The New Left
Left Out
By Jeffery McNeil
Vendor
James Madison warned of the dangers of the factions and special interests that would subvert democracy in his Federalist Papers. He was no big fan of partisan politics in general, or of using money and power to influence elections. This same sentiment is often what spawns third party movements. Those movements are nothing new. They are as American as the flag waving on the flagpole outside the White House. There have been both good third-party movements, like the labor movement and the civil rights, and bad movements like the John Birch Society and the Ku Klux Klan. But whether you sympathize or disagree with their cause, third parties can have an impact on society.
The approval rating of Congress is at 9 percent, the Republican Party is to the right of planet Pluto, and disappointment with Obama is pretty high. It is no accident that people are protesting in the streets. They are red-hot with anger at the establishment and its inability to understand the discontent of everyday Americans. That, combined with the callous attitudes of the super wealthy, has brought our country to the brink. When you go to an Occupy Wall Street rally and see the type of people who are out there protesting, it changes your mind about the Occupy movement. It includes laid-off workers, college students, the middle class, and people who are living in actual poverty.
Many people that I talked to in the D.C. occupations feel that the game is rigged against them, both on Wall Street and on K Street. They feel like we live in an upside down system where those who steal get rewarded and those who have been robbed are punished. It astounds and baffles many that Wall Street executives sent the world economy into a tailspin and still walked away with millions (if not billions). Meanwhile, a homeowner can miss one mortgage payment and get tossed out on the street. When Wall Street gets in a jam, they can go to that golden goose called Capitol Hill and ask for a handout courtesy of the American taxpayer.
The protests show how upside down our country is right now. An Iraq war veteran protesting for a job gets knocked unconscious with a tear gas container by the Oakland police. But those who ran our country into a ditch got new Ferraris, and still have their million-dollar homes and meals at fancy restaurants, all paid for with taxpayer money.
I spoke recently at the “Enough is Enough” rally here in DC. The people I met there were not left-wing revolutionaries by any means. They were regular old Republicans and Democrats. But they are becoming the new left—as in, those who have been “left out” of the what they were told was the American Dream. They are looking for moderate leaders who are willing to compromise and solve problems. They find it infuriating that not one Republican believes you should increase taxes on the rich, and no Democrats who are willing to talk about the need to reform elements of our government programs.
They were not looking for a hand out. They were just asking their representatives in Congress to look out for them. They are sick of the bickering and partisanship in Washington, and they want solutions, not excuses. Average Americans keep getting poorer. We need a leader who has the cajones to tell his corporate buddies that the handouts are over. The time is ripe for a third party that is looking out for regular Americans.
Left Out
By Jeffery McNeil
Vendor
James Madison warned of the dangers of the factions and special interests that would subvert democracy in his Federalist Papers. He was no big fan of partisan politics in general, or of using money and power to influence elections. This same sentiment is often what spawns third party movements. Those movements are nothing new. They are as American as the flag waving on the flagpole outside the White House. There have been both good third-party movements, like the labor movement and the civil rights, and bad movements like the John Birch Society and the Ku Klux Klan. But whether you sympathize or disagree with their cause, third parties can have an impact on society.
The approval rating of Congress is at 9 percent, the Republican Party is to the right of planet Pluto, and disappointment with Obama is pretty high. It is no accident that people are protesting in the streets. They are red-hot with anger at the establishment and its inability to understand the discontent of everyday Americans. That, combined with the callous attitudes of the super wealthy, has brought our country to the brink. When you go to an Occupy Wall Street rally and see the type of people who are out there protesting, it changes your mind about the Occupy movement. It includes laid-off workers, college students, the middle class, and people who are living in actual poverty.
Many people that I talked to in the D.C. occupations feel that the game is rigged against them, both on Wall Street and on K Street. They feel like we live in an upside down system where those who steal get rewarded and those who have been robbed are punished. It astounds and baffles many that Wall Street executives sent the world economy into a tailspin and still walked away with millions (if not billions). Meanwhile, a homeowner can miss one mortgage payment and get tossed out on the street. When Wall Street gets in a jam, they can go to that golden goose called Capitol Hill and ask for a handout courtesy of the American taxpayer.
The protests show how upside down our country is right now. An Iraq war veteran protesting for a job gets knocked unconscious with a tear gas container by the Oakland police. But those who ran our country into a ditch got new Ferraris, and still have their million-dollar homes and meals at fancy restaurants, all paid for with taxpayer money.
I spoke recently at the “Enough is Enough” rally here in DC. The people I met there were not left-wing revolutionaries by any means. They were regular old Republicans and Democrats. But they are becoming the new left—as in, those who have been “left out” of the what they were told was the American Dream. They are looking for moderate leaders who are willing to compromise and solve problems. They find it infuriating that not one Republican believes you should increase taxes on the rich, and no Democrats who are willing to talk about the need to reform elements of our government programs.
They were not looking for a hand out. They were just asking their representatives in Congress to look out for them. They are sick of the bickering and partisanship in Washington, and they want solutions, not excuses. Average Americans keep getting poorer. We need a leader who has the cajones to tell his corporate buddies that the handouts are over. The time is ripe for a third party that is looking out for regular Americans.
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