Reply to Can we start a Pragmatic Progressives party in DC?

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[quote=Anonymous]I just cannot with the progressive wing of the council anymore. Having progressive views does not, and cannot, mean that you simply ignore what is actually happening in order to stay "pure" politically. I am so tired of the mealy-mouthed platitudes from the progressives on crime and education.

I would like progressive council members who actually want to tackle the central issues in DC, and not just talk around them, afraid to actually commit to any ACTION that might address them.

We have major crises in DC concerning juvenile crime, substance abuse, and mental health. These crises are having a major impact on quality of life, viability of businesses, and the overall look and feel of the city. You can separate them from the overall crime rate, the tents cities and unhoused issues, test scores and attendance rates. It's all mixed together. Yes, the pandemic made these all worse. Yes, school closures made these worse. Yes, inflation and economic instability make these worse. Let's just acknowledge all that.

And then DO something. We need a plan on juvenile crime that isn't just catch and release. Who doe that help? We need a total overhaul of DC's approach to truancy and at risk kids -- we simply lost children from schools entirely during the pandemic and we haven't done enough to get them back. And we need real solutions around homelessness -- the current situation cannot be allowed to continue. It is dangerous for the unhoused and employees at businesses that regularly encounter them, and it's a public health issue that also impacts the economy and tourism. We need solutions that address the needs of unhoused people (ESPECIALLY mental health and substance abuse needs, these are critical issues) but also doesn't just accept that we will have hundreds or even thousands of people living in tents without access to running water all over the city.

I don't have faith in Bowser and cronies to ever do anything that is not 100% in their self interest, but I have had it with progressive politicians who do NOTHING while offering vague platitudes about racism and equity to appease activists. We have real problems. We need real solutions.

The only politician in DC I like right now is Christina Henderson. Please not: I am not Henderson, I don't work for her, and I don't know her personally. But she isn't corrupt and she's not lazy, and she doesn't just handcuff herself progressive values and call it a day. We need problem solvers who will DO something. I'm so tired of these progressives who just talk and talk and hope for the best. We cannot afford it!

Please don't turn this into a thread about bike lanes. I truly do not care about bike lanes anymore. It's like #347 on the list of critical issues in DC right now.[/quote]

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