We can’t outspend the health insurance industry, especially not in the long run. Legislators will always side with those who can continually give large donations and pay full-time lobbyists. It is incredibly naive - bordering on delusional - to think we can take on even just one sector of the oligarchy by working within their captured system.
Now is the time to apply pressure from the outside, organize and build our own mechanisms for affecting change. This will require solidarity, and for people to make collective and coordinated use of their agency with regards to their labor and spending.
The DNC literally passed laws against large campaign contributions decades ago, it was overturned by the SCOTUS citizens united decision years later, and has been a core DNC platform policy ever since to reverse citizens united.
So yes, you can, but people aren’t, because people are idiots.
No, it was overturned in 2010, not decades ago. The law the decision overturned was the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002, which was over 2 decades ago. The DNC had been trying to pass it since 1995.
You people always complain about a party not changing things when we NEVER give them the power to do so.
President Barack Obama and Senator John Kerry called for an amendment to overrule the decision but it went ignored. In 2011, Senator Bernie Sanders proposed the Saving American Democracy Amendment, which would reverse the court’s ruling, LINK HERE. Bernie Sanders and others have repeatedly introduced bills to reverse it ever since.
The reason things are the way they are is because people vote Republican. Full Stop.
I’m not really even arguing that people should give up working within the system, just that it very clearly isn’t enough. If you haven’t noticed, we’re losing big. Even when the Democrats win, can’t you see how little they are able to accomplish? When you play a game that’s rigged against you, you have to get creative and look for solutions that are outside the bounds of the rules that have been set before us.
Your misplaced faith in the Democratic party is blinding you to the reality of our situation. Even within the party we have lost ground to the oligarchs, meaning our access to political power has been compromised. To take it back will require us to fight on two fronts, both within and outside the system.
So yes, you can, but people aren’t, because people are idiots.
Stop this. You have become jaded and cynical, which is understandable, but it’s causing you to accept a very dangerous premise. We didn’t get here because people are just idiots, the ruling class out-organized us. To believe that people are simply too stupid to fight back is to accept defeat.
Let’s stop talking around the issue. I’m referring to union organizing, general strikes, boycotts, mutual aid, direct action, etc. Would you consider those things “steering the ship into rocks?” Do you really think our only viable course of action is to do nothing except show up to vote on election days? We have to organize, and the Democratic leadership is uninterested in helping. Grassroots liberal progressive groups like MoveOn and Indivisible have been doing that work for them, and the Democratic leadership has been actively hostile towards them.
The killing of Brian Thompson revealed just how frustrated the general public has become with the lack of meaningful change to our predatory healthcare system. I do not recommend that more people go out and kill health insurance CEOs, because that is a very individualistic approach to a problem that requires systemic change. That doesn’t mean I’m going to shed any tears over the death of someone who is responsible for an astronomical amount of suffering, and I do believe that defending Luigi Mangione’s rights is important not just for protecting the rights themselves, but also for demonstrating solidarity and instilling class consciousness.
What does this mean, exactly? More resources to hire more lawyers or something?
Not really, Luigi already had tons of money.
What it means is a legislator who might have actually had a positive impact on changing US Healthcare did NOT receive a 30k donation.
We can’t outspend the health insurance industry, especially not in the long run. Legislators will always side with those who can continually give large donations and pay full-time lobbyists. It is incredibly naive - bordering on delusional - to think we can take on even just one sector of the oligarchy by working within their captured system.
Now is the time to apply pressure from the outside, organize and build our own mechanisms for affecting change. This will require solidarity, and for people to make collective and coordinated use of their agency with regards to their labor and spending.
The DNC literally passed laws against large campaign contributions decades ago, it was overturned by the SCOTUS citizens united decision years later, and has been a core DNC platform policy ever since to reverse citizens united.
So yes, you can, but people aren’t, because people are idiots.
So it was overturned decades ago, was never reinstated, and you think that’s an example of a win?
No, it was overturned in 2010, not decades ago. The law the decision overturned was the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002, which was over 2 decades ago. The DNC had been trying to pass it since 1995.
You people always complain about a party not changing things when we NEVER give them the power to do so.
President Barack Obama and Senator John Kerry called for an amendment to overrule the decision but it went ignored. In 2011, Senator Bernie Sanders proposed the Saving American Democracy Amendment, which would reverse the court’s ruling, LINK HERE. Bernie Sanders and others have repeatedly introduced bills to reverse it ever since.
The reason things are the way they are is because people vote Republican. Full Stop.
“We” is doing a lot of heavy lifting there. I’m not voting Republican, you’re not voting Republican, and Luigi isn’t voting Republican.
“do nothing about it until the midterms at which point we will suddenly convince 200 million people to vote Democrat” isn’t going to cut it.
I’m not really even arguing that people should give up working within the system, just that it very clearly isn’t enough. If you haven’t noticed, we’re losing big. Even when the Democrats win, can’t you see how little they are able to accomplish? When you play a game that’s rigged against you, you have to get creative and look for solutions that are outside the bounds of the rules that have been set before us.
Your misplaced faith in the Democratic party is blinding you to the reality of our situation. Even within the party we have lost ground to the oligarchs, meaning our access to political power has been compromised. To take it back will require us to fight on two fronts, both within and outside the system.
Stop this. You have become jaded and cynical, which is understandable, but it’s causing you to accept a very dangerous premise. We didn’t get here because people are just idiots, the ruling class out-organized us. To believe that people are simply too stupid to fight back is to accept defeat.
“Clearly isn’t enough” there is no other course. You’re just trying to steer the ship into rocks as a shortcut.
Let’s stop talking around the issue. I’m referring to union organizing, general strikes, boycotts, mutual aid, direct action, etc. Would you consider those things “steering the ship into rocks?” Do you really think our only viable course of action is to do nothing except show up to vote on election days? We have to organize, and the Democratic leadership is uninterested in helping. Grassroots liberal progressive groups like MoveOn and Indivisible have been doing that work for them, and the Democratic leadership has been actively hostile towards them.
No you aren’t, you’re in a comment section where people are being pushed to worship murder and you’re defending the murder worship. Nice try.
The killing of Brian Thompson revealed just how frustrated the general public has become with the lack of meaningful change to our predatory healthcare system. I do not recommend that more people go out and kill health insurance CEOs, because that is a very individualistic approach to a problem that requires systemic change. That doesn’t mean I’m going to shed any tears over the death of someone who is responsible for an astronomical amount of suffering, and I do believe that defending Luigi Mangione’s rights is important not just for protecting the rights themselves, but also for demonstrating solidarity and instilling class consciousness.