This is Politics Tuesday and the Ocean Champions should be by any moment. In the meanwhile, I found something politically charged and provocative over at Salon.com. Joan Walsh reviews Matt Bai's book The Argument: Billionaires, Bloggers and the Battle to Remake Democratic Politics, which she describes as a "heralded anatomy of Democratic disarray in the Bush years".
Bai implicates left-wing bloggers in what he sees as a two-part crime that will cripple the Democratic party: the failure to put together a big, bold social policy for the 21st century, and the "disabling hatred" of George W. Bush. Walsh has the impression that Bai has come to see the lefty blogosphere as "Bush-hating, Hugo Chavez-loving naifs, comparable to Jane Fonda in the 1960s, all hopped up about American wrongdoing in the world while oblivious to the al-Qaida threat." But Walsh doesn't buy all of Bai's "Argument". The article is worth a long peek and probably so is Bai's book...
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I want to read the book because I certainly agree with the premise. In the spring of 2004 I attended a meeting of lawyers in Santa Monica who presented a group of television commercials produced by Moveon.org on the theme of "Bush, the mis-leader." They were so proud of the work that I didn't dare speak, but I thought they were all terrible -- bitter, mean, nasty, grating -- pure Bush-bashing. As was the case for the contest Moveon.org held for people to submit their own 60 second spots.
And then they went and screwed things up further by trying to get the winning spot aired during the Super Bowl, causing the television network to clamp down on people wanting to use the venue for their "messaging" -- way to go Moveon.org.
Two years earlier I gave a talk in which I recommended that the ocean conservation community spend $5 million on a single television commercial campaign in which they bought time in the Super Bowl to get their message out overnight. Everyone laughed at me, but clearly by 2004 other people were thinking along the same lines.
But after Moveon's bumbling that is no longer an option. I think that's an example of what the "disabling hatred" results in. Such blind rage that they can't even see they are alienating the mainstream.
...and Mr. 28% is not alienating the mainstream...
I agree. Bush-bashing likely does a lot more harm than good. Three, no, five years ago it was really fun to Bush-bash, and those of us who participated can satisfy ourselves with our gloating I told you so's. But actually, that can be pretty obnoxious, even to a pedigree liberal. Can you imagine how it sounds to a Republican tentatively and probably somewhat resentfully dipping their toes into the Democratic side of the pool?
It does little good to keep pushing on something already gaining momentum moving downhill. Really, who is left to convince? Bush is best fit to handle that himself anyway. (Did I just bash?) We also don't want to make the mistake of sounding like freaky radicals, with overly provocative in-your-face superbowl ads. Even if we were allowed to use the venue for "messaging", people prefer to see close ups of melty burgers and ads that combine the beach, girls and beer, not Moveon.org, or say, sustainable fishery ads...
When I see PETA billboard ads on the highway I get annoyed. And I'm vegetarian and I believe in "animal rights". 'Nuff said.
I think the focus should be on why Democrats are good, not why Republicans are bad. That may sound general and naive, but maybe it's what works. Plus, it's true.
I had a friend in college who used to say she would leave the country if Bush won the first election. (Was that really seven years ago?) I don't know what happened to her, we lost touch when she graduated and moved to Santa Cruz, but I hope she didn't.
I think Leilei's right about the middle road, in more ways than one.
Oh and to my friend, whereever you are I hope you're okay...and you can still vote...