Captain Quackenbush's
Democrats Need to Reinvent Their Party
RECEIVED Thu., Nov. 4, 2004
Dear Editor,
I went to my polling place on the Eastside of Austin Tuesday and was shocked at the low turnout. I also read that only one in 10 potential voters 18 to 24 years old participated. It was stated that people voted mostly on values (actually against gays and abortion). This provided some clarity as to what the Republicans know and what the Democrats can't fathom.
I personally think the primary focus of the Democratic Party's constituents and causes need to be revisited and the realities of who actually votes should be admitted to. If not, the Democrats will continue to be the minority party with minimal influence on big business and militarism; the fundamental cancers that hurt everybody's chances for accessible health care, working wages, environmental sanity, world respect, and a government that answers to the people.
I am no longer drinking the Kool-Aid of the old Democratic Party and will be a much more educated consumer (I donated $500 this year) of their message in the future.
This election opened my eyes, and I am for change, not just in the current administration, but especially in the leadership and ideas of the Democratic Party.
Take heart, Democrats. Care for yourself and your families. Get angry, grieve, then look closely at your true values and what you are willing to fight for and what it costs everyone else, particularly the people who don't vote and don't know why they should, in the end.
I went to my polling place on the Eastside of Austin Tuesday and was shocked at the low turnout. I also read that only one in 10 potential voters 18 to 24 years old participated. It was stated that people voted mostly on values (actually against gays and abortion). This provided some clarity as to what the Republicans know and what the Democrats can't fathom.
I personally think the primary focus of the Democratic Party's constituents and causes need to be revisited and the realities of who actually votes should be admitted to. If not, the Democrats will continue to be the minority party with minimal influence on big business and militarism; the fundamental cancers that hurt everybody's chances for accessible health care, working wages, environmental sanity, world respect, and a government that answers to the people.
I am no longer drinking the Kool-Aid of the old Democratic Party and will be a much more educated consumer (I donated $500 this year) of their message in the future.
This election opened my eyes, and I am for change, not just in the current administration, but especially in the leadership and ideas of the Democratic Party.
Take heart, Democrats. Care for yourself and your families. Get angry, grieve, then look closely at your true values and what you are willing to fight for and what it costs everyone else, particularly the people who don't vote and don't know why they should, in the end.
Chris Cavello
