Changing Attitude Post-November 4th Election
Thursday, April 2, 2009 | Labels: democrat, obama, republican |
During the primaries and general election cycle of 2008, I was completely enthralled, obsessed, and otherwise with everything going on. I had Obama fever and was incredibly proud of the Democratic party platform. I tuned in daily to Huffington Post, Daily Kos, and all things lefty. I was shocked, dismayed, and outraged at everything the Republicans said and did and enjoyed railing against the Bush failures like my liberal counterparts.
Now that the elections have ended and Obama is President, my attitude has changed.
One thing that has remained is that I am far more informed than I used to be and keep up with the news consistently. What has changed is that I am no longer intensely political.
I don't want more Democrats in Congress or "better Democrats," a term used frequently at Daily Kos to describe Democrats with values and voting records that they deem progressive. I want Senators and House members who serve their constituents, get things done, debate and vote intelligently, and don't do too many stupid things for stupid reasons. I'm not limiting these wishes to Democrats; I want the same for Republicans.
I sympathize with the causes of the Daily Kos readership far more than I do with the RedStaters. However, both far-wings of their parties (left-wing and right-wing) share the same tendencies to shriek and be shrill when things are not going perfectly their way. Political candidates must pass their ideological purity tests or else all bets are off.
I don't begrudge political activism in general, including efforts by progressives to unseat Blue Dog Democrats. However, I hope they don't yell at the Republican Party for not being a "big tent" party when they don't always tolerate diversity of opinion in their own party very well either.
I donated to and campaigned for Obama during the general election because I believed he was an honest guy who genuinely wanted to serve the American people and take the country into a new direction that was solutions-oriented and driven towards peace and prosperity for our country. My gut said he was who he said he was and that he would do what he promised. So far, I haven't been proven wrong.
I won't always agree with him, but I'm glad that we have the smartest guy room flanked by all of the other smartest people in the room and subject matter experts in their respective fields helping us get out of this mess.
I believe that the electorate has proven to be more engaged and informed than ever before (or at least in a long time). There will always be those who scream that Obama is a socialist or that he's in the pockets of Wall Street. However, the larger middle, the more engaged and informed larger middle, will hopefully start electing better public officials for both parties. Rampant passive consumerism can't last forever when so many people are hurting and awakened to the realities of the present.
Instead of offering up bloggers who only post about hypocritical words and deeds of Republicans, I recommend my two favorite blogs that offer insightful, intelligent, and thoughtful political analysis:
Here's to using our heads and analyzing issues and candidates when we vote!
Now that the elections have ended and Obama is President, my attitude has changed.
One thing that has remained is that I am far more informed than I used to be and keep up with the news consistently. What has changed is that I am no longer intensely political.
I don't want more Democrats in Congress or "better Democrats," a term used frequently at Daily Kos to describe Democrats with values and voting records that they deem progressive. I want Senators and House members who serve their constituents, get things done, debate and vote intelligently, and don't do too many stupid things for stupid reasons. I'm not limiting these wishes to Democrats; I want the same for Republicans.
I sympathize with the causes of the Daily Kos readership far more than I do with the RedStaters. However, both far-wings of their parties (left-wing and right-wing) share the same tendencies to shriek and be shrill when things are not going perfectly their way. Political candidates must pass their ideological purity tests or else all bets are off.
I don't begrudge political activism in general, including efforts by progressives to unseat Blue Dog Democrats. However, I hope they don't yell at the Republican Party for not being a "big tent" party when they don't always tolerate diversity of opinion in their own party very well either.
I donated to and campaigned for Obama during the general election because I believed he was an honest guy who genuinely wanted to serve the American people and take the country into a new direction that was solutions-oriented and driven towards peace and prosperity for our country. My gut said he was who he said he was and that he would do what he promised. So far, I haven't been proven wrong.
I won't always agree with him, but I'm glad that we have the smartest guy room flanked by all of the other smartest people in the room and subject matter experts in their respective fields helping us get out of this mess.
I believe that the electorate has proven to be more engaged and informed than ever before (or at least in a long time). There will always be those who scream that Obama is a socialist or that he's in the pockets of Wall Street. However, the larger middle, the more engaged and informed larger middle, will hopefully start electing better public officials for both parties. Rampant passive consumerism can't last forever when so many people are hurting and awakened to the realities of the present.
Instead of offering up bloggers who only post about hypocritical words and deeds of Republicans, I recommend my two favorite blogs that offer insightful, intelligent, and thoughtful political analysis:
Here's to using our heads and analyzing issues and candidates when we vote!
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