Thinking about it all
This past week has mostly been about defending the Democratic Party for me. I remain undecided although I must say I am leaning in a way that I doubt will change at this point.
I never imagined that I would spend the weeks before the Primary defending the Democratic Party as a whole…but I have been because the SC Democratic Party never stands up for itself. It’s disappointing.
Between NVB’s website and Mark Sanford…geez. It’s been hard. Sanford took a political low blow. The kind David Brancacchio talked about. So I'm not really surprised there. But I have a great deal of respect for NVB who is a diehard proud INDEPENDENT Obama supporter. Of course, I love to see independents love a Democrat so much…UNTIL they bash the Clintons. And NVB has been doing that a lot. And as much as I love him and his blog…I have to admit it turns me off for Obama. And I hate that for Obama because I don’t think that is what he intended but…it’s okay. I still love NVB and Obama…Obama is fighting for the same things as the Clintons. I'm sure they played a part in inspiring him. But in this whole process…I’ve just seen that there is a whole lot more to the game than supporting a singular candidate. It is about the platform…it is about the fight.
And, as much as I hate to say it this past week has made me remember Hillary’s book, “It takes a Village.” I know some folks use this book against her. Why? It does take a village to do a lot and despite how you all might interpret that book…that is just the truth. I often think about that book and Hillary’s stance and how she is attacked. But, she does get IT. I see that as a woman who wants it all and as a mother and as wife who is struggling to make it all work. I guess the woman thing is finally starting to come into play. Not only do I make sure my house has paper towels I also make sure our water and power bill is paid, I make sure our children’s clothes fit, our toilet doesn’t have pee on it after Jack pee's all over it, that we have mac & cheese, milk, juice, eggs and vi-viters (vitamins-that’s Katy-speak) and that our cats have full food bowls. I struggle (really struggle) to make our budget work and plan for our future and so on. And as a leader and a mother and a wife..Hillary gets THAT.
And none of this is to say that David doesn’t worry about this stuff. He works hard and provides in addition to doing his share in our house and triple all that I do because he’s been busy renovating our bathroom and putting in storm windows as well as hanging up wreaths for the neighborhood. And my mother does her part picking our kids up everyday and fixing us supper sometimes. And David’s father who spends his Saturday’s helping us on renovations. All of us work together to make THIS household work. And ALL OF THAT in addition to working really hard to make our relationships work. Because that is the hardest part of all…relationships.
That’s my point…it does take a village. Hillary was right on with that in the small scale (my home) and the large scale (my community). That attitude carries a LONG way.
I guess we can all take a stand and say everyone should take care of #1. But, I just don’t buy it. Yeah…people should try to get jobs and not milk the system. I think we all agree on that. But…we have no jobs in SC. We lost our industry and since then SC has lacked the leadership to spur any real economic development.
So that being said, we really can’t turn on back on others. We all have to come together to make this world work. And one thing I can say about Hillary Clinton is that she gets it. She got it a long time ago. You can hate her. Call her divisive. Yeah…I guess for some she is divisive. She’s been calling for change, equality and civil rights for years. And God forbid this country actually wakes the hell up to the problems we’ve created for ourselves, huh? But what is she saying that is REALLY so bad?
At the end of the day, Hillary can just go home and crack a bottle of wine…and I don’t mean any Winking Owl wine…she can crack some serious wine…and I don’t know why in the hell she doesn’t just do that. Barack Obama, John Edwards, John McCain, Mitt Romney, et. al. Bill Clinton? For God’s sake…why does he still care so much? Why do they all do this? Why do they care about America so much? Going home and drinking wine would be much easier than dealing with the rest of us.
I don’t know why. I seek to understand their motives. Why do they do this? Are they fighting the good fight? I think so. They just have different views on how to go about it all.
I can’t imagine any of them will gain for winning this position. The only thing they’ll get is bags under they eyes and serious aging…fast and maybe…just maybe…they'll inspire America to get off of our butts and fight the good fight. The good fight being a fight that would include ALL OF US not just ourselves.
Anyhoo, all of them really look like crap these days and need some sleep. They’ve all made their points and I think we should let them get some sleep. But we won’t. We'll wear them out, continue beating the hell out of them and expect the unexpected out of them come January 2009 when one of them enters into the proverbial Presidential (recession bound state that Dems will eventually be blamed for) hell.
Congratulations. No, really. Congratulations…in advance.
t
p.s. as I finish this blog…D is watching Dave Gilmore again and Comfortably Numb just happens to be on. Dang…Floyd just hits the nail on the head and makes me think a little harder. I guess Syd Barrett would be pleased. As he should be. Music is just incredible, ain't it?
p.p.s. QUEEN rocks too. I think we all know that, but if y'all don't have the RAVE channel…invest in it.
SeedingSpartanburg.com
on 13 Jan 2008 at 1:54 pm # F
t,
I have been thinking about the primaries and the candidates. I saw Hillary here in Spartanburg with all the black ministers standing by her in support. I actually got my pic w/her and an autograph. She was so polished and what an extemporaneous speaker! WOW!
It is impossible for a guy like me to REALLY get to know these candidates – I am one of the hoard. So I try not to get emotionally invested in these people or the process. The local people running for office I can know, and in some cases pretty well – it is different in that regard- I can truly relate or oppose.
So when I read or see reports about these candidates running for national office, I am very circumspect and have a healthy dose of skeptism about who they are or how they feel about things. Its the record and long term decisions that try to guide me, but I am not perfect. I say this to focus others not on party affliations or short term speeches, but look at a person’s record and how have they handled tough situations in the past (do they even have a history of true leadership?).
Thats my two cents.
F
on 14 Jan 2008 at 5:21 pm # notverybright
Hey, Tammy. Thanks for your thoughts on my blog.
I\’d be curious to know where you think I crossed the line, specifically. I mean, is it just in speaking ill of a Democrat, or some specific argument I\’ve made about the Clintons?
I have to say, given the way Bill Clinton acted in New Hampshire and what I think are pretty disgraceful comments by Robert Johnson and others, I\’m more firm in my view than ever. But I\’m not so much interested in arguing that point as in knowing what, specifically, you believe qualifies as \”bashing\” (your word) by me, and what is fair in arguing why a particular candidate would not be what this country needs (my characterization of what I have been doing).
Thanks.
on 15 Jan 2008 at 5:27 pm # tammy
Ugh. Let’s not go there. I’ve talked about this until I’m blue in the face. And I’ve made my choice. So I’m just ready for the primary to be over so the Democratic Party can gear up to take on the Republican machine. Unlike you, I am a Democrat and therefore interested in my political Party positioning itself to bring change to America regardless of who we choose to lead us.
But, I don’t think it was any one thing in particular you said. You just kept going on and on and on as if the Clintons and their supporters were doing all the bashing and Obama and his supporters were little angels when the reality is neither one of them are acting the way I prefer to see Dems act.
Speaking of Robert Johnson’s comments…I wonder if Obama can get his hands on a peace pipe he and Hill can hit?
They need to get on it. But, “disgraceful” comments? Disgraceful comments are ‘John McCain’s adopted daughter is his illegitimate black child.’ Obama got called out for something he admitted to. It’s in print and will always come up in his political career. He knows that. No one else should be surprised when that comes up. I don’t believe recreational drugs as a young adult are a career ender though.
Here’s to the peace pipe.
on 15 Jan 2008 at 11:41 pm # Earl
Nothing wrong with sticking up for your team. Loyalty is hard to find and usually under-appreciated.