Stop this now.

[kpete]

The Minefield: Let's Back Out Slowly
By Big Tent Democrat, Section Elections 2008
Posted on Mon Jan 14, 2008 at 07:31:08 AM EST
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Speaking for me only.

Whether there was any intentional campaign work on the issue of race by the Obama and Clinton camps in the past few days, it is clear that any further skirmishing on this issue is counterproductive to both and to the Democratic Party.If there was strategy behind the efforts of anyone, it behooves them - and US - as Democrats, to leave this ugly interlude behind us.

The evidence for the claiming of race exploitation as a deliberate campaign strategy by either Clinton and/or Obama is sketchy at best. We can never know for sure if one or either did this. And sheer speculation by them and us is not helpful to either candidacy and to the Democratic Party.

So let's get this straight - campaigns, control your surrogates. Control your "unnamed advisors." Fire people or drop them as supporters if you have to. Stop this now. As for the blog communities (as opposed to the bloggers themselves), in my opinion, many of them are beyond redemption at this point and have been utterly neutered as positive forces for Democratic values and, more importantly for some of the members, for the candidates they claim to support. No one is listening to them anymore.

http://www.talkleft.com/story/2008/1/14/8318/70873

[Ken Burch]

1. Well said.

n/t.

[acmavm]

2. AMEN to this:

<snip>

As for the blog communities (as opposed to the bloggers themselves), in my opinion, many of them are beyond redemption at this point and have been utterly neutered as positive forces for Democratic values...

<snip>

[bigtree]

3. get real

there may well be boundaries which shouldn't be crossed when debating race in the campaign. Certainly it does no good at all to keep the focus on the candidates to the exclusion of the concerns of voters. But, the issuse of race, and the candidates' reactions and approaches to the issue are important and will continue to be debated. I don't think we could really go to SC, for instance and tell folks in the crowd that they're being divisive or something for debating the events surrounding the issue in the campaign. I don't think that kind of moratorium on these skirmishes over race in this campaign is really necessary here, either.

[jasmine621]

4. Both candidates need to put the MSM on notice that no more race-baiting

questions will be answered by them. Everytime the MSM sticks a mike in their faces and asks about ALLEGED "personal attacks" both candidates need to say, I'm not dealing with that, I am going to talk about what my plan and vision is for the nation. And beging to talk about the issues forthwith. Give the American people enough credit for being able to see exactly what is happening behind the scenes and how Obama is being manipulated to have the exact affect on the voters that is happening. One must ask themselves how is it that an Obama campaign can raise the amount of money that they have raised based his real time on the national politcal scene? Face it, Obama has raised as much and in some cases more money the HC or Edwards campaign. It could only happen if it was part of the plan. Obama is being used to scathe HRC and HRC supporters are being manipulated to raise their anger level so that a once disciplined camgaign will fall aparat in anger.

As soon as Jesse Jackson Jr. came out and said what he said about HC tears in NH, I knew the game was over for the Dems. While you clan't beat the MSM at the game, you certainly don't have to join them.

[JerseygirlCT]

5. Yes!

We need grown-ups now, after the evil spoiled rotten children have run the country into the mud. Time to start getting tough with big-mouthed surrogates doing harm to us all.

[KharmaTrain]

6. It's A Media Meme

The corporate media has ears like German Shepards for things that can divide and confront. Since you have the a black and woman battling for the nomination the racial and sexual radars were all tuned up and I suspected that this is just a taste of what's ahead.

If there's one thing the first two primaries have showed us is that negative advertising is starting to take a toll. Their corporate media has egg on its face and its credibility continues to erode thus they need a diversion, a distraction...find something that boils the blood and allows the pundits to play both sides of the fence. They get to manipulate this meme...and those who play along do so for only short-term gains. It's a game that we should expect the Tweetys and Russerts and Broders and other village idiots to play throughout the year as they look for anything that fills a pre-concieved meme that they can exploit for their own purposes.

I see a lot of agent provacateurs out there right now...people who need to stir the shit to "make a point" or start an outrage and the ability to hide behind a keyboard and a screen name allows for easy sniping. This is where the reader/buyer must beware. I am suspect of a lot I read on DU these days and view many posts now through filters of either supporting or attacking a candidate. In many ways I think these attacks, while conterproductive among Democrats now may be a shield and make us tougher in the election up ahead.

Right now passions and frustrations run high. Months of intense campaigning is coming down to the wire and the nerves are frayed...the endurance course is taking its toll. In a month we'll have a clearer picture of where things go and we'll have a far different picture and perspective at to where things are going as each party sorts out their nominations.

[SIMPLYB1980]

7. Sad more people don't K&R this post.

[elizfeelinggreat]

8. ending it would be the best thing

"The evidence for the claiming of race exploitation as a deliberate campaign strategy by either Clinton and/or Obama is sketchy at best. We can never know for sure if one or either did this. And sheer speculation by them and us is not helpful to either candidacy and to the Democratic Party."

If they would publicly speculate that it's the outsiders causing this division perhaps we'd get some satisfaction. Such as Chris Matthews being called to the carpet for his part in it.

[Karenina]

9. Two words: VOTING MACHINES

The rest is a dog and pony show.

:popcorn:

[Orsino]

10. "Skirmishing"?

At some point, it's healthy to remind ourselves that there's real skirmishing going on in this war that the two senators in question have failed to end. If it's imperative that squabbles between Democratic candidates end, surely they could come together and halt *'s war.

Stop the goddamned war now. The one in which actual democratic values have been neutered.