AFTERMATH

This week at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, it seemed the Democratic Party did everything possible to put on public display of just how UNdemocratic the party has become.

Sanders Delegates were in some cases denied admittance to events, or their admittance was delayed while HRC delegates were allowed admittance to reserve seats for other HRC supporters or seat fillers hired to look like HRC supporters. Videos of Sanders delegates being verbally abused by Clinton Delegates emerged, Bernie Delegates were targeted and removed for no reason from the convention, Bernie signs and banners were confiscated from supporters, lights were turned off over sections of the arena where delegates expressed anything deemed unacceptable by the party, and white noise machines were installed to silence the vocal protests of delegates.

One woman was caught on camera telling a Bernie delegate and his 17 year old daughter to “get the f*ck out.”

Witnessing the disgusting behavioral display of the Clinton delegates and despicable actions of the party leaders, I can’t help but notice that if you removed the signage, the scene is all but indistinguishable from a Trump rally, complete with heckling, harassment, even assault on protesters.

Tell me again how the democratic party is ‘better’ than the Republican party?

The DNC hired actors to fill the seats of protesting Bernie delegates and paid them to cheer, wear or present Hillary garb, and promote the desired appearance of party unity for the cameras. I wonder if they’ll pay them to vote too.

North Korea uses similar tactics when allowing visitors into the country. Carefully placing people to project the desired impression of their country while allowing visitors to take only strictly guided tours that limit visibility to anything undesirable.

This is not a democracy, this is some sick combination of an oligarchy and a dictatorship.

Even I didn’t expect such a blatant and obvious display of oppression at the Democratic National Convention.

All week long the Democratic Party took extreme measures to further oppress the people in order to make a false public display of party unity.

The party is more divided than ever.

It’s hard to tell where this race will end up or what the consequences will be, but one thing is clear; we are a long, long way from a unified party despite what the corporate media presented during the convention.

DemEXIT

After a day wrought with disgraceful conduct by the DNC, Bernie Sanders conceded the race to Hillary Clinton and promptly left the convention. Following the official announcement of the nomination for Clinton, thousands of Sanders supporters staged a walk out leaving the convention hall impressively half empty during the victory speeches.

Protests ensued in the streets. Nina Turner was reportedly stripped of her credentials and ejected from the convention, rumors are flying that Bernie Sanders switched his affiliation from Democrat back to Independent, Jill Stein campaigned to the disheartened Bernie Supporters outside the convention hall, and a massive numbers of democrats moved to abandon the Democratic Party in what is being called, “DemExit.”

The DNC was caught rigging the democratic primary process and they did NOTHING to rectify the situation. Yes, Wasserman stepped down (and was immediately hired by the Clinton Campaign, though she was probably already on their payroll), and the DNC did issue an apology letter, but this hardly qualifies as sufficient amercement for rigging a national election.

Bernie called upon his supporters to unify behind Hillary, but the more research I did on HRC, the more it became clear  that she is no less dangerous than Trump. In fact, while Donald Trump sounds [admittedly] terrifying every time he opens his mouth, HRC has an equally terrifying (and proven) track record of consistently poor judgement, dangerous policies, dishonesty, and corruption.

The bottom line is, I have done the research and so have millions of other Americans.

The fact is, our system is corrupt. We have two corporate parties that want us to think our only option is choosing one of these two evils. I honestly don't think there is a "LESSER" in this case.

History shows that even small increases of corruption in government are breeding grounds for civil unrest. I’m sad to say that we are currently standing on that precipice in our country.

I won't tell anyone else how to vote, that defeats the purpose of a democracy. Not that we actually have one.

I will, however, remind people that we do, in fact, have a third party in this country. It’s not a corporate party, it’s the Green Party.

Today I removed myself from the (un)democratic party. At this point I plan to support Jill Stein along with every progressive down ballot candidate I can.

If Trump is elected, it is the DNC, not the Bernie Sanders Supporters, who are responsible.

The People are awake, the People are paying attention, and the People are justified in being pissed off.

I’m sad to say, we still have a long road ahead.

Hold on.

Buckle Up

After the recent wikileaks release of tens of thousands of damning emails regarding the biased conduct of the Democratic national committee, the Democratic National Convention is off to a bumpy start.

Months ago, the Bernie Sanders Campaign made statements calling out Wasserman for her HRC bias which she, and the Clinton Campaign, adamantly and repeatedly denied.  The most recent evidence of the DNC scandal proves that not only is Debbie Wasserman unfit to hold the position of DNC chair due to her pathetically lacking moral code, but that her dishonesty is fit for only one thing; a top position on Hillary Clintons campaign.

Is anyone else dumbfounded by the implications of such a move by HRC? DWS steps down as DNC chair for corruption and is immediately hired by HRC and backed by Obama himself with high praise and glittering references?

Excuse me while I vomit.

It only seemed to add insult to injury when this morning, in Sanders opening address to his delegation, he reiterated his earlier support for a Hillary Clinton Presidency.

Perhaps he is still playing by the rules and making the necessary statements to assure he is not stripped of his speaking slots throughout the convention, but it’s not an easy pill to swallow for the Sanders supporters who are watching concrete evidence come to light about the corruption in the DNC. Evidence that the DNC is guilty of undermining the entire democratic primary in favor of Hillary Clinton with no apparent repercussions.

Bernie Sanders may not be able to scream aloud for justice against the corrupt political party, but his delegation certainly is, and so are millions of his supporters.

Directly after Bernie’s speech Jane Sanders was heard on the still hot mike saying what sounds like, “They don’t know your name has been put in nomination. That’s the concern.”  

It may be a small consolation after an epically disappointing speech, but It IS only day one after all. By the end of the week we’ll know whether the die hard Bernie supporters will get to vote for him in November on the Democratic ticket, or whether they will ultimately be the new foundation of the Green Party for Jill Stein.

Crumbling

Despite the disappointment of Bernie’s endorsement of Hillary, I am still with Sanders all the way through the convention.

I also just donated to Jill Stein. 

Some will agree with my decision, some will not. Either way, it's okay. I support your decisions to do what you think is best. That's what democracy is all about. 

I have no idea how this will end, and believe me when I say it scares the crap out of me. 

Our current government has amplified and created more issues then they have resolved. They have created more threats than they have extinguished. They have created more poverty than they have ended, and they have certainly killed more people than they have saved.

They continuously put their financial interests ahead of the interests of the people or the environment. They have created such a disastrous state of affairs that we are on the verge of catastrophic and irreversible climate change, and unsustainable living conditions.

I’ve said it before; the state of our nation is a disgrace. The rampant racism, police brutality, poverty, mental illness, homelessness, and inescapable debt (among many other things) are all indications of a failed and corrupt government. 

I can’t turn on the radio without hearing of another senseless attack, another innocent person shot down or brutally beaten. I watched a video of a teenage boy, not much older than my own son, being tazed in the head for an extended period because a police officer couldn’t control his own emotions. The offense? Being obstinate, which is annoying but not illegal last I checked. That kid is permanently brain damaged. 

Yesterday, another terrorist attack took place in France. A truck plowed through a festive crowd killing over 80 people. 

It’s devastating and what’s worse-- We contributed to the ongoing unrest that has produced the extremist people and organizations that now plague our communities.

We created this problem when we unjustly invaded Iraq and nothing we have done since then has served to de-escalate or resolve the issues. 

We’re afraid of becoming the target, afraid of losing our sense of security, but we’re way past that. 

I don’t know what the solution is, but I know that what we have been doing isn’t working. 

It feels like we’re on a path of total self-destruction on every level. From our own local communities with growing poverty and increased economic hardships, to police brutality and intolerance, to our government who manages somehow to accomplish nothing despite the secure paychecks they collect from our tax dollars, to the wars and terrorist attacks taking place all over the world, to the environment that we have all but destroyed with our greed. 

Greed is not sustainable. Intolerance and exclusion are not sustainable. Endless wars are not sustainable. Our way of life is not sustainable. And our corrupt government is certainly not sustainable.

We are not powerless, they just want us to think that we are. 

I have no idea how this will turn out, what will happen at the convention, or what will happen in the general election in November. 

I know that Bernie’s Endorsement of Hillary did not provide the results the DNC hoped for. More people are fleeing the Democratic Party in favor of the Green Party and Hillary is dropping steadily (and remarkably low) in key polling states. 

If Sanders comes out the victor of the Democratic nomination, he still has my unwavering support for the presidency. Meanwhile, I am going to work hard to get Jill Stein the support she needs to be included in the debates for the presidential race. She’s well on her way.

I refuse to cast my vote for fear. I will cast my vote for progress. 

We are standing on the precipice, and we don’t have any more time to waste. 

THE FINAL BLOW

Bernie Sanders himself delivered the final blow to his campaign by endorsing Hillary Clinton for President.

I can only imagine the upcoming aftermath of his endorsement.

Will Sanders supporters switch their loyalty to Clinton at the bidding of Sanders? I doubt it. Not enough of them to give her the presidency, anyway.

Bernie brought to the forefront of people’s consciousness the importance of standing up to the establishment and standing strong for progressive action. He created a movement that will, I suspect go its separate way now, unwilling to compromise and accept status quo candidates and pacifier compromises.

For the last year people have watched with eyes wide open as the establishment committed blatant election fraud state after state, manipulated the media in order to silence the people’s movement, and illegally suppressed the votes of millions of Americans.

Bernie Sanders showed up like a beacon of hope in the midst of a system corrupt beyond redemption.

He created a movement that has momentum beyond even his control.

He may be sending a verbal message to stand behind Hillary, but the words are contrary to the movement he created and I suspect that while some people will concede to the fear and support HRC at Bernie’s request, the majority of his supporters will abandon the democratic party in pursuit of the progressive policies that could determine the very sustainability of our future.

Bernie’s promise to continue with the political revolution by creating an organization for change seems a consolation prize too small for the scale of a movement that has grown strong enough to stand on it’s own.

Perhaps Bernie’s decision to endorse was based partially on his understanding of the strength of the political movement, but no doubt there will be many disillusioned and angry supporters who neither agree, nor understand his endorsement.

I’m one them.

I don’t understand, nor agree with Sanders endorsement of Hillary Clinton. I don’t agree with his statement that she will be a great president. She will be exactly what she has been her entire political career. An untrustworthy one percent establishment puppet who represents her own interests over the needs of the people and her own financial gain over the protection and sustainability of our natural resources and environment.

No, not even Bernie Sanders could make me vote for Hillary Clinton.

I do recognize that Sanders is part of a greater system and to a large extent, he has to play the game.

He may very well have a broader agenda. If part of his broader agenda is to motivate millions of people to abandon the democratic party, he may very well succeed.

Huge numbers of people have maintained their status as part of the democratic party for one reason and only one reason-- Bernie Sanders. With Sanders endorsing the very thing that the largest political movement stands against, there is no reason left to maintain party affiliation.

Sanders may have delivered the final blow to his own campaign, but he may have also delivered the final death blow to the (un)Democratic Party with his endorsement of Hillary Clinton.

Fight on for true democracy. Political Revolutions are not for the faint of heart.

The System Isn't Broken

I hear it again and again. “We need to fix the Broken system.”

The problem is, this system isn’t broken. It works exactly as it was designed to. Create more wealth and more power for the few, while providing just enough (increasingly not enough) for the rest.

The amount provided to the rest used to be greater. It used to be enough to pay the bills if you worked a full time job. Enough to put food on the table, support a family on one income, own a home, a car, and even put money away for retirement.

This system runs like a well oiled machine where the people are the oil, taking more and more from the working people while sending all the rewards and wealth to the top. People work longer hours for less pay, and while it used to be a minority of people experiencing economic strain, it has now become the majority.

People are told (by the one percent) “work harder to get ahead” and yet, there is no getting ahead no matter how hard you work. People are running out of steam fighting to get ahead in a system that is clearly rigged against them.

Now, like many other times in history when people have had enough, a revolution is afoot.

The most significant and progressive actions in history came from the collective actions of massive movements of people who visualized and fought for fundamental change.

As renowned historian and activist, Howard Zinn, observed, we are exposed to the story from the point of view of the powerful; the story they want us to hear. But behind the scenes, people are taking small actions that will ultimately change the trajectory of our society and that is what history will show.

That is the significance about the political movement happening now.

We are standing on yet another precipice of major political reform. Regardless of who takes the seat in the Whitehouse come November, people are actively envisioning and implementing necessary changes for the upheaval of this unsustainable system.