Its been said that the definition of insanity is to repeat a behaviour time and time again that has the same negative result...well, us Dem's must be insane AND I AM PISSED OFF ABOUT IT what is there a requirement that Democratsalways have to describe what they are going to do and for what purpose?
Dem's have a seemingly insatiable need to explain everything we are going to do, in detail, before we do it, and give the reason why, even when it is obvious! That just is giving the other party the chance to prepare, defend and minimize our strategy...we blow our wad before it has any effect, and the other side can claim again and again that we are politicizing issues...if we believe it, just do it!!!
Case in point - Howard Dean on using the Schiavo case for political advantage (http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/4/18/22195/7565)
MORE AFTER THE FOLD
Of course we are going to bring up that case to demonstrate the GOP's politicizing and fake agenda, of course we are, but why say we are??? Instead of telling the world what we are going to do, what our strategy is, why don't we just im[plement the strategy - I am a huge Dean fan but wish he had just made his points of the GOP is overreaching, the GOP is hypocritical etc, without the "we will use it" jsutification - it just dilutes the message...
You don't hear the GOP spouting they are going to use religion in their campaigns, they just use it...We just continue to muddle our message and come across unfocused and always saying we will do things rather than doing them...
We need to follow the KISS method (keep it simple stupid)...An example of how we could do it is to just get a set of clear talking points (and us Kossacks have provvided many a good list) and keep repeating them, i.e. Hypocrisy, Unnecessary Intervention, Damage to the Constitution, Invasion of Personal Rights, Too Radical, etc...
I came to realization that Democrats cannot just do something without explainging why during the last few weeks of the 2k4 presidential campaign.
After working countless hours for MoveOn and Kerry, there was a moment in time, that moment when despair took over, that moment when I realized Kerry's consultants were full of crap, that moment when I inside, even though I was hard at work, I began to feel it was a futile effort, we were not trying to win, we were trying not to lose...that moment, Kerry's stoopid goose hunting trip...
Now the trip itself was not a problem, but for some unknown and still unfathomable reason, the Kerry campaign decided it was necessary to explain the "purpose of the trip (and bad bad photo op) repeatedly to the press - this hunting trip was to shore up his "outdoorsman and gun owner" support, show he was a regular guy...HOW STOOPID!!!
Why explain it, why say anything more than "Kerry went goose hunting today?" Let him go hunting - the public/press can make their own interpretationss...stating the "purpose" just defeats the purpose, it plays like a cheap political manipulative ploy...
Does the GOP explain Bush's "clearing brush" as an example of him being a common man - no, they just let it speak for itself, and it works!
Dem's need to STOP BEING STOOPID!! Use a clear and concise message, show rather than talk (visual is more effective than oral) and stop spending time stating the obvious!!
Next time you have a Dem spouting the obvious, give him a doughnut!