Notwithstanding t he points made in a highly recommended post today, Hillary Clinton isn’t the only Democrat. Ostensibly, we are all Democrats at Daily Kos. Now, as Democrats, we must choose our slate to carry our banners into the Fall campaign, against the completely unacceptable alternative, i.e. any Republican. It has been forever thus. Hence, divisions, disagreements, arguments and even shouting matches and pie fights are prone to break out, more or less continuously, among the denizens of this blog, until resolved by actual voters in the months to come.
All of our candidates have weaknesses and faults. All have demonstrable qualifications for taking on the sundry problems facing our country. Any would afford the country so much better a future than any Republican that the final choice in November should never be the issue. But some of us must support one and some another of these choices. In a medium of communication like Daily Kos, that unavoidably entails making points in opposition to the candidacy of one’s opponent(s).
Any opposition is a form of attack and only attacks not grounded in reality and known or surmised fact are negative attacks, so other forms of opposition ought to always be permitted, no matter how butthurt it might make the supporters of one side or another feel to have the point brought up. If facts are in dispute, a good robust discussion of what the facts may be is always in order. The only rule is don’t be a dick.
So, there are going to be those who question Bernie’s ability to serve as an effective commander-in-chief because his lifetime focus on veterans has left the Senator with little hands on experience of how to wield America’s awesome power on the national stage, an obvious plus for Secretary Clinton. The significance of such a thing is worthy of discussion. If you get involved, make a point, make an argument, don’t be a dick and get. over. it.
There are going to be those who question Hillary’s ability to unrig the American economy from it’s current oligarchy favoring the status quo, and her willingness to fight the oligarchs, to reclaim the benefits of Americans’ productivity growth for the people of this country Her ties to Wall Street and her wonkish, tinkering, triangulating history in public life raise questions about her intention or willingness to make the kind of dramatic changes to our economic set-up that Senator Sanders and his supporters feel is required to save America from a dystopian future of almost universal economic oppression. The significance of such a thing is worthy of discussion. If you get involved, make a point, make an argument, don’t be a dick and get. over. it.
One last point, about that whole GOP talking point thing. In politics, ethical candidates attack their opponents with all the truth and facts they can muster. Republicans do this and the unethical among them, like all of them, just make up whatever else they want in order to attack Democrats. If a Republican attacks Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders or Martin O’Malley with something that is true, it’s not a GOP talking point, its just a weakness they want to exploit. No candidate is perfect an all have weakenesses. So, the only thing that matters about any point made by anyone, is whether there is any truth to it. Then we can argue about it significance. It doesn’t matter that the GOP would attack our candidate with something. It only matters if there is any truth to it, and, if so, its significance to the election. All of that can be discussed between any two people without anybody being a dick.
Pie is on the menu until the nomination is settled and that’s going to take a long time. We can all gather ‘round the campfire then and sing Kumbaya. Until then, fight for your side, but don’t be a dick.