...on your great post:
This is what we have said for years. It is hard to convey how unlikely a win for any Democrat in 2004 would have been - just given the approval rating, the economy, and the bonding over 911. To add to that a media that really was biased and hurt him the most by filtering everything he did so severely that many never heard things he spoke of multiple times a day. Add in the Catholic church in some areas - obsessed about the 2+ likely SCJ and abortion. Then add in that he picked the lame narcissistic party favorite for VP, who was completely unhelpful. (The latter being the only liability that was partly his fault.)
I am sure the win was unlikely. That is why the 'so-called loss' stung so badly for many of us, considering how well he did, how hard he worked, and how unfair the media was...not to mention Karl Rove and Ohio.
I also wonder if he would not have had cancer in 2003 if that could have made a difference. He looks younger and more energetic now - 8 years later! Not to mention, if he were at the DNC in February 2003, it would have been much harder for Dean to be seen as the only anti-war candidate - which might have helped.
Cancer absolutely makes a difference...even if caught early and successfully treated. Besides all the physical effects, emotional effects are tremendous. As a two time survivor, I will tell you that cancer realigns your life priorities and changes your focus on what is important in life. The diagnosis is highly stressful, because one worries about how it will affect loved ones...almost more than one's self. It reminds you that we are all mortal, and time is finite. I would never presume to guess how that changes a person. We are all different. But it DOES change a person.
As it was, more people now seem to accept that the voting machine shortage in Democratic areas likely caused his loss of Ohio. This would have been the most incredible upset in American history reflecting just how good he is/was.
There was a shortage. There were also defective machines...machines that could not be verifed or recounted, although they tried. This is where I disagree with some that JK didn't do enough...he absolutely did try to get to the truth.
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