A Populist Left

In the face of the corruption and Corporatism we now see OUR government drowning in….and the fact that that corruption and Corporatism is in the process of drowning the planet, it has become obvious that The People need to take our government back from those who have hijacked it to further enrich themselves.

To do that we will need a Populist Uprising…of some sort.

We all saw this summer what a Populist Right has to offer….fighting the fascist communists Hitlers and demanding birth pedigrees that are in the public record already. Oh and hot beverages IF you dip their hats in boiling water. They were at their most ridiculous when someone would ask them what they were trying to accomplish, what their goals were….when asked, they would mumble about taxes and fascism and have…like the Republicans who fostered them…no real answer. No solutions, no positive agenda. They were angry, but being the boobs that they were, they had no real substantive answer for what they were angry about. Their movement fizzled…imo, because unfocused anger is unsustainable as an effective political tool.

Anger must be accompanied by education and MUST be focused on achieving some goal.

What can a Populist Left offer? Can ‘we’ do better? Is all Populism destined to be hijacked by trivia, ridiculous sloganeering and demagogues?

Or is there a way to build a serious and effective Populist Left?  

Why would people be attracted to a Populist Left? What would it have to offer? What real demands would it have? What would the main thrust and focus be? How would that focus be maintained in the face of demagogue trying to hijack it?

And what would be the GOAL of a Populist Left?

There are two ways to mobilize people: Anger….or ideas.

Considering the anger that is out there, it would be relatively easy to whip people into a short term frenzy of anger at the current state of the country and the world. But is anger alone a basis for real lasting change?

Make no mistake, there would have to be an element of that, a Populist uprising to jar the status quo as it hasn’t been jarred since the Depression and the protests of the 60’s…there would need to be an element, heh heh, of Shock and Awe to throw the Fear of The People into the status quo….

But then where do we go from there?

And how do we avoid alienating people (especially the segment of the population that can be called sheeple for their interest only in their own comfort) WHILE also being effective?

And…how do we recruit the REAL constituency of the Populist Left…those who have given up on the system and no longer participate? 50% of Americans don’t vote….at least half of those are Left leaning. Far and away enough to sway any election, as we saw with the people that Obama was able to involve or re-involve in ‘the process.’ And he barely tapped in to that pool.

Can that be done with just anger?

Or do we need….ideas.

The ideas of an alternate world, the vision of a new way….to create a sustainable, powerful, effective Populist Left?

What is the goal, what are we fighting for?

We all know that our current system must be destroyed, and so destroying it is a worthy goal…but…

What is it we want to create?

What world do we want to substitute for our current one?

And how can we describe in terms that The People will understand and be attracted to that world so that it has the kind of Populist appeal that we need to attract enough of the people to build it?

What was it that attracted people to the Populist movements of the Depression and the 60’s? What were the positives that motivated them….and how can we tap into them to build a new Populist Movement?

That isn’t just a bunch of angry teabaggers?

Without clearly articulated goals with real ideas behind them to steer it, any Populist Left will be hijacked by the worst (and stupidest) elements that embody the mob mentality…just as is happening at Daily Kos right now, lol.