“Populism is at its essence just determined focus on helping people be able to get out of the iron grip of the corporate power that is overwhelming our economy, our environment, energy, the media, government. One big difference between real populism and what the Tea Party thing is, is that real populists understand that government has become a subsidiary of corporations. So you can't say, let's get rid of government. You need to be saying let's take over government.” PeopleNeedsRealHelpingBigsGovernmentAbleEnergyDifferencesPartyEconomyEnvironmentFocusMediaEssenceDeterminedTeaCorporateCorporationsIronOverwhelmingHelping PeopleOur EnvironmentTea PartyPopulistPopulism Author:Jim Hightower
“What created democracy was Thomas Paine and Shays Rebellion, the suffragists and the abolitionists and on down through the populists and the labor movement, including the Wobblies. Tough, in your face people... Mother Jones, Woody Guthrie... Martin Luther King and Caesar Chavez. And now it’s down to us.” PeopleFacesMotherDemocracyMovementKingsToughLaborIncludingRebellionYour FaceLutherWoodyPopulistAbolitionistLabor MovementPaineChavezShaySuffragists Author:Jim Hightower
“Populism is not a style, it's a people's rebellion against the iron grip that big corporations have on our country - including our economy, government, media, and environment.” PeopleCountryBigsGovernmentEconomyEnvironmentMediaStyleIncludingOur CountryCorporationsIronRebellionPopulismBig Corporations Author:Jim Hightower
“But the good news is that out in the countryside, just about every place that's got a zip code has somebody or some group of people battling the economic and political exclusion that Wall Street and Washington are shoving down our throats.” PeoplePoliticalGroupsEconomicStreetsWallNewsCodeThroatGood NewsCountrysideExclusionZips Author:Jim Hightower
“The media isn't only asleep; it doesn't want to know this news, that the people are revolting, in the very best sense of the term, revolting against the thieves in high places and reaching out to each other, which is our great strength.” PeopleKnowsWantTermMediaNewsReachingReach OutThievesHigh Places Author:Jim Hightower
“The media isn't only asleep; it doesn't want to know the news, that the people are revolting, in the very best sense of the term, revolting against the thieves in high places and reaching out to each other, which is our great strength. When you can draw that many people, you've got something going. You don't have to worry if the guys in suits are going to put it on the front page or not.” PeopleGuyTermWorryReach Out Author:Jim Hightower
“Bush and the corporate kleptocrats have stomped on too many people and left too many people out of the system, and those people are now in rebellion. It's not just poor people they are holding down but the middle class, as well. I have a favorite bumper sticker I saw on a pickup truck last year in Austin. It said, "Where are we going? And what am I doing in this hand basket?"” PeoplePoorMiddle ClassRebellionPoor PeopleTruckBumperStickerBumper Sticker Author:Jim Hightower
“Most people have a sense that things have gone terribly wrong. It's not just some giveaways to the rich and the rigging of regulatory rules. It's something fundamental. The very idea of America is being stolen, and people are sensing that with a tremor within their hearts. They are taking away this core notion of the common good, this idea that we are all in it together. They are diverting America from our historic striving towards egalitarianism, which is why America exists. It's the thing that makes us unique in history. That's what people are sensing. We are going down the wrong path.” PeopleHeartTogetherCommonPathRichUniqueStriveHistoricCommon Good Author:Jim Hightower
“Some people say we need a third party. I wish we had a second one.” PeopleNeedsWishPartyThirdsThird Parties Author:Jim Hightower
“The good news, though, is that I find in my political travels that people, as regular citizens, are more interested than ever in getting together and having discussions. They want to hear about other viewpoints that differ entirely from what the administration is putting out.” PeopleWantTogetherPoliticalCitizensNewsAdministrationDiscussionGood NewsViewpoints Author:Jim Hightower
“Founders v. Bush brings the wisdom and eloquence of the Founding Fathers back to the people, while unmasking the fraudulent PR machine that is corrupting their words and stealing our legacy.” PeopleFatherMachinesStealingLegacyFoundersFoundingEloquenceUnmasking Author:Jim Hightower
“The original Greek word "idiotes" referred to people who might have had a high IQ, but were so self-involved that they focused exclusively on their own life and were both ignorant of and uncaring about public concerns and the common good.” PeopleSelfMightCommonInvolvedConcernOriginalsFocusedLibertarianIgnorantGreekCommon GoodUncaring Author:Jim Hightower
“Liberals want to manage the damage with government programs to take care of those who have fallen between the cracks. Populists want to fix the cracks so that people don't fall in the first place.” PeopleWantFirstsGovernmentCareFallProgramTake CareManageFallenDamageCracksPopulistGovernment Programs Author:Jim Hightower
“We've got to go to the people with bold ideas and candidates of conviction - we've got to be hotter than high school love.” PeopleIdeasSchoolPoliticsHigh SchoolConvictionCandidatesHotterHigh School Love Author:Jim Hightower
