If this nation’s so-called “Democrats” hope to enhance any chance of returning Barak Obama to the White House for a second term, they first have a major problem to solve, that could spell “resolve” or “dissolve” for them. Theirs’ is an amalgam lacking the essential glue, needed to turn their prized ‘pluribus’ into ‘unum.’ Alas, this is a political body, without a comprehensive belief in what they are or candid pride in why. They are an ill-fitting federation of self-conscious parts that fade, at the first affront. They quail at the mere mention of a descriptive epithet, that harbors a hint of lenience toward corruption, a tendency toward taxation or a secret urge to splurge. All of which demand backbone for rebuttal.
The most practiced political pundits attest, that those who avoid a fracas over principle, by turning away, rarely end up in the victors’ column. The French Socialist pundit-publisher Charles Peguy noted: “Surrender is an operation that sets out to explain, instead of acting.” It’s time the Democrats stopped apologizing for who they are and what they believe, every time some miserable mischief-maker tries to tag them with a ‘dirty name.’
If they hope to win this most important of all elections in their history, America’s Democrats must rediscover the courage of conscience, they once knew how to display. As the revered Eleanor Roosevelt has written: “You gain strength, courage and confidence when you look fear in the face and say to yourself: I can take the next thing that comes along… You must do the thing you think you cannot do.”
The Democratic party is a party of seemingly disparate parts, because it mirrors this magnificent democratic republic of which so many are members, who’ve shown their mettle at the toughest of times. There are those who now try to divide and conquer, with the far-fetched fiction, that Democrats are non-believing secularists. Fact is, the truly fraudulent Pharisees, actually care more about the fleece, than the flock. That’s why Democrats are right to expose and oppose them.
What Democrats need to avoid like the plague is prejudice, against race, class and credentials. Intellectual Democrats, also need to be mindful, that while education for all is a continuing aim, experience and wisdom are values to be cherished. In the young and blossoming era of technology, there’s still much that experienced seniors can contribute. Above all, Democratic leaders also need to bear in mind that no gain is worth depriving the least of their constituency, of the wherewithal necessary for its participation. Democrats also need to be ever mindful, that the sum of their party is more important than any of its parts. Finally… and most important, is a belief for every Democrat’s wholehearted support: “Justice for all.”
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