charlabob
This is going to be long, rambling, and I can only hope someone gets to the end. At least I’ll feel better for having said it.
Yup, Jan, it has become personal and in that sense it duplicates what’s going on nationally. I personally know people at high levels in the campaigns who have had friendships and business relationships damaged, possibly permanently, because of the vitriol generated in the campaign.
And, I wish I regretted that more than I do. This is a matter of survival–of the country and, perhaps, of the world. It’s a turning point and the stakes are enormous. That’s bound to generate passion – I’d be worried if it didn’t.
If I were a fair and balanced person, I could say, “There is blame enough to go around.” But, you know what? That’s not true. At this point, both sides are engaging in kitchen sinkery. But, in the beginning, that was not the case.
Back when I was a fierce Edwards partisan, when it first became obvious that this kid, Obama, wasn’t a flash in anyone’s pan, the DLC side of the party began their war. “As far as I know, he isn’t a Muslim?” said Clinton, tentatively. Well, you know what? The answer should have been, “He says he’s not a Muslim–I believe him–but what if he is? We have to separate Islamic Terrorists from Muslims.” In other words, it could have been a teaching moment — instead, it was the beginning of sound bite gotcha politics.
Same thing is true of the current “guilts by association.”
I put :-) around “Hillary is a Commie,” because I was trying to make the same point about her. If you look at the history of the witchhunts of the 50’s–if you read the history of the Mitford-Truehafts, you’ll find that they’re incredibly humane people who JOINED THE COMMUNIST PARTY USA when it was the only game in town for progressives who wanted to build a color-blind, pro-worker society.
Long after they left the party, the law firm in Oakland was one of the few places for poor folks, political prisoners, and others who deserved and couldn’t afford legal representation.
When I first heard that Clinton did her post-law school internship there I was amazed and delighted. Again, boring people with a tiny bit of history could have allowed for yet another teaching moment.
The Wright controversy could have been a time for us to band together and reinforce Obama’s speech on race which, in my view, didn’t go far enough.
Wright is a hero — he said some things that were exaggerated and even cruel, in ways that people don’t like to hear. Doesn’t change the positive impact he’s had on the south side of Chicago and beyond. That’s why Bill invited him to the white house when he wanted religious leaders to help him through the Monica crisis. Because he is a valued spiritual voice. (I’ve battled with folks on on my side who wanted to use Bill’s association with Wright as a gotcha against Clinton.)
Believe me, Clinton’s internship with Truehaft, Obama’s association with Wright and with the Million Man March and with the organization on whose board he served with Bill Ayers could be turned into positives.
Our leaders could be leaders — they could begin to show folks that other poor folks aren’t the enemy. People who don’t wear flags on their sleeves aren’t the enemy.
In fact, 20 years ago, Dukakis could have said, “Yup, I belong to the ACLU — here’s what they do and why you should join too.”
Leadership doesn’t consist of finding out which direction people are headed and sprinting to the front of the line. Or preying on their worst instincts to avoid doing anything controversial.
Am I convinced Obama has the courage and the desire to lead in the way I want? Nope — not for a moment. But he has shown some evidence of understanding what that means and taken steps toward doing it. And, at this point, that’s good enough for me.