OMG, OMG, OMG, it is SO GOOD to be back from Mother Nature's suspension! Hopefully, I'll post some pictures of the huge flying tree chunks that took out the line for my home cable modem. Many people are still out, so I should feel fortunate. Also, many are suffering from century - old record - breaking flooding, and the apartment complex that got the direct hit from the nearby tornado on May 30 is going to be demolished. Lots of "Hoosiers" are losing their homes. Complaining about losing home internet access seemed more - than - a - little petty. Mother Nature has truly been a *itch to my little corner of the world.

I missed you all so much, and, once again, it is WONDERFUL to be back! Let the Countdown diary fun resume!

    The incredibly dynamic and charismatic orator Mike Gravel gave his concession speech from Nome, Alaska on Saturday morning.

It is a temptation for any minority, or any historically persecuted and downtrodden group to play the guilt card.  Nothing trumps substantive discussion and debate more than introducing the sordid and the regrettable facets of human behavior.  Nothing keeps demigods in power more easily and induces self-flaggelation in those who would listen to its counter-productive manipulative power.  Nothing is quite as disgusting a spectacle as seeing people who clearly look to be offended in any and every situation no matter how innocuous it might be because it serves their cause.      

In this day and age where we are too afraid of having an honest conversation about much of anything and instead have to dance around the elephant in the room, it's time for some simple honesty.  

I've had an interest in history and politics for as long as I can remember, but the 2008 Democratic Primary was the first primary ever in which I cast a vote and the first one of which I paid attention to the actual nominating "process." So, I did not learn until a few months ago that there were such monsters as "super" delegates. After observing the process, reading the great information here at DailyKos, and doing my own research, I've come to the conclusion that the role of "super" delegates in the Democratic Party nomination process isn't...well...democratic! So, when the time comes for the Democratic National Committee to do whatever post-election voodoo it does, I think the whole concept of "super" delegates need to go the way of the "compassionate conservative." I welcome a spirited discussion and debate about this issue, but I'm the stubborn type and have put much thought and research in this diary.

Since I'm an educator in my chosen career, let me start with a brief "history lesson" for those of you who, like me, may not have been so familiar with this process before I go into the "meat" of my opinion. Thanks in advance for the patience of those who may know this information for those who may not!

I'm posting this here and not on my personal blog because my girlfriend is a Clinton supporter, and she reads my blog, and she's deep in her grief right now. Things are hard enough between us on this issue without her having to read this, so... you got the drama. Sorry 'bout that.

I just realized, I have no idea how to win. None.

Never once in my life -- and I'm 49 years old -- has the candidate I wanted to become the presidential nominee actually, well... won the nomination.

I mean, even Presidents are thin on the ground; the only winner I ever backed was my first time out of the gate, voting for Jimmy Carter. After that, it was all downhill, including four years ago when I let go of my dream that Dr. Howard Dean and the "democratic wing of the Democratic Party" would win the nomination.

As I watched Barack Obama take the podium last night and listened to his speech, I was sat in silence, tears streaming down my cheeks with joy,  holding my husband's hand.  It's been a long road, and we still have further to go, but this is a moment in our history that I never thought I'd live to see. As a young black child raised on poetry by my father and mother, one of the poets I learned to love and cherish was Langston Hughes.  

The words of his classic poem echoed in my mind, and I smiled through my tears, because our dream is deferred no more.

Ideas along these lines have been posted before: racecar driver continuing past the 500th lap, losing team insisting on pitching the bottom of the 9th inning, etc. Until today, of course, such analogies were arguably premature (as Hillary's defenders vociferously claimed). Now they no longer are.

I thought it would be fun, and help show how ridiculous Hillary is being (Jeffrey Toobin called it "deranged narcissism" on CNN tonight) by having an entire thread devoted to such analogies.

I'll go first with a soccer analogy:

It's the end of the 2nd half. The referee blows his whistle and points to the center circle indicating the end of the match. The winning team walks off the field but the losing team keeps kicking the ball as though the game were not over.

To continue the analogy, the Democratic Party needs to show Hillary a big red card. Her ban/suspension for making a mockery of the game should last until November 5.

Please use the comments to offer your own analogies (sports or otherwise) for what Hillary is doing here by refusing to concede after the game/race is over.

There's a couple of vote things going on in South Dakota & Montana today, in case you didn't remember. I thought I'd write this diary today as a semi-open thread about the primaries today and any interesting tidbits and stories about South Dakota & Montana.

As far as "interesting tidbits and stories," I actually have a ton. Growing up, whenever the family got into our version of "the family truckster" to go on vacation, Dad always had to go West. So, I've been to Mt. Rushmore, the Badlands, the Black Hills, Custer Battle Field, Glacier National Park, and Yellowstone National Park more times than I can remember.

Well, I don't now how accurate this is as there were no sources listed, but the Guardian has a pretty good reputation. They point out that Obama continues to be conciliatory towards her, and interestingly enough in his speech in SD a few minutes ago Obama said he had just spoken to Hillary on the phone to congratulate her on her win in PR. Last time I think he had to leave a message for her, so if she took his call in person this time it may indicate that the acceptance stage in the grieving process has begun in earnest.

Quotes below....

Watching Harold Ickes lawyerly weaseling the last couple days reminded me of an old Martin Short SNL character, Nathan Thurm. What do y'all think. See any resemblance?

I.

Am I the only one out there who thinks that this ridiculously long Democratic primary season closely resembles a movie?  This election cycle reminds me of a film about Democracy: some sort of bizarre combination of Bulworth, Network, Hoosiers, Primary Colors, and Wag the Dog.  Those are just the first few examples that come to mind off-hand; I'm sure there are many others that would fit the bill.

When a Presidential candidate makes a reference to her own parody on Saturday Night Live, tries to corral it to win votes, then finds the very same program once so staunchly her corner totally slamming her a few weeks later, it is clear-cut evidence of the way we have evolved in twenty-first century society.  

Political candidates, according to the conventional wisdom, are not supposed to use their own satirical portrayal to aid them on the campaign trail.  However, this election has slaughtered several sacred cows and may continue to do so.  

It is almost a certainty that Barack Obama will be the Democratic Nominee on June 3rd. The issue of party unity is still a deep concern. But, a greater factor is Clinton’s ability to ever concede.

It is amazing the litany of excuses Clinton supporters use for why she lost.  Non of them ever have anything to do with the poor campaign she run.  The amazingly incompetent strategy.  The amazingly incompetent mismanagement.

I want to use this diary to review the The Shorenstein Center and the Project for Excellence in Journalism's new report on press coverage of the primary election.

First... I don't want to be a poor winner.  But, I refuse to pander to Clinton supporters and pretend I'm not jubilant in victory.  Progressives have been shut out of every national election in my life time.  We have for the first time in my life time a progressive as presumptive nominee of the Democratic Party.  This is a time to celebrate.

I know there are those among Clinton's supporters who are good progressives and good feminists who legitimately don't trust that Obama is a progressive and a feminist.  

I think there has to be healing from Clinton's spin.  When politicians try and create a false reality and false consciousness out of whole cloth, recovering from those lies means exposing the facts as can best be determined through the best scientific methods available.  

General Wesley Clark, speaking on behalf of Senator Hillary Clinton's campaign is passionate in his insistence that every vote be counted including those in the wayward Florida and Michigan primaries which broke party rules.
General Clark may be right that the voters of Florida and Michigan are being unfairly punished for the failures of their State Party leaders. However there is another group of voters in Florida and Michigan for whom this election can never be made right - those who didn't show up because they were told their votes would not count. And there is no way to know how the primaries in Florida and Michigan would have turned out if those states had obeyed the rules and held a real primary. There is no way to know how many more voters would have turned out and for whom they would have voted. Those absent voters can never be fairly represented.

Bottom line, the Florida and Michigan primaries are so tainted that there is no way to include their results in the selection of the Democratic candidate in the coming election.  

Take it easy on me folks, this is only my second diary...Thanks for reading!!!

Much ado has been made about Michigan and Florida for breaking the rules of the DNC, and how we should settle the delegate dilemma.  Hillary Clinton wants the votes to count that were held pre-maturely, as-is, claiming it would disenfranchise 2.5 million voters.

However, there were many people who did not vote because they were told their votes wouldn't count anyway (even by Senator Clinton herself).  Do we just say "screw them"?  According to the Clinton campaign, that's exactly what we should do...

It’s too bad for the Clintons that it’s actually two thousand-zero-eight, party’s over, oops, out of time.  (To paraphrase the Artist sometimes known as Prince.)

Because had this been 1992, the timing of her unfortunate comments might have actually spared her a lot of controversy:  on a Friday in late spring, at the start of a Memorial Day weekend, with the punditry already losing interest and letting her increasingly desperate comments slide.  

This is the same timing that a certain candidate from the opposing party chose to release his medical records, I might add:  a time when people will repeat talking points such as "hey, McCain’s got a good heart" or "hey, remember when we used to assassinate people" to their neighbors at backyard barbecues without the bother of needing to reference in-depth analysis, opinion, commentary or fact checking.

But they forgot something.  Follow me on this short jump over to the full diary and I'll tell you what it is:

While yesterday’s statements by Senator Clinton diverted us all from the road ahead Senator Obama forged on, confronting and addressing his toughest audience to date, on the Anniversary of Cuban Independence in Miami Florida, a state where Republicans have been comfortably assured of reaping automatic votes from the anti-Fidelista community that is now over 2 million strong  in the US

The majority of the more than 2 million current Cuban exiles living in the United States live in and around the city of Miami. Other exiles have relocated to form substantial Cuban American communities in Union City, New Jersey, Hazleton, Pennsylvania, San Juan, Puerto Rico, Raleigh, North Carolina and Palm Desert, California.

I know much has been written in the past 24 hours regarding Senator Clinton's remarks. However, I just wanted to share my letter to my NY-Rep and SD.  I now think they should put this to an end and the political cover is plenty.  

For those of you in NY, I suggest you do the same---in DROVES.

Over the jump is my short but sweet letter.

Fellow Obama supporters:  I hope this ends soon!