Sorry Jane, I don’t have a clue what you mean when you write, “… it calls for a serious reassessment”. How many reassessments do we need?
Just how many whippings do Progressives & labor need before we realize we’re buying the whips? Isn’t it time for a labor leader or leading Progressive SOMEWHERE to muster a scream: “Do NOT vote for ANY Democratic Party incumbent running for reelection this November”!
What good does it do to carry on about values & principle if we refuse to draw a line in the sand for those principles?
The Democratic Party has abandoned EVERY ideal it campaigned on, shame on them. If Progressives & Labor don’t loudly proclaim that we will NOT tolerate this behavior, shame on us!

Now that we’re seeing things like Dick Gephardt supporting Sodexo against labor’s organizing efforts, it calls for a serious reassessment of the relationship between the labor movement and the Democratic party.

With each passing day, the disparities between the Democrats and Republicans dwindle in number and significance. When today’s Democratic policy is to the right of 1990s Republican wet dreams, I can no longer see any reason to continue to support them. What possible difference could it make anymore to me or you whether it’s the Democrats or Republicans in the majority?

Gitmo still operating. Check. DADT still in effect. Check. No robust public option for health care (never mind universal health care). Check. Cutting Social Security is “on the table.” Check. No repeal of Gramm-Leach-Bliley and reinstatement and strengthening of Glass-Steagall. Check. No hearings about war crimes committed by the previous administration. Check. Trying to undermine unions and support businesses. Check. And on and on. Tell me again why we should vote Democratic? There’s not a whole hell of a lot of difference between them and the Republicans any more.

Blame it on Cain.

That’s interesting, because as a conservative, I don’t see a hell of a lot of difference between Republicans and Democrats either.

I will vote for Democrats who are democrats. Otherwise no. It will take many cast votes and many years, but will be shorter if we are loud.

Jack

#LetsBeHonest we often vote 4 a candidate that fails to mention if any other candidate agrees with them! These candidates do not seem to understand why political platforms are popular with the voters.

Reference:
https://sites.google.com/site/usvotersite/Home#platforms

Ding.

lol:) a reassessment? OMG!!! The title of this article implies a serious amount of ignorance! Anybody who has read about U.S. labor history knows at least 2 things:

1) Capitalists will outright murder innocent workers when it comes down to it (important to note here because the Democratic party is a capitalist party (and imperialist re: foreighn policy)

2)Unions generally don’t serve their purported purpose…in all countries really, but especially in the U.S., usion bosses are tied in closely with mgmt, and this has been to the detriment of the working class.

The union that is doing any good is the union with a raucous rank-n-file movement that takes over the union and demands that it be run in the interest of the workers…

So, when we refer to “labor” in the way that Jane is, it is terribly stupid and hurts the cause of working people…

The Democrats have been shitting on Labor ever since NAFTA. I was a loyal union Democrat until Clinton kicked us to the curb. That was a looooong time ago. If I was a union member today I would scream bloody murder if my dues were going to Democrats.

Of course there is no such thing as the “labor movement.”

We have a rag tag collection of feudal baronies (unions) jockeying for advantage, each willing to cut the others’ throat for a bag of silver, or for the favor of the king.

Since NAFTA? wow. democrats have been shitting on labor ever since there were Democrats…it saddens me to see that so many Americans don’t know basic history, and of course the basic lessons from it…

god help us all if a person who’s screen name is “workingclass” thinks that the democrats only started fucking the working class since NAFTA/1994!

No offense to you “workingclass” :)

That’s true too. The laughingly-referred-to-as labor movement has been gutted from both the outside & the inside.

“… And on and on.” nice recap!

well…socialism conference 2010 starts this thursday in Oakland…a lot of good talks/discussions will be taking place re: working class.

Some great guest speakers: Jeremy Scahill, Dave Ziren, Tariq Ali, people from the Gaza freedom flotilla…

LOL! Well, given the current trend, that should make you a lot happier than it makes me (speaking as an old-fashioned liberal).

Clinton KILLED the two party system. Mea culpa, I fully expected Obama & team to TRY to ressurect it. Talk about being a Rube, wow! But, all that ended when Obama selected Clinton’s Economics people. Talk about a harsh awakening, unbelievable.
I really believe it’s because we’re so ripe for a third party that our concentrated media (thanks again Bill Clinton) has focused so much attention on tea-partiers. Labeling middle-class voters with legitimate concerns as “whacko” has proved a pretty effective way to deflate what should’ve been a tsunami of objections from both party followers.
My goodness, look what they did to Jane, as warranted as it was, she NEVER went so far as advising readers to “send a message, defeat Coakley”.
I have contributed, held fundraisers, walked precincts, driven elderly to the polls. NO MORE! This year I will campaign against, contribute against and do my darnedest to defeat EVERY Dem. Incumbent running for reelection that I can influence. I’m disgusted, so disgusted I’ve lost patience with hard working Progressive Activists who still desperately fight their all for absurd crumbs.
This election is NOT about Republicans, it’s not about how dispicable their policies are. It’s about sending home the Dems who played us for Rubes – promising us “hope”, “change” and more and repeatedly giving us only the shaft.

Glad to hear that (honestly). I was speaking with some conservatives this weekend attempting to explain how there’s no real difference between the two parties these days, but they wanted to cling to the notion that Democrats are insanely liberalsocialistcommunistwhateverevilthatlurks, while Republicans were still “conservative.” Glad to know that some conservatives see this lack of difference. Keep talking to all you know.

Thanks. And, oh, did I mention no strengthening of consumer/environment/worker safety regulations and oversight that had been previously completely gutted? *sigh* I have already told the DNC, OFA, DSCC and DCCC that they aren’t getting any more of my money or time (and why). I thought that things were bad under Bush II, but maybe things need to go so completely to hell in a hand-basket before the majority of the people in this country wake the f*ck up and start to take this country back.

Frankly, I don’t see the decision by Gephardt to do lobbying work for Sodexho as having any importance at all. Gephardt retired from elected office about 10 years ago to devote himself to his lobbying business. He made no secret of that, and he has not signed up with the worst elements of the union-busters. He was always rock-solid on labor when he was in office.

In fact, Sodexho is partially unionized as the result of a back-room deal with Andy Stern at SEIU. That the corrupt bargain between Stern and Sodexho has unravelled does not make Gephardt a bad guy. Maybe you should do some actual reporting on what Gephardt is doing for Sodexho before you slam the guy.

“… And on and on.” and on.

I was in Missouri back when Gephart was starting a run for President in the 80′s, visiting the CEO of the largest Insurance Co in the state, and that fellow told me that he and other GOP CEO’s were secretly (and in some cases not so secretly as in paying for meet and greets around the state and at the State Fair)supporting Gephart – “knowing” that the pro-labor posture was a con that would be dropped if pro-labor stuff actually got close to passage. My own experience back then was that Gephart was center-right – - much like Obama.

But I agree with your point that Gephart has been a corporate lobbyist for many years now – and his latest gig changes nothing.

Unions have been a force for good in America – despite “union bosses” choosing to work with corporations to solve problems – folks forget that they try to get the choice made by management to be one that helps, or hurts the least, the workers. In all my years I have not seen the “union corruption” that is a Fox News slogan –

In isolated local gov unions – esp police and teachers – unreasonable wages/rules have been agreed to because of “relationships” – but the members do not mind screwing the taxpayers anymore than CEO’s get upset over decisions that screw the public (as in Federal corporate welfare via military contracts that are un-needed or for work better done by a federal employee). Hard to find a case where union bosses got rich like corrupt CEO’s do in America.

Have either of these two ever had a real job? Met a deadline? Struggled? Made payroll? Balanced a budget? Doubtful… two academic types who only know about the real world from what they’ve read in books.

In further defense of Gephardt, it appears that the SEIU beef with Sodexo is related to Stern’s attempted raid on UNITE HERE, so Gephardt might be seen in some sense as representing UNITE HERE’s Sodexo units against the SEIU raid.

And whatever Gephardt might have said to the Missouri CEOs way back when, he actually voted against NAFTA back in 1994.

Here is a link to your event:

http://www.socialismconference.org/

Glad I could help. Here is a quote from the promo.

“Our Oakland conference is being hosted at the unionized Oakland Marriott in solidarity with Unite-HERE Local 2’s call to boycott major San Francisco hotels until they agree to give their workers a fair contract”.

Apparently the organizers are not as disdainful of American unions as you are.

You say that Jane is “stupid” and “ignorant”. Is that your way of inviting her people to the cause of Socialism?