Letters to the Editor
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Hillary "writers" are no different than the ones on Salon.com
There is not much to differentiate the kind of language and condescension coming from Clinton supporters on Salon to how Hillary is running her campaign. From characterizing Obama supporters as "followers" and ridiculing the candidate as an over-the-top preacher of nothing, Clinton shills have reduced the debate to the kind of nasty campaigning that Hillary herself adheres to. This is a top down approach to belittle Obama on matters of race, experience and electability as opposed to the bottoms up approach that Obama has taken voice the will of the people.
The kind of racist bile that is being spewed in the name of free speech, is indeed indicative of the kind of support that Hillary is garnering. What is more disturbing, is the pattern of completely dismissing the progressive vote, the votes of marginalized left-of-center politics that has been carrying the Obama campaign. That is a thorn in the side of Clinton supporters, right-of-center, who would rather vote for McCain than caste their lot with Obama. The right of center is the vote that got the first Clinton into office, and of course the votes of core Democrats, i.e. African Americans.
It is easy to spot overt and covert racism in the postings of most of these hardcore Clinton supporters. Many of them return under different handles, but are easily recognized by their insistence on the same rather floozy premises they bet their arguments upon.
I can understand the angst that anyone would feel when their candidate is not doing well, considering that Clinton did not really win Texas and has won only on small margins in other big states. But their arguments go against the grain of common sense, reduced to repetitive invective. I have yet to see a level headed discourse coming from a Clinton supporter that does not attack Obama's experience and race in particular.
Of course, sometimes Obama supporters respond with the same kind of disrespect as meted out to them. So where do we go from here? I do not believe for a single moment that this party can now be unified. There is too much hurt, too much insistance on a double standard applied to Obama. And he is still standing.