Purists

Please don't misunderstand what I'm about to say. There is nothing wrong with having a moral code, in fact, that's a wonderful thing. I don't quite have the right words to describe just how crucial it is to have something you believe in and to have the passion to fight for it. It's absolutely imperative for the sake of societal progress. However, if you are so wrapped up in your own idea of perfect adherence to said code that you are willing to shoot your own cause in the foot just because you aren't getting exactly what you want out of a particular deal, you're not just an asshole, you're an idiot. You might have a decent guess as to what this entry is about, and if that guess was next years election, you'd be correct. If you were to guess that I'm talking about a certain possible scenario, you'd also be right, and if you suspect that scenario involves Joe Biden getting the democratic nomination then congratulations, you're three for three. I've spent the last couple days reading opinion articles on the current democratic front runner, in particular, articles from the progressive wing of the party, and they are almost all universally negative. Let me be clear, I understand that as the front runner, the former Vice President should be put under scrutiny. He is essentially going through the interview process to be the next leader of the free world, however after doing all this reading, I've gotten the sense that the far left wing of the democratic party and other progressive groups aren't so much trying to form the front runner and mold him into one that better reflects their vision for the party and the country through putting pressure on him to rethink some of his more moderate positions, so much as they're simply just trying to do everything they can to tear him down so that someone they think better fits their goals can take his place. I'm well aware that we've still got almost eleven months until the election which is more than enough time for something big to change in the race that would allow either Sanders or Warren to overtake Biden and secure the nomination. I should also make it very clear that if that does come to pass, I'm more than willing to vote for either. I have nothing against them, and agree with many of their ideas. Both would be decent presidents in my opinion, and could quite possibly get a lot of fantastic and well needed reforms done. However, I'm also content with voting for Biden, but I get the strong sense that this isn't the case with many purists. Yes, I would gladly vote for Joe Biden if that means unseating Trump, which I understand is one of his core appeals. He's the most well known candidate and what needs to be understood is that simply having name recognition will get you a long way in terms of people who aren't particularly immersed in politics. I think that's one thing that many purists aren't taking into account. Some seem to be baffled as to why Biden is leading the polls and are already frothing at the mouths at the idea of him becoming the nominee. I'm not exactly thrilled about him, but allow me to put my feelings into perspective. I'm honestly more comfortable voting for Joe Biden than I was voting for Hillary Clinton. I still wouldn't feel great about it, but he's a step up in my mind. Many purists will throw out the morally righteous argument that I'm sure you may have heard: "we shouldn't have to choose between the lesser of two evils" which is an argument that's all well and good for the primary. However, I don't think that's a good mentality to carry into the general, mainly because in that arena, the lesser of two evils is often the best you can hope for. That's a cynical thing to say, I know, but it recognizes the fundamental reality of the current political structure that we have. I fully understand the desire to change the system, because I agree that we shouldn't have to hold our noses and clench when we cast a ballot, but if we are too impatient to work incrementally towards improvement and instead rush to support courses of action that the majority of the population isn't ready for, then we're just shooting ourselves in the foot. Say Biden gets the nomination, let's run with that scenario that, at the moment, seems likely. What will all the purists do? I recall hearing of instances in 2016 when some Bernie Sanders fans "protested" by either not voting or writing in Senator Sanders. Leading up to the election I recall reading a particularly passionate blog post calling for doing just that as the morally upright action to take. It was a well written post, full of morally invigorating rhetoric and it was an all around inspirational cry to "vote your conscience!" I know for a fact that many people took that course of action, and before I cite that particular election as an example of purists directly spoiling an election for the worse adversary, I should reiterate the well known fact that Hillary Clinton won the popular vote, so obviously it wasn't purists protest votes that directly cost the election. However, I feel the word "directly" is key in that last sentence. While all of the anti Hillary rhetoric coming from the Sanders camp may not have directly cost her the election, all of the vitriol coming from that wing of the democratic party added fuel to the fire that the Trump campaign was more than happy to take from. It's a cringe-inducing thing to admit, but it needs to be said that conservatives really used material from Sanders supporters effectively as a means to further divide democrats and secure the presidency for Trump. Of course that's far from the only factor, but it was definitely significant and it's worth mentioning in this entry because the mudslinging against Hillary was largely focused on how she wasn't progressive enough. It's significantly frustrating to see that same thing happening again, it's just that this time it's Biden who is the main target of the purity tests. Biden absolutely has his flaws, I'll never deny that, but the idea that Sanders and Warren are perfect needs to be dispelled fast. I really wish we would just come to accept that there is no such thing as a perfect candidate. Unfortunately, many on the left just can't help being picky. That's a large factor of why we lose elections in my opinion. Most conservatives seem more than happy to vote for Trump no matter what he says or does. He's made it amply clear that he is unfit to be in charge of a ham sandwich let alone a nation, yet it doesn't look like his flock is willing to waver. Meanwhile democrats and unaffiliated progressives seem to just want to bicker constantly about who is the most perfect adherent to progressivism and are more than happy to tear each other to pieces if it means the particular candidate they want can get even a shred of a chance at the nomination. It's fucking ridiculous. The republicans are now the party of Trump. We need to find someone to rally behind and we need to do it fast. Pick one damn horse and build them up instead of having all our horses wound each other before taking on the opponent, that's basically what I'm saying. The approval rating of the president, while abysmal nationally, remains disgustingly high among conservatives, and unless a coalition is formed behind one democratic candidate, Trump will be able to retake the white house and we'll be stuck with this dumpster fire for another four years despite the fact that he has been impeached. I understand that my willingness to support Biden is bucking my own generation in some sense. I understand that saying something like that might be unpopular, seeing as Sanders is pretty much the favorite of millennials, but it should be restated that should something change and Sanders takes the nomination, I'm definitely comfortable voting for him as well. I don't think Sanders or Warren themselves are divisive, but I know for a fact that many of their supporters absolutely are. Having a moral code is important, it's basically what makes up your very humanity, but I think it's important to understand that if you're so caught up in the pursuit of righteousness and forego any and all pragmatism, you're only hurting your own cause. If you're unwilling to admit that long term goals require incremental steps, then you'll never see those goals come to fruition.