Doublespeak?
The late Winsor activist Bill Patterson once told me that politicians these days are trying to get us to believe that black is white and white is black. Nowhere is this more true than on our local board of supervisors. Lynda Hopkins talks about progressivism (“Redwood Empire Fights Back,” Dec. 21) as though she herself demonstrates progressive characteristics. Before we make up our minds on that one, let us talk about money in politics.
Hopkins was quoted in the Press Democrat saying, “I think that the whole idea that money buys influence is a false argument.” Another female Democrat by the name of Hillary Clinton was asked on Meet the Press if she thought Goldman Sachs expected anything in return for the $675,000 she was paid by them for giving three speeches. Her reply was “Absolutely not.”
On the other side of the coin you have David McCuan, political science professor at Sonoma State University. He states quite simply, “Money is influential.” Donald Trump was quoted in the Wall Street Journal as saying, “As a businessman and very substantial donor to very important people, when you give, they do whatever the hell you want them to do.” At a rally in Iowa last year Trump said, “When I call, they kiss my ass, OK?” Anybody who does not have their head completely buried in the sand knows that on this issue Trump and McCuan are the truth tellers and Hillary and Hopkins are the ones blowing smoke. If telling the truth constitutes a tenet of progressivism, then Hopkins doesn’t quite fit the bill.
How could there be anything progressive about buying your way into office on the backs of the growth machine? Keep in mind here that the growth machine is directly responsible for a large percentage of our environmental problems. Follow the money, people. Contemplate the conundrum of a politician with two degrees in environmental science accepting campaign donations from four of the most environmentally destructive forces in the history of Sonoma County. That would be realtors, developers, the wine industry and the Sonoma County Farm Bureau.
So here we have a politician rallying against Trump who is sponsored by a bunch of Donald Trump wannabees. Looks like you were right, Bill! If this demonstrates what neo-liberals are going to look like from now on, then maybe Hopkins could best be described as a “neo-progressive.”
Santa Rosa
Face the Music
Thank you, Tom Gogola, for your “U.S. Blues” article (Dec. 21) and this one that starts with Jimi (“Trumpets,” Dec. 28). Yes, black lives matter to art and music in America! Thank God!
Via Bohemian.com
Methinks you are confusing the death of the Democratic Party with the death of democracy (“Trumpets,” Dec. 28). Democracy is alive and well, thank you very much. So sorry that your idea of what democracy is depends on which side wins the election.
Via Boehmian.com
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