I no longer do this.
My departure from the site was with my last post in December 2017. I did not state that I was leaving. With the benefit of Christmas just days away, and that New Year’s Day 2018 was approaching, I simply stated that that was my last post for the year 2017. And I wished everyone a healthy, happy, safe holiday period. In other words: I timed it with the holiday period as some sort of personal break. And I left without giving an impression that I would not return in 2018.
Three months into 2018, I decided, from time to time, I would go ahead and check blog site for any topic of interest. But, that I would not comment. And I have not commented. This past Saturday [March 24, 2018], I looked over some blog entries. I came across at least two people having commented on my absence. One was made earlier a couple weeks ago. Another was made in early-February.
My departure from that blog site is my decision. It is not coming from some prior, ugly confrontation. It comes from the realization that it was time for me to leave.
I reached the conclusion that, while a number of those participants would like to consider themselves progressives, they are very much in line with the corporatism and neoliberalism of the Democratic Party Establishment.
Among the sources other participating commenters liked to link were from Washington Monthly, MSNBC (and particularly Joy Ann Reid), Milt Shook, and BPICampus[.com]. (Looking at the blog site, prior to posting this entry, I notice the blog author’s Recommendations includes Mother Jones. I was not paying attention enough to notice this before. Mother Jones has become what it is now—garbage.)
One linked article was this: Washington Monthly — ‘If a Blue Wave Materializes, Be Prepared For a Big Tent Democratic Party’. A commenter mentioned me, stating that I would not approve. Of course I don’t. The Democrats’ Big Tent Party is a bullshit narrative; or, as a phrase which springs to mind, it is for the birds. The premise of a Big Tent Party is a coalition of voters loyal to the political party, who have diverse backgrounds, but that it is okay for them to not have a shared ideology—a shared agenda. But, in U.S. politics, it is often necessary to read between the lines. For this Democratic Party, a “Big Tent Party” is packaging. But, ultimately, it is making sure the corporatists and neoliberals, and they are also warmongers, keep control of how the party operates. This includes their controlling, however successfully, just who may win in primaries in very key areas of power—most especially with the presidency.
Since my departure from commenting on that blog site, there have been more threads and comments on the Trump presidency. They are fully on board with Russiagate. In fact, I was singled out, because I had previously posted articles written by Glenn Greenwald, because the commenter doing it said that Greenwald was not a progressive. So, this person, posted the following: NY Magazine — ‘How Glenn Greenwald Made the Russia Scandal Disappear’.
These are examples why it was the right decision, for me, to leave. This was even more clear to me when the author of the blog site wrote about the 17 U.S. Senate Democrats who voted to repeal the Dodd–Frank bill in February. The blog author expressed disgust of those Senate Democrats. The author also noted that 2016 vice-presidential nominee Tim Kaine, Hillary Clinton’s running mate, should never be on another presidential/vice-presidential ticket. (Same goes with all those other Senate Democrats.) But, ultimately, the author figures those applicable Senate Democrats, whose seats are on the 2018 midterm elections schedule, should not be primaried. Had I still been active, and responded, I would have written: Yes—they should all be primaried. And so should those on the schedules for 2020 and 2022—covering all three U.S. Senate classes. For any of them who get re-nominated, they should not win re-election. In fact, I will deny re-nominations to my two Michigan U.S. senators and, if re-nominated, also my general-election votes to Debbie Stabenow [2018] and Gary Peters [2020]. And, should President Donald Trump win re-election, which I am currently predicting will happen, he will again carry Michigan—and, given the presidential/senatorial, same-party coattails outcomes (a first-ever 100-percent rate of the applicable states from 2016!), that would make unseating Gary Peters ripe for the opportunity in 2020. These U.S. senators are all damaging not only to the Democratic Party but also to the nation.
In the past, I was not as politically aware as I am now. That is why I was present at that site for so long. And I certainly did not have this blog site. But, then again, Jimmy Dore turned out to be correct: A lot of people on the left (truly or not so truly on the left) went to sleep while the presidency was in the Democratic column specifically with President Barack Obama. So, Donald Trump won the presidency, in a Republican pickup, in 2016. And that year’s election became exposure to a lot of factions within the Democratic Party. So, now, I perceive that blog site to not be about progressive politics. I don’t believe the people there are actual progressives. Perhaps, from time to time, there will be a blog entry for me to read, which I would have previously commented. But, still, I choose to not comment; to not participate. For the most part, I take that blog site as Conforming Democratic Party Politics.
My departure is good. I did not leave under bad circumstances. I asserted myself in disagreements. I argued them. I did this respectfully. And people there knew I was not on board with them. That is why one person knew me well enough to understand I would not buy into that Washington Monthly report on a “Big Tent Democratic Party.”
Departure.
Yes—it happened, for me, because I knew the time had arrived.
This is good.
At some point during the second half of 2017, and definitely after this was uploaded to YouTube in June, I posted the following video from The Jimmy Dore Show:
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