I was going to post an image of my nine-year-old friend Katie. I was going to tell you what a great little girl she is. I was going to tell you about how much her family loves her, and how hard they have worked to learn how to keep Katie healthy, despite her cerebral palsy. I was going to tell you about how her little brother Jake lovingly teases his sister, even when straining to push her wheelchair.
But I decided not to get into any of that. You don't deserve the honor of seeing Katie's picture, or hearing about her family's greatness.
Instead, I am going to keep the commitment I made to Katie's parents last night and pass on a message to you.
They hate you.
When I was younger, my uncle would tell me about an old insult that was hurled at the American left, saying that, as progressive as he was, he found was true for far too many:
Some of the liberals who love humanity hate people. And, non-voters, that is you.
You have been so wrapped up in your self-righteousness, blind commitment to yourself and egocentricity that you have lost the ability to see people like Katie. For the past few months, I have laid out every argument for why you should vote, usually by talking about the millions of people - like Katie -- who have been helped and given hope by Obama. But, to those people-hating ones, your response has always been, but what about my issues! What about war crimes trials against the Bush Administration? What about not getting out of Afghanistan on a faster time schedule than Obama ever promised? What about not putting out a larger stimulus? What about no public option?
And then, when I tried be a bit more aggressive in my persuasion, your answer was the same: Oh, you're being mean. That's no way to persuade me to vote. You need to be nice to me if you are going to persuade me. Me me me me me me me me me.
So I held my tongue, my fury at you growing everytime I thought about the kids who can now get college loans, and the consumers who are now protected from abuse, and the middle class worker who can enjoy a bit more money from a tax cut, or the woman who can and the women who now have the Lilly Ledbetter act to fight for equal pay. Or the auto worker who kept his job. And, I thought about Katie.
Katie has a preexisting condition. Her father lost his job, and his benefits. They could not find any insurance that would cover Katie's treatments, because pre-existing conditions aren't covered.
They were the first beneficiaries of the health care bill. As soon as the portion dealing with children and preexisting conditions became effective, they ran out and found insurance. Katie is now covered. Her parents couldn't have been happier.
But last night, I held Katie's mother as she cried. I watched Katie's father silently sitting on a stuffed chair, beer in his hand and tears in his eyes. I watched as they went to check on Katie, who was sleeping in my spare room, and looked at her with fear.
The House was gone. The Senate hung in the balance. This was not some abstract "I-hate-rethugs" moment. This was, would they lose their insurance for their daughter? Would Katie be with them for less time because HCR would now be under attack by all of Congress?
The tears didn't stop when the Dems held the Senate. Wouldn't there be an endless assault on HCR? the mom asked me. What if next go round, the conservatives took the Senate, and maybe even the White House? Why did the life of her child have to be dependent on the whims of the electorate?
And then, they got mad. At you. "How can these people be so selfish that they can't bring themselves to understand how much they are letting real people get hurt? Why can't they appreciate progress? Why does it have to be their way or no way." Those were the kinds of questions they asked.
Had the dems and libs come out in force, Katie's dad said, then his family would be celebrating. Now, they will be checking the papers and watching the polls for 2012 every day, terrified of the outcome.
When they were ready to head home, Katie's dad said: "If you go on that site (he didn't remember it was called Daily Kos; he's not an internet guy) please tell those people who wouldn't vote how much my family hates them.''
It was after that I checked DK. The first thing I saw? Some jackass calling for a 2012 progressive candidate to take on Obama. My only response -- "Oh, shut up."
I have kept my word to Katie's dad. Now, all of you non-voters can begin your bellyaching. Oh, this story isn't true. (the denial of people who hate real people.) Oh, you were mean to me. Oh, this is not the way to get me to vote.
Me, me, me, me, me.
UPDATE: Some people misunderstand that this is an attempt to lay blame on why we lost the house. it is not; i dont know the numbers well enough. certainly a bigger turnout would have shifted things to some degree. what i do know is that so many people on hear preened about their unwillingness to vote, and bitched whenever anyone talked about the consequences. i am posting this now because i have held back on my fury, for fear of "offending" those who said "oh, you're mean, now im REALLY not going to vote,'' whenever i tried to speak. So, no, this is not about blame. it is about the hypocrisy of the non-voter.