Vincent Oriedo, a biotechnology scientist, had just such a question. What lessons have been learned, he asked, from Harris’s defeat in this vital swing county in a crucial battleground state that voted for Joe Biden four years ago, and how are the Democrats applying them?

“They did not answer the question,” he said.

“It tells me that they haven’t learned the lessons and they have their inner state of denial. I’ve been paying careful attention to the influencers within the Democratic party. Their discussions have centred around, ‘If only we messaged better, if only we had a better candidate, if only we did all these superficial things.’ There is really a lack of understanding that they are losing their base, losing constituencies they are taking for granted.”

“We have set ourselves up for generational loss because we keep promoting from within leaders that that do not criticise the moneyed interests. They refuse to take a hard look at what Americans actually believe and meet those needs.”

  • TempermentalAnomaly@lemmy.world
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    22 hours ago

    The government is a tool of the capitalist class in a capitalist society. Democracy was originally for the capitalists and their allies and now is a hedge against revolution.

    • finitebanjo@lemmy.world
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      21 hours ago

      Democracy means “rule by the people as equals”.

      It doesn’t mean " western power".

      To be against democracy as an ideology or concept is to be against having humans rights: to be able to decide how you will live and die and for what purpose the fruits of your labor is used.

      • kreskin@lemmy.world
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        13 hours ago

        So do we live in a democracy, banjo? Is there any correlation at all between what government does and what the people want?

        • finitebanjo@lemmy.world
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          11 hours ago

          The current leaders recieved the majority of votes. The candidates all also won their respective primaries.

          The problem lies with the voters (and campaign finance, but thats a partisan issue as well, meaning voters also chose that problem).

          • kreskin@lemmy.world
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            4 hours ago

            The USSR had votes. So does Russia and North Korea. Have votes does not equal having democracy.

            Democracy: control of an organization or group by the majority of its members.

            Theres very close to zero correlation between what laws pass in the US government and what citizens want to pass. So-- its not a democracy at all is it.

            • finitebanjo@lemmy.world
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              12 minutes ago

              The USA is generally classified as a flawed democracy, but you cannot even compare it to how Putin, Xi Jinping, or the Un dynasty stay in power.

              Also we’ve strayed really far off topic from talking about Democracy as a concept.

        • finitebanjo@lemmy.world
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          19 hours ago

          You said:

          Democracy was originally for the capitalists and their allies and now is a hedge against revolution.

          Democracy isn’t a compromise with the rich. It is complete ownership by the people.

          • TempermentalAnomaly@lemmy.world
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            19 hours ago

            Democracy in its idealized form, of which I am a proponent of, is that, assuming you mean ownership of the means of production. In popular use, what many countries have is considered a democracy. To be pedantic, we elect representatives to the government by democratic means in most capitalist countries. We call this democracy. I think we should have the former, but I’m not interested in wasting my little social good will on pedantry and definitions with the average person.