You got what you deserve, Republican Party...

[A Black Falcon]

of US states does things.

Being common doesn't make it good or right.

Just saying, you're acting like it's some super-weird thing, when actually it's the way everyone except for a handful of US states does things.

You just quoted Kos advocating dispensing with democracy and your reaction was "He is absolutely right".

Requiring that you join a party before participating in its private elections in absolutely no way "dispenses with democracy".

The Third Way exists to pull the Democratic Party away from the progressive 'fringe' and more towards a moderate and centrist platform (out of the belief that America is still a center-right country) so to call you and your candidate 'Third Way' is definitely an insult but it is also a precise and accurate description.

The actual "Third Way" is a pretty-much-dead organization that peaked in the '90s and has since faded to near-irrelevance. Progressives have won, which is why both of our candidates this time have run as strong progressives. Try looking up Hillary's actual positions on the issues this election, she in no way resembles any kind of "third way" candidate, if such things even still existed.

Yeah, you tell yourself that if it makes you feel better. Things are going so well that the Party is struggling to hold onto the only branch of government Republicans don't dominate outright.

But, young voters, those who are our age and younger, whose who, in the next two decades will become the majority of the electorate, rejected your candidate and your politics resoundingly. Clinton was not even remotely competitive in the 17-29 demographic and the 30-44 demo was still overwhelmingly embracing of a major paradigm shift. You think that bodes well for the future of a party that has put a lot more effort into telling them their opinions don't matter? Think they'll forget how their incompetence and sloth has facilitated and helped the Tea Party Republicans to take over huge swatches of the country without even pretending to fight? You think they'll forget and just fall into line?

Most 17-29 year olds don't vote yet, so what the party has done doesn't matter much for them because younger people usually don't vote. This is why we can't win off-year elections, by the way, younger people don't care enough to vote.

As for slightly older audiences, the fact is that Bernie supporters have actually moved over to supporting Hillary even more quickly than Hillary voters moved over to Obama in '08. Your intransigence is, thankfully, out of the norm for Bernie supporters.

But as for the future, yes, Bernie's success is a sign that the party will continue to move to the left, as it has done since the '00s. Hillary has moved to the left along with the base, and future candidates will do that as well, or come from the left as Bernie has. That's just fine, it'd be good to see a more liberal government than we have seen. But you're very wrong in your assumption that "if Bernie didn't win his voters will give up on the Democrats". Fact is most aren't giving up on the party, and that's good because it's essential to us winning this year, and to continuing progressive pressure on candidates to not compromise away too much, as Democrats are wont to do at times.

The GOP is fucked right now. The Democrats are fucked maybe in a few years. The only way that is averted is by overthrowing the chumps running it now, because they've done an abominable job of it.

The Democratic Party isn't just fine, it's on the upswing. So long as the Republicans continue to be crazy-racist fools, the Dems have the minority vote locked up, and in a country where minorities are growing steadily this is not good for them! The Republicans only have a chance for the future if they abandon their racism, but it's so ingrained into their party now that that would be quite difficult to do.

I don't question that she faces sexism. I deny that Bernie Sanders transformed this election because the overwhelming majority (or even a noteworthy minority) of voters under 50 are against the idea of a woman president.

It's not something that direct. It's learned or inherent sexism coloring peoples' views against her. The best proof of this is that her favorability ratings go down whenever she runs for a higher office, then back up when she's in that office, as people punish her for going farther into traditionally male roles, but lots of other things are good proof of it.

Beyond that, the whole concept that she's untrustworthy is based on a Republican lie campaign, and yet liberals believe it? Come on, if she was male the attack would never have gotten off the ground, beyond the basic "all politicians bend the truth sometimes" element. She's better than most on that score, but isn't perfect of course'; no politician is. She does have the best rating of any politician running for president this cycle, though, from at least one of the fact-check organizations. But no, because of Republican lies people have bought the "she's untrustworthy" story. Sad stuff, particularly if they vote for Trump instead, probably the most inveterate liar ever to run for president on a major-party ticket! Or at least, he's right up there with who, Nixon or something?

Also, you imply intent here -- people saying to themselves "I will not support her because she is a woman". While some such people are out there, many others are biased against her for other more subtle sexist reasons they may or may not recognize.

And last, it is noteworthy that most of the most ardent Bernie supporters are male.