Rik's Primary Pledge for 2019-2020
1. I will enthusiastically support and vote for the Democratic Party candidate for President in November 2020 no matter who he or she may be and whether or not she or he was my preference in the primaries.
2. I will not speak ill of any Democratic contender's person or character during the primary season, no matter how obnoxious or unfairly I may feel his or her supporters are behaving or how her or his campaign is being conducted. This applies to all forums or discussions in which I choose to participate. I will confine my remarks to concrete discussion of policy and program positions taken by a contender and confine any criticism to that realm.
3. I will not belittle, or otherwise disparage any supporter of a different Democratic contender for the nomination.
4. Though I expect to have a preference for a particular contender emerge at some point, I will not directly express that preference nor will I attempt to change the minds of those who have preferences that are different from mine. I choose to deliberately eschew open advocacy and transparency in favor of listening to the thoughts and opinions of others.
5. I will not enter or entertain any discussion that involves a third party or an insurgency against the regular order of the Democratic Party.
6. I will not forget that there are hundreds of important races at the federal, state and local levels nor will I obsess about the single presidential contest. Instead I will actively engage with as many candidates and causes at diverse levels as I can manage.
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The above was written in December 2018 and incorporates suggestions from several folks who reviewed a preliminary version in an open thread. Note that this is my pledge and participation is entirely voluntary.