Liberals are finding their voice, and it's angry.

[Maple]

SNIP...."WASHINGTON — President Bush a "liar?" Donald Rumsfeld a defense secretary who "betrayed" his troops? Republican leaders in Congress part of a "concerted effort to erase the 20th century?"

SNIP....."Not since Richard Nixon left the White House have liberals felt so free to be feisty. After decades of being shushed and shooed aside by centrist Democrats who feared the party's left-wing image was turning off voters, liberals have kicked their way out of the political closet. They are loud. They are angry. And they've got a whole new attitude.

"We have been too nice. We have been too polite," says Ann Lewis, a veteran strategist with the Democratic National Committee, where the official party weblog is called "Kicking Ass."

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2003-11-30-liberals-usat_x.htm

I have no idea if USATODAY is considered a right wing conservative newspaper, but if it is rest assured I hate it. Boo, hiss, snap!

I got into trouble for this a couple of days ago, so I'm being doubly sure today. :D

[shanti]

1. and this is one of the main reasons

that howard dean is doing so well!


THE DOCTOR IS IN!

[VermontDem2004]

4. Grrrrr Laker fan

:mad:

[loudnclear]

32. And after I cast my vote for Kucinich in primaries, I will certainly

support Dean if Kucinich doesn't win. Dennis is as feisty as Dean but with more integrity I believe.

[theivoryqueen]

2. Yay!!!!

gives new meaning to the concept of "donkey missiles"!

[Closer]

3. I am LIBERAL

Hear me ROOOOOOOOARRRRR!



hehe

[Maple]

5. Well apparently

the 'grassroots' are now being heard, if it's making the papers.

And here you all thot you were talking to yourselves!

[RainDog]

6. The backlash cometh

The ultra-right has gone far, far beyond the KNOWN preferences of the majority of the American electorate.

the ONLY way they were able to pull of the coup and the present bullshit is by lying their asses off.

the so-called media has betrayed all Americans by getting on their knees for Bush and I hope they feel the pain just as much as the Republicans will...because this backlash is just beginning because the people in power now are so delusional they cannot fix what they have broken and they must be removed from power in order to return this country to a more representative democracy, rather than an oil-y-garchy.

I used to be a bystander who vaguely followed what was going on, until the reich wing overstepped with their hounding of Clinton and the subsequent theft of the 2000 election.

Absolute power corrupts absolutely, and the present govt in America is total proof of this truism.

It makes me sick that I feel that my own govt is as much of a threat to this nation as al queda...but their actions have shown that this is true.

The best thing that could happen to this country would be for the Bush thugs to be tried as war criminals.

I know hell could freeze over before this happens, but I also know that never again will I sit idly by while they fuck over this country. Just because they are now using character assassination rather than real assassination for the most part, the issue is still the same... they cannot win office without cheating, lying, and undermining democracy.

There are obviously Republicans who do not fit this description, but they are not the ones who currently control the party.

J'accuse Bush, Cheney, Rumsfield, Santorum, DeLay, Feith, Ashcroft of crimes against the Constitution. May they suffer a just fate, as the founders of this nation would have seen fit.

[bpilgrim]

7. One of the NEW alternative news outlets...

http://GlobalFreePress.net ;->

peace

[Ripley]

8. In this psychotic nightmare called post-911 we live in, liberals are

AFRAID FOR THEIR FRICKING PROPERTY, LIVLIHOOD AND MAYBE EVEN THEIR LIVES.

The thugs have kicked us one too many times in the teeth though. The corporate media can spin what a leader Bubble Boy is and how conservative the US has become until they're blue in the face. It won't change the fact that it is not just the liberals who are coming out fighting, it's people like my retired Republican father who voted for Smirk-ahole once, but is damned sure he won't make that mistake again!

[supernova]

9. Oooh, love the ending

"Republicans had better worry," says Paul Weyrich, a veteran conservative organizer. "Angry people are motivated to get out to vote. If they can channel that anger into something constructive, they can literally upset the presidency."

We're getting through to some hard noggins'! Keep it up! }(

[sendero]

18. But Oh No!!!

You can't win an election on anger!

Just watch us. There are few things more motivating than anger. Justified anger at watching our country being literally subverted by the pernicious and the moronic.

Damn right I'm mad. And I vote :)

[AP]

10. "Not since Nixon"...Nixon WON in 1972, and the Republicans would have

won in 76 if not for Watergate.

[Scott Lee]

22. "Not since Nixon LEFT THE WHITEHOUSE..."

What part of "left the Whitehouse" don't you get?

Watergate was the inevitable end game for a party of arrogant, powerhungry controlfreaks. They were bound to try something like this.

Much like the current group at the helm.

[jokerman93]

27. Remember this one???

Why change Dicks in the middle of a screw? Vote for Nixon in '72!

[Scott Lee]

34. ROFL!! YES!

Oh good lord I haven't heard that in ages....hilarious and thanks for the trip down memory lane! ;)

[peacetalksforall]

11. Centrists...I am having a big problem with Centrists...

I tried to be convinced that a centrist policy on some issues could be helpful...well, look where we are - as is usual with the most evil of crooks, THEY DON'T RECOGNIZE ANYTHING FAIR.

Centrist means playing fair and having an open mind and it's not working, everything is becoming worse. These nazi-right-ruler- wannabes will take your centrist position and laugh their heads off behind the wall and just torture with more crime. Truth means nothing. The American conscience means nothing.

They want WAR and we should give them war in the form of our voice, our vote, our knowledge and bringing it to others. We need to support every person who speaks out against them, every company that practices American policies, every attempt to get the voice of Americanism broadcast over TV and radio.

We are not traitors. We are the defenders of our country against our own.

[GreenPartyVoter]

13. It's fine to

BE a centrist. But I have trouble with an entire side of Congress trying to be centrist when making policy, because we know the other side is pulling right-ward.

So instead of getting moderate policies, the best we can hope for are moderately right-wing policies.

When you buy a car, you don't go up to the salesman and offer him $500 under the sticker price. The same goes for crafting policy. Start out with the bar raised high (and left), then carve out middle ground by bargaining with the right.

[killbotfactory]

12. There is good reason to be angry

And it ain't just liberals.

This country is headed straight down the crapper and we have republicans to thanks.

[unfrigginreal]

14. She gets the anger part right but some of her analysis sucks

Bill Clinton helped found the Democratic Leadership Council to move his party toward the political center and advocate policies appealing to voters who Democrats were alienating: blue-collar workers, rural gun owners, fiscal conservatives. He won the presidency twice by avoiding traditional liberalism. On some issues, like crime, free trade and welfare, he even tried to outflank Republicans.

In the presidential campaign this year, the most successful Democrat is doing just the opposite. Howard Dean is leading in most polls and has raised more money than his rivals by capitalizing on anger against Bush that is so strong, it surprises veteran Democrats. Rep. Robert Matsui, a California Democrat who has been traveling the country to raise money and recruit candidates for House races, says feelings against the president are running at near-vitriolic levels.

So, Howard Dean is not trying to appeal to blue-collar workers, rural gun owners and fiscal conservatives? That's news to me.

[eissa]

15. Let them say we're angry

I really don't care. Anger worked for them and they won (well, sort of) in 2000. All the pundits agreed that the repukes would not win in 2000 running against peace and prosperity. But the ANGER the repukes had against Clinton fueled these voters to come out in droves while many of our own stayed home. Although we did win in 2000, we should have won MORE! We are not making that mistake again. Our anger will lead us to outvote them AGAIN and WIN BIG this time! :grr:

[sendero]

21. good point...

.... and if they could generate all that hatred over basically nothing, imagine what we could do if we had some media at our disposal.

[Bandit]

16. Boy do I ever love Ann Lewis

She is a take no prisoners kind of gal and I think she would be a great Vice President. Listen to her just once and I'm sure you will all agree. She is what we need more of.

[Isome]

17. That's right... grrrrrrrr, we're ANGRY!

And we're not going to take it anymore. The Dems who want to remain losing republican-lites, can do so... the rest of us are going embracing and then channeling the anger, while RETURNING to the true Democrat form!

Being liberal or Democrat doesn't mean we have to be spineless ANYMORE!!

[agingdem]

19. 55 year old liberal Dem...

I got so sick of our guys making nice when their guys were such asses...and where the hell is this supposed "middle-of-the-road"? Human rights, civil rights, abortion rights, gay rights...there is no middle ground...for or against...that's it! Daschle, Braux, Baucus...SCMUCKS!

[JAbuchan08]

20. Upset the presidency?

Doesn't that make it sound as if the presidency has finally found its natural balance in Bush. I dunno this quote bugged me - it definitely had a hint of fascism (either that or I'm imagininng things).

[calimary]

23. So let's HELP Ann Lewis and company: HERE'S HOW:

Folks, we need to start creating and spreading some new MEMES. Like Republi-CONS and Republi-CONMEN and Republi-CON-ARTISTS and Republic-CON-JOBS and Cheap-Labor Conservatives and Red-Ink-Republi-CONS and Charge-and-Spend-Republicans.

We need stuff like this to roll off the tongue as easily and frequently and automatically as those schmucks derisively say "the Democrat Party."

They're having a great time because nobody and I mean NOBODY is hitting back. It's BEYOND high time that changed.

We need to slither stuff like this into the national mind-set. REPETITION WORKS!!! Soon, it will spread on its own, but WE have to get it jump-started.

So here are some suggestions:

1) WHEN (not IF, WHEN) you write or email some columnist or reporter or editorial board or whoever, slip one or two of them in. Make this a habit - EVERY TIME. I wrote to one Canadian reporter about an excellent article she'd produced. I made reference to "The Silenced Majority" to describe the many many legions of us critics of this "So-Called Administration" (there's another one) who've been forcibly silenced and marginalized. She picked up on that in her response and said that it was a good one. AHA! Perhaps she'll be likely to use it, herself, then.

2) If ever you get through on somebody's talk show, MAKE DAMNED SURE you repeat one or more of those several times. Further planting seeds and then giving them water and nutrients. Same is true if you email some TV show, on the chance it might get used on the air.

3) Use that terminology with friends and "watercooler" pals at the office. Just casually, BUT RELENTLESSLY!

4) WHEN (not if) you call your congresscritter (TOLL FREE TO CAPITOL HILL: 1 800 839 - 5276 - you KNEW I was gonna sneak that one in again, too, 'eh?), use these when you speak to Democratic office staffers. Encourage them to spread it, too. I started using "when bush lied, people died" or "bush lied and soldiers died" and a couple of 'em remarked specifically on that and said they liked it. WHILE YOU'RE AT IT, encourage them to start using this, too. Encourage them to suggest it to their bosses. Tell them it's the new rage where you live (keep it up enough and it's very likely to be!).

The objective is to plant these as seeds as far and wide as though you were Johnny Appleseed. Do it repeatedly yet casually in conversation and in writing. If enough of us do it, and spread the word, and maybe drop hints to Democrats.com and Buzzflash and some other friendly folk, perhaps takebackthemedia.com and such, it'll start spreading. Folks like Guy James and Randi Rhodes and Mike Malloy should be doing this, too. Suggestion needs to get to them as well. The objective here is to influence the national dialogue and the national consciousness and implant - or let's use the lexicon - "embed" this stuff in people's minds so it just starts automatically popping into their heads. Soon enough, the average Joe will start hearing this, and subconsciously connecting the concept of "Charge and Spend" or "republi-CONS" whether he/she wants to or not. It'll just pop in there, the same as the shamelessly-pounded-into-the-ground memes about liberals being so bad.

FOLKS, YOU CAN BET THERE ARE WRITTEN AND EMAILED MARCHING ORDERS AND TALKING POINTS ISSUED FAR AND WIDE BY THE LIKES OF KKKARL ROVE AND RALPH REED AND ROGER AILES AT THE FAUX NETWORK EXHORTING PEOPLE TO DO JUST THAT. YOU CAN BET THAT EVERY TALKING HEAD, EVERY REPUBLI-CON OFFICE STAFFER EVERYWHERE, EVERY RIGHT-WING THINK-TANKER, EVERYBODY EVERYWHERE IN THE BAD-GUY CAMP IS GETTING THESE ADVISORIES. NEWT GINGRICH YEARS AGO ACTUALLY DID IT, ISSUING LISTS OF WORDS TO USE WHEN DESCRIBING DEMS AND REPUBLI-CONS. WE NEED TO DO LIKEWISE, ONLY BETTER AND MORE HONEST.

Don't mean to shout, but then again, actually, YES I DO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Guys, my dad was very successful as a salesman. He was a specialist in stuff like this, and it worked-worked-worked. I grew up watching this and seeing it work, repeatedly, with my own eyes. PLEASE DO IT!!!!!!

---------------------------------------------------------------------
More later...

calimary

[Ksec]

28. You are great at organizing and new ideas

someone should see this and hire you calimary. People like you are scarce and needed in the Dem party.

[calimary]

30. Hugs!

Actually, I posted a thread on this earlier - took a chance and called Ann Lewis and left a message (she was mentioned in this article), and Good Lord if she didn't actually call me back! She asked me to send her this stuff I thunk up...

Cool, 'eh?

The mere fact that this notion is actually getting reported should be viewed as a victory. SMALL victory, but a victory nonetheless. We aren't just fringe-folk anymore...

[King Coal]

24. It's simple really,

you can't win a fight by pulling punches.

[opihimoimoi]

25. Its about friggen time.

The Phalse Prophets are wrecking the Planet with their shitty outlook on life.

The Pub Money Changers is what Jesus was warning us about.

I so glad the people are waking up. Will there be enough to do the job?

[chookie]

26. The Sane Majority is rising

I disagree that it is just a "liberal" thing. I believe the split in American today is more along the lines of The Sane and The Insane.

His Chimperial Majesty's government is not a "Republican" one, not even "conservative" -- it is the most radical, extremist administration in American history, and stands among the most extreme in the world (and that's against a lot of very strong competition!).

Americans see this bastard running our country into the ground, mowing down the *real* fundamental principles of what it means to be American -- and you BET we're angry!

If you're not angry, you're either one of the wacko extremists or totally not paying attention.

Judy Woodruff had a "How can anyone hate Our Glorious President?" spot on CNN today. Part of the guy's response was, gee, I think most of it has to do with his policies. DUH

[calimary]

29. Kick for Kanary - who needed to find this link.

PS Hi Kanary! Here it is...

[Kanary]

31. Mucho Megalo Mahalo!

Great article, thanks!

Kanary

[camero]

33. Bush has screwed up so much

That we are going to turn into a Juggernaut. And we won't need to be a dictatorship, either.

[DiverDave]

35. The line from the movie

Network:

I'M MAD AS HELL, AND I'M NOT GOING TO TAKE IT ANYMORE!

My country has been overran by facists, I'll fight.

[Maple]

36. Or as they say...

never take a knife to a gunfight.