Damn the Release of the Torture Report

[merrily]

20. Your OP omitted the most important thing: What's the discount on the backscratchers?

I am kidding, of course. Gallows humor.

Well, according to some DUers, we can find us some "folks" with money (preferably some positive fame, for name recognition, too) and try to persuade them to run against the candidate the Party and its donor list is backing, then work our hearts our for those candidates, even though we'd have no professional strategistst to guide us and no big donors, other than our recruits. I don't see that as a terribly realistic alternative (and very much doubt that the folks proposing that we do it see it as a realistic alternative).

IMO, realistic alternatives are very limited, but I do think we are making progress. Even if their motives are not great, some writers and speakers with figurative megaphones are at least acknowledging from time to time that something left of New Democrats exists. This is contrary to their usual practice of pretending every Democrat, including Obama, is wild-eyed liberal or a Socialist.

I don't know if appointing Warren as special liaison to liberals, or whatever she is, was well-intentioned or not, either, but that certainly is another acknowledgment that something left of center right exists within the Democratic Party.

I think everyone always knew we were here. Now they are ready to acknowledge that. That ain't everything, but it's something.

We also have our primary votes. you can always even write in someone for a primary without helping a Republican. Some think of that as throwing away a vote. I have come to think of anything else as throwing away my soul (if I may ask that readers not take that in the religious sense--I just dont have a better word for "the essence of who I am and what I believe in."

Unless you live in a purple county (Presidential), or the popular vote promises to be close anyway (as was Baker-Coakley), you can consider writing in a Democrat in an election without helping a Republican.

Beyond that, I don't know what is both (1) realistic and (2) capable of being discussed on DU without violating the TOS. And that doesn't require millions of dollars for consultants, TV ads, etc.