Democratic Primaries

Uncle Joe

(58,366 posts) Mon Dec 23, 2019, 01:15 PM Dec 2019

It's Corporate Media, 'Moderate' Democrats, and the Oligarchy vs. Bernie Sanders and a Movement

(snip)

Out of nearly 25,000 words spoken during the Democratic debate last Thursday night, the word “oligarchy” was heard once. “We are living in a nation increasingly becoming an oligarchy,” Bernie Sanders said, “where you have a handful of billionaires who spend hundreds of millions of dollars buying elections and politicians.”

Sanders gets so much flak from corporate media because his campaign is upsetting the dominant apple cart. He relentlessly exposes a basic contradiction: A society ruled by an oligarchy—defined as “a government in which a small group exercises control especially for corrupt and selfish purposes”—can’t really be a democracy.

(snip)

The essence of a propaganda system is repetition. To be effective, it doesn’t require complete uniformity—only dominant messaging, worldviews and assumptions.

Prevailing in news media’s political content is the central, tacit assumption that oligarchy isn’t a reality in the United States. So, there’s scant interest in the fact that the richest three people in the USA “now have as much wealth as the bottom half of the U.S. population combined.” As for the damaging impacts on democracy, they get less attention than Melania Trump’s wardrobe.

(snip)

https://www.commondreams.org/views/2019/12/23/its-corporate-media-moderate-democrats-and-oligarchy-vs-bernie-sanders-and-movement

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for: Undecided

13 replies

= new reply since forum marked as read

Highlight:

It's Corporate Media, 'Moderate' Democrats, and the Oligarchy vs. Bernie Sanders and a Movement (Original Post) Uncle Joe Dec 2019 OP

lol Drunken Irishman Dec 2019 #1

Again fighting Democrats and not Republicans treestar Dec 2019 #2

Nobody does sanctimony quite like Common Dreams BannonsLiver Dec 2019 #3

I guess one person's "sanctimony" is another person's truth to power. n/t Uncle Joe Dec 2019 #4

Oh young'un, you have that one so bass ackwards. Peacetrain Dec 2019 #5

The essense of propaganda is repetition and now to my stump speech... mathematic Dec 2019 #6

And don't forget this math, three Americans own more wealth than the bottom half of the nation. Uncle Joe Dec 2019 #8

And here you are with a repetitive non sequitur mathematic Dec 2019 #10

How is this a "non-sequitur," you brought up Bernie's stump speech? Uncle Joe Dec 2019 #11

I am proud to be a moderate Democrat Gothmog Dec 2019 #7

Here are some eye popping numbers that show the dem party is largely moderate Thekaspervote Dec 2019 #13

It's better to be on the inside pissing out than be on the outside pissing in... brooklynite Dec 2019 #9

"Splitting the difference" Uncle Joe Dec 2019 #12

Drunken Irishman

(34,857 posts)

1. lol

Reply to Uncle Joe (Original post)

Mon Dec 23, 2019, 01:33 PM

Dec 2019

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden

treestar

(82,383 posts)

2. Again fighting Democrats and not Republicans

Reply to Uncle Joe (Original post)

Mon Dec 23, 2019, 01:39 PM

Dec 2019

And the voter always has a choice - they don't have to vote for whoever spent the most money.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden

BannonsLiver

(16,396 posts)

3. Nobody does sanctimony quite like Common Dreams

Reply to Uncle Joe (Original post)

Mon Dec 23, 2019, 01:47 PM

Dec 2019

Well, almost nobody.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for: Undecided

Uncle Joe

(58,366 posts)

4. I guess one person's "sanctimony" is another person's truth to power. n/t

Reply to BannonsLiver (Reply #3)

Mon Dec 23, 2019, 01:49 PM

Dec 2019

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for: Undecided

Peacetrain

(22,877 posts)

5. Oh young'un, you have that one so bass ackwards.

Reply to Uncle Joe (Original post)

Mon Dec 23, 2019, 01:50 PM

Dec 2019

Its Sanders, going to war with the Democrats. He just cannot play within the party.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden

mathematic

(1,439 posts)

6. The essense of propaganda is repetition and now to my stump speech...

Reply to Uncle Joe (Original post)

Mon Dec 23, 2019, 01:57 PM

Dec 2019

Race and gender discrimination? Why, it's the billionaire's faults! Nothing so pure as the working class hero.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden

Uncle Joe

(58,366 posts)

8. And don't forget this math, three Americans own more wealth than the bottom half of the nation.

Reply to mathematic (Reply #6)

Mon Dec 23, 2019, 02:06 PM

Dec 2019

The 3 Richest Americans Hold More Wealth Than Bottom 50% Of The Country, Study Finds

(snip)

“If left unchecked, wealth will continue to accumulate into fewer and fewer hands, a trend we’ve been witnessing for decades,” wrote Josh Hoxie, one of the study’s co-authors.

Over the years, the cutoff for The Forbes 400 has risen dramatically. In 1982, the ranking’s inaugural year, the minimum net worth was $100 million. This year the barrier to entry hit an all-time high of $2 billion.

In its report, the think tank also found that, collectively, the individuals on The Forbes 400 hold more wealth than the bottom 64% of the country, "more people than the populations of Mexico and Canada combined." Altogether, the list members were worth $2.7 trillion this year, a 59% increase over the last five years alone.

The net worth of the median American family, meanwhile, has declined by about 3% on an inflation-adjusted basis since Forbes began publishing the 400 in the early 1980s, the institute says. It reports that the typical U.S. family is presently worth some $80,000.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/noahkirsch/2017/11/09/the-3-richest-americans-hold-more-wealth-than-bottom-50-of-country-study-finds/#315bdb2f3cf8

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for: Undecided

mathematic

(1,439 posts)

10. And here you are with a repetitive non sequitur

Reply to Uncle Joe (Reply #8)

Mon Dec 23, 2019, 02:20 PM

Dec 2019

Was the bolded part of the OP a warning or a how-to?

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden

Uncle Joe

(58,366 posts)

11. How is this a "non-sequitur," you brought up Bernie's stump speech?

Reply to mathematic (Reply #10)

Mon Dec 23, 2019, 02:23 PM

Dec 2019

I just added a key component that you left out or wish to ignore.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for: Undecided

Gothmog

(145,321 posts)

7. I am proud to be a moderate Democrat

Reply to Uncle Joe (Original post)

Mon Dec 23, 2019, 02:05 PM

Dec 2019

A large number of moderate Democrats are working hard to turn Texas blue. Demographic trends indicate that Texas will be blue no later than 2024 but trump has accelerated the process. After the 2010 mid terms, the Democrats had 49 seats in the Texas legislature compared to 101 for the GOP (this meant that the Texas GOP had a super majority). In 2018 we picked up 12 Texas house seats and now need 9 more to take control of the Texas house. In 2018, we flipped two Texas Congressional seats (Lizzie Fletcher and Colin Allgood). The DCCC has targeted 6 congressional seats. I have contributed to two of the congressional seats and two of the state house seats that we are working to flip.

I am proud of being a moderate Democrat and to be a member of the Democratic Party

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden

Thekaspervote

(32,778 posts)

13. Here are some eye popping numbers that show the dem party is largely moderate

Reply to Gothmog (Reply #7)

Mon Dec 23, 2019, 03:26 PM

Dec 2019

Voters are fairly clear about what they would like from a Democrat. They prefer, by 82% to 11%, one who promises to find common ground over one who promises to fight for a progressive agenda; and they prefer a moderate over a liberal, 75% to 19%.

They support Biden over the president, 38% to 27%, but prefer the president to Warren, 37% to 20%. Sanders is in between, with the president leading him, 34% to 32%. This group voted for Trump by a smaller margin in 2016, 37% to 30%, with the rest casting ballots for minor candidate

https://www.democraticunderground.com/1287336368#post2

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden