My generation of progressives failed, and failed utterly. The ball's in your court now. You can do great things, as evidenced by OWS and the events in Madison last year. Good luck - I hope to someday have something to cheer for again."

Jim McFaul, commenting on an article called; "Something Is Very, Very Wrong Here"

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Does anyone remember that Richard Nixon supported the establishment of the EPA? I remember. I also figure that in today's GOP Nixon would be laughed out of the room they have moved so damn far to the right they need a cab to get back to the center.

For me, its one party with two names. Obama has made way too many hard right turns for me.