Reply #143: I didn't ask that.

[LittleClarkie]

Not talking about Kerry at the moment. The reaction I see to him just brings up a larger issue in my mind.

How hard or easy is it for us, come election time, to stand up for someone who isn't exactly what we were looking for. We may have to do that with Warner or Clinton. Over here in the Dem Party, it is a good thing we are so critical. It keeps us honest. And yet it is a bad thing we are so critical, as we give our enemies ammo.

Regardless of who we run, it is a puzzle we may have to solve before the next election.

Or are we just stuck with this system where in the process of weeding out candidates we rip them to shreds to the point where all the Republicans have to do is pick up OUR playbook and run with it?

Am I just seeing the effect of a large primary group of candidates? If so, I'm thinking that 2008 is going to be just as full of factions, luckily on both sides.

Forgive me. I barely participated in the primaries. I was only a vague Clarkie stuck with "Mr. Personality" when my vaguely supported candidate dropped out by Wisconsin.

I guess I just wish, in the process of supporting and/or not supporting one person or another, I didn't see us in some ways helping the Republicans.

If we could just give our Dem leaders SOME benefit of the doubt, not take their words out of context. I see a tendency to jump the gun in our reactions to these folks.

I dunno, maybe my problem is the internet. Places like this are like driving in traffic, where you have split second reactions almost on instinct.

I sorta wish I saw more circumspection, more thoughtfulness. More evidence that people were looking for the whole story. It's like someone's support lives or dies on one quote that may or may not be in context read on a messageboard.

Or maybe I'm just rambling because I never made my usual Starbucks run today. That could also be it.

If so, excuse me. Must. go. caffinate...

I'm just a Unity Gal at heart. How can we sew ourselves together as a group after particularly nasty primary seasons? That's what I wanna know.

It's also the reason I don't want to touch 2008 yet. Good God, we haven't recovered from the last one yet.

Oh right. Caffine. I'm going... I'm going...