As I said below, my hope was that the sickness was confined to the fringe of the Democratic Party.
I just heard John Kerry bragging that he had 10,000 lawyers standing by to make sure every vote is counted.
Somehow, I don't think you can identify the chosen Presidential candidate as a member of the fringe. The madness has gone mainstream.
I have a question for my readers who are Kerry supporters: Is this election so important to you that you are willing to win it by any means necessary, including fraud? Given the widespread reports of voter fraud, including multiple districts with more registered voters than residents (Neat trick, that one, and they're all in swing states. Imagine that.), does unquestioned acceptance of a Kerry win implicitly accept that fraud?
Again hard questions, but these are hard times.
Posted by Rich at October 26, 2004 12:10 PM | TrackBackRich, the frings has gotten its candidate nominated, and - since perception is everything - the fringe is passing itself off as mainstream.
And the mainstream follows, because...well, they're Democrats and they're supposed to. It's in the bylaws.
Those Democrats smart enough to recognize that this fringe represents ideals way too far left for traditional liberalism remain disenfranchised, shifted to the middle/independent, and forced (in most cases) to vote for Bush.
That's where I find myself. I don't think the new Democratic anti-war sentiment is based on any real liberal or even human altruistic morality - it's all based on Anti-Bush, going back to the 2000 election, and anti-Republican going back to the entire Clinton Presidency. I've seen nothing from the vehement anti-war and pro-Kerry Democrats to lead me to believe their decisions are based on any principles except revenge.
So yes, the Left fringe has co-opted the party, the candidacy and the debate while the moderates who were able to do something about it (Leiberman, etc) had their hands tied by their political futures. And because of that, everyone else has to suffer.
Posted by: Barry on October 27, 2004 10:51 AMBarry, I really hope you're wrong. I'm hoping that folks like you represent the majority of Democrats, and this current incarnation of the Democratic party is a brief abberation.
It's probably too late, but I still hope for a clean election, regardless of the outcome.
A clean Kerry win is preferrable to a dirty Bush win and vice versa. The worst possible outcome is a narrow Kerry win with him carrying Ohio by a razor thin margin. There have been so many signs of fraud from that state that Republicans wouldn't be able to resist contesting the vote, and we know where that will lead us. I've heard stories that if it is even close, Kerry plans to claim victory and move forward as if he won, regardless of the counts.
That's frightening, and I hope it's just a rumor.
Posted by: rich on October 28, 2004 12:51 AM