Didn't read deBoer's piece because why bother, it has been so obvious for years AOC is just a normal Democrat. She can talk to her base and they lap it up, but then she eagerly votes with the rest of them over and over again. Israel, for example, the railway workers (as mentioned), ever higher defense budgets and more war. And her base doesn't care. They are well off progressives (and even a few call themselves socialists, though the word fits them like they're wearing a hat that makes them look ridiculous), and all they need are symbolic victories, like wearing a dress that says "tax the rich" to a fancy ball where rich people go. It doesn't do anything, but it's a symbolic victory, the most important kind to them. Her base eats it up and pretends she's fighting for what's right. The only thing, and it's too bad these poor progressives haven't figured out, you can't eat symbolism, so it turns out they're the only ones who care what she says anymore. Do they even realize? I'm guessing not.
So in the end, just like any other Democrat, she riles up her base and gets them fired up to support Biden, and none of them even wonder about how it looks that AOC and themselves have lashed themselves to a decrepit boat that has sunk 40% below the waves of popularity, and the gales forces of disapproval have washed over 55% of the bow. And because they look so foolish rocking to and fro on the deck, such as being simultaneously pro-war and anti-war, or both condemn US foreign policy and wonder about all the things we could do with it (this notion I stole from the current issue of Jacobin, the article "Beyond Chomsky and Walzer"), I don't think they know how to swim.
Didn't read deBoer's piece because why bother, it has been so obvious for years AOC is just a normal Democrat. She can talk to her base and they lap it up, but then she eagerly votes with the rest of them over and over again. Israel, for example, the railway workers (as mentioned), ever higher defense budgets and more war. And her base doesn't care. They are well off progressives (and even a few call themselves socialists, though the word fits them like they're wearing a hat that makes them look ridiculous), and all they need are symbolic victories, like wearing a dress that says "tax the rich" to a fancy ball where rich people go. It doesn't do anything, but it's a symbolic victory, the most important kind to them. Her base eats it up and pretends she's fighting for what's right. The only thing, and it's too bad these poor progressives haven't figured out, you can't eat symbolism, so it turns out they're the only ones who care what she says anymore. Do they even realize? I'm guessing not.
So in the end, just like any other Democrat, she riles up her base and gets them fired up to support Biden, and none of them even wonder about how it looks that AOC and themselves have lashed themselves to a decrepit boat that has sunk 40% below the waves of popularity, and the gales forces of disapproval have washed over 55% of the bow. And because they look so foolish rocking to and fro on the deck, such as being simultaneously pro-war and anti-war, or both condemn US foreign policy and wonder about all the things we could do with it (this notion I stole from the current issue of Jacobin, the article "Beyond Chomsky and Walzer"), I don't think they know how to swim.
We just got some rain. It was good.