That he wasn’t left enough wasn’t the criticism, and you know that. The criticism was specifically that there is reasonable doubt that the guy is a cryptofascist.
But people are taking that one step further and making it a certain doubt. People are disqualifying him entirely, which can be seen in others responding to me in this very thread.
People have different sus meters, and mine (and Bernie Sanders’) meters aren’t just there yet.
If he doesn’t get this removed and started to capitulate more and more to centrist liberals, then my support for Platner will wane.
I’d rather defend him than be apathetic to him right now.
Reasonable doubt that the guy is a cryptofascist is disqualifying enough without the need for certainty. I do believe that people can change, and there are circumstances where I would accept someone like Platner into the progressive movement, but not in a leadership position, and not before he has proven himself with actions rather than just words. A lot of progressives - yourself included - are so desperate for leadership that they’re willing to look past several huge red flags for someone who says the right things. Consider for a moment the possibility that there are people out there who are aware of this particular vulnerability and willing to take advantage of it.
But Leftists don’t have any movement. You might be able to point to Bernie Sanders, AOC, Zohran Mamdani, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib. Those aren’t a majority. Hell, sometimes they aren’t even in agreement, as is the case with AOC, Bernie, and Zohran.
Platner has less than a year to demonstrate that he’s not the crypto fascist you all think he is.
And I’ll repeat myself from a comment I left elsewhere:
Lying politicians that lie about drifting to the Left are still better than truth-telling ones that tell the truth about drifting towards the Right. The former changes the permission structure of what’s possible in political rhetoric, while the latter foments public dissatisfaction for the Democrats.
Leftism (at least economically) is popular. Platner speaks to that. The DNC NEEDS to recognize this if they want to win elections.
Your point of view leads to nihilism. Sorry, I still want to believe that we can win.
That he wasn’t left enough wasn’t the criticism, and you know that. The criticism was specifically that there is reasonable doubt that the guy is a cryptofascist.
There is a reasonable doubt. That’s true.
But people are taking that one step further and making it a certain doubt. People are disqualifying him entirely, which can be seen in others responding to me in this very thread.
People have different sus meters, and mine (and Bernie Sanders’) meters aren’t just there yet.
If he doesn’t get this removed and started to capitulate more and more to centrist liberals, then my support for Platner will wane.
I’d rather defend him than be apathetic to him right now.
Reasonable doubt that the guy is a cryptofascist is disqualifying enough without the need for certainty. I do believe that people can change, and there are circumstances where I would accept someone like Platner into the progressive movement, but not in a leadership position, and not before he has proven himself with actions rather than just words. A lot of progressives - yourself included - are so desperate for leadership that they’re willing to look past several huge red flags for someone who says the right things. Consider for a moment the possibility that there are people out there who are aware of this particular vulnerability and willing to take advantage of it.
Platner has red flags. I recognize that.
But Leftists don’t have any movement. You might be able to point to Bernie Sanders, AOC, Zohran Mamdani, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib. Those aren’t a majority. Hell, sometimes they aren’t even in agreement, as is the case with AOC, Bernie, and Zohran.
Platner has less than a year to demonstrate that he’s not the crypto fascist you all think he is.
And I’ll repeat myself from a comment I left elsewhere:
Lying politicians that lie about drifting to the Left are still better than truth-telling ones that tell the truth about drifting towards the Right. The former changes the permission structure of what’s possible in political rhetoric, while the latter foments public dissatisfaction for the Democrats.
Leftism (at least economically) is popular. Platner speaks to that. The DNC NEEDS to recognize this if they want to win elections.
Your point of view leads to nihilism. Sorry, I still want to believe that we can win.