'Pail Poll delays Detroit move, brings party change

The results from the pair of 'Pail Polls I've had up for the past month are in!

These polls were not binding referendums but suggestions. Kind of like "Like It Or Spike It" that Power 94½ used to have. By an overpowering vote of 87.5% to 12.5%, you - the many befaced readers of this blog - voted that I should stay in greater Cincinnati instead of relocating out of town. I guess the idea of losing the guy who actually follows through on shit wasn't too appealing. This doesn't mean I'll never relocate - because my very life may depend on it - but now it's less likely that I'll do it very soon. The fact that Thomas Massie isn't unopposed like The Media hoped and predicted is another reason to stay.

The other 'Pail Poll was closer: By a vote of 57% to 43%, you suggested that I should rejoin the Democratic Party instead of remaining a registered Green. I jumped the gun on this and rejoined, because the deadline for changing party affiliation was earlier than I thought it was, and it was clear which way this survey was going.

Some of you will disagree, but there are valid reasons for rejoining the Democrats. For starts, the Kentucky Democratic Party has finally rid itself of DLC establishment hacks like Kim Davis and Jim Gooch. And the Greens seldom run candidates when they need to the most - for instance, when a right-wing Democrat runs unopposed. The Greens seem more likely to run candidates when the election is already competitive. But the main reason for rejoining the Democrats isn't because of the Greens' shortcomings, but because progressive goals need a bigger party. The Tea Party grew into the Republicans from the right, and the GOP is now largely synonymous with the Tea Party. We need a force to grow into the Democrats from the left. After the Tea Party debacle, others have backed up the notion that the best way to restore progressive power to American politics is to rebuild our ranks within the Democratic Party. Best all, now I can vote for Bernie Sanders in the primary.

Despite the party switch, I am not moderating my views. For those hoping I am, tough toilets. We have to take a sinewy stand for what is good. So - by and large - life will go on as usual for the Time Being.