I’ve been following this primary for the past year, and I’ve watched it become one of the more exciting primaries in recent history. Either candidate would be a historic President, breaking through a religious or gender ceiling that’s been in place since the dawn of our country.
However, after a year of debates, primaries, interviews, and endless discussions on sites such as this, I’m no longer excited.
I’m tired.
I’m tired of terms like “Berniebros” and “Berniestan”. I’m tired of terms like “Hillarybots” and “Shillary”. (And extra shame on you if you EVER use the term “Shrillary”.)
I’m tired of legitimate concerns with Hillary being dismissed with “well, she’s winning!” or as just “Republican talking points”. I’m tired of Bernie being presented as if he doesn’t have a single blemish on his record.
I’m tired of people being called racist because they ask why POC don’t support Bernie. I’m tired of people DEMANDING POC explain why they support Hillary as if they’re OWED an explanation.
I’m tired of Bernie state wins being dismissed because they’re white. I’m tired of Hillary state wins being dismissed because they’re red.
I'm tired of Bernie’s decades of fighting for progressive causes being dismissed because he wasn’t “officially” a Democrat. I’m tired of Hillary’s decades of fighting for the Democratic party being dismissed when she had to face more opposition and attacks than virtually any other Democrat during that period.
I’m tired of Hillary being presented as having been equally and consistently as far left as Bernie has throughout her career. I’m tired of Hillary being presented as if she’s no different than the GOP candidates. It’s obvious that both claims are untrue.
I’m tired of Bernie being presented as having been a pure representative of progressive values throughout his career. I’m tired of Bernie being presented as having had it easy as an independent sticking to his values because he’s been outside of the two party process. It’s obvious that both claims are untrue.
I’m tired of people pretending that those that participate in the above represent even a significant portion of the people that actually represent the candidate. I’m tired of people pretending that their side is squeaky-clean in the same regard, or that “they do it much more than we do”. Even if the ratio is 100-1, it doesn’t make the one doing it any better or that side any more pure.
I’m tired of people treating the primary as a war to be won at all costs rather than a competition of ideas to be settled civilly and fairly.
I’m tired of threats to vote for Trump or another candidate, or to not vote, out of some notion of vote “purity” if your candidate doesn’t win. There are REAL PEOPLE out there that would likely be harmed without a Democrat as President, so I’m tired of people being selfish just because the harm to THEM is potentially minimal.
Overall, I’m just tired of this primary season.
At the end of the day, all of us and both candidates support the vast majority of the values we believe in. That’s why we’re here, and that’s why they’re running in the Democratic party. In most cases, the only difference is in degree, strategy, and tactics, not direction.
We should be respecting each other as allies with respectful disagreements, not assuming that those who have a different opinion are somehow the enemy. When someone says something we consider harmful or wrong, we should take the attitude of education and correction, not attack and destroy. (This should be the case for many of the issues discussed here, not just the primary.)
I’m ready to get to the general election and support whoever emerges from this process. I have my favorite, and I’d likely support that person more enthusiastically during the general than I would the other, because I’m human. However, I’ll unequivocally and unhesitantly support the candidate with the “D” next to their name no matter what the name is, because even the “lesser” of the two candidates is FAR better than the “best” of the Republican candidates will ever be.
Because no matter how tired I am right now, I know it’s nothing compared to how tired I’d become of 4 (or 8) years of a Republican in the White House.