Good morning, Threaders, Threadheads, and all in between. Saturday coffee is the best.
The disenchanted.
Yesterday, as I closed the DNC 2024 series of morning posts, I mentioned how the last day of the convention focused on what’s wrong with this country and reminded us it didn’t start in 2016. Many, dare I say most, of us are more hopeful and confident after 4 days of joy. But not all.
There are some who still find it hard to believe in democracy and feel like the DNC is marketing. To them the fact it was a flawless exercise means it must be the product of the same old forces that work in the shadows to provide the masses with the illusion of democracy. I call these people the disenchanted. Because their life expectations have been denied time and time again under both parties they just can’t bring themselves to believe things can change.
I am not talking about the hard core pro-Hamas bunch who mix their disenchantment with their privileged revolutionary chique beliefs. I am talking about those whose lives made them skeptical of any kind of power by default. Even the kind that would make their lives better. They don’t understand that by remaining skeptical they are denying themselves the change they seek. And they keep looking to the top.
They have this dream of a better world where peace and kindness rule and we look out for each other without fear or prejudice. They are looking for “something” that would make it come true and can’t see it. The world itself seems to deny it. So they stop believing in change and are consumed by a permanent feeling of powerlessness. The more I think about this the more I realize what the only way to restore their trust in our democracy is. And also reinforce our own.
We need to get money out of politics. Period. No matter how good we feel about the DNC this year the truth is that four day celebration cost millions of dollars. To someone who can barely make a living watching those moments may seem like more of the same. A bunch of politicians with millions at their disposal telling them it will be just fine. Again. I can see their point. Just as I can see their mistrust at the chants of “USA” and the thousands of flags waving.
What they don’t realize is that they allowed our country to be stolen from them. They can’t feel proud to be Americans yet. They don’t know how. This is our challenge. Reclaiming our country is not easy and it will take a lot more than words, no matter how well spoken and well chosen. To those of us who trust we can change, enthusiasm comes easier but we also know belief requires action to gain roots or it becomes an illusion.
I believe in Harris and Walz. I honestly think they can start the work that needs done to achieve the realization of our dreams. I also know they need a Congress strong enough to enact that change. That is up to us. It’s up to us to not go home after November 5 and expect the people we elected to do the work for us. For too long we did just that. We believe in someone and expect them to go and do our work. Democracy doesn’t work that way.
To begin with, we need to understand change doesn’t happen overnight and is as fast as we make it to be. If we don’t get a clear majority in the House and at least 60 senators it will not be easy to get things done. If the filibuster is still a problem, in case we get just a few more senators than the GOP, I think it will be really hard to convince the democrats in Congress to get rid of it. Then two things may happen.
The most likely is we have to wait for 2026 to try and get 60 senators. The less likely is that we manage through our engagement and pressure to convince the less than 60 senators to get rid of the filibuster. Both require OUR work. Both are only possible if we stay in the fight. Democracy is only achieved through constant engagement and very hard labor. This is what the disenchanted fail to see in their frustration.
There are only two ways to move on from a two party system that many dislike: work to create new alternatives from scratch or go straight to a dictatorship without passing “Go” and collecting $200. The disenchanted are easy prey for those who propose the latter. Real change is needed. I believe we can do it now but ONLY if we put ourselves into it with body and soul. We have to keep dreaming and for sure keep demanding the impossible but we must be pragmatic.
Dreams don’t really come true and the impossible will never happen. Being a revolutionary with the goal of achieving those objectives is not progress but regress. Democracy makes it possible to get closer to those ideals but in the game of life the goal posts are always moving. All we can do is keep moving too because if we stop those posts will keep on going and the more time we spend doing nothing the farther away from us they’ll be.
I wish I could lend some of my optimism and hope to the disenchanted. I can’t. Only the fulfillment of the promise of America can. And right now Kamala Harris and Tim Walz are the embodiment of that promise. It’s time to reclaim our country in all its possibility and opportunity without fear. Now is the time to believe but also the time to realize it’s also the time to wake up to what democracy really is. And make it better.
Stay in the fight. Be the change. These are no longer abstracts, they are real possibilities in a world we took for granted for far too long only to be disappointed by it precisely because we took it that way. Do NOT take anything for granted. Fight for it and never stop. Demand the impossible and never stop believing. I believe. The promise is real. It’s time to make it happen, one decisive step after another.
We’re not going back!
