Forget the Cultural Civil wars, we should wage ECONOMIC Civil War!
Back in 2014, Pew Research reported the political polarization had doubled since 1994 and respected historians began openly comparing this strong polarization to the Civil War.
http://www.people-press.org/2014/06/12/political-polarization-in-the-american-public/
Trump's abhorent rise and election polarized this nation even further. He's James Buchanan all over again, openly promising to wield the Supreme Court as a weapon to strike down the other side. Even some of the more thoughtful conservatives have been unnerved by the eerie parallels to the lead-up to the Civil War.
But the GOP-led Senate decided to ignoring ALL the warnings from right and left distinguished historians and legal scholars. Instead, they chose to thrust ahead, and elevate a damaged, openly partisan Brett Kavanaugh. Trump and the McConnell-led Senate said damn the consequences, we're going to shove another Dred-Scott decision down our enemies throats.
And the South will come to once again rue a temporary Supreme Court win.
Most Americans are taught about the famous and bloody Civil War battles. But, too little attention is paid to the economic devastation the North unleashed on the Southern economies. Even had Lincoln survived, historians predict he'd have faced a losing Congressional battle for monies to rebuild the South. For most of the South, it took a hundred years to dig themselves out of that economic hole.
Don't let the right-wing militias scare you, THIS Civil War we face won't be fought with guns, but economic power and once again, the combination of North/West allies' economic strength will prove too strong.
After Obama turned NC blue in 2008, NC's GOP panicked and wielded every slimey weapon in their arsenal to renew "the culture war." And, here's an important lesson, their enemies chose to band together and wield an economic whip over the state. Boycotts ensued, Paypal withdrew its expansion plans, and Bank of America shocked many NC GOPers by denouncing the bill.
If you followed the battle over NC's infamous bathroom bill, you already witnessed the power of wielding economic power.
https://www.cnbc.com/2017/03/27/bathroom-bill-to-cost-north-carolina-376-billion.html
Over the last two years, more and more companies been forced by public pressure to CHOOSE a side. Nike smartly capitalized and has seen a windfall as a result.
Consider the unthinkable has happened and the once proud capital of the Confederacy has been transformed into bastion of "Blue State Resistance" wielding enormous economic power. The fastest growing areas in Texas are becoming bluer each year. Beto's rise is a warning shot across the bow but TX GOPers, like their old brethern in VA, are too busy insisting "it'll never happen here" to realize the economic weaponry of these expanding areas.
And, that brings us to today.
It's great to see Crowdfunding raising over 3 million for Collins' challenger! It's great to see ActBlue break records. But, we also need a national campaign to flex our economic weaponry in more impactful ways. We need a campaign that promises to BOYCOTT any state that outlaws abortions after an ILLEGIMATE SUPREME COURT overturns Roe. As in NC, we need to start to BREAK the alliance between GOP pro-business and religious right.
Let's NOT wage the culture wars on THEIR TERMS anymore. We need to wage them using OUR ECONOMIC strengths. We can start by beginning to pressure progressive friendly companies by going on record they won't expand into states that severely limit abortions or outlaw them altogether. We need to put our money not just into candidates but into putting some real fear into corporate America.
My best friend in the whole world lives in NC, so I don't say this lightly... it's time to remind the South of our economic power.
Want some concrete step you can take today? Begin calling/emailing/writing and lobbying Amazon to refuse HQ2 expansion to states that supported Kavanaugh and endangered Roe, gay rights, etc.
If you work in corporate America, make it known you won't relocate to a red state out of fears for women's rights. Don't frame it as a political stand, simply one of I don't FEEL SAFE as a woman in a "South Carolina" facility, we should look elsewhere. We hold tremendous power if we paint these states as pariahs in the business-world.
If you live in a red state, make the same arguments to your employers. This type of move may cost us valuable personnel, etc.
Thoughts?