Reply #18: This is beneath you, Pete. [View All]

[arendt]

> Kerry, who won Iowa and NH fair and square makes

Yeah, the media lands the pre-mix audio scream speech
on Dean, but Kerry won NH fair and square. Donnez-moi une break!

I will be the first to admit the Dean campaign made a
lot of political tactical errors in NH. But, the media
was breaking his legs.

You seem to want Dean to just go away, like Kerry who
early on said "Dean, Dean, Dean". Just couldn't understand
why the man wouldn't quit.

I've got news for you the Dean campaign is the John Havlicek
of Democratic Politics. His people believe that people,
not special interests, should run the Democratic Party.

I've never worked before in politics. I thought it was for
professionals. Now I see my mistake. It is professionals
like Kerry who put corporate interests first, even when
they are nominally Dems. In the Dean movement, Movement
is more important than Dean. Dean serves as a focus, but
the movement must stay organized.

If Dean loses and says support Kerry. I will. And I will
work for his success. But I'm keeping my membership card
in the movement.

The Democratic Party cannot become another rigid, centralized
party like the GOP. Or, do you want all dissent in this
party suppressed because we are "at war" with the GOP?


> It gives the media more fodder to bash him...

And, precisely what did the Kerry campaign say when it was
down and the media had annointed Dean? Did Kerry say that
it was OK to "bash" Dean? Two lilly-white Northern states
have voted. I'm not saying Dean will do well in the South,
but Kerry might not either. So, why should Dean quit?
And he is making honest points that Kerry's rhetoric has
no basis in fact. We hate that when * does it. Giving
Kerry a pass on it just sets us up to be called hypocrites
in the GE.

What is wrong with an old-fashioned convention, where
interest groups reach a compromise? I do not like the
media telling me when the race is over or which candidates
I should ignore.

Although I do not support Clark, I think he is getting
non-coverage at this crucial moment - the same way Dean
got negative coverage. And, BTW, I think there is something
to the correlation of Dean's negative coverage and the
call by Dean to "re-regulate corporate America, and
especially the media".

The longer the Dem race goes, the more *free* publicity we
get, the more the public gets to see what *honest* campaigning
(instead of BuschCo lies and smears) looks like.

As Kerry people told Dean: if your candidate can't take
these mild attacks from a Dem, how are they going to stand
up to the GOP hate machine? You don't think the GOP have
access to exactly the same facts Dean has?

Methinks your arguments are polemic rather than objective.
That is your prerogative, as it is mine to call you on them.

Peace and a gentlemanly discussion, I beg you,

arendt