WE Are NOT the Problem

[Warren DeMontague]

137. I am sure we agree on some things, and disagree on others.

Particularly in terms of who is sowing more division.

Some bernie supporters cant let go, some Hillary supporters cant either. Spinning elaborate narratives about how if she had only had a basically uncontested primary field, she would have emerged stronger- that doesnt help us unify, either. Personally, I think it would have been a disaster, the media would have ignored the stagnant D side entirely. And as Obama himself said, Sanders helped Hillary to be a better candidate.

For every ankle-grabbing Berniebro, there's also a righteously aggreived Hillary person who is holding up the "where to now" train until everyone acknowledges how profoundly wronged Hillary was, how she was the victim of a singularly monumental injustice which dwarfs all other considerations around the post-election conversation. And yeah, she wasnt treated fairly. But you know what? she - and her campaign - also made mistakes. The party apparatus made mistakes. i can be a loyal democrat and want a party chair who isnt debbie wasserman schultz, who doesnt work with sheldon adelson to kill medical marijuana reform.

Its not about Hillary or Bernie anymore, that's the bottom line. Neither is going to run in 2020, nor should they. Sanders lost the primary, as you say.. and, popular vote or no, Hillary lost the general. There are probably lessons there, for all of us.

As for time to pick a side, surely you're not talking to me. I've always been on the same side. And yes, certainly MY definition of what constitutes Democratic and Progressive values includes things like choice and personal freedom. Imagine my surprise when I run into folks here who oppose reproductive rights. Or think censorship -of anything from sex and nudity to 'blasphemy'- is okay. Or who, like DWS, think granny should be behind bars for smoking a joint in her own living room.

Unfortunately, in that vein, while we should be on the side of personal freedom, we haven't always been. We have had our share of drug war enablers and architects, for instance. There has been some progress, in that regard, but I think that is an excellent example of an area where we are overdue for some soul searching.