#Another epithet is the Holder of the Earth

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Prospera 2: Ruler of the Sea

For my initial Prospera and mythology analysis chk here

After a deeper look and another rewatch, I realized there's another god Prospera is harking to. Bear with me, I swear there's evidence. First off, let me start with the obvious. Shin Sei's corporate logo looks a bit like permet, but also clearly a trident and what seems to be a wave. Neptune.

Obviously, GWitch has nothing to do with water on the surface. But it is a Tempest adaptation with Prospera as the storm conjuring magician. Considering the intro with our leads floating in a Pisces formation and Elnora and Eri reinacting its mythological parallel in Prologue, Space = Water.

Delling may be the 'king' of Benerit, thus an easy Zeus parallel, but Prospera is the ruler of the sea. As she proves in her domination of S2.

Neptune isn't just the sea king, Neptune/Poseidon is Ennosigaios (Earthshaker). The cause of earthquakes, and the bringer of the great flood that destroyed all of life in Roman myth. Her havoc on Earth and in the 'sea' is demonstrative of this.

This also gives poignant weight to Earth House's symbolism as the dove that soars above the waves and returns with an olive branch to the Ark. Life restored to earth.

This was alluded to with the establishment of GUND-ARM in S1

For this parallel, Miorine is playing Athena/Minerva (which isn't hard to believe since she's both the princess of Strategy, coded with Wisdom repeatedly, and grey-eyed like the goddess) The myth of the establishment of Athens says Athena was in a competition with Poseidon to see who could give the most impressive gift to the people. Poseidon struck the ground and created (accounts vary) horses or a spring. Athena created the first olive tree. In the show, their competition leads to the establishment of the peace-bringing GUND-ARM

Another epithet of the sea lord is Kyanochetis (Blue or dark-haired) which could explain the reason for her change in coloring from the shining Elnora. And yet another is Hippios (of the Horses). Considering horses for this universe are mobile suits, Prospera as a horse lord is appropriate.

Now, the next bit is faily speculative but considering there's so much already indicating Prospera was affiliated with Notrette, I'm going to be a bit cursed.

Notrette is Anesidora, and firmly coded as the agricultural mother Demeter. Demeter, searching for her missing daughter, runs across Poseidon who lusts for her. She flees in the form of a mare and he pursues the goddess as a stallion. This results in two offspring; Despoina and Arion. Despoina's (The Mistress) true name was lost to history but Arion was the black or red-maned horse of Heracles. You can extrapolate this tale to Prospera 'defiling' Notrette's research/affiliation leading to QZ, uploading Aerial's biometric code, perhaps the creation of Suletta, and her use of Aerial.

There's likely more, and maybe when I rewatch again I'll spot it. But for now, it's definitive to me Prospera is intended as Neptune; God of the Seas and Storms in Roman tradition. It also gives more weight to her coding as Venus the morning star (the romans saw her as a sea diety because she was born of seafoam and linked to Neptune). Just when you thought Mama Char couldn't get more great and awe-inspiring~

Go here for some design speculation that hints to this

[percabeth4life]

your fav epithets of kronides? (also, why?)

Zeus: Xenios (Of Hospitality)

I had to think on this one for a bit because there are loads that I really do like of his (The Good God, the Giver of Good, of the House, Counselor-) but honestly, Zeus of Hospitality is... something special to me? So many act as if he is cruel, is evil, is bad, as if he would never grant anyone aid or sanctuary... but hospitality is about welcoming outsiders in, to give them aid, to give them shelter, to feed and water them, and all you may ask in exchange is a story of their travels. It’s about giving, and helping, and being a good neighbor, a good person, about helping those in need even if only for a night. And it embodies more than that, you don’t just have to welcome them in, you could give food, money, aid to anyone and that would be Hospitality. It can be your home, your city, your country- it... it’s about being caring, and that just- it’s so lovely, that he rules over that, isn’t it?

Poseidon: Gaiêokhos (Holder of the Earth)

Okay so the Ancient Greeks believed that the ocean cradled the Earth, and that’s kinda why Poseidon has this epithet, but in the modern day it kinda has a different feel (cause we know the land isn’t held by the ocean) of like... Poseidon cradling the Earth, that even though it isn’t literally an island on the ocean it’s still something he holds, he treasures, he is the Sea but he’s also guarding those on land, his people of land and sea alike- it just has such a gentle feel to it.

Hades: Nekrôn Sôtêr (Savior of the Dead)

This one is just like- so many view Hades as bad, or they woobify him, Hades is the Lord of the Underworld and... the Savior of the Dead. He is their sanctuary, they are in his kingdom, he guards them and hosts them and protects them and saves them. They have a place to go after death, they have his kingdom, the kingdom of the Dead, and they are safe there. It’s just so sweet, isn’t it? He is the Savior, which means he is not soft, he is still a king and capable of saving all the dead from wandering for eternity, he is not cruel though, he’s a savior, he saves them... but he is still strong enough to do so. I just feel it embodies so much of him.

Hera: Pais (Child)

I honestly like this one because so few actually... see Hera as such? She isn’t just the Queen of All (though she is and that’s another epithet of hers), she’s also the child of Kronos and Rhea, she’s the Goddess of Women in all stages of life from child to betrothed to married to widowed, she was once a child, she can be a child, she is of the heights of marriage of so many things... but she was also once a child and still remembers children and still protects them just as Apollo and Artemis do.

Demeter: Mægála Mítir (Great Mother)

I already said this one but  she’s A MOM and a GREAT MOM and I love her okay- There’s not much more to say about it-

Hestia: Potheinotáti (Beloved)

She just is beloved and 🥺 it’s so soft and sweet, and she’s not got many traditional titles known today because she was of the home and the hearth so her temple... it was the home people lived in. And she was beloved, she was the home, she was their hearth that they sat around, they loved her for it, she loved them for it. It’s so soft and sweet and she’s just- she is beloved.

[phynxrizng]

HEKATE AND AUGUST, CELEBRATING THE HARVEST, THE STORMS, WITCHCRAFT, KEYS, AND CHILDREN

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JULY 30, 2018 BY CYNDI BRANNEN

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There is a multitude of Hekatean celebrations during August. We can celebrate her connections with the harvest, witches, storms, keys, and children during this month. Here’s a summary of each of them with suggestions for practices and rituals. 

  Hekate and the First Harvest

“But, again, the moon is Hecate, the symbol of her varying phases and of her power dependent on the phases. Wherefore her power appears in three forms, having as symbol of the new moon the figure in the white robe and golden sandals, and torches lighted: the basket, which she bears when she has mounted high, is the symbol of the cultivation of the crops, which she makes to grow up according to the increase of her light: and again the symbol of the full moon is the goddess of the brazen sandals.”

–  Praeparatio Evangelico

There are many goddesses who are primarily associated with agriculture, such as Demeter (I’m writing an article about her for the Fall Equinox). However, Hekate is not dissociated from crops either in history or in modern practice. I’ve included the above quote from an early anti-pagan treatise as an example of the many passages in the ancient texts connecting Hekate to crops and harvests.  I’m a bit obsessed with all the delicious tidbits for practice in Eusibius’ text. It’s public domain, so check it out if you are so inclined. Here’s another example connecting Hekate to the harvest:

And upon those who work the bright, storm-tossed sea and pray to Hecate and the loud sounding Earth-shaker, the illustrious goddess easily bestows a big haul of fish, and easily she takes it away once it has been seen, if she so wishes in her spirit. – Hesiod’s Theogeny

This quote, to me, reflects Hekate and the First Harvest: she bestows it and can also prevent it or destroy it. This quote connects to the other celebrations this month (more on that later).

Honoring Hekate on The First Harvest Correspondences/Offerings: Local produce, especially grain and garlic, roses and other local flowers. Honey and/or beeswax candles have been associated with Hekate since the early days of her cult.

NOTE: There is no ancient epithet specific to Hekate and the harvest. Ekdotis means bestower which could certainly be appropriate as an honorific to her in conjunction with personal prosperity and the bounty of the land. The earlier quote from Hesiod could be recited and The Orphic Hymn to Hekate is especially apropos for harvest rituals.

Meal: Local produce and fresh fish if possible, prepared with plants from her ancient garden such as sage, saffron, bay laurel, and garlic. Olive oil is the appropriate fat.

Practice: Consider adding a daily gratitude practice to your Witches’ Hour of Power starting at the beginning of August. I’ve written a First Harvest article with practice tips and a ritual that can you find here. Another thing I will do is honor Hekate as the World Soul since it is her fiery energy of creation that is so abundant this time of the year. You can read one version of this ritual here, just adapt it to the First Harvest. This is an excerpt:

Mighty Hekate, Soul of the World, Like Your serpent, I am an agent of creation. As the dragon, I breathe Your fire with my words. My fears turn to ash through Your sacred alchemy.

Mighty Hekate, Soul of the World, May You be woven into my very being. Your colors of black, white and red Becoming my essential fire.

Hekate and Storms Hekate’s Night is observed on August 13. It’s also celebrated as Night of Hekate as Goddess of Witches (below). The quote above from Hesiod firmly connects her with the harvest and storms. These two aspects reflect Hekate’s powers of creation and destruction, both necessary part of the life cycle, including our own.

I’ve always associated Hekate with storms because I erroneously interpreted her epithet of Brimo as connected to the weather. Since I made this mistake years ago, Hekate has become associated with storms and with this night by many others. I also discovered Hesiod’s take on Hekate which is so similar to my own. After dark on August 13, I recommend that you pay your respects to Hekate as the Storm Bringer. You can perform a simple ritual that honors Her for seeing you through the storms of life and seek her guidance for the future ones. If this date happens to be close to the day of Hekate as Guardian of the Children, you can perform a two-fold ritual. In 2018, this night happens to fall close to the Dark Moon, the time when many modern Hekateans honor her as part of their monthly activities, so the events can easily be combined.

Honoring Hekate as Brimo I wrote about Hekate as Brimo, her stormy side, that may inspire you for practice and ritual ideas. You can read it here. This is an excerpt:

Hail Hekate Brimo, Hail Hekate The Fierce, Hail Hekate The Terrifying. May I be prepared for the storms of life, May I honor You through my actions, May I learn from your gifts. Guide me through life’s storms.

Hekate as the Witches’ Goddess The Night of Hekate is also interpreted as a celebration of Hekate as the Goddess of Witchcraft by some modern traditions and practitioners. Since the Deipnon is near the 13th in 2018, it’s suitable to perform a ritual specific to this aspect of Hekate.

Honoring Hekate as Goddess of Witchcraft I suggest making a list of all of your witchy abilities and offering gratitude to Hekate for them. Witch it up all the way with a chthonic (Under World) altar, loads of black and midnight wandering along sea cliffs with your coven or friends while carrying torches. The torches are very important. One time we almost ended up making ourselves oceanic offerings. My Witches’ Prayer to Hekate may inspire you. Feel free to use it as you will. Save it in your Book of Shadows if you like. The full text can be found here.

Mighty Hekate, Queen of the Witches, You have bestowed upon me the power of the Witch. Through the gifts of  Your sacred keys, I am the walker between the worlds, The spinner of the web of fate, The knower of Your secrets, The student of Your mysteries, The giver of Your healing. – from “A Witch’s Prayer to Hekate”

You can also connect to her two most famous witches, Medea and Kirke. Click on their names to read my review of their stories, correspondences and suggestions for practice.

Hekate as Keeper of the Keys All summer long, I celebrate Hekate as Keeper of the Keys of all creation and also as the symbolic key holder for all the gates and crossroads in my life. Not that she isn’t Kleidoukhos the rest of the year, but there is something about the bounty in the land during this season that reminds me of her in this capacity. I wrote more about this in my article on Hekate and the Summer Solstice.

Honoring Hekate as Kleidoukhos The three previous celebrations all honor different but connected aspects of Hekate. One way to combine them is by honoring her as Kleidoukhos, Universal Key Holder and Gatekeeper. Since Hekate as associated most strongly with the number three, a ritual involving a key each for harvests, storms and witchery would be fantastic. I am hosting an event on the Keeping Her Keys Facebook page for everyone interested in celebrating her in this way. The idea is to select roles of Hekate that you feel most closely connected with rather than any prescribed set of ones. I wanted to celebrate the diversity of the ways us Hekateans experience her rather than having a rigid format. Find the event here. Read the Ritual of Hekate of The Nine Keys here.

Hekate as Guardian of Children “There were three dates set aside to honor Hekate as Kourotrophos, Guardian of Children. Those dates correspond to specific phases of the moon cycle. While the ancient calendar is a bit tricky to interpret using our modern one, the dates can be estimated. The days were held on the 27th day of the January-February moon cycle, the third day of June-July moon cycle and the 16th day of August-September moon cycle. You can work with Hekate as the Guardian of Children on any of these dates. A suitable ritual that includes thanking Hekate for the children in your life and seeking her blessing over them is appropriate. In the Wheel of the Year, Hekate as Kourotrophos is honored during the August-September moon cycle with a ritual, although you can work with Hekate in this capacity any time you feel led.” – from Keeping Her Keys: An Introduction to Hekate’s Modern Witchcraft available for pre-order. 

Honoring Hekate as Kourotrophos Practice and Ritual: I have an entire article dedicated to Hekate as Guardian of Children, including a ritual: http://admin.patheos.com/blogs/keepingherkeys/2018/06/hekate-guardian-of-the-children-ritual-of-blessing-protection-and-rescue/

I always do a special ritual for my sons, their classmates and all children the day they return to school which is conveniently around the same time as the ancient dates for this festival.

Celebrate The Bounty of Hekate, the Land and Your Life I am a big fan of August, but I say that about every month. Personally, the beginning of August this year marks the 10th anniversary of the first time I led a big Hekatean ritual. You can read the story here and perhaps incorporate the evocation of Hekate that was first performed that evening. The current version can be found here. It warms my witch’s heart to hear how others have used this in their own workings. However you celebrate Hekate, the land and your own life this month, I wish you bounty in all things.

Join Us All month we are celebrating Hekate in The Witches’ Realm, including my study group on Modern Hekatean Witchcraft, events and more. You can apply to join on the main Keeping Her Keys Facebook page.

TAGGED WITH: AUGUST BRIMO CHILDREN ...MORE   by Taboola Sponsored Links You May Like Considering an SUV? These Are the 10 Most Fuel Efficient Kelley Blue Book Vet Brings Home Baby Deer With A Missing Leg Only To Discover That He's Not Everything He Seems Honest To Paws Here’s Why Guys Are Obsessed With This Underwear… The Weekly Brief | Mack Weldon

ABOUT CYNDI Cyndi Brannen is a witch and spiritual teacher living the coastal life in rural Nova Scotia. She is a trained energetic healer, psychic and herbalist. Merging together her training in shamanism, Tarot, past life work, meditation and her twenty year career as a psychologist, she teaches and writes about better living through witchcraft. She founded Open Circle about a decade ago which now offers online courses, including The Sacred Seven: A Course in Applied Modern Witchcraft. She has written the forthcoming Keeping Her Keys: An Introduction to Hekate’s Modern Witchcraft. Hekate’s Modern Witchcraft: The First Key is a year-and-a-day course that will start November 1. More info at keepingherkeys.com You can read more about the author here. PREVIOUS POST

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[carldavidson]

Graphic by Carl Davidson Right click on it and open in new tab to get a closer look.

The U.S. ‘Six Party System' 3.0: Revising the Hypothesis Again

By Carl Davidson

Keep on Keepin' On

"Successful strategic thinking starts with gaining knowledge, particular gaining adequate knowledge of the big picture; of all the political and economic forces involved…It's not a one-shot deal. Since both Heaven and Earth are always changing, strategic thinking must always be kept up to date, reassessed and revised."

May 30, 2018 - This statement above was part of the opening to a widely circulated article I wrote twice, about two and four years ago. With the upcoming November 2018 elections, it's time to take my own advice again and do another update. The strategic terrain is always changing, and we don't want to be stuck with old maps and faulty models.

In the earlier versions,  I suggested setting aside the traditional ‘two-party system' frame, which obscures far more than it reveals, and making use of a ‘six-party' model instead. The new hypothesis, I suggested, had far more explanatory power regarding the events unfolding before us. Some critics have objected to my use of the term ‘party' for what are really factional or interest group clusters. The point is taken, but I would also argue that US major parties, in general, are not ideological parties in the European sense, but constantly changing coalitions of these clusters with no firm commitment to program or discipline. So I will continue to use ‘parties,' but with the objection noted. You can substitute ‘factions' if you like. Or find us a better term.

For the most part, the strategic picture holds. The ‘six parties', under two tents, were first labeled as the Tea Party and the Multinationalists under the GOP tent, and the Blue Dogs, the Third Way New Democrats, the Old New Dealers, and the Congressional Progressive Caucus, under the Democratic tent. In the second version, we had three ‘parties' under each. 

First and most important for us on the left was the rise of Bernie Sanders, who showed far more strength than imagined.  The second was the dramatic and unexpected flowering of Trump and rightwing populism on the right. Both of these, from different directions, challenged, narrowed and weakened the dominant neoliberal hegemonic bloc, which spanned both the GOP multinationals and the Third Way Democrats. It saw the Blue Dogs disappear and the Tea Party divide into Rightwing Populists and Christian Nationalists. Now here's the new snapshot of the range of forces for today, (including a graphic map). The two main changes are the re-emergence of the Blue Dogs, due to the recent three-way breakup of the Labor-Liberal center bloc, and the powerful growth of the Rightwing Populists under Trump. Starting from the left upper corner of the map:

The Rightwing Populists. This ‘party' has mushroomed via the Trump candidacy and unexpected 2016 victory. Trump, an ‘outlier elite' in his own right, is now directly connected to the Robert Mercer family fortune, the 4th ranking billionaire funding right causes. For example, the Mercers keep Breitbart News afloat and funded the career of Steve Bannon, former Trump ‘strategist' that took him to victory in the last stretch. Now along with Breitbart, Fox news is the hourly mouthpiece for Trump's war against the mainstream ‘fake news' mass media. Trump and his allies are waging political warfare against the ‘Deep State.' This is actually a contest for a new ‘America First' nationalist hegemony against the neoliberal globalists under both tents, the GOP Establishment and the Democrat's Third Way. This also includes the ‘intelligence community,' with a long list of Trump-targetted CIA and FBI ‘corrupt leaders', of which FBI director James Comey was the first to fall. ‘Corruption' was their refusal to pledge loyalty to Trump personally, like an old-style Mafia boss.

Trump also has a strong alliance with the Christian Nationalists (Mike Pence, Betsy DeVos, et al), and the DeVos family (Amway fortune), which represents another billionaire donor to the GOP right. Devos's brother, Erik Prince, has also massed billions from his Blackwater/Xe firms that train thousands of mercenaries to serve as ‘private contractors' for US armed intervention anywhere.

Where these two blocs under the GOP tent grew in strength all during the campaign, the Establishment Neoliberals divided a dozen ways, and they were defeated with some humiliation one by one. After the primaries, they were much weaker and were left with the choice of surrender, voting for Hillary Clinton (HRC) or staying home.

Trump's reach under the Dem tent to form an alliance with the Blue Dogs was more tactical. It stemmed from his appeals to ‘Rust Belt' Democrats and some unions on trade and tariff issues, plus white identity resentment politics. The economic core of rightwing populism remains anti-global ‘producerism' vs ‘parasitism'. Employed workers, business owners, real estate developers, small bankers are all ‘producers', and they oppose parasite groups above and below, but mainly those of ‘the Other' below them—the unemployed (Get a Job! as an epithet), the immigrants, poor people of color, Muslims, and more. 

Trump entered politics by declaring Obama to be an illegal alien and an illegitimate office holder (a parasite above), but quickly shifted to Mexicans and Muslims and anyone associated with ‘Black Lives Matter.' This was aimed at pulling the fascist and white supremacist groups of the ‘Alt Right,' using Breitbart and worse to widen their circles, close to Trump's core. With these as ready reserves, Trump reached farther into Blue Dog territory and its workers, retirees, and business owners conflicted with white identity issues—immigration, Islamophobia, misogyny, and more.

Trump's outlook has deep roots in American history, from the anti-Indian ethnic cleansing of President Andrew Jackson to the nativism of the Know Nothings, to the lynch terror of the KKK, to the anti-elitism of George Wallace and the Dixiecrats. Internationally, he combines aggressive jingoism, threats of trade wars, and an isolationist ‘economic nationalism' aimed at getting others abroad to fight your battles for you, while you pick up the loot (we should have seized and kept the oil!).

All this has set up the Rightwing Populists, aligned with Christian Nationalists, in a bid for hegemony over Establishment Neoliberals. So far, Trump is making gains, and the November midterms will bright to light the new balance. Trump's successes, however, also contain his internal weaknesses: the support of distressed white workers. At present, they are forming a key social base of his victories, assuming they will get lush jobs or rising 401Ks of the ‘Make America Great Again!' promises. The problem, however, is that Trump has not implemented any substantive programs apart from tax cuts. These mainly benefit the top 10% and create an unstable class contradiction in his operation, one bound to surface as promises are unfulfilled. His white supremacist demagogy and misogyny has also united a wide array of all nationalities of color and many women and youth against him. 

The Christian Nationalists. This is a subset of the former Tea Party made up of several Christian rightist trends, that has gained more coherence with the election of Mike Pence. It's made up of many who are simply conservative evangelicals.  A good number, however, are theocracy-minded fundamentalists, especially the ‘Dominionist' sects in which Ted Cruz's father is active. They present themselves as the only true, ‘values-centered' (Biblical) conservatives. They argue against any kind of compromise with the globalist ‘liberal-socialist bloc', which ranges, in their view, from the GOP's Mitt Romney to Bernie Sanders. They are more akin to classical liberalism than neoliberalism in economic policy, and thus stress abandoning nearly all regulations, much of the safety net, overturning Roe v. Wade, getting rid of marriage equality (in the name of ‘religious liberty') and abolishing the IRS and any progressive taxation in favor of a single flat tax. 

This is a key reason they attract money from the Koch Brothers, while the Kochs hold Trump and his populists in some contempt. As mentioned above, they also have some access to the Devos fortunes.

Effectively, Christian nationalist  ‘prosperity economics' amounts to affirmative action for the better off, where the rise of the rich is supposed to pull everyone else upwards, so long as those below also pay their tithes and pull upward on their ‘bootstraps.' They do argue for neo-isolationism on some matters, but favor an all-out holy war on ‘radical Islamic terrorism,' to the point of ‘making the sand glow.' They pushed for moving the US Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem and ripping up the Iran nuclear deal. All this is aimed at greasing the skids for the ‘End Times,' the ‘Rapture, ‘and the ‘Second Coming' in the Middle East. With Cruz, Pence and Devos as leaders, they have become the second most powerful grouping under the GOP tent, and the one with the most reactionary platform and outlook, even more so than Trump.

The Establishment Neoliberals. This is the name now widely used in the media for what we previously labeled the Multinationalists. It's mainly the upper crust and neoliberal business elites that have owned and run the GOP for years, including the quasi-libertarian House ‘Freedom Caucus,' the smaller group of NeoCons on foreign policy (John Bolton and John McCain), and the shrinking number of RINO (Republican In Name Only) moderates. The Establishment also favors a globalist, US hegemonist and even, at times, unilateralist approach abroad, with some still defending the Bush-Cheney disaster in Iraq. Their candidates were Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio, but when both of these collapsed under fire from Donald Trump, their voice was reduced to that of John Kasich, governor of Ohio. Kasich presents himself as a pragmatic, pro-worker neoliberal, a difficult circle to square. But he had the NSA/CIA's Michael Hayden and many from the ‘Intelligence Community' in his camp near the end. When Kasich was defeated, some went over to Clinton. Under Mitch McConnell's smothering wings, most are riding out the Trump vs ‘Deep State' storms in silence, as best as they can.

This is a big change. Previously dominant in the GOP and anchored on Wall Street, the Establishment forces were seriously weakened by both the Rightwing Populists and the Christian Nationalists.  It's possible they could be pushed out entirely, but a lot will depend on the results of Robert Mueller's investigations and the outcome of the 2018 mid-term elections. They could purge a weakened Trump and rebuild. They could try to form a new party with neoliberal Dems. Or they could join the Dems and try to push out or smother those to the left of HRC's grouping.

Now let's turn to the Dem tent, starting at the top of the graphic.

The Blue Dogs. This ‘party', while still small, has grown and gained some energy. This is largely because the United Steel Workers and a few craft unions decided to ‘work with' Trump on tariffs and trade. The USW got firmly behind Connor Lamb for Congress. Lamb's narrow victory was won in a Western PA CD in a rural and conservative area, but with a good number of USW miners. Now that the earlier gerrymandered lines have changed, however, Lamb has to run again in the new 17th CD, which is Beaver County and part of Pittsburgh itself, where Trump has less support. Support for ‘Medicare for All' is strong in this area. Lamb claims to favor it but claims it's unaffordable for now. This is a sore point for a good number of left progressive Democrats. They're likely to vote for him, but put their energies into working for better candidates running for legislative seats in Harrisburg.

The Blue Dog resurgence may not last. On one hand, the DNC Third Way gang currently loves people like Lamb, and want to see more candidates leaning to the center and even the right. On the other hand, Trump is unstable on tariffs. If he doesn't follow through on those he has put out as proposals, and folds up on major infrastructure plans save for ‘building The Wall, the unions involved may turn against him.

The Third Way New Democrats. Formed by the Clintons, with an international assist from Tony Blair and others, this dominant ‘party' was funded by Wall Street finance capitalists. The founding idea was to move toward neoliberalism by ‘creating distance' between themselves and the traditional Left-Labor-Liberal bloc, i.e., the traditional unions and civil rights groups still connected to the New Deal legacy. Another part of the ‘Third Way' thinking was to shift the key social base away from the core of the working class toward college-educated suburban voters, but keeping alliances with Black and women's groups still functional.

Thus the Third Way tries to temper the harsher neoliberalism of the GOP by ‘triangulating' with neo-Keynesian and left-Keynesian policies. But the overall effect is to move Democrats and their platform generally rightward. This had been Hillary Clinton's starting point in her campaign. But caught off guard by the Sanders insurgency, she adopted some positions, at least for the sake of campaigning, from both the former Liberal-Labor bloc and the Congressional Progressive Caucus. She kept her ‘Rainbow' allies with her this way.

Now that HRC was narrowly defeated, the Third Way's power in the party has diminished somewhat. Its labor alliances have weakened, with unions now going in three directions. In terms of the current relation of forces in the party apparatus, the Third Way about 60% of the positions but still controls the major money. In California, for example, the Regulars kept control of the state party committee only with extremely narrow margins over Bernie supporters. The key test is the November midterms: Who will inspire and mobilize the much-needed ‘Blue Wave', give it focus and put the right numbers in the right places?  The measured moderates? Or the insurgent left? This brings us to the last of the six ‘parties.'

The Social Democrats. This is a better description than simply calling it the Congressional Progressive Caucus, as in the first version. I've also taken off ‘Rainbow' from the second version because this term is more fairly shared with the Third Way, which has kept the older and more pragmatic voters of the rainbow groupings under its centrist influence. And as before, the ‘Social Democrat' title doesn't mean each leader active here is in a social-democrat group. It means the core of the CPC, PDA, WFP and Our Revolution platforms are roughly similar to the left social democrat groupings in Europe.  

This is made even more evident with Bernie's self-description as a ‘democratic socialist' in the primaries, where it only seemed to help. It must be noted, however, that the platform is not socialism itself, but best described as a common front vs finance capital, war, and the white supremacist right. This is true of groups like Die Linke (‘The Left') in Germany as well. 

Finally, there is the dramatic growth of the Democratic Socialists of America due to their wise tactics in the Bernie campaign. They went all in for Bernie but also lost no opening to make themselves visible. Now with over 32.000 members which chapters in every state, they are winning a few local and statehouse races. They are now a player in their own right.

This is all to the good. The common front approach can unite more than a militant minority of actual socialists. Instead, it's a platform that can also unite a progressive majority around both immediate needs and structural reforms, including both socialists and non-socialists. Apart from winning many state primaries and 46% of the Convention delegates with a positive, high road approach, this party is now noted for two things: first, the huge, elemental outpourings of young people, mainly women, students and the young workers of the distressed ‘precariat' sector of the class, in elemental risings of millions after Trump took office.  Second, its organized character, with groups like Our Revolution, Indivisible, and the Working Families Party added to this dynamic and growing cluster.

What Does It All Mean?

With this brief descriptive and analytical mapping of the upper crust of American politics, many things are falling into place. The formerly subaltern groupings in the GOP have risen in revolt against the Neoliberal Establishment of the Romneys and the Bushes. Now they want hegemony. On the other hand, the Third Wayer are seeking a ‘restoration' of the Obama coalition, with its alliances with the Keynesian Labor Liberals, while co-opting and controlling the Social Democrats as energetic but critical secondary ally. The Sanders forces have few illusions about this and don't want to be anyone's subaltern. So they continue to press all their issues and policies of a common front vs finance capital, war, and the white supremacist right, building more organization and more clout as they go.

This 'big picture' also reveals much about the current budget debates, which are shown to be three-sided--the extreme austerity neoliberalism of all three parties under the GOP tent, , the 'austerity lite' budget of the Third Way-dominated Senate Democrats, and the left Keynesian, progressive and social democratic 'Back to Work' budget of the Social Democrats and the Congressional Progressive Caucus. The 'Keynesian Labor Liberals' are divided, though they often holding decent programs as positions. But looking for side deals with Trump at the same time may not turn out too well. 

We have to keep in mind, however, that 'shifting the balance of forces' is mainly an indirect and somewhat ephemeral gain. It does 'open up space', but for what? Progressive initiatives matter for sure, but much more is required strategically. We are interested in pushing the popular front vs. finance capital to its limits, and within that effort, developing a 21st-century socialist bloc. If that comes to scale in the context of a defeat of the right, the 'Democratic Tent' is also likely to collapse and implode, given the sharper class contractions and other fault lines that lie within it, much as the Whigs did in the 19th Century. That demands an ability to regroup all the progressive forces there and on the outside into a new 'First Party' alliance, one that also includes a militant minority of socialists, which will be able to contend for power.

An old classic formula summing up the strategic thinking of the united front is appropriate here: 'Unite and develop the progressive forces, win over the middle forces, isolate and divide the backward forces, then crush our adversaries one by one.' In short, we have to have a policy and set of tactics for each one of these elements, as well as a strategy for dealing with them overall. Moreover, take note of warning from the futurist Alvin Toffler: 'If you don't have a strategy, you're part of someone else's strategy.' Then finally, as to tactics, ‘wage struggle on just grounds, to our advantage and with restraint.'

To conclude, we still need to start with a realistic view of ourselves as an organized socialist left. Save for DSA, we are quite small as organizations, but now we can see we are swimming in a sea of millions open to socialism. What can we do now? If you can see yourself or your group honestly working to achieve DSA's stated program, by all means, join and make them larger. Or set up Jacobin / In These Times Reading Groups in your living rooms and unite socialists with them. Join or start PDA or WFP chapters everywhere, use base organizations and broad 'Third Reconstruction' alliances and popular rainbow assemblies to build mass mobilizations and defeat the GOP in November. 

With both socialists and Rainbow progressives, start at the base, focus on city and state governments, and expand the Congressional Progressive Caucus. You rarely gain victories at the top that have not been won and consolidated earlier at the base. Most of all, in order to form broader and winning coalitions, you need organizations of your own to form coalitions and alliances WITH! Seize the time and Git ‘er done!

Carl Davidson is a national committee member of the Committee of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism,  a DSA member in the Steel Valley, an activist with Progressive Democrats of American in Western PA's 17th CD, and a LeftRoots Compa. The views expressed here are his own.