Letters to the Editor
CeliaInSF
Published Letters: 920 Editor's Choice: 5
-
rbrown207
[Read the article: Report: Bill Clinton pushing for wife to get veep nod]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]"I don't disagree with you in principle nor intellectually but as a practical matter all that really matters is winning."
That's kind of the opposite of principled- principles are what you stick to even when they are inconvenient. Finally having a choice between calculating and principled is such a breath of fresh air that the new guy with the weird name is leading the former first lady with all of the odds on her side when this started.!
I think Gore and Kerry turned people off because they were inauthentic and were rightly received as pussies since they tried to pretend to be what they were expected instead of what they were. If either had the fire in his belly they both showed AFTER they lost I think either could have won.
There is nothing - not a thing- mutually exclusive about being fair and being tough. Buying into that is buying right into the republican myth. Sure lots of people believe it too. Should we accept that or fight it? Its also one thing to expect the repugs to smear our candidates- but it was Hillary who has been pushing the elitist meme. All of a sudden she is not the technocrat but is the populist hero! I think people will see through that soon enough- as the tactics she legitimized by using are turned against her.
And why do we keep legitimizing these scare tactics anyway? I think that is the most elitist notion of all- this idea that the rank and file know not what they do and they don’t know enough to see through the lies and tactics of the right. Of course it will be an uphill battle now that the right wing smear machine is entrenched but it is one worth fighting! Lets stop validating their ways and take back our politics.
-
I'm sure lowering expectations is part of it
[Read the article: Is McCain's campaign in trouble?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]But the only reason McCain won the nomination -after the bruising Bush gave him in 2000 - is that no real contenders stepped up this year.
I thought Huckaby had a good shot with an insergency since it was an off year for republicans (with any democrat beating any repub this year in the polls by over 20% before any of the primaries began- mostly do to the war.) He could have done better but it looks like the hard core evangelicals mostly stayed home - perhaps disillusioned by being used over and over again. (He's pretty charming for someone who believes the world is only 6000 years old and has been stumping hardcore for McCain probably vying for a VP nod.)
Most of the rest were jokers or had no shot from the beginning. If you're an up and comer in the party you will keep your head down until some of the mess Bush has made has a chance to blow over so you don't get tied to his policy or legacy. Talk about lame duck... still even though there is truth in this I'm sure they are hoping to use it to their advantage - afterall everyone loves an underdog!
-
shackindawoods
[Read the article: Is McCain's campaign in trouble?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]That sure seems really conspiratorial. OTOH that would explain McCain's bizarre appearance on SNL last week. He just seemed like he didn't even care anymore.
-
rbrown207
[Read the article: Report: Bill Clinton pushing for wife to get veep nod]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I hear you, I really do and I get it. Here's the thing if I thought the only choice was to play the dirty game maybe I’d be talking about being a realist too. I don’t know.
However, there is a difference between dirty and tough. You can be a tough, mean, bastard and still fight a fair fight. I don’t know exactly when this idea took hold – that principled = weak. I think it is with the 30 years of repug fear mongering and dirty tricks- but I don’t believe it has always been that way.
I’m not saying Obama is a saint by any means. One has to be pretty whacked in some way to want to be president. But you can be super tough and do things that are harsh but still principled. How about how he stole HRC’s thunder after WV with Edward’s endorsement? That was a smart, tough tactical move and while the timing was sneaky, completely above board. That’s what I’m talking about. I think he’ll spin circles around McCain.
-
The pledge and Hillary's agreement to abide by it
[Read the article: She's in it to spin it]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I can not believe it! HRC website still has the press release on about adhereing to the DNC rules and agreeing to sign the pledge:
http://www.hillaryclinton.com/news/release/view/?id=3134
Here's the pledge:
http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/msnbc/sections/news/070831_Final_Pledge.pdf
If you want more info about this it is easy to find- a quick google search turned this up where I found the above links:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x6063329
This meme about the popular vote is very dangerous because it ignores the primary rules everyone agreed to and preys on peoples misunderstanding AND good intentions. It is a really low game HRC is playing.
-
Karenn22
[Read the article: She's in it to spin it]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]ALL of the other candidates removed their names from the MI ballot. Granted, Hillary left her name on there but that seems to be a contradiction with the pledge that she did sign.
I'm not saying any voters should be left out - I think the whole things sucks. I think FL and MI should be seated in some proportion - Hillary should not get all of MI's pledged delegates there has to be some kind of deal - and stripped of their super delegates. The supers are the people in local government that should be punished for this mess.
But what Hillary is saying now about the popular vote and conflating that with the bad memmories of 2000 (not at all the same!) is disengenuous and dangerous for the party. She should stop because it is dishonerable and inappropriate but I don't think she cares anymore (if she ever did).