12 traps that keep [s]Progressives[/s] Liberals from winning

[Alcon]

I may be in a crappy mood tonight (no painkillers and an 102 degree temperature can do that), but half of this article annoys me and half of it is spot-on.

1. Progressives don't have something as general as religion to rely on, but I think the current liberal message - healthcare, no Iraq War, etc. - is pretty universal.  They could be clearer, yes, but the Republicans suffer from this same deal.  They just have Christianity to cover it better.

2. Last time I checked, didn't the Re-Elect the GOP campaign outline feature issues like English as a national language and stuff like that?  Both parties are guilty, and this is just a semi-subtle way of saying that "Bush is right, despite the polls," too.  Clever Alternet.

3. I don't see the Democrats as having especially more problems with authenticity/identity(?)/connection(?) as the GOP.  Values, maybe, but "value voters" are always going to be more conservative, because "values" is for many people a euphemism for religion.

4. Isn't this just a complex way of saying "Democrats rely too much on rationality, and too little on everything else?"  I'm surprised this article came this close to saying "the electorate is stupid."  But, I agree; the Democrats, sadly, need to do this some to appeal to the voting public.

5. Seems to say the same as #4 to me.  Fair enough.

6. Cleverly phrased, but flawed.  Obviously, social security isn't a value, but "no one should be without healthcare" is.  I don't see the Democrats as doing all that badly, considering they have to run on economics instead of social issues.

7. Oftentimes true.

8. Very true, although both parties are guilty of this.

9. True.

10. Both parties are guilty of this.

11. Very true.

12. Yes, but the GOP is much more guilty of this.

[Alcon]

Their embrace of political correctness is the big problem. The left's inability to bash in some skulls and crack down on the illegal immigants/minority activists is the bigger problem.

I do not think you are being honest here.  I think that's what you want from the party.  The truth is, most voters only insult political correctness when it bugs them.  I know a lot of people who love racial jokes, but get huffy about fat jokes because they are overrated, or whatever.  The truth is, political correctness is such a non-issue outside of punditland that no election hinges on it.  And certainly that's not the Democrats' problem.

Besides, immigration policy and political correctness are only related tangentially.  You can call any empathy political correctness if you like.  The Democrats shouldn't be cracking down on activists.  What in the world?  That's free speech.  Politically correct as it may be, I'll die to defend that.