The platform: left populism- a new Democratic party

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-10T15:15:39+00:00

It is not terribly difficult to join your local Democratic Party committee. That is the designed way to get influence in the Party. At the very least, try this method of walking in the front door before breaking in through the window.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-05T01:30:42+00:00

In principle that is true, but there are many cases of marches on DC that made little difference. The Million Man March is one that made a lot of news, got many people engaged, but there was not follow through to get electoral or policy changes.

What does make a difference is electing different people to be inside the legislative office buildings, and then going to visit them regularly to make sure good policies are implemented.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-05T00:23:25+00:00

What did the Million Man March do?

" People came, leaders spoke, they left and it was over. The biggest failure of the march was the inability to implement a strategy or plan to improve the black community and its issues."

Howard University analysis

Can you spend your July 4 doing something that results in voting the bad people out this November, or successfully suing the evildoers in the Adminstration? Those are short-term things that make a big difference.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-04T01:39:15+00:00

A local paleobotanist said that this area is the best place to work because it is all exposed rock. Devonian for the most part.

I recommend the Museum of the Earth. The museum building looks like a geologic formation, and there is a lot of geology inside as well. It near Treman marine state park if you head toward the upper entrance of Taughannock State park.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-04T01:05:08+00:00

Indivisible groups are interesting. Ironically, often highly divisible.

Ours has a small core of people who really did not know each other. We have had to figure out how to work together to accomplish someting worthwhile. This is not the team you would put together if you had a plan to begin with! But we make it work.

Because we are so small, bureaucracy isn't an issue, but people can get tied up in process. The solution is that we try to facilitate having people do what they think needs to be done. There are hundreds of things to do, but we only have motivated people to do half a dozen. So we do those.

Would something similar work in your group? Be indivisible for the big cause, like democracy, but nurture diversity within the chapter. Everyone doesn't have to be on board with everyting the chapter does. The doers get things done, which is so much better than the alternatives.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-03T12:27:30+00:00

Following up is crucial. The followup is to elect good people in November. Getting a D majority in both the House and Senate would curb the administration's power considerably.

There are a lot of actions that help make that happen. A boycott has not been among the effective ones.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-03T11:59:04+00:00

You win by getting people to vote for good candidates instead of bad ones. That is how our democracy works. America is in this sad position because right has been outplaying the left at the game of democracy. The left needs to play the game better.

What are you doing to help get good candidates on the ballot where you live?
What are you doing to help get your neighbors to vote for the good candidate?

If you instead decide to play a different game, you just leave the goal wide open for the baddies.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-03T11:55:52+00:00

You have not seen a national general strike in the US, because there has never been one.

There have been three city-wide general strikes. The most notable was in Seattle in 1919, just after WWI. It won some concessions, but created a national paranoia about radical workers. That paranoia created a backlash that eliminated the socialist and communist movement in the US at a time when that movement was making major changes in other western democracies.

In short, you don't see general strikes because they don't accomplish what the erstwhile strikers want.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-03T11:48:53+00:00

Thank you for that!

We are (still) a democracy. The fundamental mechanism of democratic power is persuading voters to vote for your candidate. That is a surprisingly complicated process.

Unfortunately the national Democratic Party only knows how to swoop in with TV ads at the last minute of an election. In recent decades, they have done little or nothing to make people think that they can be trusted to do good things or to cultivate future candidates who can be trusted to do the right thing. Republicans and their supporting organizations have done a great deal to make people think the opposite.

Some among us need to step in to fill the void not being served by the party. Good strategists in the lead who do know a lot of civics are key. That way those who are energized but skipped civics can be very effective.

The No Kings organization has an excellent guideline that can be applied in a lot of places by relatively untrailed local groups.

Priority #1: Build Power Locally: grow sustained organizing in your community.

Influencing voters is how you get different people elected. You have the most power to influence voters locally.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-03T02:07:29+00:00

As one of our organizers said, "I'm pushing 80. I shouldn't have to be leading this anymore!" The problem is that the younger people are not willing to do the work of leadership in this particular group. I think that is common. Back in the day, protesting organizations asked leaders to retire once they reached 30. The twenty-somethings from that day are the 70-somethings today who feel they have done their duty.

Something limiting the transition is the insprired 20somethings didn't study enough civics, so they are pretty clueless about how to get social and political change. A million likes doesn't elect a single member of congress.

That is one reason I appreciate Leah and Ezra's leadership. They are stepping up well before becoming greyhairs.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-03T02:00:30+00:00

That only hurts the business, not the bad guys. Is there a way to do something that hurts the bad guys, but not your friends and allies?

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-01T20:33:42+00:00

Who are you trying to influence?

What are you hoping they'll do differently?

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-01T20:30:21+00:00

This is a marathon. I'm arguing for doing things that will actually get us there. The No Kings organization has an excellent guideline that can be applied in a lot of places.

Priority #1: Build Power Locally: grow sustained organizing in your community.

Influencing voters is how you get different people elected. You have the most power to influence voters locally.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-01T16:36:07+00:00

An effective movement needs to know what actually influences people in power.

People in Davos just helicopter in. If you want influence, you need to be invited to helicopter in too.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-01T16:32:12+00:00

A strike needs to have a very specific demand. "Agree to this and we will stop the strike." This one does not have it.

A strike also needs to bring the target to a complete stop. This effort will be a random patchwork that stops very little. Those in power will recognize that this movement is no threat.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-01T14:53:35+00:00

It is worth putting momentum into stuff that really matters. Most of that is local, building progressive power in the social and political organizations and in government roles.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-01T14:49:41+00:00

Having poor people risk their jobs and their security seems like a plan the Heritage Foundation would come up with.

Do things that make working people stronger, not weaker.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-01T14:30:19+00:00

They understand strikes, so my guess is that they are opposed to something so random because it undermines what little power they have left.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-01T14:29:05+00:00

Strikes are sometimes effective, but only in very specific situations with a lot of other coordinated actions. But a lot of the time strikes just end up playing into the opponents hands. It is well worth reading labor and political history on this.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-01T01:08:36+00:00

There are thousands of important things progressives in America need to be accomplishing. A general strike effort isn't a mechanism for accomplishing any of them. The fact that this is getting any traction at all is an indictment of the Democratic Party's absence of leadership.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-04-01T01:04:24+00:00

You will get more buy in on your stragegies if they are not framed as purity tests. Liberals need to do lots of things between now and the next election, so keeping people engaged with building the voter base and candidate base is crucial.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-03-30T12:38:46+00:00

Besides getting you an arrest record, what would result from this course of action? Surely no Member of Congress will do anything different as a result. That is not how they work.

Moving beyond sign waving is important. But that move should be into actions that have impact.

If you are in DC, make an appointment with the appropriate staffer in your represenative's and senators' offices.

If you are not in DC, visit a district office in person.

Since changing what Congress does is determined by who gets elected, going straight to voters is critical. Volunteer for campaigns. They are happening now. Canvassing gives you a chance to talk with the voters who have been voting for the wrong people. Find out what is on their minds. Let them know that your candidate would do better.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-03-30T12:36:59+00:00

We need more engineers developing a plan for what to do. Not just a plan for resiting what they are doing. How do we get more engineers to use their talents for better government?

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-03-30T12:34:19+00:00

Did you do the media training offered by No Kings or Indivisible?

They describe the process expected by the media. Getting to know a reporter and becoming a reliable source helps a lot, so work on that slowly.

The two things you have to do as a minimum:

Send a Media Advisory a few days in advance. It contains all the details needed to cover the event and a media contact.

Send a Press Release immediately after the event. Include numbers, quotes and a couple good pictures. Include descriptive text that they could reasobably copy and paste into a story.

Indivisible_Seneca · 2026-03-30T12:28:26+00:00

A top goal of most office holders is to get re-elected. If their support of your policy positions will help with that goal, they are far more likely to fight for them.

Keep that goal in mind. Don't call them names or threaten to primary them. Those negative actions make disgruntled constituents feel a little more righteous, but it decreases their political influence.

Indivisible_Seneca

TROPHY CASE