Paul Krugman once again eviscerates the Republican Party. And to think that many on the left for a long time said there was no difference between the GOP and the Democrats. The persistence of this notion in left circles lies in the fact that too many on the left fear being tagged as insufficiently radical, as an opportunist. Thus protecting one’s left flank became a preoccupation, far more important than soberly looking at reality. This isn’t the only reason for this blind spot, but it wasn’t a minor factor either.

To say that a process of class de-alignment is occurring across Europe and the U.S. without any qualification strikes me as one sided at best. At worst it’s filled with a narrow, old, and simply mistaken understanding of the contemporary working class and its changing profile in these countries.

I read an article in Jacobin last night that was a diatribe against, of all people (or should I say candidates) Elizabeth Warren. Her candidacy, it was said, has no potential to end the “class de-alignment” that structures U.S. politics in various ways. Only Bernie’s candidacy possesses that potential, even if Bernie is “only” a social democrat. I can’t recall any mention of the urgency of defeating Trump and the necessity of broad democratic unity that should flow from that imperative.

There is a lot to take issue with in this article, but thinking more about it, I began to wonder how much such thinking resonates with people in general and young people in particular. Probably not much.

I’m afraid that if Bernie doesn’t secure the Democratic Party’s nomination (and Bernie would make a great candidate), some on the ideological left will take a pass on the general election. They may vote, but do little, practical speaking, in the months leading up to election day, while damming the nominee with faint praise. It will be a reprise of 2016, although lesser so, I suspect. It is hard to sustain such a position in the face of the prospect of a second term for Trump with all its attendant dangers.

In the House Judiciary hearing last night the politics of resentment and grievance were on full display as GOP House members turned the impeachment of Trump into a concocted attack on Trump’s supporters. More than one said that it was an attempt to nullify their 2016 vote. They did it with a full mix of lies, demagogy, sheer invention, and plenty of outrage.

But I wonder if it resonates much beyond Trump’s loyal supporters. My guess is that it doesn’t. But maybe that isn’t its purpose anyway. Maybe it’s to confuse and wear out the rest of us. Maybe it’s to make us throw up our hands in despair and retreat into our private lives where we can find some happiness and solace from the storms and recriminations in the public world. My only advice to this abusive and sustained onslaught is to repeat what a much older friend would invariably tell me (in Latin no less) upon finishing our occasional lunches together: Don’t Let the Bastards Grind You Down!