Here’s something you don’t see very often—a progressive person of color on a Sunday morning chat show. There was Van Jones on ABC‘s This Week on April 1.
Also there? Right-wing firebrand Ann Coulter.
Huh.
But it was something that Jones said that caught my attention.
Well, you know, I think that probably the majority of people who are in the Democratic Party, progressive independents or what I would call post-hope Democrats—we’re Democrats, we did the vote and hope.
And when we—what happened was, we sat back and we let the Tea Party crowd dominate the protests world in the streets. For the first time, we had the biggest economic catastrophe since the Great Depression. And there was not one left-wing protest. The right wing was marching. The left wing was munching popcorn, hoping that Obama would do it.
This is a strange observation. Granted, Jones would seem to want to see more of this kind of activism. But in April of 2010, protests against Wall Street greed were happening. In October 2010, a massive rally—One Nation Working Together—attracted thousands to Washington, D.C. A few months earlier, thousands of activists attended the U.S. Social Forum. U.S. Uncut protests across the country took aim at austerity politics. There was the massive uprising in Wisconsin. And of course Occupy Wall Street.
Now most—if not all—of these movements failed to attract, at least at the outset, the kind of corporate media coverage the Tea Party enjoyed. But it’s not as if they didn’t happen.
Actually, what Jones did was a little more than “vote and hope”, wasn’t it?
What he did was sell out (if you can say he was ever really in a position of principle), until he was tossed overboard by Dear Misleader.
So his analysis of “What Needs to Be Done” ™ might be considered a bit suspect, wouldn’t you say?
Nice suit, though.
By the way, he’s the sole guest on today’s DEMOCRACY NOW!
(Another example of why I find that program far less useful than it could – and should – be.)
Note to Democracy Now!:
Please consider giving Glen Ford of the Black Agenda Report some time to fill in some of the missing pieces and perspectives presented in the Van Jones interview.
I feel that praising Obama’s post racial era speech after Obama’s dismissal and distancing of himself from the Reverend Wright was an evasion and not an accurate portrayal of the “first act” of Obama.
Yeah, Van Jones is just bummed that his blatant attempt to co-opt Occupy was an abject failure. He’s hardly an indicator of the tenor of progressive thinking about protest, or progressive thinking about anything, for that matter.
Ah Van Jones raises his little socialist pointy head again.I read his work where he wrote that through co-opting a green movement (based on the notion of global warming) we can bring about a Marxist/socialist move to give government great controls.Unbelievably he would of been Obamas green zsar.A top power broker.In charge eventually of the carbon tax scam.But it was not to be.Glen Beck dug up Van’s own words, and speeches, and broadcast them to the world as he did with rev wright.The man was dragged into the sunlight.Obama feigned great surprise (at both men)and let him go.Van took the bullet for the greater good.But now as he sees Obamas mission coming to an end- and all in collapse ,and failure;he steps out of the shadows.He will try again from a new angle.To mr Jones i say this………You have no place in a Mitt Romney white house.”We” see you crystal clear.Another 4 years in the shadows it looks like for you sir.
Van how?
Defeat one term Obama, the war monger, the shredder of the Constitution, and lapdog for Wall St and Israeli-Jews..
Cheers, Joe Mustich, CT USA
I see Van Jones as nothing more than an extension of Brand Obama„¢, a wanna be, a clone. How shameful that people like them have to sell themselves out and ride the tide when they could do so much in the world by doing the right thing.
those tea baggers think they have the answer but from where I’m sitting I see losers
At least Shirley Sherrod had the dignity to tell the White House to shove its offer of a new and better (ad hoc) position up its collective shredder when she got canned by a pathetically cowardly executive branch (really just Obama…the buck stops there).
Van Jones writes a book and, while trying to sell it (and himself) to a non-reading public, licks the hand that slapped his face.
He’s just another political hustler. He’s still on the make.
Van Jones is right in one respect. Early on in the Obama administration; specifically during the so called Healthcare debate the left was non-existent. Unless of course you consider Move-On a left wing group. The Dems ignored the cries from true progressives for Single Payer and sent their surrogates out to push the “public option”. The real progressives protests didn’t happen until the ACA was turned into a giant corporate welfare program for the health insurance and pharmaceutical industries. I love the OCCUPY movement but where were they when the Democrats and so called left were selling us out.
I remember activists getting arrested trying to talk to congress about single payer health care.
Van Jones, MoveOn… they want to be on WH conference calls more than stopping war, fighting for civil liberties, putting Obama’s bankster friends in jail, etc.
But his book is doing really well on Amazon. I not buying it, however.
We had plenty of protests about healthcare, but the media (particularly Faux News) concentrated (and inflated) the importance of the Koch brother’s financed Tea Party. I have actual photos of the Tea Party march on Washington that Faux News claimed was ‘millions’ when actually the true count was between ten and twenty thousand. During the same time organized labor and pro immigration groups had marches of over 100,000 that received ABSOLUTELY NO MEDIA COVERAGE. The importance of the Tea Party is a figment of corporatists and the main stream media’s imagination as will be demonstrated in the upcoming elections…
More 2012 campaign pitch-slapping, pre-selection Obamanable Baracquiescence.
There is no inaccuracy in what Van Jones is saying. In 2009 the Tea Party was unchallenged by the left. It wasn’t until more than a year after its launching that as Hart says, the left made any sound at all.
The Tea Party is nothing like any of the “left wing” protests that came during an after. (One can be other than Left Wing to protest the bilge from the pro-corporate TP’s.) Even so if you aren’t covered how would any one but the locals know?
I do thank the pointy headed Conservative Michael-e for giving us the extreme right wing to help guide us around his dangerous rocks.
Van Jones needs to tune into The Real News Network. He would have found out about nearly all of the major, important left-wing protests in the past several years.
But, just like the reason why so many Americans get their “news” from the commercial media which crowds out alternative sources of information, perhaps Jones is one more victim of that same dreadful machine.
Night Gaunt
First you are welcome .I hope to guide you around “my dangerous rocks”.Same rocks for both of us.His name is Barrack Obama, and his pointy head is full of them.
I do resent you using terms like pro corporate as a negative, in speaking of the tea party.We who believe in the constitution ,and less government interference into personal freedoms ,should not be assigned such a small role as pro corporations(a simple legal state given to anyone who “incorporates” his business.From Alex’s Lemonade, to Micro soft.We are PRO anyone who espouses such intrinsic American values.As far as tea party followers and parades being in the hundreds or millions…who really cares?One man speaking the truth would be enough to topple a government who stepped beyond it rightful power over its people.As long as he was able to be heard.What a wonderful country we live in that allows the tea party to be heard.Those in the liberal mindset who strive to muzzle and bully anyone with a different opinion have seen their day come and go.Van jones should speak loudly and clearly without censure or interference.Proclaim the beliefs he has espoused in writing for all to hear.If only Obama would be as honest, and clear ,we could end this race quicker than one would ever believe.
Conservative talk a good game about how much they treasure freedom and about how much they oppose big, bloated, intrusive government. Yet most of them believe in granting unlimited resources to both the military and prison industrial complexes as if these are society’s only assets, and as if these institutions aren’t inextricably linked to the very type of all powerful, and unanswerable government which they claim to hate. Most so-called conservatives aren’t smart enough to see that Mitt Romney and President Obama both serve the same masters. If Mr. Romney replaces President Obama in the White House government will neither shrink in size nor will it spend less. The rhetoric will change, slightly, and it will just more openly shift more of the nation’s resources to the 1%, while continuing to preach austerity and hardship for everyone else. The logical conclusion of American conservatism carried to its logical extreme is not freedom, but the creation a high tech, feudal, police state.
I think Afanoso and Susan Fried point out that Van Jones does have a point. While I made some minor effort with Move-On for the public option, I did feel that we had elected Obama and democratic supermajorities, so it was time to let them do the job we elected them for. For awhile I thought Obama might have a credible strategy and we shouldn’t interfere. Big mistakes! And I think that is what Van Jones is saying.
So right, PEASEHEAD. It’s funny to see right-wingers come in here and defend the hated Obama when he flexes the muscles of the over-arching State in violent attacks against the Other in Afghanistan and other far-flung locales (soon to be imported to the Occupy movements herew, I’ll bet). When the President actually tries to do the right thing (even with his watered-down, pro-corporate health-care reforms), he’s excoriated by trolls and lying wingers and hack Supreme Court Justices as a demonic socialist who hates the Constitution.
What?! The Corporate-Controlled Media falls all over itself to cover the Corporate-Controlled Tea Party? Say it ain’t so!
michael e says, “One man speaking the truth would be enough to topple a government who stepped beyond it rightful power over its people.”
BAAHHAAAAHAAAAHAHAHAAAAHAAAA. Yeah, that worked out soooo well for Bradley Manning, didn’t it?
Bradley manning?Not really what I was speaking about.I was more in the constitution mode.Strange bringing him into this.Read his complete bio.Very sad confused guy with a lot of axes to grind against a lot of people.I guess he decided breaking the military code, and his oath ,and transferring Classified documents to the press was a good move on his long strange trip to find himself.In the end it threw a lot of egg on our faces but also showed a lot of good in this government.Id almost say that the bad- though blown up by the press was miniscule in relation to the things in Wicki leaks that showed this as an honorable country.New york Times i think it was did a great story on that.Hilary came out looking very good as I recall.And That whole idea of him being a patriot (as far fetched as that is) will make some stand by his side for sure.For me i don’t buy it.Many on the British side stood by Benadict Arnold.But he made few friends here.Right or wrong he should serve hard time.It is in the end espionage.He is damn lucky he was not court marshaled and summarily shot.The military is not a Democracy.Though it defends one.
michael e, you are misinformed on a few things:
Our military defends the Corporatocracy, not our so-called “democracy.”
Government transparency is the key to a real democracy. The citizenry have the right to know what their government is doing in their name.
Patriotism is having the tremendous courage to risk one’s own life to expose government corruption and criminality to that citizenry.
Manning succeeded in embarrassing our government, not “aiding the enemy” through espionage. He was not confused. He knew exactly what he was doing.
Our government is making an example out of him to discourage other potential whistleblowers from coming forward.
TD you are talking to a conservative here.Not some Liberal moaning Lions and Tigers and bears oh my.A corporatocracy is a fable made up to scare little liberal children.Everyone i know is incorporated.None of us control the pentagon military industrial complex.Well maybe this one guy i know who sell ice cream.Never trusted his fudge ripple.
Manning or any soldier releasing sensitive/secret information to foreign or domestic anti American conduits on their own very limited judgement of a situation, are moving in areas well out of their pay grade.Many military “spies” handed Russians information not for pay but because their conscience told them it was the right thing to do during the cold war.His job as a soldier (unless I am mistaken)was not to sift through secret government transmission to further decide that he should take it upon himself to be judge and jury of said material -and would make the call to release it to whomever he would so choose.Reading his bio he seems a VERY VERY troubled man.I doubt Hilary Clinton or President Obama (if asked)felt he was qualified for this remarkable new job title and description.You call him a patriot.A defender of Democracy.A whistleblower(in its highest complimentary form).I would say we had better all hope that all those in the military do not follow his lead.Taking it upon themselves to decide what action is best for this country disregarding their orders and the military code.
michael e, Manning is a military intelligence analyst, so his judgment of any given situation was not exactly “very limited” or “out of his pay grade” as you put it.
You can dismiss him as troubled, disgruntled or confused all you want if it makes you feel better for the inhumane treatment he’s received, but he was/is none of those things. Btw, can you provide a citation to this bio you keep referring to? I’d be interested to read it for myself.
The bottom line is government wrong-doing is NOT good for this (or any other) country, and if exposing that wrong-doing means violating some oath or military law then so be it. Daniel Ellsberg was another such hero. Our government should not be allowed to commit such atrocities in our name without consequences.
Well his bio is even on google(some of it)Troubled may be too small a word.As far as him being capable I don’t know his rank.I would say anyone below Top secret ,For your eyes only- like the President or secretary of State,or joint chiefs should not be making decisions to release stamped documents.The consequences are beyond his understanding.Word is many working for this country in dangerous places were compromised.We will never know to what degree.Was he even an officer?A sergeant wasn’t he?
michael e – Nice attempt to evade providing me with the source material I asked for. Any idiot can Google; I want to see the specific source YOU are referencing. Please provide a link to that.
So, let me get this straight. You’ve been reading some alleged “bio” on Manning, but you do not know his rank? His security clearance? Even Wikipedia gives you that information.
What you clearly do not understand is that in order to earn such a high clearance and be assigned as an intelligence analyst, he was REQUIRED to fully understand the consequences of his actions. Again, he knew exactly what he was doing. And if this bio you keep referring to was legitimate, you would know that.
The “word is”? Whose word? You’re just parroting the lies you’ve been fed. Again, if you’ve really done your due diligence on this issue, you’d know not ONE single life was compromised as a result. The investigation was fierce because they were desperate to find anything to nail Manning to the wall. No such luck.
TD I do not know if one single life was compromised.Or a thousand. Neither do you.We probably will never know.But this argument we are having will have a conclusion.You say he was qualified to read and release this material to whomever he damn well pleased.I think your nuts.I think he will be tried and found guilty along lines that I have laid out.If I am wrong and Obama stands up for him in court and admits “yeah this was the guy I entrusted with this information.I told him he can do as he sees fit with it”….I will admit I was wrong.But you and I know he was following no orders.You and i know he took it upon himself,to make the call ,without including any opinion or direction from his superiors.In the military that is a dangerous idea.It is not a Democracy you sign on for and take an oath to.Not to be too graphic -but you don’t shit unless ordered to.He will do hard time.You will not accept that judgement of the court.You will not accept my opinion on this matter.Everyone will be wrong but you who seems to believe anarchy and no chain of command is a good idea for the military.
You can bet Michael-e if any were we would have heard about it. An so far nothing. They did torture him, which is what solitary confinement is an he suffered that for 18 straight months along with other means to break his mind. (Bright lights on 24/7, loud music, extremes of heat an cold, forced nudity etc.) Yes break his mind. Then you become non compos mentis so you can’t speak for yourself. But then what was illegal in the past is now de facto legal. Now that should bother you more than what Bradly Manning might have released to the public. Or maybe not.
The use of secrecy has long been abused. Used to cover up criminality an unsavory actions by our gov’t in relation to other gov’ts, their people an of course our own people here. Not that you show any knowledge or inking of it. Gov’t right the rest of us peons are wrong an should suffer the consequences.
As for “pro-corporate” it means that whatever corporate wants they get. No regulations is what they want along with no means of brining them into a court of law with a prayer of winning. That kind of thing.
Well yes I am against his court proceedings.It does seem drawn out .I dont understand that any more than you.Especially in a military court this should move along at a quick pace.That i agree is wrong.
michael, we DO know that NO lives were compromised. It has been thoroughly investigated. Your willful ignorance (and denial) on this subject is astounding.
Please show me exactly where I said Manning was qualified to release material to “whomever he pleased” or that he was “following certain orders.” Everyone knows he wasn’t following orders and that he broke military law… for which he will pay the consequences. That’s not the issue. The issue you’re clearly ignoring is whether blowing the whistle on government corruption and criminality was the right thing to do, just like Ellsberg did with the Pentagon Papers.
And stop pretending to know anything about being in the military. I am married to a Marine officer, so your lack of knowledge on the subject is blatantly clear to me.