"Rules for Revolutionaries", aka The Left Has Learned Nothing from Their Loss (Preliminary Reflection)

Now this was an interesting book that I found at my local library.

It's called Rules for Revolutionaries, and I borrowed it in part because I was looking for Saul Alinksy's cult classic Rules for Radicals. The library had the book on file, but apparently it got lost in the archives or misplaced somewhere, so I went with this book instead.

Rules for Revolutionaries (RFR) was written by Becky Bond and Zack Exley, two grassroots organizers who worked on the Bernie Sanders campaign. They talk about the incredible volunteer militia they put together to get Bernie Sanders to run neck-and-neck with presumptive Democratic Presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.

The Sanders campaign had an incredible army of activists and organizers, it's true. It's also pretty alarming, since so many young people are convinced that socialism is that answer to the world's evils. This is really scary stuff, folks, especially when these college-aged youth are supposed to be the future for this country.

We need to combat this!

Anyway, the two authors used the book to outline their views on how the Progressive Left can organizer and coordinate better to win in Election 2020. They are so committed to Bernie Sanders, that they go out of their way to point out what he did well, and they do not spare him criticism--to ensure victory for the future.

The book RFR was even published in Vermont! I wonder what they think of "Vermont Carry" when it comes to the Second Amendment .... (more on that later).

Here are the rules which they write to "Change Everything":

1. You won't get a revolution unless you ask for one.

2. The revolution will not be handed to you on a silver platter.

3. The revolution will not be staffed.

4. Fighting racism must be at teh core of the message to everyone.

5. Get on the phone!

6. The work is distributed. The plan is centralized.

7. The revolution will be funded--by small donations,

8. Barnstorm!

9. Fight the tyranny of the annoying

10. Give away your passwords

11. Don;t let the perfect be the enemy of the big.

12. Learn the basics of good management

13. If there are no nurses, I don't want to be part of the revolution.

14. Grow complexity by solving problems as they arise.

15. Only hire staff who embrace the rule "The revolution will not be staffed"

16. Best practices become worst practices

17. The revolution is not just bottom up; it's peer to peer.

18. Repeat "rinse and repeat".

19. There's no such thing as a single-issue revolution.

20. Get ready for the counterrevolution (to include your friends)

21.Put consumer software at the center.

22. People new to politics make the best revolutionaries.

Already, one can tell that these writers (they are not that young) are trying to bite off far more than they can chew.

Even Alinsky did not have this many rules.

Another problem, which is quite apparent: the two writers are focused on process, and not principles. Men and women are not going to organize for a set of policies of people who do not command any respect. There has to be a mission behind the message.

What are they pushing, these two starry-eyed Bernie-crat revolutionaries? Socialism.

Socialism blows. Socialism sucks. Socialism KILLS!

In the next few posts, I am going to analyze some of their points of discussion and departure, then outline at length how all of this is a total fail.

There will be no revolution because this great country already had an excellent Revolution in 1776, and it is still a success!