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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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