Message to Bernie Sanders Supporters from a Bernie Sanders Supporter: Stop Acting like Petulant Children

During President Obama’s speech at the Democratic National Convention he said something very important: “don’t boo, vote”. This is important to say because quite frankly people on the left and young people just do not go out and vote. I am a 23 year old living in Orange County, CA. I voted for Bernie Sanders in the California primary even though Sanders had NO chance of winning. I did it because I believed in his vision for this country. Unfortunately Sanders didn’t win the nomination and while I am very disturbed by the DNC email leak I must say that Sanders got less of the popular vote than Hillary Clinton. Meaning he lost fair and square.

Now that Hillary Clinton is the nominee, I find myself very troubled by how a group of Sanders supporters are acting. People are so angry that their guy did not win the nomination that they are hijacking the DNC. One man even heckled the President of the United States during his speech. Not all of Sanders supporters are doing this, but enough of them are doing this so much that I had to write this. When Bernie Sanders endorsed Hillary Clinton for the Presidency, I heard some the most ridiculous and frankly stupid comments ever. The Young Turks interviewed a man who said that he felt like Bernie “drove them over a cliff” by endorsing Clinton. This, in my mind, is very ignorant because Bernie has said that he would endorse her if she becomes nominee during the campaign. So when did this “betrayal” start? When He endorsed her earlier this week or back then? This attitude that Bernie somehow betrayed is supporters is completely insane. Did Hillary betray her supporters when she endorsed Barack Obama for president in 2008? This is a

Secondly I have seen Sanders supporters say how they are “done voting for the lesser of two evils”. Some have even said they would vote for Donald Trump because he “shake up the system”. Lets imagine that Trump wins because of either of these attitudes. The “Political Revolution” that Bernie started, and is continuing to fight for, would come to a screeching halt. Trump would nominate conservative supreme court justices that would undo years of social progress AND would not even consider repealing citizen’s united. A Trump presidency would mean the amount of action that the United States takes on climate change would be absolutely ZERO. Just think about the dangers a Trump presidency presents and it should strike fear into your heart. This idea of voting third party led to TWO terms for George W. Bush, a man who put this country into an unbelievable recession and through two wars that have destabilized the middle east. I probably won’t change most people’s mind, hell most people won’t even read this, but think about a Trump presidency and think about the ideas that Bernie Sanders puts forward. Do they jive together? The answer is a resounding NO.

I get that young people want progress but the kind of progress that Bernie wants doesn’t happen over night. Its slow, difficult, and tiresome but you do it because you believe in it. I understand that young people are impatient, I should know, but that isn’t how large sweeping political movements work. Thinking that electing Trump would force the democratic party to become more progressive is beyond stupid. That is downright dangerous. I mainly wrote this to get this off my chest and it is highly doubtful that people are going to read this. But if you do and if you are a Sanders supporter, think critically. Bernie Sanders asked you to elect Hillary Clinton to continue his revolution. Heed his warning. Do not elect Dumb Ass Donald.