Demoralized? I totally get it. What true progressive could be satisfied by the slightly leftish middle-of-the-roadism of this administration? What true liberal could be proud of the timid, cowardly, corporate financed Democratic Congress? LGBT rights? A little bit better than zilch. A path to citizenship for our second class people? Even less. Nothing on poverty. Zero urban policy. A frickin out of control oil spill and still very little on clean energy. All because of some ridiculous Senate rules that could be easily done away with in about twenty minutes? Can't these guys get it together for Christ?!!!
Alright. Here is the good news for you if you vote and vote Democratic this year.
See below:
As you can see from Ruy Teixeira's work:
By 2020, Millennials will be just under 40 percent of eligible voters and will be even more heavily minority (44 percent) than they are today. This generation is not only growing rapidly and voting consistently Democratic but also leans heavily Democratic on party identification. The recent difficult political environment for the Democrats has seen their overall party identification lead slip considerably, but they have retained a double digit lead (14 points) among Millennials in the latest Pew analysis. And Millennials hold a raft of progressive positions in various issue areas that should continue to propel them toward the Democrats.
In other words, there are a swath of young people all over this country who have all the potential of becoming the most progressive generation in a very long time. Far moreso than my very conservative Generation X. We were shaped by a couple of decades of Republican supremacy. It wont be long before Millenials are the political majority. Their political experience, their shaping, very much depends on what YOU do today.
So the question for you, Kossack, is what sort of example will you set for these kids? What sort of guidance will you provide? You could offer them skepticism, yes. They'll probably need it. You could offer them hope as well. Without hope, why bother?
I encourage all of you progressives to persevere. Time is on your side. If you just give up after one battle, then you are in no position to tell anyone else to keep pressing forward to win the war. Especially this group of young people who can smell political bullshit a mile away. That's why they're so progressive.
So, you can be the crotchety old baby-boomer who longs for the Summer of '68 and then goes self-fulfilling in some weird way. Or shopping. Or you can be the cynical Gen-X'r who sees no point in doing anything and expects nobody else to do anything. Ever. Or, you can do the good and responsible thing: make sure the Millennials understand what is good about the Democratic party, what needs to change in the Democratic party, and why it is so important to participate and vote. Every time. Even if it's just a special school board election.
You'll be in better position to do that if you hold yourself to the same standard. Hang in there.