Bernie Sanders is Beginning to be Regarded as Ahead of his Time - Politics Forum.org | PoFo

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#15082818
Personally, I see where there is a lot of truth in what Bernie says. But there it is also important we maintain a capitalist economy. I personally don't think it's a good idea to have ALL healthcare offered by the state through single payer healthcare because then that could harm the efficiency of healthcare. But on the same token, I could come around and support the notion of universal healthcare where everybody has health insurance and it's a combination of healthcare paid for by the state and health care paid for by private insurance both.

Van Jones of CNN wrote:
Even though he is 78 years old, history will someday remember Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders as a leader who was ahead of his time.

In the age of the pandemic, Sanders' ideas no longer seem like radical throwbacks to 1960s idealism. Today, they feel like hard-headed responses to the deadly challenges of the 21st century.
Just consider the following:

Essential workers: Sanders has always known that America runs on the labor of poorly paid workers who too many people are only just now beginning to recognize as essential. Since the beginning of his career, he's been at the forefront of the fight to make the minimum wage a living wage. It was only a few years ago that some economists thought the idea of raising the minimum wage to $15 was "radical." In the midst of a pandemic where we depend on those people for our nation's survival, even that dollar amount now feels too low.

Health care for all: The case for the Sanders-championed Medicare for All is stronger than ever due to the pandemic. The populations hit hardest by Covid-19 also appear to be many of the ones who cannot afford basic health coverage. It is hard to see how our current health care system survives this crisis without radical change. Even the Trump administration announced Friday it will use federal funding to pay hospitals for the treatment of Covid-19 patients who have no insurance.

Housing and homelessness: The mandate for most Americans right now is to shelter in place. But so many people don't have a place. Millions of homeless people are therefore vulnerable to the virus -- more susceptible to catching it and more capable of spreading it. Sanders' proposal to end the housing crisis by investing $2.5 trillion to build nearly 10 million permanently affordable housing units seems a lot more sensible now.

Climate threat: This pandemic has shown us that "we the people" are fatally blind to threats we can't see with our own eyes. Even as we're learning about travesties taking place at our local hospitals, too many people don't believe the threat is real until it affects them personally. Yesterday's Hurricane Katrina or today's viral pandemic will be tomorrow's global climate catastrophe. Sanders has done everything in his power to get ahead of imminent disasters. Americans may now listen to people like Sanders who take science seriously and propose bold solutions like the Green New Deal.

Paid family leave: Sanders has long championed the idea of "family leave" for workers. Having children, falling ill or taking care of a family member shouldn't cost you your job -- nor should quarantining due to a global pandemic.


https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/08/opinions ... index.html
Last edited by Politics_Observer on 08 Apr 2020 23:09, edited 2 times in total.
#15082828
@AFAIK

Not sure if what the Soviet Union did is the same thing that Sanders proposes. It could be fair to argue that some Western European countries are doing some of the things that Bernie Sanders is proposing. And perhaps some Scandinavian countries. I am a Joe Biden supporter myself. That being said, the pandemic did demonstrate that their is some truth in Bernie Sanders viewpoint regardless if he is "ahead of his time." I think Western Europe and the Scandinavian countries already thought about these things long before Bernie Sanders did.
Last edited by Politics_Observer on 08 Apr 2020 23:13, edited 1 time in total.
#15082835
AFAIK wrote:Every single country in the world offers women maternity leave. Except the USA. It's ridiculous to list that as an example of a politician being ahead of his time.

Everything else on the list is old news for anywhere that's halfway developed.


To be clear, it's no government mandated paid leave. Many companies do give out paid leave to both mothers and fathers. That's basically the conservative attitude on it. Let the free market handle it. The issue is, that approach doesn't help the poor as it's using only the professional classes that will work for a company that offers such leave.
#15082918
skinster wrote:Sanders should be remembered as a wimp and a jerk.


He probably did the most he could within the limitations of the Democratic Party. Accepting these limitations turned out to be his downfall.

There are certain facts beyond Sanders' control. The American electorate isn't going to sweep a 1932-style sea-change Congress into power. The American people aren't ready. They haven't suffered hard enough or long enough yet.

The one thing we know from history is that elites will continue to squeeze the citizens without mercy until they are ready to fight. This means there's plenty more hard times ahead.
#15082922
skinster wrote:Sanders should be remembered as a wimp and a jerk.



And it was most obvious when those woketard activists jumped on his stage and grabbed his mic. If he had any spine at all, he would have turned around and smacked ‘em one before booting them off stage it’s a hard kick to the butt. Heck! If he had done that, I’d be a Burnie Bro myself.

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