More Flies With Honey
The Washington Post today has a short section by Brian Faler on some recent comments by the chairman of the Democratic National Committee: one Howard Dean, M.D. Normally I would leave the opposite party alone and let them sort out their own business, but I want to stick my nose in here just briefly (forgive me, Democrats).
Faler uses his space in the Post today to collect some of the more vituperative quotes that Dean has used in recent weeks to describe members of the RINO's own party. Now, as those of you who have been keeping up with my posts here know, I criticize the GOP on a regular basis (almost endlessly, in fact) - so I certainly would expect nothing less from Governor Dean [apparently he prefers "Governor" to "Chairman"]. However, I'm not sure I would go quite so far as to generalize Republicans as "evil", "corrupt", or "brain-dead". Nor would I "mimick a 'drug-snorting Rush Limbaugh'", as Dean did in Minneapolis last week.
It is not often that I agree with the spokesfolks at the Republican National Committee, but in this case I must: "It's odd that Howard Dean says he wants to earn the respect of those who live in the red states, but chooses to not only attack their views but attack them personally. Americans want to hear an agenda, rather than name calling," said Tracey Schmitt for the RNC. Odd indeed.
As I wrote in a reply to a comment on the DailyKos website over the weekend, "It's a whole lot easier to get people to accept your point of view when you're not shouting at them, impugning their motives or insulting their intelligence, I've discovered." Governor, if you're really interested in talking to Republicans of all stripes about why the Democrat Party is a better choice, let me suggest that you put away the vinegar and start offering solutions.
posted by JBD @ 10:06 AM
2 comments
2 Comments:
Howard Dean is proof that the Daily Kos style of Democrats are triumphing over, well, the DINOs (read: DLC--people like, I dunno, Bill Clinton).
And, btw, mentioning to the folks over at Daily Kos that they might want to tone down their rhetoric is like suggesting to a dog that he stop sniffing himself--they just don't see what the problem is.
After offering a similar recommendation, I was told to "evolve, idiot." They are playing a zero sum game with the Democratic party. If they take over the party fully, Dems will have a few seats out West and few up in the Northeast and nothing in between.
Yeah, I'm afraid you're probably right, Alan. But I've still got just enough idealism in me that I try sometimes. And actually in a few exchanges I've made some headway. Of course I've also gotten similar comments to that you describe. There are still at least a few Kos readers though who are looking for voices of reason and not just vituperation. It's those folks that we need to be engaging with as much as we can, to make them see that it's okay to be have strong opinions and not be on the fringe, and that 'compromise' isn't a dirty word.
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