"72-25? Jesus H. Christ, that's pathetic."
That was my first thought. My second thought was to come to Daily Kos and see what the thinking was here. And there was Maryscott, my partner in profanity, up there at #1 with the aptly titled "We Are So Fucked." My first response to that: yep, no question about it. Amen, sister, fuckin' bring it.
But then I read what she wrote (it appears to be a post-cloture vote wail of despair), and I have to disagree with Maryscott. Registering independent, at least in closed primary states like Maryland (where I live), is worse than an exercise in futility, it's an abdication of responsibility for the future course of politics in your local, state and yes, federal elections. Because registering independent means no vote in the primary, and thus no say in who ends up on the ballot. And don't start with me about third parties -- Ralph Nader put paid to that quaint notion in 2000, and I don't fuckin' want to hear any more about THAT.
So what to do? Read more, grasshopper.
You want to be disgusted with the DNC? With national Democrats? With consultants like Steve Elmendorf, who want your money but then want to ignore you? Yes, yes, yes, I agree with you. So what to do?
Take over the goddamn party. Piece by piece, brick by brick, bring it down, topple it over, and start again the process of building a party that reflects OUR beliefs, OUR ideas, and OUR vision of what a great America ought to look like. Get rid of the consultants and the finger in the wind whiny-ass consultants and the national officeholders who long ago forgot what they are supposed to be representing.
How to do that? Be a precinct official. Be part of the local party apparatus. Support a local candidate running for office against a long-term incumbent Democrat who believes she occupies her office by divine right. I'm doing it, I'm supporting a local State Senate candidate with all of the spare time I can find (and then some) and for the first time since 2004, politics is energizing rather than dispiriting. It feels GOOD.
You leave the party, you feel good for five minutes, and then you realize -- all of the decisions that lead to the ballot, who's running, who's gonna get the nomination -- you have no say any more. You've abdicated, you've punted, you've run away from your responsibilities. And that's what they are -- responsibilities. The vast majority of the people here are the ones candidates would kill for -- committed, dedicated, conscientious people with above-average intelligence who are committed to the ideals and the issues they care about. Not just at election time, but in the dreary winter beforehand, when the outcomes of elections (particularly primaries) are often decided long before the average voter even knows there's a contested election.
So if you don't like the Democratic Party, don't leave it, change it. From within. Because ultimately, you and I have just as much right to say what happens to the Democratic Party and progressive ideals as all of the wankers currently in charge down the street in Washington. But that right goes away if you leave the party in a snit.
So Maryscott, I'm sorry, babe, I love ya, but this time, you're wrong. Leaving the party is a copout, a sellout, a complete concession of defeat. And I refuse to concede my kids' future and my country's future to the Republican Party of George W. Bush. I won't quit. And neither should you.
Update [2006-1-30 20:54:21 by jsmdlawyer]: Couple of things. First, disagreement need not be nasty. To some of the posters below attacking Maryscott in a personal and nasty way, fuck off. Thank you.
Second, and this is my very smart wife's point: let's be real here, folks. Democrats lost the 2002 midterms and the 2004 presidential election for one reason: fear. Fear of terrorism, fear for personal security, fear that Peoria fucking Illinois was gonna get vaporized by a mushroom cloud or United Express Flight 4896 from Reno to Topeka was gonna blow up. Fear expertly exploited by Karl Rove and the soulless Republicans now in power, motherfuckers that they are. But whatever the reason, and however lame the response, WE LOST THE ELECTIONS. And those who win get to name Supreme Court justices and run the government. Not very well in this case, but they're still in charge. So it was never very likely that the Alito nomination was going to end any way other than it did. I think Armando was right that the fight needed to be fought, and hats off to those who fought it well. But it wasn't about winning -- 2002 and 2004 decided that. It was about fighting. Some fought well and others broke and ran. Take notes and remember. November 2006 is nine months away. And there will be other fights, lots of 'em, and we have to start by winning elections.
