My response to remarks made to me from a rightwinger;

[LynnTheDem]

My attitutude to the rightwing you call "arrogant"? "Lacking tolerance"?

"Where is the statesmanship"? you asked me. And this lack, you say, is why we Democrats "failed" in 2004?

With rightwingers, statesmanship doesn't mean shit.

Because they DON'T WANT to sit down and DISCUSS FACTS and IDEAS like adults.

And if I told you, for one small example, that IN FACT bush's "coalition" was nothing but a LIE told to you repeatedly by Fox News & the rightwing pundits, and that I could PROVE that it was a LIE beyond even the doubt of a rightwingnut, would you even now sit down and DISCUSS this with me?

HELL NO if you're rightwing.

I know.

Because I have spent 2 bloody YEARS trying to every bloody DAY.

And in return I got cyber-stalked.

My business was boycotted.

My business partner received nasty hateful phonecalls.

I had rightwingnuts try to find my soldier husband's ID so they could "get at him".

I was alone in a state not my own, with no family near, and a husband in Iraq; and because of a pack of rightwingers trying to locate my address, I kept a piece of furniture shoved up against my house door while my heart stopped every time I heard footsteps go by -in case they were soldiers coming to me with news of the end of my existance- and every time my phone rang, in case my end came through it.

For 14 of the longest most frightening months of my life, I had to deal not only with my husband facing death and grevious injury and the horrors of war, and with continuing to speak out, trying to prevent even more fellow Americans from being sent to their deaths in this war of choice, but also with these rightwingers who hated me so much.

I was called "anti-American, Saddam-lover, Saddam-loyalist, traitor, c*nt, bitch, c*cksucker."

DO YOU THINK THIS DID NOT HURT???

It STILL HURTS. And it will hurt for one hell of a very long time.

THIS IS MY COUNTRY.

I WOULD DIE for MY COUNTRY.

And look at how I was treated by my FELLOW COUNTRYMEN. The German Brownshirts could not have done a fucking better job. Oh no, the rightwingnuts did themselves proud!

And you know what the crazy part is?

I was just telling the truth.

And I could PROVE the truth.

And I tried MY GOD how I tried.

Because I "hate America"? Because I "love Saddam?"

What total insanity. What incredible cruelty.

Is this REALLY what the right thought? Only THEY could possibly love their fellow coutrymen? Their country? Their loved ones at risk in Iraq?

No, not because I "hate America", and no, not because I "love Saddam".

No. It was such a very simple reason why I tried and tried and PUT UP WITH RIGHTWING TERRORISM, because hell yes that's what a lot of it was.

I tried simply because I did not want fellow Americans, or innocent civilians in Iraq, to die for lies.

That's all.

I didn't want that stain of blood and shame on my country, or on my fellow countrymen.

And for THAT I was told I "should be dragged through the streets of America until dead".

All I asked was for the rightwing to sit and listen to me for a few minutes.

Half of America opposed the invasion of Iraq. No nation in the entire world had a population majority that supported the invasion of Iraq. Not even the UK.

98% world opposition; I guess we were all just anti-American Saddam-loving liberal traitors.

Except it turns out we were correct. All you had to do was LISTEN to us for a few minutes.

And if the rightwing had just listened -what a small thing to do, to save lives- so many of our fellow countrymen and women and teens wouldn't be lying now in their graves.

10,000 wouldn't be torn apart from loss of arms and legs and eyesight and brain.

Tens of thousands wouldn't be doomed to a life of Hell, of nightmares and shock and trauma and guilt and pain. Of families torn apart and of suicides when the burden of pain and guilt of what's been lived through is just too heavy to bear. Of homelessness and poverty and drugs and alcohol; of loss of belief in God, of one's fellow citizens, of anything good existing in life.

So many children to grow up without their mothers or their fathers, many who will now never have seen each other.

No, to the rightwing, we were just "anti-Bush anti-American traitors" for opposing the invasion of Iraq.

And none of you ever stopped to consider the fact that we most all of us supported the war on Afghanistan...so maybe we weren't just being partisan after all about Iraq.

We tried to stop America from making the very collossal mistake that has been made. The world tried to stop America from making that mistake. Not because we hated Bush or because we loved Saddam Hussein. But because we loved our country and our people.

Gee. How very "un-American" of us.

I no longer care to even try to reach out to those who, because I love my country and my fellow human beings, because I tried to prevent needless deaths and horror simply by trying to get the truth out, deem me an "anti-American left liberal unpatriotic traitor".

I have nothing left, no desire whatsoever, to try and break through the rightwing rhetoric and hate and lies. What for? That would be, as it's so amply proved to be throughout the past 2 years, nothing but a total waste of effort.

And now I have the added burden of guilt of my own. Maybe had I tried harder...if I'd done something different, said something different...maybe if we all had, those of us who tried to stop this disaster, maybe then this invasion could have been prevented, and all those men, women and teens now lying dead would still be alive and well and with their loved ones. All those families now destroyed.

Good God it hurts. Because I FAILED. All of us who tried to prevent this war, we all FAILED.

And now people are dead and so many lives are forever destroyed.

No. I have no "statesmanship" left to give for the rightwing.

You may -or may not- notice I've said little about the other people who are now hurt and wounded and dead; whose lives have been ripped apart...the people of Iraq. That's not from my not caring. I do care. Very deeply. But from the past 2 years, and from current remarks made on rightwing sites, most rightwingers do not care at all about the Iraqi people.

If you didn't care about me, if you hated me, your fellow citizen, then no, I don't suppose you'd care about any other nation's citizens.

You say we "screwed up" from lack of "statesmanship"; from "arrogance" and "intolerance".

No.

We didn't screw up anything. We just lost an election. But we were true to America.

And now America has lost.

[Taxloss]

1. Well said.

[saltpoint]

2. If people threatened you and your business over --

-- your rightful freedom of expression, may they rot in hell with a brick up their asses.

That's not much comfort, but our side did much better than some people thought we would.

I'm still not convinced Bush will survive this second term without a major sea change in the way his own Republicans view the war, the deficit, and several other pieces of the puzzle.

The Iraqi elections set for January 30 are NOT going to go that smoothly, at least it doesn't seem so.

Your effort mattered. i don't see a failure in there anyplace.

[Pam-Moby]

3. Thanks LynnTheDem

We all need to read this. This is the problem that we face with the extreme right. Their position is the only position. They hate thinking people. Keep your chin up Lynn.

[roguevalley]

4. God bless you, honey. RV, sitting in a red state and wondering wny too

[barb162]

5. you are a brave, wise person and you have been through a

lot. America has lost, yes....

[tyedyeto]

6. Way to Go!!! Lynn

I thought it was bad enough having to try to get points across to some repugs who live in this area, but you are having to live it daily.

My hat is off to you and yours!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[eSTIV]

7. Well said. I stand with you.

and lets get your hubby home quick and safe :)

[In Truth We Trust]

8. Your sacrifice and truthtelling IS appreciated. You certainly aren't

alone either Lynn. We are a majority in fact. If they aren't a part of the solution then they are a part of the problem. It is approaching time to the next level should a miracle not occur later today. We can beat them in the court of ideas and in the streets!

I truly pray you and your husband are rewarded for the sacrifice both of you have given.

[Behind the Aegis]

9. Holy...WOW!

You DID NOT fail!!! You tried, and you did so in earnest! THEY FAILED! How does one converse with a child? You do it slowly and with simple terms, but you have to understand, if the child doesn't like your answer, then you get a tantrum and false accusations (or threats). The right-wingers have the mentality of children. They are dualistic in their thinking, when they choose to think. They see no shades of grey, only black and white. If you are a complex thinker, which it appears you are, then you have to "dumb it down" because they will not understand. If they do not understand, they shut down, then NOTHING gets through!

It amazes me that these people spew venom and hate, and when Democrats or liberals (if we are lucky, a few of our representatives) stand up and fight back, they act like they are the victim. This is the "bully" mentality. If we try to reason or discuss issues with them, they whine we are being "elitist" and "shoving our education in their face." If we call them on their bullshit, then turn the tables with a 'straw man' argument and claim we are trying to harm their way of life. When we don't roll over to their demands, we are being difficult, unpatriotic, or unAmerican. When we ask for compromise, they gloat that they have a "mandate" and don't need us. It is a 'no-win' situation.

Don't despair! There are others like you out there, fighting the good fight with you. Even if we are not there in body, draw from our spirit!

(Thank goodness for the edit feature!)

[housewolf]

10. A hug and some words...

Oh, my dear... my heart goes out to you. I am so sorry for what you have been through these past several years. I, too, have suffered from some of the same abuses of power that have affected you, but not to the extent that you have.

Abuses of power perpetrated by the right over the past couple of years have done an inordinate amount of damage. It is so hard to not be personally affected by it.

But you, dear LynnTheDem, have a great source of inner strength that has kept you going. You are a survivor, and you'll keep on keepin' on, because it is so much a part of who you are to want the world to be a better place. You have clarity and commitment on your side, along with a loving heart, open heart and fine intelligence. You are going to be okay.

And so is America. She has faced trials greater than this through her history. She is strong and will come through this stronger than ever, however so painful it seems at the present.

There is hope here, LynnTheDem. Perhaps not right where we are looking for it, but it's here. It exists in the history of America and in the spirit of patriots such as you.


:hug:

[El Biggo Doggo]

11. it's hard doing the right thing

sometimes, knowing you did the right thing is the only satisfaction you have. small comfort, true, but I respect you.