Olive Branch Redux w/ Oath

My last two lengthy posts were on this same topic: that we extend the olive branch to supporters of Bill and Hillary Clinton. Here's the short version with poll.

It's over, in all but the minds of Bill and Hillary Clinton and their band of ever more outraged supporters. Still no one has informed the voters, and no one wants to.

There are a many media people pointing out that our party is cracked, and possibly splitting, and there are many more who are demanding that the contest be over.

But there is very little the party leaders can do to end it without breaking the rules of the democratic process. And NO ONE can stop the Clintons from following the scorched earch path ahead. This may end slowly and, according to the Clinton principles, it will end painfully.

Therefore we the Obama supporters should make a real effort to be conciliatory with the Other Side on the comment boards and in the blogosphere. They might be misinformed, muddled, nasty, or just plain wrong, but we owe it to our candidate and party to be respectful and to try to be friendly even as we point out the facts. We can do a lot to end this painful primary season by giving the other side a break, and making up a bit whenever possible.

After all, remember what the sock said:

•  tip jar

  by Christian Coulon on Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 08:46:41 AM PDT

  •  and

    i'm sticking to this theme til it's over - in case you read my last few diaries

    by Christian Coulon on Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 08:48:30 AM PDT

    •  here's my "oath"

      I will not vote for John McCain in 2008, or for any candidate who endorses him and/or regards him as fit for the office of POTUS.

      I will be conciliatory toward anyone who joins in that oath.

      by Deward Hastings on Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 08:54:20 AM PDT

      •  i oath that too

        he's talking about the Internet right now on CSPAN - 'we have to get our message out on the internet' because 'the radical ismalicists are getting their message of hate out to all corners of the world'

        by Christian Coulon on Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 08:57:09 AM PDT

      •  Knock it off. McCain would be a better president

        than Bush.  You are fueling the war that will cost our country.

        by boji on Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 08:59:29 AM PDT

        •  Bush isn't running against McCain. <eom>

          by Adistius on Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 09:35:43 AM PDT

•  Clinton supporters came close, and they don't

  like defeat.  The door must be open. No threats of "I will never vote for Hillary" or that x#***.  No threats of voting for McCain.  Hillary would make a great president.  That should be said a lot.  The Obama supporters and us Edwards supporters simply beleive that Obama has won our vote.  In my case, because of his incredible speech on race and no positve answer from Senator Clinton.

  My wife is still in her camp.  She is not evil, and she knows the lives of too many politicians to think that a hyperbole causes anyone not to be president.  I will try to convince her.  What I do know is that both of us will vote for Democratic nominee.  I want people to start getting their mind around that.  If you are on this site and an Obama supporter or else, you fuel the Hillary or else voters.  Knock it off.

  Do you want the entire economy to crash and get to 20% unemployment again?

  Do you want another 4000 young americans to die in Iraq?

  Do you want us to further lose our lead in science and research?

  Do you want us to continue to our destruction of fossible fuel dependence?

  If not, become part of the solution.

  by boji on Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 08:58:26 AM PDT

  •  exactly

    I agree with your message of unity. I think we can win this gracefully or we can continue to do what the MSM does and what makes me sooooo mad - which is egg on the dog fight. enough already, to me it's sad to watch Hillary do what she is doing, and if I were misfortunate enough not to understand why I should support Obama, then I would feel pretty bad too. so, I'm just saying, let's be nice to Hill/Bill supporters so they can lose gracefully. I'm against gloating.

    by Christian Coulon on Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 12:12:43 PM PDT

•  I appreciate the value of what you've said.

  At present I don't feel able to vote in your poll.

  I don't accept those who are saying,-  Oh, politics is rough and tumble, this always happens,  we'll all unite by September...   But then, I'll admit,  while I can forgive those who harm me in some way,  I find it hard to forgive those who harm my friends and loved ones.

  And I do believe the Clintons are making an Obama victory less likely with every passing day.   They are providing McCain's team with spectacular bits of film to use against Obama.  And nearly all of this assistance they are providing is untrue and unfair,  repeated so loudly and so often that it becomes a "fact" in the present state of the union.

  I'll put it this way.   When the Clintons have concede I will not gloat in public, and I'll wait to see what follows.  If they begin to work fervently and sincerely to help out,  I will accept them gracefully.  How is that?

  by RedBlueNoMore on Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 09:05:12 AM PDT

  •  I'll go along with RedBlue's pledge...except...

    that I may gloat in public when Clinton concedes..."it's hard work" not to gloat.

    by teharper428 on Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 09:12:21 AM PDT

•  I agree with the intent.

  But I've felt all along that it's a matter of definition (or spin).

  For example, what is an in-context quote from a newspaper, accurate in its statement that Hillary repeatedly stated a lie is to me simply a statement in fact, but to a generic Hillary Supporter an attack.

  Or, what is an out-of-context quote from Obama's pastor, salacious in its lack of context, but thought-provoking and logical when context is provided, is to me an inappropriate attack, but to a generic Hillary Supporter, reason to attack Obama repeatedly for weeks.

  So - good idea.  Get rid of the spin from the Clinton camp & supporters, and it may work.

  by sheddhead on Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 09:09:35 AM PDT

  •  thanks shedd

    that's the point - we can defuse this situation by doing exactly what Obama recommends, and not participate in the divisiveness of the spin, and to try to reach accross the aisle, within our own party - what a mess!

    by Christian Coulon on Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 12:14:48 PM PDT

•  The other part of the Olive Branch

  is to say that if the worm turns, and Clinton pulls through on a victory that those followers will not gloat, nor will the Obama people grumble loudly.

  by Hey BB on Thu Mar 27, 2008 at 11:17:37 AM PDT