Pushback 66

Andrea Dooley

29 Apr 2025 — 2 min read

Hi folks. This week I am in Seattle for work but I'll do my best to keep posting, and I do plan to attend a National Law Day/May Day event on Thursday if I can.

On the way up here, I listened to Ezra Klein's podcast about Abundance and the Left, because I'm about 75% of the way through the book and was curious what the "Left" critique of the book was. For the most part, I was disappointed. Zephyr Teachout in particular was spouting platitudes and refusing to engage in the fact-based discussion that Klein was trying to have. If she'd read the book, she would be able to construct a pretty reasonable synthesis of her ideas and his, but she was mostly interested in saying the word "anti-monopolist" as often as she could. The over guest, Saikat Chakrabarti, who is planning to run against Nancy Pelosi, never really got to articulate a critique, except to say that mass movements to build and transform our society typically only occur in cataclysmic moments, like after wars.

Why am I telling you all this? I guess it's because I walked around downtown Seattle this afternoon and it was depressing. People lying on the sidewalks or bent over in fetanyl-captured muscle spasms, people pushing all their belongings in shopping carts. Unfortunately, this is not an unfamiliar sight in Oakland or San Francisco either. Society is not working: not for those who are unhoused or have substance abuse issues; not for the workers who want to go to work uninterrupted by social failure; not for the tourists who would be happy to spend their money if there were still stores open in our cities.

This is just a reminder that, while there is nothing good about Trump and what he is doing, we must use this cataclysmic fascist period as a wake-up call to transform society. We need healthcare, housing, fresh ideas, a stop to climate change – so much! Even when we are celebrating our wins, we need to be imagining a better future.

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"Democrats" are elected officials, government agencies, unions, and non-profits. "Grassroots" are individuals, political organizing groups, and informal groups. "Disloyal Opposition" are Republicans, conservatives, business interests, and other interests more typically aligned with the GOP agenda.