I am sick and tired of listening to pundits, commentators and, yes, DUers attacking Democrats

[StarfishSaver]

for supposedly not performing exactly as they think they should while not saying a WORD of criticism about the Republicans they're having to put up with.

Since yesterday's hearing (and before, but they've really ratcheted it up in the last 30 hours) these people have done little but lambaste Democrats, who are busting their butts trying to stay focused, save this country, while trying to both ignore and dodge incoming fire, hostile and "friendly," but have given the Republicans a complete pass. I haven't seen anyone comment more than in passing about the Republicans' despicable behavior, much less show any footage of it. Anyone who didn't watch the hearing live and is getting their information from the news channels or online discussion boards would be forgiven for assuming that only Lewandowski and committee Democrats participated in the hearing while not a single Republican was anywhere to be found.

And I don't buy the "well, everyone already knows the Republicans are terrible so there's no point talking about them" excuse. That's bullshit. If it's worth talking nonstop about what the Democrats are and aren't doing and why it's all wrong, it's certainly worth talking about what the Republicans are doing, especially since it's the Republicans' behavior that the Democrats are fighting mightily to deal with.

I'm really disgusted by this.

I think I'll go watch Ken Burns' country music documentary for awhile ...

[betsuni]

1. "Anyone who didn't watch the hearing live and is getting their information from the news channels or

online discussion boards would be forgiven for assuming that only Lewandowski and committee Democrats participated in the hearing without a single Republican ... ."

I didn't see the hearing and that's exactly what I thought. Republicans are somehow invisible. If anything is grudgingly admitted to be the fault of Republicans, Democrats are more at fault for not stopping them. Who decided this. It's stupid.

[Ptah]

2. Welcome to DU!

[napi21]

3. I watched the hearing live. I'd never say the Dems aren't trying todo their job.

But I can't help but say I wish the Dems had the courage to HOLD that BAS.... in contempt of Congress, as we know the Pubs would have done if the situation were reversed. NO I don't want the Dems to become more like the Pubs, but I sure would like to see similar retaliation against their antics.

[cwydro]

8. Yep.

[choie]

4. I don't think there are any DUers

who aren't disgusted, repulsed and revolted by the republicans. However, that doesn't negate feelings of disappointment in how the House Democrats are handling the subject of impeachment. The Dems have the power in the House. The Dems are the only defense against this danger to our democracy, and the onus is on them to speak with clarity and bring the case against Trump to the American people.

[Ninga]

5. We should not be rallying around Rick Wilson just because we are frustrated, depressed, and

anxious.

I saw the entire hearing, he should be talking about Lewandowski being in a world of hurt instead of slamming Dems.

[lunatica]

6. It's an exhausting double standard

I find myself staying away from DU every time the Democrats do something important in Washington now. I used to rush to DU to get a full picture explained by DUers who followed everything closely and used their analytical abilities to explain what was going on.

DU still has a lot of very smart DUers who understand what’s going on but there are too many defeatists with unrealistic expectations reacting with anger when those expectations aren’t fulfilled.

[Mersky]

7. I dunno, I'm kinda ready for it

It's a way to turn people onto logic and critical thinking.

I'm not saying it's easy. I've been checking in, following DU since the dubya years. I really don't know what I would have done without DU after battling knuckle dragging arguments on various news comment boards, or trying to sort the litany of news (had little idea we'd ever arrive at the insanity of a tabloid business failure of a scrotus (scrotus now means POTUS, because I just can't capitalize/casually spell out the current admin, I physically can't do it when sober).

I like the internal party fight on DU. I like internal workings, like if we all were in a colonial pub, duking it out over how to distribute votes across potential territories...ya know the frontier.
In DU, this glorious public forum of a gorgeous bastion of old school, ideal internet for which I long, we have to survive.

Ummmah, lemme tell you, it is way, way different from being a lurker to a poster. I've stepped in it. I once posted like everyone knew me here, like I was delivering it out loud amongst friends. Oops. I realized my mistake after the wedding and enchilada encounter that week. It was rough. Thank goodness, I was literally only speaking for me, I didn't get batted down, but was forced to wander around feeling shitty. If you're wandering around feeling shitty, super extra self reflect.

It was good, I recounted all my formative exchanges. Nope, I've never been a racist. Was an egalitarian before I learned the word in Mrs Caan's class. Good grief, sheesh I won't be shallow like that. I um, kinda crave entirely new type folks in my life, and frankly I always feel I'm running out. Need more new folks.

Man, I can tldr myself pretty well. I don't even want to proofread myself most of the time. Hehhh, I'm working on my attitude here.

Cough, cough, suck in, cough....

Heh, I'm roundabout trying to say, I appreciate difficult positions to understand. I've been there, but I'll ask folks to please understand the limits of the house bullied and/or stymied by the executive/Senate branches. Because it basically comes down to a huckster from NY and a fuckall ejected in KY (basically the same population as my home town in TX, thats' Houston)v deciding whether or not my uterus counts in the entire USofA.

[lunatica]

14. And yet there is a definite upside to the inevitable face plant

we all go through on DU. You learn a few things. You learn to think things through before posting. But more important than that you learn to stand and defend your views intellectually. You learn to bring links to back your point of view. You learn the art of heated, even sizzling, debate.

But just as important, unless you’re a repeat asshole or a bully or chronically uninformed, everything is forgiven and you’re just one of the guys. And if you ever need a group hug or to lay down your traumatic burdens DU will embrace you with genuine love and acceptance. It really is a great place. I for one am profoundly grateful for it.

The reason I’m doing just fine in my retirement is because of help and advice I received here in the last dozen years. I owe a lot to DUers.

.

[Mersky]

15. The first line in your reply is on my list of all time favorites on DU.

I'm humbled that you sent that in response to my yammering. Am still learning how to combine grace and wit on DU, and frankly, I may never quite 'get it' like some of the wise voices I look to on DU. And I'm okay with that, as long as I can be helpful on this nifty forum.

Some tRump news weeks have been so hard to process next to the goings on in my personal life, that I breakdown and start metaphorically throwing things. I'll adjust, and introduce some, eh, discipline.

I feel a deep gratitude for your kind words and insight.

And I think I did need that DU hug more than I realized.

[lunatica]

16. Well then, here you go

[Mersky]

18. Yay!

Awesome!

[Hortensis]

9. Yes. There's something dysfunctional going on with people who

are chronically oriented to criticize whatever groups they see themselves as part of, to the point that they don't have the time or caring left to focus on others doing genuine, serious wrongs. When this ankle-gnawing behavior gets really strong, though, psychologists stop talking about "traits" and give it a diagnosis.

Might seem strange that hateful bigotry can manifest against oneself and one's own group, but not when you really think about it. It's not as if bigotry were rational, much less intelligent or moral, but it is extremely common. And unfortunately for us, people can get away with free expression of self hate in a way they can't, for instance, with racism.

So we see a good amount of it in "normal" people on political forums. Probably many prone are specifically drawn to indulge, just as any other bigotry is far more satisfactory when shared. Of course, it's a grave weakness, plus other gullible people are influenced, so agenda-driven and fully-loaded articles using it to subvert are everywhere in political media.

It seems to be a much stronger factor on the left than on the authoritarian right, where more people tend to just give their conscience over to their leaders and absolve themselves and their leaders of all blame.

[TwilightZone]

10. It's nothing new around here.

There's always been a small, but vocal, faction that criticizes pretty much everything the Democrats do. They've been here since the beginning and ebb and flow like the tide.

It helps to realize that not everyone on DU is a Democrat, and I don't mean the obvious trolls. There are quite a few in the "both sides are bad" camp.

[Baltimike]

11. stop giving the conservative press your precious time.

because I suspect most people issuing these disses are the ones who just heard some conserva-pundit say it

[mcar]

12. GMTA!

I think I'll go watch Ken Burns' country music documentary for awhile ...

That's what hubby and I did last night instead of watching the news.

[ismnotwasm]

13. Yeah.

I’m not playing with em though. That’s how we got here.

[mahina]

17. Right??

[Scurrilous]

19. K&R

[GulfCoast66]

20. Yep. Nailed it.

Too many DU members see the world as they want not as it exists.

Impeachment is the perfect example. The only way trump will be removed from office if us winning in 20 or term limits in 24. Yet we see whining post after post about how he has to be Removed! Now! And then blaming democrats for not doing it Now!

But if we tried to impeach and failed, which we would today, giving trump a big win, Democratic leaders would be assailed for incompetence and the winds would truly go out of our sails.

Even worse, if we did manage to impeach and fail to convict and remove from office, which is assured, democrats would be attacked for incompetence and the wind would not only go out of our sails, the impeachment lovers will be totally demoralized and give up.

To me, it’s becoming obvious that too many here are scared to death to put it all on the line in an election even though that has always been the only choice. Once you accept that fact, then the only rational course of action is to proceed down the line that makes that more likely.

If you think a failed impeachment makes winning more likely in 20, then by all means support it.

But if like many of us, and the Democratic leadership you believe a failed impeachment gives trump a win and decreases our chance of winning in 20 then you oppose it.

Because those are the only real discussion relevant around impeachment.

[She_Totally_Gets_It]

21. Exactly how they treated President Obama.