I'm worried about the 2006 election because of burn-outs like me

[PlanetBev]

I've always been politically engaged in someway or the other since 1968. My main issue was always The Supreme Court. Since the election I feel a numbness inside, like everything I've fought for is lost. A million protest marches and sweating out the elections every two to four years has left me spent. I saw signs of the advance of the Christian Right as far back as 1978, but the media enabled them to move by stealth.

Yeah, I'll continue to vote and I'll continue to march and contribute time and money, but I wonder how many "oldies" (54) feel like I do? To see so much progression in the 60's and 70's and then see it turned back is deeply painful, and is made worse by the groveling spinelessness in both the press and my own party.

What I'm worried the most about is that the always politically engaged WWII generation is dying out at a tremendous rate, people of my generation will get so burned out and disgusted that they'll stop voting altogether. The Xtian Right has tasted blood and they will be out in full force in 2006 again. These three elements coming together will cause an electoral train wreck of horrific proportions.

I hope you youngins' can keep your chops up for the fight. This is not just a matter of the pendulum swinging back in another four years. Dislodging these maniacs who are in charge will not be easy. If you're up for the fight, then I'll keep tagging along.

[purduejake]

1. Not to mention all the blacks...

and other people who stood out in the rain and missed work for HOURS just to have their vote NOT count. How in the hell can we expect them to come back? Wouldn't that fit the definition of insanity... doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result?

[OhioBlue]

14. If they stood in line for hours

they showed their commitment. People may be discouraged b/c of the ballots that were not counted, the misleads, the bbv, the blatant disenfranchisement, but that should be a rally point. Not a deterrent. That is what the repugs are hoping for. Beat them down and give them no hope and totally discourage them from being involved. Let's not fall into the battered person mindset.

[Malva Zebrina]

2. I am burned out

and I am not a youngun. I aim to retreat to my plain and simple life, grow my garden, and visit the hermitage in the woods for inspiration to live out my life in a happy way.

i simply cannot see how I can fight this at this age other than writing letter or calling representives that pay not a bit of attention to those letters at all.

It is up to the younger people, and, I do not, to tell the truth, see much energy coming from them or much power ,or much motivation.

I suspect the rampant materialism, the selfishness, the I got mine and who cares about you, generation, has entered into that comfortable mind set.

So, will I vote the next time? Maybe,maybe not. I have lost faith and hope in this broken system, when my own representatives, even the candidate, are not willing to do anything more than promote their own ego driven desires, and the hell with the little people.
Very pessimistic at this point.

[trogdor]

26. I'm plenty demoralized.

I hope this thread doesn't become a 150-post pity party, but that's the way it is.

We can take some comfort in the fact that we're actually gaining where the rubber meets the road, that is, at the state level. This will be VERY important after 2010 when the very state legislatures and governorships we're picking off by the onesies and twosies will be the ones charged with redrawing congressional districts. Until then, we're playing end-zone ball at the federal level.

[Nay]

3. I'm 53 and pretty pooped, too. Back in the 70's it really seemed

like we would never even have to look back, just go on to a brighter and saner future each year. It is an ugly thing to realize just how many people are simply messed up. I can't explain it; it just seems to be human nature. I have to say that watching Dem leaders roll over for these bastards is the most disheartening thing I have ever seen. That in itself has knocked me pretty much out. That and the MSM ignoring the millions of people who protested the war. Things are going to have to get so bad that people change their views. That's all I can see.

[TrustingDog]

4. what 2006 'election'?

you really think Those are going to be honest?

[bobweaver]

5. All you have to do is visit a poor neighborhood and see the kids, then you

will be reminded of and re-inspired of why we're in this fight - to help them have better lives. Or watch a movie like "Salt of the Earth" or "Brother Sun, Sister Moon" or "Meet John Doe" or even "The Grapes of Wrath" and it will also remind and re-inspire your energy and commitment. Or just visit a forest and be reminded of another good reason to fight the Republicans.

[PlanetBev]

6. That was helpful, Bob

I've seen the The Grapes of Wrath a million times, but I have not seen the other movies you recommended. I will definately go out and rent them. I've got to rise above this somehow.

I'm gonna buy me a Woody Guthrie biography. That might help.

[Warpy]

7. The DNC silence on voter fraud is deafening

I can understand why they didn't take the early warnings seriously, but once the whistleblowers in the Sproul organizations came forward, they should have realized that they were wrong. There should be a flurry of lawsuits against state election boards, voting machine companies, and the like.

One might almost think the DNC powerbrokers are pleased as punch with the GOP theft since it will lower their taxes and fatten their portfolios at the expense of their members, party, fellow citizens, and country.

[nursebear]

8. The Pendulum Swings Back and Forth

Don't get too caught up in it. In the 60's and 70's, the momentum was heading significantly to the left, and it was easy to see the progress you made.

The 80's shifted the pendulum swiftly to the right. In the 90's, it actually struck a balance for awhile. Clinton became moderate, and the Repubs and Dems gridlocked each other in the House and Senate, so people (not gov't) were able to actually accomplish somethings.

The Pendulum swung a bit more to the right in the late 90's and now in the early 2000s. But don't worry, the Repubs will piss people off and the momentum will swing sharply left again. Maybe before it swings too sharply, it'll have a momentary stay in the middle where people will be profitable and productive again.

But once it swing back to the left, it'll stay there for 20 years and then move back to the right... and then back to the left...

[The Backlash Cometh]

9. Maybe he backed off when they tried to unseal Theresa's court case?

[wildeyed]

10. Hell yeah, I am ready to fight.

So it's not easy. So we don't always win. No excuse not to try.

I know it looks bleak right now, but I gotta believe that there is a way to come back from this. People in other countries have fought under much worse conditions and won. We can, too. I am focusing on local issues right now. I can't do much about the national situation, but there are some local developments in this past election cycle in my county that were very auspicious. So the country may be more conservative, but my county is becoming more progressive and that is what I will focus on.

Besides, you know they want you to become disheartened and give up. Don't quit, don't give them the satisfaction.

[EC]

11. I'm 55

and I'm even more motivated...I was in Chicago in 68 - I was at rallies and protests, I voted...I fought the Moral Majority, we had them almost last ditch in the 90's, then the voting machines and the Bush mafia...When I get in a corner or have nothing to lose...I don't hold back anymore, there is nothing holding us back now...we'll all be in real financial and moral trouble soon and I think this will help our cause, of course this is what starts revolutions, if Bush knew his history better, he'd know, you starve the masses, they'll go riot...

[OhioBlue]

12. PlanetBev, Nay and Malta

I can understand why you would feel like you do. But I want to appeal to you to not give up the fight. What we face now is not a Republican/Democrat issue. The current admin and the force behind them is too outrageous. If you are tired I understand. You don't have to march, but keep the faith. Definitely vote and do spread the word and the truth to those you know. I'm in my early 30's and have never worried too much about politics until the Iraq war. I started reading more and watching the news daily. I now know the gravity of what is at stake. Besides our foreign policy, the social issues, the environment, journalistic integrity, personal freedoms, etc. I know several people in their early 20's to mid 50's that are getting more engaged, some registered for the first time. We've got your back. Don't leave us now.

[PlanetBev]

15. That was so sweet, Ohio Blue

I know you young fighters are out there...I can hear you breathing.

I know I'll hang on. I ain't got much choice.

[OhioBlue]

17. Thanks PlanetBev

I'm getting a little emotional b/c I'm listening to C-span and the tribute to Congressman Matsui. I can't imagine giving up right now.

[KoKo]

13. I'll be out of it for 2006....I've done it...let others take up the TORCH

At some point one has to "Move On" and make peace with oneself. When no one wants to listen (DNC/DLC) then why beat one's head against a brick wall. I didn't do this for fun or because I had nothing else to do...and neither did the rest of us.

It was "Unfinished Business" for most of us...to try to fix a broken system once again. But, if we don't have folks behind us...the load is too heavy and wearing...and we must give up the burden...it's time..
:shrug:

[OhioBlue]

16. you do have people behind you

no doubt the DNC/DLC are total disappointments - but you have JJ, Kucinich, Dean, the Libertarians, the Greens, etc. that are rallying. Many * supporters that I talked to before the election were STAUNCH. They aren't so sure of themselves now, and when we discuss issues without naming names. They are usually disagree with the admin and neocons w/out realizing it. All they have are the talking points drilled into them by Faux. We have to state our positions and state them over and over. Dems are not the enemy to a conservative. The * cartel and the neocons are. People will wake up. They will. We cannot give up or we will become Nazi Germany.

[TayTay]

18. Remember what you are fighting for

The battle to give women the right to vote, the right to own property in their own name and the right to a life independent from their fathers and husbands took over 100 years. (Seneca Falls was in 1848, I think, with it's Declaration of the Rights of Women. It had been percolating awhile.) Women and men fought this fight even when they were told it was hopeless and that they fought against the very laws of God and Nature. I am sure that the burden of fighting this, of being imprisoned for it, of being subject to torture, rape and degredation was terrible. But I am so very grateful to my brave ancestors who never gave up. I have a life, went to college, own a home and own my own mind because of the bravery and stick-to-itness of others. I am humbled and inspired.

The battle to get America to recognize the rights of all citizens to participate equally in democracy and to give civil rights to all people, regardless of color or national origin is another fight (an ongoing fight as the election fraud issue shows.) Abolitionists in the early 1800's fought this. We had a civil war that didn't bring about a satisfactory ending. Thousands of brave souls, liberals, didn't quit. (And won't quit now.) We have made progress in the area of race relations and civil rights, but the fight is far from over. I take my humble place in that line of fighters.

I will never quit. I will find times when my very soul cries out from weariness and a deep desire to lay down the burden, because it is heavy and I am tired and getting older and so very mortal. I cannot do that. I owe it not only to my brave ancestors, I owe it to my children and grandchildren, who will also be brave. This is what concerned Americans do. We fight. We raise hell. We don't give in to the naysayers and the ones who tell us that we are disturbing the natural order. We do it because we cannot not do it. And we look to friends who give us solace, help us refocus our committment and energy and who listen to us when we are scared and feeling lost. It's not a movement of one, but of many.

[OhioBlue]

20. so true

we owe it to our ancestors but especially to our children and grandchildren to never give up. The * admin has taken us back, but we are not gone.

[GOPBasher]

19. You have a good year and a half.

Take some time off, relax, sip some tea. By mid-2006, you'll be fired up again. All we have to do is make it a fair fight. To that end, we need to get rid of electronic voting (or make it verifiable) and take back some of the media. 2006 is a ways away.

[OnionPatch]

21. First of all, thanks!

for all that you did over the years while I sat around being apathetic about politics. I'm a decade younger than you but I remember the Reagan years. I do remember thinking that all that greed and materialism was going to come to no good but I didn't do more than just vote. I think there are a lot of other people like me who got more active since 2000 and although the backward steps have been depressing, I don't believe this can last too much longer....I agree with the above poster who says everyone will get sick of the Republicans pretty soon. The one good thing about being out of power is that no one can really blame everything on you anymore.

I'm betting you won't be able to totally remove yourself from being political, but even if you just do a minimum of voting and LTTEs, you'll be doing more than most people, so don't sweat it.

[Been Fishing]

22. I'm 58 and mad

at the Republicans, at Bush, at the Christian right, at Fox News, at the Supreme Court, at Patriot Act I and II, about an illegal war, at the killing of Iraqis, at the abuse of prisoners, at talk of a permanent GITMO, at the high cost of medicine for seniors, about so many without health insurance, at jobs going overseas, at corporate greed for government contracts, at the greed for other nations' oil, at the damage to the environment...

While you may be tired, disillusioned, and exhausted, there has to be at least one issue you feel is worth fighting against or fighting for. Let the younger people see you give it your attention, let them see your experience in political fights, and help them struggle with passion for a cause.

If you are physically unable to be active, keep writing letters to the editor, e-mail representatives, and KEEP POSTING ON DU!

[elshiva]

23. I'm a young one, please don't burn out...

I need you. The 2000 election was my first cos I was 18. Disaster. Then MD governor's race former Lt. Gov. Kathleen Kennedy Townsend (daughter of RFK and a wonder) lost to homophobe Hitler Hair Robert Ehrlich in 2002. WTF a Kennedy lost to a Nazi! Now 2004, another disaster. In 2006, though, I have some hope. Maryland is a blue state, I pray the citizens remember Ehrlich's dirty dealing with slots and selling public park land and vote him out. Please all Marylanders, you are true blue, vote democratic!
I am a young yellow dog, and will fight if you, God forbids it, burn out. But, Please, Please, try your best. Thank you dear elders for fighting for every democrat from JFK to Kerry and on. You are the soul of our party. No you= no me.
Blessings

[FreeStateDemocrat]

25. Do not fear the Nazi is gone in 2006.

Kennedy was a poor candidate who ran an unfortunate campaign in 2002. Ehrlich has been completely ineffective as governor with absolutely no accomplishments other than cutting services and being disastrously influenced by his corporate patrons. His malpractice insurance reform debacle is just another nail in his coffin. With no executive talents he will be swept aside by any reputable democratic candidate in 2006 of which there are at least two sure winners.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

24. I'm 54, and I would feel a lot better if

I saw some signs of life from the mainstream Democrats. Instead, they're going around acting as if there's nothing to get upset about.

In some ways, I'm fortunate, because Minnesota has an active grassroots effort going, and new, enthusiastic Dems of all ages are insinuating themselves into the party structure, but the DFL is set up to make that easier than it would be in some states.

I'm on hold right now, but I hope to get geared up to boot out our "it's not really a deficit if you pretend that you already have those future funds" Republicanite pseudo-Christian governor, Tim Pawlenty.

[PassingFair]

27. I'm no spring chicken myself...but

I WANT MY COUNTRY BACK!!!!!!!

I was uneasy with the Clinton years, didn't participate politically because the economy was rolling and I was raising little kids.
I've got a head of steam to pry these criminals out with a crowbar if I have to. Please don't despair. Despair is the REAL enemy of social progress. Get involved locally, and keep your eye and computer screen tuned to the national scene.
We need you.

P.S. DFA meet-ups are this week. Find one and find some friends who will put wind in your sails.

[Mountainman]

28. I'm 58 and I am toying with the idea of getting out of politics completely

I feel much like you do. I don't think I will see a progressive movement coming in the remaining years I have left. I fear for those younger than me and am glad I lived when I did. We did our thing in the 60's and now it is time to see if those younger than us will do the same now. I will support them but I doubt they younger generation has a clue about what the future will be like for them.

[Name removed]

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