I've had enough

[TBF]

Really good thoughts on that - we see it playing out in the current administration. So Obama is at the helm, people think they are voting in the next FDR, and all of a sudden everything is being privatized, medicare for all is off the table, etc... And it's undoubtedly Rahm's fault (wait, he's gone now). Or Gibbs. Or Biden. Or Duncan. Or Valerie "lifestyle choice" Jarrett. Obama couldn't possibly be steering the good ship Imperialism on his own - those other jokers must be influencing him and giving him bad advice. Or maybe it's Obama. Maybe he should be replaced too. If we could just replace all of them the ship would get back on course.

[spartacus]

personal realm can make those things "personal lifestyle choices," so that when someone complains of being exploited and screwed by the system, the defenders of the system can say, "Well, you are where you are because of the choices YOU made. You deserve to be (insert: unemployed, homeless, impoverished, abused, etc here) because of what you did. Don't blame us, whiner."

You are also right that you can't politically oppose greed any more than a nation can wage war on a tactic.

And the Two Americas was YOUR idea? It was a good one. Impressive.

[Two Americas]

Way back in the day I got into the habit of calling staffers and politicians and talking politics with them. Every now and then I hear a politician say something and think "hey, that's mine." Not sure if Edwards got it from me, but I was having a heated discussion with one of his aides about Edwards being just another shill for the ruling class, about the haves versus the have-nots, and that there were two economies, two Americas, etc. right before he started using it. In my thinking, getting that theme in front of the public was a useful thing, aside from the candidacy or the partisan political nonsense. The politicians and staffers are just people. May as well argue with them as with anyone else.

[spartacus]

point, that America IS divided. Between haves and have nots. Between the ruling corporate class and everyone else. Instead of between left and right, liberal and conservative. The two Americas theme demonstrated horizontal division between the classes, which is real, and vertical division between left and right and maybe center, which is not. I have said for decades that the vertical division allows the people on top to divide and rule the rest of us.

I have also been attacked from both "conservatives" and "liberals" for saying so and for advocating class warfare. When I point out that class warfare has been waged for years, decades, or centuries, usually by folks on top, they either call me crazy or socialist or communist, or just go away. By far the most vehement attacks come from self-described leftists.

[Two Americas]

Wonder how Maat's Prius is running, and if she still has that luxury box for the 49ers games.

[TBF]

I remember being required to participate in diversity training in a law firm I worked at in the 90's. When I asked why staff was being trained separately from attorneys the facilitators informed me that the attorneys "were more comfortable" with that approach. That did open up a pretty good discussion about class though, with people giving examples such as the attorney there on a weekend who called the police when he saw an African American guy in his hallway (hello, he's there working on the weekend in the Xerox department because YOU sent down copy jobs).

[Dhalgren]

She seemed to be a lawyer, a social worker, a teacher, a nurse and gods know what else. Yeah, I hope she is still raking in the dough and keeping the "unfortunate" at arms length. It's hard to be "kind" and "progressive" when there are so many "icky" folks about...