• makyo@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    24
    arrow-down
    7
    ·
    3 months ago

    I know there are plenty of arguments to hit the dems on from the left. However, most of the attacks I’m privy to seem to be more about establishing leftist cred than actually doing something productive, and Jill Stein is one of the best examples of this.

      • cogman@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        16
        arrow-down
        2
        ·
        3 months ago

        Yes, but then being unwilling to take any concession is not. The green party could, for example, pull itself off of ballots in key states or elections when the Democrats agree to their policies.

        Running a doomed to fail candidate that only weakens the likelihood of the most left candidates and pulling progressives out of the Democrat party is a bad move.

        Say what your will about RFK, he’s getting political power from Trump by dropping (if Trump wins). What will the green party get? Nothing.

        Dropping and endorsing after concessions is the real way for a minority party to weld power. Running no matter what is just delusion that works counter to any goal you might have.

        • Fuzzy_Red_Panda@lemm.ee
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          3
          arrow-down
          8
          ·
          3 months ago

          I just want you to understand how this sounds when it’s flipped:

          Yes, but then being unwilling to take any concession is not. The democrat party could, for example, pull itself off of ballots in key states or elections when the Greens agree to their policies.

          It may be easier to identify this way that this is not a reasonable position, no matter which party it is about.

          • cogman@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            5
            arrow-down
            1
            ·
            edit-2
            3 months ago

            If the Democrats were the minority party to the green party then yes, this is still sound. This is how politics works in FPTP election systems. You may not like it, but it’s not unreasonable. If the purpose of the green party is to get its policies enacted then the best way for that is pushing and endorsing when concessions are made.

            Heck, for a lot of its positions the best thing the green party could do is run for local and state level positions. But they don’t do that, they only run for presidential positions. They waste a ton of time and money getting nothing done. You only hear about the green party once every 4 years which is why they are unserious.

            And I’m not even saying they can’t keep doing their dumb campaigns. However, they work directly against their goals by running in contested states. The green party pulls votes from Democrats which are the most in line party with the green party goals. By running in contested states they help Republicans get elected. Of the green party was more than just a joke or a rat fuck, they’d mainly be running in states like Idaho or California.

    • electric_nan@lemmy.ml
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      9
      arrow-down
      18
      ·
      3 months ago

      It’s not clear to me what you mean here. Are you saying that AOC is attacking Jill Stein in order to bolster her own “leftist cred”, or that Jill Stein is chasing “leftist cred” by attacking democrats?

      If it’s the second one, then I would just refer you back to my previous comment. Any attacks from Jill Stein could be easily defused by adopting a few popular planks. If you actually meant it the first way, then yeah I kind of agree!

      • makyo@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        24
        arrow-down
        8
        ·
        3 months ago

        Jill Stein attacking others on the left to establish leftist cred, just like so many other leftists we see on the net.

        We have so much more in common than we have differences, and we could get a lot done if we were to band together - but instead we do the right’s job for them by dividing ourselves.

        • electric_nan@lemmy.ml
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          7
          arrow-down
          16
          ·
          3 months ago

          I don’t think that’s a very charitable interpretation of what is easily explained by honest political differences. People can and do work together when possible, but there are also issues too important to compromise on.

          • makyo@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            13
            arrow-down
            2
            ·
            3 months ago

            She wants to play them off as honest political differences anyway.

            When her actions match her supposed intentions then I’d be more willing to give her charity.

            • electric_nan@lemmy.ml
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              6
              arrow-down
              14
              ·
              3 months ago

              You’re painting “so many leftists we see on the net” with that same brush though. Is it so hard to believe that there are people genuinely to the left of you politically? What “actions” do you need to see from Jill Stein? She’s been running for office, giving interviews and speeches that platform issues that the dems are weak on. If nothing else she’s forcing democrats like AOC (and you, presumably) to engage with these ideas or risk political consequences. If we didn’t have 3rd party candidates to the left, there would be even less pressure on the dems to adopt leftist policies.

              • makyo@lemmy.world
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                12
                arrow-down
                7
                ·
                edit-2
                3 months ago

                She could start by dropping out of the race, endorsing Kamala, and then putting every dollar she has into organizing for national ranked choice voting so that hopefully once in my life I can vote my conscience at the same time I vote pragmatically.

                I sincerely doubt there is much room between where Stein is at on the issues and where AOC is at on the issues - the main difference is that AOC is not running for president and making it easier for despicable people who don’t care about anything to win.

                • AbidanYre@lemmy.world
                  link
                  fedilink
                  English
                  arrow-up
                  11
                  arrow-down
                  3
                  ·
                  3 months ago

                  That basic strategy is why you rarely see people shitting on Bernie. He manages to pull the conversation to the left while not fucking everything up by being a spoiler.

                  • Zaktor
                    link
                    fedilink
                    English
                    arrow-up
                    6
                    arrow-down
                    2
                    ·
                    3 months ago

                    Yup. He wants to be the most left option in a two party system, so when he runs to be that, he competes in Democratic primaries (both nationally and locally) to clear the lane so he’s not setting up a scenario where the conservative wins because the left is divided.

                    Of course who knows what the centrist Democrats would have done if he’d won a presidential nomination, but at least Bernie did everything right.

                • azuth@sh.itjust.works
                  link
                  fedilink
                  English
                  arrow-up
                  2
                  arrow-down
                  9
                  ·
                  3 months ago

                  It’s the Dems that should do that, they have more to lose and more power and money to get it done, no?

                  • makyo@lemmy.world
                    link
                    fedilink
                    English
                    arrow-up
                    5
                    arrow-down
                    1
                    ·
                    3 months ago

                    If you mean ranked choice, there are a lot of dems working on it