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why barack has a long way to go
By heather | May 12, 2008
Now that the Democrats have mostly-sort-of-unofficially decided to nominate Barack, I’d like to tell him why, through no fault of his own, he’s likely to lose in November.
Don’t get me wrong, I like the guy. I may even vote for him. So why will it be so hard to win when nearly everyone agrees that GWB is a big idiot and screwed up lots of stuff?
Because Democrats, as of right now, you’re killing yourselves with:
The News: It’s funny to hear Republicans complain about “liberal media” because from what I can see the liberal media is screwing the liberals and by extension, Democrats. The stories that are farthest to the left or the most controversial get the most press.
Gas prices! Mortgage crisis! Food crisis! Environment! War! Health care! Legitimate stories are blown out of proportion and dumbed down for mass consumption to reach the widest audience. The media slants the issues to get you to PAY ATTENTION and FREAK OUT. While you’re freaking out you are less likely to worry about the disenfranchised. Although we like to think everyone is making educated choices and not being unduly influenced by media, stories like this just don’t inspire confidence in the average American’s ability to remain rational.
Bloggers often take the time to research and present all the facts. But gasp! there are still lots of people out there that have no idea what a blog is or how to find one, and some even still get thier news on TV!
The Whining: You say requiring a government ID to vote further disenfranchises poor people and takes away Democratic votes? Guess what? Service members serving overseas often don’t have their votes counted. A good percentage of the military tends to vote Republican.
We’ve known for a while that our voting system isn’t perfect but generally participation in modern society requires ID. Not having your vote counted because it took too long to get there when it was sent from a war zone is at least as injust.
The Indecision and Confusion: What’s the deal with superdelegates anyway? Why are some votes more important than others? For a party that complained bitterly about the will of the people being overturned when popular vote lost out to electoral votes, it’s pretty ironic that part of the reason it took so long to pick the guy had to do with superdelegates pledged vs. popular vote.
The Accusations: Last week, I read a post that made steam come out my ears. The author wrote passionately about universal healthcare but then lumped those not in favor of being entitled and classist. I commented, and we all came to an understanding about feeling passion and frustration for a cause.
Then this. If I have conservative views, apparently it’s because I have no concern for other people.
The Blinders: For as many social problems as we have here at home, we can’t ignore homeland security and the war. Whether or not you think we can extricate ourselves from Iraq in 3 months or 30 years, it is completely irrational to think that military and defense spending can decrease as we learn how to fight a new type of war with enemies that play by no rules.
So here is my advice to Democrats: Get your shit together. While the feeling I get from conservatives might be smug and have an icky middle management-type feel to it, the Democratic campaigns and pundits seem hopelessly ensnared in a “we’re good because conservatives are bad the end” mentality. Neither is really inspiring confidence in any major change.
And by the way, guilt trips don’t work. I’m an undecided voter who is registered Republican, but I’m not coming over there if you’re just going to make me feel bad all the time. Nobody quits smoking or loses weight or exercises daily unless they really want to.
Don’t assume that I have what I have only because I grew up privileged. That’s like a Republican assuming that everyone homeless or on welfare doesn’t want a job.
Make me want to support your guy because he’ll do the best job at righting injustice for everyone. I care about social issues, but I also care that our military is fighting a war with substandard equipment and returning home to substandard conditions.
I want a change, too. Don’t make me afraid to vote for it.
Topics: politics, this is why | 4 Comments »
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May 12th, 2008 at 1:42 pm
Too bad we can’t have a redo and get Huckabee out there again…
May 12th, 2008 at 1:48 pm
wow. great post, but I’ll tell you how much I hope you are wrong in the end. Oh wait, I hope you are wrong in the end.
i think watching the dems tear each other up the past several months has hurt. i hope that once a nominee has been identified we are able to move forward and start addressing what our country needs and who is best qualified to deliver them.
jen’s last blog post..gingerly
May 12th, 2008 at 2:12 pm
Great article, did you post it on Momocrats? Don’t vote for change just for change’s sake. He’s got serious socialist tendencies. They both do. (I’m going to stop short of calling them outright socialists). Our country won’t be able to rebound from something like that. Yes, I think it would need to rebound from their actions in office.
Vicki’s last blog post..Ode to my mom
May 14th, 2008 at 8:39 am
PS. another good site to check out… helps me feel like less of an idiot when I spout my Republican agenda… http://politifact.com/