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It would have been helpful (but improbable and 'impolitic' I guess) if
AOC and others, in the midst of the pernicious backroom negotiations on
this massive handout to capital ('disaster capitalism' in motion), with
whatever bully pulpit access to media they could muster, early on,
including speeches on the House floor, had described in more explicit
and accessible language the dirty specifics of the bill, as have Mike
Whitney and to a limited extent Jimmy Dore ... if they had, more
importantly, attempted to mobilize their constituents and to bring them
out in the streets against this hand-over of our future well-being,
perhaps survival, part of a monstrous plan of total subjugation, to
implacable class enemies. Did any of these 'progressives' ('vote for a
woman.' as if women were class-exempt) attempt to do that? Of course not
- they maneuver in a parliamentary setting that precludes that. How roll
logs on behalf of your business and middle class constituents, and grab
onto influential Congressional committee sinecures to ensure that
process, committee assignments granted and withheld by Congressional
party disciplinarians -- and reelection?
I have problems with the term 'progressive.' It manages to conflate and
confuse liberal reformism and root and branch radical socialism to the
detriment of the latter, and that misleads a whole lot of people.
Unfortunately, Jimmy Dore falls into that mode, and I question whether
he really understands the difference. Call a spade a spade - socialism
is socialism, reformism is reformism. The latter may have its place in
giving people space to survive to realize the latter, but we risk
fooling ourselves: we are not emancipated by tweaking and fooling around
with a system fundamentally incompatible with our emancipation from an
ideology and practice of alienation and self-destruction.
[I'm quoting all that Dayne contributed, although it might seem
extraneous, to illustrate the differences and similarities, down to
Jimmy Dore [rightly] identifying himself and Democracy Now! with
'progressive media.' Both make good points but don't connect the dots.
They don't lead their audience beyond reformism. They haven't read their
Marx - carefully.]
Dayne Goodwin via Marxism wrote:
AOC blasts 'shameful' $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus bill for
bailing out
corporations
She raised some correct points in her rant. But don't let her empty
theatrics ("blast") fool you. She didn't shame anyone but herself. She
voted for that bill.
Instead of mobilizing 'the squad' and sympathetic Republicans to work
against the bill including stalling it while the public is made aware of
its many shortcomings, the so-called progressives gave grandstanding
speeches like AOC's aforementioned speech. Instead of voting against the
bill and being in a position to say she was looking out for her
constituents' interests (even if the bill passed it wouldn't have been
because of her), she now joins Tulsi Gabbard, Ayanna Pressley, Ro
Khanna, Elizabeth Warren, Ilhan Omar, "and anyone else who wants to call
themselves a progressive" (as Jimmy Dore said) in voting for this
massive big business bailout bill that is the largest wealth transfer.
That one-time $1,200 check some Americans will get won't purchase what
Americans need and deserve.
Jimmy Dore has been making YouTube videos on this recently
(https://www.youtube.com/user/TYTComedy/videos is his channel) including
pointing out how shameful it is to think that AOC's arm-waving speech is
in any way comparable to Congressional votes
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfOPSq705To), how California's 3-month
mortgage payment moratorium is going to be followed by allowing banks to
demand all of those unpaid payments on month 4
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQmn9o6NZVo) meaning that in month 4
one owes the unpaid 3 payments plus the regular monthly payment -- 4X
their regular mortgage payment in one lump sum.
And, as Dore has been explicitly clear, "It is stunning to watch
progressive media fall down on this". Very few news and/or commentary
outlets are covering what a bad bill this is for the 99% and how things
look very bad for a lot of Americans in the short-term future. One
notable example: Democracy Now! earned a reputation for championing
progressive politics during the run-up to the 2003 US/UK-led invasion of
Iraq. DN has squandered all of that good will in recent years as Amy
Goodman uncritically repeated Russiagate lies, echoed talk of the
alleged gas attack in Douma that now 4 OPCW scientists say did not
happen, and DN lost critical voices like former DN reporter Aaron Maté
(who has tweeted about why he left DN and talked on Jimmy Dore's show
about why he left DN).
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