LIGHT THE PATH

Will the Green Party Seize the Moment?

April 21, 2024

Daniel Celovsky

The US has another one of its precious elections coming on November 5th. People seem to like them. The politicians all come out and meet their constituents. The donors pour money into them. The pollsters go nuts. The media brings out their pundits and analyzes them to no end.

But - at the end of the day - nothing changes. This election cycle is just another broken corrupt component of the broken corrupt system we have.

Let’s step outside of their rules, and build our own rules. Let’s start building our new system. That new system we want.

This open letter calls on The Green Pary to take the first step to do just that. Revolution is in the air. Will they seize the moment and lift us up to where we want to go? Will they light the path? Well, it’s worth asking them to.

Please share this post with your local Green Party candidates. Let’s see if they can seize the moment and light the path we can unite on. Together we can walk the journey to our freedom and build the communities we all know are possible. Let’s get this revolution rolling.

OPEN LETTER

TO:  Dr. Jill Stein & the Green Party Campaign Team

Dear Dr. Stein et al:

We implore you to seize the moment and lead.  We ask you to step up your game, seize the moment, and light the path.

Many of us are not inspired about the forthcoming election.  The electoral system offers us nothing.  If we do not change the dynamics in this election, the result is only going to be a continuation of exactly the same system we do not want.  

Many of us are not inspired.   Election cycles do not deliver the change we seek.  They are nothing more than a component of a corrupt broken system.

There is nothing new in that.  We all know it.  So, let’s recognize it and explore an alternative.  

As The Green Party, are you simply another component of the broken system we have or are you a catalyst for change?   That is up to you.  But the same game-as-usual approach does not cut it.  Many of us see you showing up every four-years, being satisfied with a single-digit vote result, and then disappearing until the next election.  Hardly inspiring.  There is no shining light to it.

If “voting Green” shone a light on the path we all want, that would be an incentive for us all to rally behind it.  That is what we are all waiting for.  Someone has to shine the light. 

Be the inspiring light.  So we can add our light to it and make it shine brightly so even more can see it and add their light so it shines even brighter.   Shine the light on the path that takes us to the new system we all want.  It all starts by shining the light on that path. We implore you to shine that light.

As the Green Party, you have done excellent work in terms of getting ballot access.  All the more reason to now take the next step to get that ballot access to actually deliver change.  Light that path.  Even if our efforts do not add up to delivering electoral victory results — they can be used to build the foundation for a movement to change.  Just light the path.

We ask you to take that extra step and inspire people into a movement.  We ask that you look beyond this election cycle and the usual single-digit results.  Use this election as a springboard to change this system.  

We want to see leadership.  We want to be inspired.  We want a future.  We want a new system.  We want leadership to step up and lead us to that new system.  Together, we will do the work.  Together, we have all the energy we will need.  Just set the stage for that work to get done.  Light the path.

Do you realize how much energy we have to offer?  Among us we have experts, knowledge, talent, skills and creativity.  We have people willing to promote and amplify it all across every community.

Together we can build anything and everything.  We have independent media voices.   We have labor organizers.  We have artists.  We have organizers. We have facilitators.   We have energy.  We have everything we need.  We just need  to put it together.  That is why we are asking you to step up your game.  Be the catalyst.  Light the path.

We are sure you have seen the polls. 

What are you doing about the polls?  Are you continuing to conform with the status quo by playing the ‘standard’ politics that have failed us election cycle after election cycle after election cycle?  Let’s focus:  We do not want to continue with the system we have.  We want a new system.  

This existing system is corrupt and broken.  We want it gone.  We see no path to what we want by conforming to the existing system.  And that includes the circus of the existing system’s electoral process.  We need to go beyond it.  We need to go beyond the confines of the box it has put us in for decade after decade after decade.

If you stay your current course, this system is going to resist you every step of the way.  We all know it.  They are not going to give you media coverage.  They are not going to even mention you.  They are not going to invite you to debates. They are going to marginalize, ignore and vilify you.  This existing system does not work.  We want a new system!

We do not want to support a participant in this corrupt rigged  system.  We want a new system.  Together, we can build a new system. Starting with a new electoral system. New rules. Light the path.

Get out of the confines of the very system we want to replace.   There are no rules or procedures that stop you from building a new electoral system.  What does it take?  Leadership!  Show us the path forward to combine the power that we have.  Light the path.  

You can seize the moment and lead us to a new system.  We will show up and deliver the energy.  Light the path.

Show us you can lead.  Show us you can think outside the confines of the box that the existing system is.  Do it not through words and promises —— do it by doing it.   Light the path.

Here is what we propose.  

By the way, that is just active voters.  Many have totally left.  At least a third of all eligible voters have left completely — because they are not inspired at all.

We ask that you call a meeting of all independent and third party candidates and build one unified ticket. That would offer us an entirely new system.

It’s not as complicated as it sounds.  Call the meeting and invite every single candidate to attend.  Many of them will attend.  Some will not, and that is okay.  You are leading, and those that choose to continue to play in the existing system are clearly not leading, but following.  We want leaders — not followers.

The mission is simple:  Come out of the meeting with a unified ticket.  There are ample positions that need to be filled beyond just President and Vice-President.

There are key administration positions (Chief of Staff, Communications Director and more).  There are Secretary positions (Transportation, Agriculture, Defence, Labor, and so many more).  There are House and Senate seats (535 of those).  There are numerous down-ballot positions. There is nothing stopping us from creating a full ticket right now and unifying our energy and our voices.  Build and present us a new system.  Actually offer us what we want.  Light the path.

Go into that meeting, close the doors, and stay there until you have a full unified ticket that presents us with a clear independent option.   Lead the discussion, let everyone present ideas, facilitate the debate and lead us to a solution.  Yes, a new system of electoral politics.  You can build its foundation.  Light the path.

The meeting itself can be held at a central venue.  It can be supported with remote meeting options so all can attend.  If it takes a week or longer, invest the time.  Deliberate until the unified ticket is agreed to and come out of it as a team. Go into that meeting and do not come out of it until the job is done.

Consider this meeting to be similar in format to a trial jury deliberating on a case. Go into it and get the job done.  You are the jury foreman. All the candidates are the jury.  Deliver us a verdict of freedom from the corrupt incompetent choices the existing system offers us with a new system you create.  A full slate of diverse individuals and voices. A clear alternative.  A new system choice.  Light the path.

Will you have differences among you in terms of platform issues?  Absolutely.  But the common ground will vastly cover the wide majority of issues.  You don’t need a detailed platform.  We all know what we want. A new system free of corruption, incompetence and failures is the platform we can all agree on. 

Make the platform pure democracy to cover all the issues.  Offer the people democratic power to make decisions themselves.  We are confident that they will get it right every single time.  The platform is to just put the power into their hands.  That is what underpins the new system we all want. A move to community-based direct participative democracy covers all the issues.

The election is on November 5th.  Will this action succeed in delivering the change we seek?  Absolutely it will. 

It will present a much better choice at the polls yet might not put us across the finish line in itself (we only have six-months left).  But — it will unite us into a movement which will deliver the change we seek.  United people can do anything and everything.  We might not win on Nov 5th; but we will win.  Our energy and our voices will be united.  We will be organized.  And that is what we need.  Together is how we change everything.  Light the path.

BUILD THE MOVEMENT

Do you remember the Occupy Wall Street movement?  Millions of people rose up together and scared the hell out of the Establishment.  Most of us are still here.

Do you remember the Bernie Sanders Campaigns of 2016 and 2020?  Millions of people rose up together and scared the hell out of the Establishment.  Most of us are still here.  

The people, the energy, the passion, the support, and the voices are still here.  Waiting for what we all know is possible.  We are waiting for someone to light the path.  Don’t make us wait any more. Light the path. The moment is now.

The Occupy Movement was not permanent.  We can learn from that.  This time, build a movement that is permanent.  Go beyond the election cycle.  Together, we can change everything on our schedule — not theirs.

The Bernie Campaigns died out because they played inside the Establishment game and the Establishment game is rigged.  We can learn from that.  Go beyond their system. We don't need a single leader … we need a team of leaders (like a unified independent ticket).  Together, we can start building our new system.  Light the path.

This is your chance to rise up.  Not to simply play the politics-as-usual game (which is clearly rigged against us from the get-go), but to build a new political system.   To build the actual choice people crave.  We do not want to play in this broken, corrupt game any more.  We want to play our game.  Put us in the game we want.  

We want to reject the divisions.  The left-right differences give us nothing.   The progressive-conservative differences give us nothing.  We don’t want it.  We want to embrace the freedom and liberty of our communities to self-determine our own futures. Light the path.

We want the people to have the power of self-determination.  That is the promise of democracy. The legacy parties do not offer it.  The current system does not offer it.  Why continue to play in the very system that does not offer what we want?  Build a new system. 

We call on you to take this step.  Deliver us a clear united choice with a kaleidoscope of varied but passionate individuals who have shown the courage it takes to stand up by putting themselves out there.  Let them have their differences and let their voices be heard.  They are all united in wanting a new system.  Unite them … and you will unite us.   

Embrace this opportunity to unite the people who have the hell-bent passion to build a new system.   Take the first-step which is to unite us.  Just light the path.  Don’t worry about the next steps.  The people will bring them.  They will bring all the ideas.  All the energy.  All the discussion.  They will create the next steps together.  They will refine and enhance those steps together.  And — united together as one voice — they will bring all the energy required to get them done.

The first step is just to organize the energy.  That is what we ask of you.  You can take a big step right now and lead the effort of uniting us.   You can meet this moment and seize it.  Together, we will get everything else done.  What are we asking you to do?  Light the path.

Please move out of this broken corrupt box and lead us to the freedom we seek.  Reject their confines. Seize the moment.  Be the foundation of the new system we are here to build.  Together, we can build it.  And — together — we absolutely can live it.

We implore you to call that meeting.   Seize this moment.   Show us what leadership is.  Create a clear choice we can unite around — not only on November 5th, but on November 6th and beyond.

Light the path.  If you do that, we will add our light and walk that path with you. Together.

Solidarity, Freedom,

The Majority