Corrente

If you have "no place to go," come here!

The smart thread

vastleft's picture
Submitted by vastleft on Sun, 09/14/2008 - 11:09am

Please add to this list of things -- currently being done by Democrats -- that you think are smart. I'll start in comments.

Bonus points for explaining why they're smart.

Also, please contribute ideas for smart things that Democrats should be doing.

0
No votes yet

Comments

lambert's picture
Submitted by lambert on

New forms of electronic contract from the Obama campaign.

[ ] Very tepidly voting for Obama [ ] ?????. [ ] Any mullah-sucking billionaire-teabagging torture-loving pus-encrusted spawn of Cthulhu, bless his (R) heart.

goldberry's picture
Submitted by goldberry on

In spite of all evidence to the contrary, they continute to be optimistic that the testosterone poisoning fueled misogynism and now the disrespect directed at seniors and disabled are two key ingredients to a winning formula for getting to the White House. I've got to admire their spunk and faith in their beautiful theories, now being callously betrayed by ugly facts. They are like the little engine that could as they struggle up that hill burning millions of dollars as coal.

What could they do that was smarter? Well, that question is asked by someone who does not have faith. Shun the unbeliever. Shhhuuuuuuunnnn.
May you wake without a kidney.

Come together at The Confluence

Truth Partisan's picture
Submitted by Truth Partisan on

Can I say this a hundred more times?

Obama's starting to do some--more more more. He needs to keep it short and sweet, in the form of an answer to "what do we get?" Because people care about what they get, and how their vote changes their RL.

lambert's picture
Submitted by lambert on

But the message is lost and Obama's Tier Two strategy is hiding it.

[ ] Very tepidly voting for Obama [ ] ?????. [ ] Any mullah-sucking billionaire-teabagging torture-loving pus-encrusted spawn of Cthulhu, bless his (R) heart.

gqmartinez's picture
Submitted by gqmartinez on

Isn't that good? All I can come up with as far as "what they are actually doing".

amberglow's picture
Submitted by amberglow on

NJ--Dennis Shulman, a psychologist and rabbi who lost his sight as a child, against the Republican incumbent, Scott Garrett, in New Jersey’s Fifth Congressional District, at the northern edge of the state.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/14/nyregi...

"... He figures you do not need eyes that work to see what a nightmare the Bush years have been. His wife said that instead of wanting to throw his shoes at the television set, he should do something about it. So he decided to take on Mr. Garrett, who has represented the district since being elected in 2002 and has amassed one of the most conservative voting records in Congress. Mr. Garrett earned a rare 100 percent rating through 2007 from the American Conservative Union — with votes against stem cell research, against the reauthorization of the voting rights act and against aid to Katrina victims.

“It’s so out of step with this district,” Dr. Shulman said. “This is not the most conservative district in the United States of America. He speaks from the Republican playbook, and Americans are sick of the party playbook. I don’t have a playbook. Maybe they don’t put it in Braille.” ..."

gqmartinez's picture
Submitted by gqmartinez on

Not sure if Obama is really doing anything that wouldn't have happened anyway. The youth vote had steadily increased their participation since 2000.

What worries me about Obama and the youth vote is Obama's appeals to libertarian philosophy (mandates bad), damaging the Democratic Brand (Bill Clinton was part of the GOP problem), the vileness of his campaign (Facebook friends spewing sexist memes on a nearly daily basis, along the lines of cheeto hysteria). I could probably go on. Oh, and increasing racial tensions in this group (don't support Obama=racist).

So, while Obama is getting the youth vote in large numbers, the increased participation is in line with recent trends. Also, he seems to be instilling in them some very dangerous habits and ideas. Imagine if the young voters latched onto Hillary's more pro-Dem populism instead of this post-partisan nonsense?

Davidson's picture
Submitted by Davidson on

Why it's smart: She is absolutely positive throughout, focusing on why you should vote for Democrats (i.e. what we will fight for), instead of fear-mongering like the Obama campaign. Also note: she didn't have the focus be on immigration when appealing to this ever-important ethnic group of women, but instead had her speech revolve around--wait for it--the economy and ensuring that every one who plays by the rules and works hard can experience The American Dream--our "common future." That message allows immigration reform to be included because the overall theme resonates on a universal level.

gyrfalcon's picture
Submitted by gyrfalcon on

Man, I hope she writes another book someday that talks about her political/ideological evolution. Has she always seen things this way and just not have the words or the courage, or did this primary process and the pressures of campaigning crystallize something for her?

I've always liked Hillary on principle, but she's one of the last Democratic politicians I ever expected could turn into an inspirational kind of leader. She keeps this up, she's going to make Bill look truly cautious and conservative.

Swift Loris's picture
Submitted by Swift Loris on

Palin's unfamiliarity with it in her interview on ABC with Gibson has garnered a fair amount of attention in the media, making this an excellent time to discuss what it represents and the fact that McCain supports it, as well as what it will mean for the country if he gets the chance to exercise it--contrasting this, of course, with Obama's opposition to it.

lambert's picture
Submitted by lambert on

As BTD points out (too lazy for link), nobody else knows all that well what it is either, and especially Gibson, who did the interview. The name was media driven anyhow.

I don't think Obama will get a chance to exercise the Doctrine in any case -- he's already committed to Afghanistan, so with what Army?

[ ] Very tepidly voting for Obama [ ] ?????. [ ] Any mullah-sucking billionaire-teabagging torture-loving pus-encrusted spawn of Cthulhu, bless his (R) heart.

Swift Loris's picture
Submitted by Swift Loris on

of the doctrine is the one Gibson mentioned, that the U.S. has the right to attack other countries even if they pose no imminent threat. Doesn't matter that the name was media driven; it stands for a real and potentially disastrous policy. Heck, it's already been disastrous.

I don't understand your second comment. Obama has said he doesn't agree with the doctrine and points out that Bush engaged in a war of choice that distracted us from what we should have been doing in Afghanistan.

Focusing on the Bush Doctrine is a good way of making the choice between McCain and Obama clear and simple. That's what the Dems need to be doing above all.

Damon's picture
Submitted by Damon on

If we're just talking smart, as opposed to all-legal and all-ethical, their voter registration push has been amazing at the ground level. If the presidential race is a losing one for Obama it will not have been because they ran out of newly registered Democrats. They've created an astounding amount of cannon fodder this year.

Ok, so that was a back-handed compliment, but it's better than nothing, right?

Turlock