OK, I just found the Tom Tomorrow Woodchuck Cartoon

[kohodog]

http://www.salon.com/entertainment/comics/this_modern_world/2010/06/29/this_modern_world

Having been away from DU for a bit, I wondered about all the Woodchuck references.

Makes sense now and it seems like the "woodchucks" among us are the rational, incremental folks (my brother is one, a self avowed yellowdog dem). Not like me and the rest of the fucking hippies and yippies who want real change before we're all in debtors prison or working only to buy our meager provisions from the Company Store. People, we are owned by the banksters and corporate oligarchy. The "center" has been moving right since Reagan (or earlier) and since the Democrats have been chasing the center they are only moving in the wrong direction. Who among us will hold them accountable? Who is willing to be called out as "the professional left" who want to eliminate the Pentagon and want Canadian Healthcare? Who still wants to get out of Afghanistan and Iraq and neuter the Banksters? Who actually believes that Democracy should give equal opportunity for everyone? Or is the way things are ok?

[krispos42]

1. Not to go off-topic, but I can't see your avatar pic

Maybe it's just me, but repeated attemps to view it lead nowhere.

[ZombieHorde]

2. I like "both" types of liberals. nt

[hfojvt]

3. false dichotomy

either fight with us lefties or be satisfied with the status quo.

The point of the woodchuck seems to be splinterism.

Here's the way it could work. What originally drew me to DU was "the top ten conservative idiots". A take-off of Letterman, not that he invented lists, but this one was a list of the stupid and evil things that conservative REPUBLICANS were saying and doing, written with intelligence and sarcastic humor. Here was supposed to be a group of people fighting against Republicans and also fighting against DLC types who want to make the Democratic Party into a Republican-Lite Party.

Yet, now that Democrats have been elected, it is usually a litany of woe and doom. Obama's not doing this, Obama is doing that and especially Obama is gonna do the other thing. Republicans have been the party of NO. They wouldn't even vote for a stimulus that was 40% tax cuts. Instead of lining up to attack them for this, DU has mostly attacked our own team for not calling the brilliant plays of DU that would have resulted in over-whelming victories. Like the SNL spoof, we expect Obama to be "The Rock" Obama who tears the arms off of Republican Senators who are getting in the way. He could have done this or that and gotten more touchdowns. He could have done this or that and gotten more sacks and fumble recoveries.

In any case, some are determined to jeer our team instead of fighting against the other team, and the woodchuck is all about that. See, it does not mock Republicans, it mocks those foolish people who consider themselves to be progressives but who are trying to defend Obama or fight against Republicans instead of attacking Obama and Democrats like a good leftist would. It's like a tug of war where Republicans dug their heels in, and instead of re-doubling our efforts, half of our team quit pulling and started berating other people on their own team. And they are prepared to say "I told you so" and also to absolve themselves of blame when our team gets pulled into the mud in 2010.

Here's a reality http://www.gallup.com/poll/141032/2010-Conservatives-Outnumber-Moderates-Liberals.aspx. the country considers itself 42% conservative, 35% moderate and only 20% liberal. Liberals need moderates in order to win, and need to persuade more people to become liberal. Mocking them as woodchucks does not help in either endeavor. Neither does constant derision directed towards the Democratic Party.