He is the ultimate pragmatist.
Says the man who left the Democratic party 12 years ago. Thank you, next.
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I am very much an optimist, but i am not a sucker. I expect people to not have my best interest at heart but i still want to give people the benefit of the doubt, it’s up to them to disappoint me or not.
Maybe AOC won’t be all that and its still up in the air how much she’ll accomplish. But she’s sure as shit trying and i respect her, its more than i can say for most politicians.
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Bless you. There needs to be a emoji specifically indicating thumbs up for casual use of a Whintney Houston reference. 
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Is that a Brecht quote/paraphrase? Pirate Jenny?
Lieberman was never a mainstream Democrat. In his first election to the Senate he ran against the Republican from the right, and was strongly endorsed by William F. Buckley.
Carter was not especially progressive either, but he was always a decent human being, and it is a sign of the times that mainstream for politicians has drifted so far to the right of decency.
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Watchmen quote, said by Rorschach during an internal monologue talking about the citizens of the city i think. It’s been a while since i’ve read it.
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Welcome!
All through 2015 and 2016 I was sure that each utterance out of Donald Trump’s foul yap would be his last. Instead, each of those absurdities only added to his momentum, so I’ve gotten out of the prediction business, at least as it applies to anything more complicated than what I’m going to have for lunch, and I’ve started trying to focus on the small stuff that makes me a little hopeful about the future. If positive change is going to come to our government, it won’t come from likes of Lieberman, Biden and McConnell; it’ll come from Rashida Tlaib, Ayanna Pressley, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. The mere fact that those women were able to get elected is a step in the right direction, I’m hoping it will prove to be the first of many.
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AOC for the win.
Also Rhorschach is one of the all-time greatest characters in comics.
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More Rorschach, as @Grey_Devil said.
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It would be a derail and side track I think…but progressive in terms of forward thinking is not limited to Democrats only. There are and have been those who “lean right”, are full fledged Republicans, or Conservatives who are still forward thinking and progressive. Not ALL Republicans opposed same sex marriage and not ALL Democrats championed it. Party lines do not determine that state of mind…life experience and exposure do.
Staying strictly on topic and to my actual point…Age is a better marker on forward thinking. Older people are far and away less forward thinking than younger people. Change is difficult for most humans, and the older you get the more resistant you become to change is definitely true. We all face that stage of our lives unfortunately; but it is understandable. You get into your 60;s, 70’s, and 80’s and beyond and there are so many deeply personal parts of your life that are changing and you have no control of it. Its scary and terrifying for senior citizens. I watched my parents go through this (in their 70’s) and its difficult.
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Between the dancing video(s) and now this, I am really starting to dig this woman. Oh, the 70% tax rate I am also totally for, actually I’m probably a lot more “extreme” in that I support a wealth tax, and wealth caps. I frankly just don’t think there’s any real reason for billionaires to exist.
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There’s a story up on Politico (which is being summarized on other blogs like Jezebel) about how AOC’s Democratic colleagues want her to shut up and be a part of the Congressional network rather than criticizing any of her colleagues. So there may be good reason to be pessimistic. 
Personally, I think she’s a proverbial breath of fresh air. And I know her name and have looked her interviews up on YouTube, while at the same time I have no idea who the people are who are criticizing her. I wish her the best.
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I’m a cynic, too, but (as the song goes)
The “allies” who would destroy her are on their way out with the rest of the Boomers and Silents. Meanwhile, she has everything going for her (now with added geek cred!). In a few years, if the party still makes it clear it doesn’t want her, she’ll spearhead the DSA in an effort to turn the Dems into the Whigs of our time. Along with people like Tlaib, she’ll do it, too.
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Its typically the old guard democrats that have a problem with her but the younger or more liberal/grass-root minded ones are on the same wavelength as her. As far as i’m concerned the establishment democrats should be putting the effort to work with her rather than the other way around. Their views on the party are already outdated and ineffective.
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Probably we need a better term, as first “liberal” and more recently “progressive” have lost some of their specificity, but right now I think it is the best term we’ve got.
Older people are far and away less forward thinking than younger people.
As someone who spends quite a bit of time with both demographics, I’m not so sure that’s true. As for resistance to change, not all change is progress; sometimes – I would say often in recent years – change is regress.
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