From: odin@world.std.com (Hank Roth)
Subject: Slick Willy
Followup-To: alt.activism.d
Originator: rich@pencil.cs.missouri.edu
Organization: The World Public Access UNIX, Brookline, MA
Date: Thu, 8 Oct 1992 22:50:46 GMT

   In the September 28th issue of The New Republic, Kinsley says 
the Clinton vs. Bush (re: Clinton's economic program) "is a good 
illustration of the difference between being slick and being a 
flat-out liar. Clinton is slick." Matthew Rothschild, publisher 
of The Progressive asks, "How could I vote for someone who left 
the primary campaign trail to see a convict executed in his home 
state of Arkansas? How could I vote for someone who supported the 
Gulf war and places himself to the right of George Bush on 
foreign policy? How could I vote for someone who blames welfare 
mothers for being poor?" But then he goes on to say, "But the 
Republican Convention, along with the looming threat to abortion 
rights, posed another question with compelling force: How could I 
not?" 
   And that is the kind of choice we have, the lesser evil 
choice. We better start now building a a new choice, at least for 
96. There is a plan for Proportional Representation which I have 
previously mentioned that would at least give us a presence. 
Many European countries are going in that direction and it 
appears to be a viable alternative to get our positions heard. 
   There are also other candidates. Many of them are populist and 
relying on widespread dissatisfaction and emotion would take us 
more to the right. But there are also voices from the left and to 
help build that united front from the left recently many on the 
left attended a convention of the National People's Progressive 
Network. The purpose of this network was to establish and 
maintain a dialogue within the progressive community--and also 
establish an "Emergency Response Network" to enable the left to 
coordinate activities and communications. 
  Matthew Rothschild articulates some of my own concerns about 
organizing and he writes about it in the October issue of The Progressive. 
He mentions Jessie Jackson's failures, which I, as a delegate 
was already discussing with other delegates at the Rainbow 
Convention (in 88). Jackson, as Rothschild correctly points out 
has lost the support of progressive organizers by not taking his 
campaign outside the Democratic Party. The Rainbow Coalition was 
one of the most successful efforts to bring the left together, 
and Jackson tore it apart by "single-handedly, unilaterally" 
reorganizing the National Rainbow Organization. After his election 
attempt and failure, many of us who worked so hard for Jackson 
and the Rainbow organization were locked out. The purpose was to 
continue our work using that umbrella organization but the 
organization just disintegrated. 
   Ron Daniels is attempting to carry on where Jackson left off. 
He is a viable candidate for 96 and his platform is radical by 
current political standards. "What is to be done," says Daniels, 
"is the demilitarization and the democratization of the society." 
He says there is a choice. We can have an unjust economy and no 
peace or we can have a just economy and peace. This is what 
Rothschild says about Daniel's platform: "It calls for complete 
nuclear disarmament; withdrawal of all U.S. troops from foreign 
soil; the reduction of military spending by at least 50%; 
conversion to a civilian peace economy; progressive taxation; 
greater control by workers and communities over the economy; 
full employment with decent jobs at good wages; protection of 
workers' rights; a housing bill of rights to make it affordable 
and accessible to all; national health care based on the 
Canadian model; environmental justice and green technology; 
universal free higher education at the college and university 
level; statehood for the District of Coumbia; the elimination of 
racism and all forms of discrimination; complete equality for 
women, including pay equity and protection of reporductive 
rights; respect for the sovereignty and treaty rights of Native 
Americans, along with economic restoration and justice for all 
Native American peoples; and reparations for African-Americans." 
   At the National Progressive Network Convention, Daniels 
declared: "Rotating Presidents is not at issue. Having a more 
beneficent slave master is not the issue. The issue is we're 
living on a plantation and we have to replace it. The choice is 
not about rotating society, but about building a new society. 
The choice is about changing a bankrupt, corrupt, racist, 
sexist, and homophobic society. We do not need to tinker with 
the status quo or to fine-tune the engine which is grinding up 
millions of Americans. We don't want to refine it; we want to 
replace it and build a new society."



Xref: sparky misc.activism.progressive:7478 alt.activism:17590 talk.environment:4248 talk.politics.soviet:8482