I see once again it's the season for flared tempers and diarist walk outs, with some of the newer folks fanning themselves and gasping "I declaya, but what has gone so terribly wrong with mah community?"
Welp, as someone who has been reading Kos daily for a decade (tossing in my 2 cents from time to time), please trust me when I say this:
We'll be fine.
Ask any old timer about the legendary Pie Fight, or any of the other epic dust ups over the years that left feelings hurt and fantastic diarists packing their bags. By historical standards this latest meta conflict is tame.
When you combine anonymity with politics, and then toss in a progressive mindset (with "circular firing squad/perfect is the enemy of the good" imprinted in our DNA), the occasional volcanic eruption is simply to be expected. Unlike the civil political discourse you saw in a 50s movie that one time, this is just how the town square actually works. And that's a good thing. I'll take this mess over being a drone who's told what to think any day of the week.
With respect to the current issue: On one hand you've got the "getting elected is king" camp, and on the other you've got the "we need better, more progressive democrats" camp. Guess what? Both are right! And both are vitally important. Yes, just before an election folks tend to huddle in the former camp, but afterwards the latter camp rightly begins to stretch it's wings again. If not now, when?
So yea, once again here we are. Passions will run high and feeling will be hurt... politics in the town square is a rough and tumble business. But the community will survive, and maybe even come out the other side even stronger.
It's just important to take a deep breath once in a while and remember... that guy you want to strangle is, in fact, on your side.