That depends on whether you want to be a literal buddhist , or a secular buddhist obviously . The biggest mistake new people make is often confusing them together . Which isn ' t their fault of course , since there ' s hordes of people who talk about them like they are the same thing . <| sep |> This is complete bullshit . The Democratic Party was blockaded from doing anything progressive toward the working class for the past 8 years because a majority Republican congress sabotaged any useful policies that would enact the establishment of jobs , infrastructure spending , and economic advantages progressive tax system . Obama tried to enact these things for years but he was swimming against a current and only pushed out further and further