The worst part of primary season on DU is seeing posters you respect become creatures of a candidate

[jpgray]

Take the same basic behavior from all three candidates (there are slight differences, but all the same):

1. General praise of Reagan

2. Marketing a campaign via insultingly facile and vague platitudes that don't match up with their respective legislative records, which avoid (or avoided) controversy at all costs.

3. Investing in or taking money from groups that represent a blatant contradiction of rhetoric or basic integrity.

All of them do it! To some degree or other. Yet what will you see? Supporters of a candidate will attach the most benevolent, snow-pure motivations and context to these behaviors when their candidate engages in such, and will attach the most malevolent, abhorrent motivations and context to the same behaviors from opposing candidates. And each camp will loudly wonder in snarky, condescending tones how the other can be so ignorant.

It's really childish, it's really useless, and it's extremely depressing to see it in posters you respect. I still respect those posters, but Primary Fever and candidate hero worship is always a lessening of a person, in my view. I get that the stakes seem so high that everybody refuses to get an inch, but it sure gets tiresome. And I'm sure I've been guilty of the same behavior, and have lost people's respect as a result.

[babylonsister]

1. No, there's a level below that. People who CRITICIZE posters of candidates

who have made up their minds and are defending their candidates.

Anyone who does that doesn't pass the 'condescending'test imo. Et bon soir! :hi:

[Hawkeye-X]

2. Been there, done that, got the T-shirt.

Vet of '00, '02, '04, '06 elections.

It's been a bloody effin' mess.

[jpgray]

3. I was very guilty of it in '04, tied myself in a few knots to rationalize bad policy/statements

It always felt pretty miserable, even though I was convinced I was having an impact. :rofl:

[DemBones DemBones]

5. You got a T-shirt? Where's my T-shirt? I was here

from the get-go, too. Primaries are the pits, I'm about to go on sabbatical again.

[Nailzberg]

4. Luckily, no one respects me anyway. n/t