On January, 27, 2016, radio and broadcast personality, Cody Gough wrote a blog both entitled and entitled, "I Support Bernie Sanders, And I'm Not Stupid or Unrealistic."
It was picked up by HuffPost Politics thus amplifying Cody's impassioned decree that "as a supporter of Bernie Sanders, I fully recognize that this whole 'political revolution' thing is not a guarantee. But right now, the opportunity to start one is a whole lot more appealing to me than the status quo."
This is an open letter in response to Cody and "Berniebros" everywhere:
Dear Berniebro -
You may not realize this or WANT to realize this but you are the status quo and so is Bernie Sanders.
There is nothing revolutionary or progressive about one white guy voting another white guy supported by a bunch of other white guys - and their female counterparts, for that matter - into office. Especially not based on "potential" when there is a completely qualified female candidate (more qualified in almost all ways according to many credible sources) who has an extremely similar platform to Bernie and who is also being frank about her own approach to winning the election - frank about being moderate and about the necessity of having to be political to actually create change. They are not so dissimilar, Bernie and Hillary - it's just that Bernie is appealing to a majority white, largely male constituency. Yes, you.
Like Hillary or Bernie or not, favoring the promotion of a less qualified white man over a more qualified woman or minority is in no way progressive or moving us forward as a nation.
It's just the same old, same old.
Or as McKinsey & Company calls it, "imbedded institutional mindsets"...based on the reports of "diversity officers and experts who admit that despite their best efforts, women are often evaluated for promotions primarily on performance, while men are often promoted on potential."
So while you may think you are pushing for a more progressive candidate, think again. And don't forget that at the end of the day - or caucus - Bernie is, after all, a politician himself. Don't underestimate the possibility that he is simply campaigning directly to YOU so of course you love what you're hearing.
Bernie Sanders identified the plight of the young, white male years before this presidential race:
Why is it that two-thirds of white, rural men voted Republican? Why? That's what we have to address. That's crazy. These people are working longer and longer hours. They can't afford to pay $3.50 for a gallon of gas. They're losing their jobs. So why do they vote for President Bush? And the Republican Party? We've got to address this.
It is no coincidence that he is surging mainly among young, white men. In fact, he has done such great job of campaigning to you that some think he may have gone too far and created a monster (though an often adorably passionate, if misguided monster).
Bernie Sanders is not an activist. Bernie Sanders is a politician. Yes, Bernie marched with MLK and leans progressive, but as Ta-Nehisi Coates points out, Bernie either turns a blind eye to or doesn't believe in some pretty fundamental civil rights truths: like the fact that our country was founded on white supremacy. Perhaps this is one reason he didn't win the Iowa Caucus among non-white voters.
Lastly, if you're liberal (which I presume by your avid support of a democratic socialist) and think that Republicans are standing on their last leg with the candidates running on that ticket - as do some others who've shared such opinions - Hillary is your best bet to seal that party's fate.
She is validated when she speaks of major Republican players paying for attack ads against her. That tells me they aren't worried about Bernie - they are willing to ride out his 4 - 8 years to give their party time to recover (and in light of the recent Iowa caucus, the last thing Democrats should want is a Sanders/Rubio face off). The Republican party realizes that with Hillary in office, their recovery could be slowed for years if they ever recover at all.
The transformation or maybe even the complete unravelling of one party in a two party system? That is revolution. Electing the first black man followed by the first woman into the highest ranking US office? That is revolution. Electing a white guy because maybe, just maybe he's "got potential" when there is an ideologically similar, more qualified candidate running against him - not a revolution. Not even common sense if you're a Democrat, which by the way, I'm not.
And Bernie Sanders is not magic. Bernie, like Hillary, is a politician.