Why You Should Vote for Whomever You Want

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Friday December 28, 2007 · 6:41 PM PST

2007/12/28 · 18:41

Because none of the Democratic candidates suck. No. really. Despite what you've heard from various people around this place lately, none of the "Democrats" is really a Republican, none of them are Bush-lite, and none of them killed your mother and then hid her body. That evil, centrist Hillary Clinton has a Progressive Punch Score of 91%, good for 16th in the whole senate. And that noted hater of labor, Barack Obama, has excellent ratings from labor organizations. Joe Biden, despite an unfortunate tendency to open mouth and insert foot, has been the best critic of the Republican field. Dennis Kucinich, for all of his quirks, is the most uncompromisingly liberal voice in the race. Chris Dodd has been the loudest voice in the whole field on civil liberties issues. And John Edwards, well, read pretty much any diary on this site to find out why people like John Edwards.

AnnArborBlue

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Thursday September 27, 2007 · 6:32 PM PDT

2007/09/27 · 18:32

(expanded from a comment I made last night, because I love hearing myself talk)

Teenage riot in a public station
Gonna fight and tear it up in a hypernation for you

-Sonic Youth

This site is angrier than I've ever seen it. I've lived through "Armando Sucks", through the judicial confirmations, through Brown/Hackett and the Pie Wars. And I don't think it's ever been this bad. This is understandable. Between the war in Iraq, FISA, Abu Ghraib, rising income inequality, wiretapping, a SCOTUS lilting toward the right and 700,000 other issues, there's a lot to be pissed about. And, although I'm not all that mad at Democrats myself, I recognize that there's a lot to be pissed about there as well. The MoveOn vote was unnecessary, no matter how dumb the ad was, attempts to overcome Republican blockading have been ineffective, and FISA passed with plenty of Dem support. So I understand the sentiment. But you've got a choice.

Either find new ways to express it, or find new avenues to enact change.

AnnArborBlue

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Monday September 17, 2007 · 3:55 PM PDT

2007/09/17 · 15:55

I'm a member of what I would imagine is a relatively small group of people here at Dkos; people with no candidate preference in the upcoming presidential primaries. As a result, I've gotten a pretty solid "outsider's" perspective on what's going on in the primary wars. I feel that's put me in a pretty good position to say this:

Stop acting like jerks. I'm serious. Like...now. Because it's annoying as hell, and it's doing more harm than any of you seem to realize.

AnnArborBlue

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Monday September 10, 2007 · 9:39 PM PDT

2007/09/10 · 21:39

I've been closely following the debate surrounding Jon Chait's book (excerpted in The New Republic) about the rise of supply side economics and the cranks behind it. The debate fascinates me for a few reasons. For starters, Chait is my favorite columnist out there right now. He also went to the most important college ever. more importantly, the debate has provided an interesting view into the mind of conservatives like McMegan and Grover Norquist. The Norquist bit is particularly interesting, because he's remarkably up-front about the motivations behind much of conservative rhetoric behind tax cuts, and what he says provides a window into the operation of the current Republican movement as a whole.

AnnArborBlue

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Thursday February 22, 2007 · 11:29 PM PST

2007/02/22 · 23:29

I don't know if anyone will care, I don't know if anyone will buy it, but Peter Beinart has a column up at TNR.com right now explaining his support for the Iraq War. It's honest, too, or at least strikes me as so, and doesn't seem particularly interested in making excuses. It sounds like one of the biggest liberal proponents of the Iraq War has learned a few lessons.

The Diarist is?

122 votes Vote Now!

The Diarist is?

An idiot

52 votes

A genius

19 votes

Both an idiot and a genius

25 votes

Female

26 votes

Why These Freshmen Will Be Fine

AnnArborBlue

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Friday November 10, 2006 · 10:29 PM PST

2006/11/10 · 22:29

CNN is the latest media outlet to write a "how will Democrats deal with all these new conservative members?" story. Unlike many Kossacks here, I'm willing to concede that many of these new members are more Conservative than the typical Congressional Democrat. While not all of the new class is moderate to conservative, Representatives-elect like the Indiana trio and Heath Schuler are socially fairly conservative.

But this question of how Democrats will possibly get anything done with these new members is a silly one for two reasons; One, this isn't anything new. And two, Dems get to control the agenda.

Why We Can Win: Schumer v. Dole

AnnArborBlue

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Tuesday October 31, 2006 · 9:43 PM PST

2006/10/31 · 21:43

There is a theory in political science that says elections are often decided as far as six months to a year and a half in advance of election day. The reason? That's usually around the time when candidates decide whether or not to run. In potentially close races, the quality of the candidate can make all of the difference in the world. When discussing potential gains in the context of terrible Bush poll numbers, the war in Iraq, corruption, scandal and everything else that has happened in the past year, don't forget what happened a year and a half ago; we destroyed them in getting the candidates we wanted. Read More

They're Just Not That Brilliant

AnnArborBlue

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Saturday October 21, 2006 · 8:31 PM PDT

2006/10/21 · 20:31

Ok. So with all the diaries about Karl Rove, and all the diaries about voter disenfranchisement, and all the diaries about election fraud, and all the diaries about October Surprises, and all the diaries about weak-kneed Democrats and blind electorates, I think it's easy to lose sight of a few very simple facts; your work matters, your money matters, your vote matters, and none of that is going to be taken away.

The reason? These guys just aren't that brilliant.

What Makes You Different?

AnnArborBlue

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Sunday June 25, 2006 · 3:28 PM PDT

2006/06/25 · 15:28

As a recent spate of news stories show, the "angry young lefty blogger" stereotype is in full flower right now. Because of that, I thought it might be useful to have a diary showing how heterogeneous we here at Daily Kos really are. So here goes; I want to know how you think you differ from the average Kossack in major categories; demographics, ideology, strategy/rhetoric, and miscellaneous. I'm hoping it will show how diverse the users of the site really are, and show what Kossacks consider the typical user to be.

I guess I'll start... Read More

John Morrison Deserves Better From Us

AnnArborBlue

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Wednesday June 07, 2006 · 10:54 AM PDT

2006/06/07 · 10:54

As any Kossack not living under a rock knows, Jon Tester defeated John Morrison in the Democratic primary for Montana Senate. Defeated him handily, well outside anything anyone I know expected.

While the margin of victory was surprising, what was even more surprising to me was the primary itself. And I believe we are doing a great disservice to it.

Bye All

AnnArborBlue

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Tuesday May 09, 2006 · 11:59 AM PDT

2006/05/09 · 11:59

If you'll forgive me the self-indulgence of all this, it seemed easier than answering individual emails asking where I went. Hopefully I've got enough mojo built up that this won't degenerate into a recipe-fest. Especially since I can't cook for shit.

You see, I've taken a job with the DLC. I'll be their internet consultant, doing blog outreach to convince you damn lefties that centrism really is the way to go. Blogging has provided a lot of people with wonderful opportunities, and when Al From dropped me an email last week, I just couldn't resist...

No, I'm just kidding. The thing is, I need a break. Badly. I've got some pretty significant changes coming up in my life (recent college graduate, law school etc.), and I'm finding myself feeling more and more frayed. So, as much as I've enjoyed being a part of this community, I need some time off.

Why You Should Vote for Whomever You Want

You're Gonna Have to Choose

You're Not Helping Your Cause

Grover Norquist Tells the Truth

Beinart Apologizes and Explains (No Really)

Why I Oppose Impeachment

Why These Freshmen Will Be Fine

Why We Can Win: Schumer v. Dole

They're Just Not That Brilliant

What Makes You Different?

John Morrison Deserves Better From Us

Bye All