The Song Remains the Same

Now that the Democrats have taken a majority of seats in Congress, the folks who hope for a new day, a bright day, a day of uncompromising calls for America to stand for Justice, Compassion, Responsibility and Independence will have their hearts torn out and stomped on yet again by the Democratic Party.

There is a story that goes something like this. A small animal wanted to cross the water, and sat at the water's edge, unable to cross. An alligator offered to take him across, but the small creature refused, pointing out that he was afraid the alligator would eat him. After promising over and over again to safely take the his fuzzy friend across the water safely, he jumped on the alligator's head to make the crossing. As the alligator approached the middle of the water he tossed his head back and as the ball of fluff started to fall towards the alligator's tummy he cried "You promised."

"Yes, but I'm an alligator" he replied.

This is why the people who are hoping for results from the newly empowered Democrats will be disappointed. It's not that the Democrats don't want to do the right thing, nor that they don't know what the right thing to do is. They are simply what they are. A party run with corporate cash to elect corporate candidates to serve in the people's chambers. We can no more expect them to fight the powers that elected them than we can expect the alligator to not eat small fuzzy animals.

The people of the United States did not elect a Democratic majority to continue down the path of death and destruction in Iraq that Bush, with many a Democratic vote, put into play. The voters voted for change, but not the change we are likely to see. Why? Again, corporate cash and influence. There is too much money to be made, and corporations and the super rich who own them won't allow their profits to be put in danger by the voters.

This is why the time has come for the people of the United States to step outside of the corporate controlled political machines and embrace real solutions from real people. Without the corrupting influence of all that cash, the voters will be able to trust that their agenda, and not some hidden agenda, is driving the politicians.

So, what sorts of positions might an independent political force take? Let's look at Iraq for some examples. Imagine a party taking a position that goes something like this:

"The United States was wrong to invade Iraq, and we apologize. We plan to leave as quickly as possible. We know that you folks have a lot of anger and frustration built up, and we can't imagine the horror we brought to you and your families. We hope that some day your people and our people can live together as sisters and brothers."

"We brought many weapons into your country, and we feel that we must take them out with us as we leave. Please understand, we cannot compound our error by leaving this murderous material around. It will only hurt the people of Iraq even more."

"We broke a lot of stuff here, including power generation, water sanitation, the health care and education systems, and basically the entire economy. We have damaged your people physically, spiritually, and emotionally. We cannot stay to fix what we have broken, for doing that would require that we stay in your country for a long time. Instead, we will pay to repair your nation."

"We really do believe that Saddam Hussein was a bad ruler, and represents a danger to the people of Iraq. That does not justify our invasion or occupation. The people of Iraq are capable of fairly determining Hussein's fate. We do hope that you will spare his life, as most of the world no longer kills it's citizens."

"We expect it to take several weeks to get all our stuff out of here. Any of you who want to come to the United States or somewhere else if you are concerned that you will be attacked when we leave can come with us. Please do understand that we will need to stay in touch and properly process each of you. People who committed crimes against the people of Iraq should not find safe haven in the US, so it may take some time to filter everyone through the system, but we promise to be fair and fast."

"We'll be leaving now. And again, we're really sorry."

Is there a political party with the guts to say something like that? Is there a voice for common sense so strong that it's willing to tell fat cats to find another cash cow to slaughter? Is there a movement powerful and rooted enough to do something so bold and forward looking?

Or, would you rather be lied to?

The last election got us a group of corporate Democrats and Republicans who have neither the integrity nor the spine to stand up to their paymasters and say "I'm here to represent the people. Keep your damn money." As a result, we will still be in Iraq, billions will still be rolling into corporate profits, thousands more US troops will die, and hundreds of thousands of Iraqis will face the same end.

Are you tired of the lies? Are you tired of thinking that change was coming, only to have it snatched away from you? Are you ready to make the world reflect your values instead of a corporate spreadsheet? Then look at a party with principles. A party with organizational skills that can help you take control of your political inheritance, and use it for the good you know America can be. Join the Green Party. We need you. You need us. Together, yes, we can.