Here's what kills me: I sort of expected this to happen.
Forgive the following sports analogy, but I think it fits nicely. I'm a big soccer fan, and I see this all the time! Our deeply divided, dualistic political system basically pits two "teams" against each other. When one plays dirty, it gives implicit permission for the other to play dirty as well, unless they don't need to do that to win. But if it is close, they can be relied on to smack a cheek in return.
So... After the humiliating defeat of Dukakis at the hands of Bush the father, the fiasco that was the 2000 elections that brought us Bush the son, and after years of reeling from Karl Rove's tactics, do we actually think that we will remain dirt-free this time?
Apparently, some of us did think so, including me. And apparently, we are about to be proven wrong.
And I was, in my own small way, part the posse that played dirty.
I'm likely naïve, and many would classify me as idealistic. But I happen to believe that two wrongs don't make a right. Ends do not justify the means.
I believe that we cannot simply fight nastiness with nastiness. If we have strong convictions in our progressive beliefs and goals, we would be abandoning them by engaging in practices that show no respect to human dignity and honor or are colored with tones of prejudice of any kind. As opposed to many, winning at all cost is not something I would be proud to contribute to.
One big part of the many reasons why I support Obama is the prospect, remote as it may be, of a political environment where Machiavelli is not the author of the play-book.
Barack Obama and his wife were slandered and continue to be. Their campaign's responses have been measured and largely avoided kicking McCain below the belt. But Democrats are not limited to Obama's campaign. In fact, and obviously, most Democrats are not employed by the campaign. The web ads, the viral videos, the emails and the blog posts that originate from our side of the pitch are just as much parts of this fight as the equivalent ones from Republicans.
The DailyKos is leading the progressive web presence. And what takes prominence at DK might actually spread widely and even reach some MSM outlets. So when the "playing dirty" type of diaries take prominence here, I take notice and struggle with it morally.
Which diaries? I guess it is easy for most to tell. Just ask yourself: "Could this diary be based on slander?", or "could this diary damage someone's personal dignity" whenever you read one. If there is even a remote likelihood of an affirmative answer, that would qualify as one of those diaries. And there have been many recently.
I am not one of the "holier than thou" gang. I have recommended many diaries that wouldn't pass the test of those two questions. In fact, I have recommended the diary that I found most offensive yesterday. I've been thinking about that since. It is easy to explain doing that. I can get rather excited at times, and always feel I need to help fight for Obama. And I will often do stupid things like what I did yesterday. But it was inexcusable.
Slandering a teenager, and interfering with what is a deeply intimate set of relationships within a family simply because it includes the Republican nominee for VP, would be similar to what supermarket tabloids do to make a living. And for supporting that, I apologize. My apology means nothing, but I have to apologize.
Moreover, I will write an apology letter and mail it to Mrs. Palin.
I would like to see my fellow Kossacks abandon this strategy. If you feel enraged whenever you hear of Karl Rove's name or read about him, please don't fall in this trap. If you are angered by the wingnut emails and the lies in McCain's ads, please direct your anger to making phone-calls, volunteering for or donating to Obama's campaign.
And if you were upset by seeing the same diaries that I'm talking about on the rec list, I'm sorry. If you are a parent, I'm sorry. If you are a spouse, I'm sorry. And if your parents have ever gone out of their way to help you in any way, I'm sorry. No matter who you are or what you believe, I'm sorry.
Update: Changed the title of the diary from "Are we any different?" to current title.