No, this is not one of those “Goodbye cruel world posts.” I’ve got to take a leave from DKos because I’ve got a novel to write and I waste . . . er, spend too much time here. If any of you out there are writers, you know what I mean. Distraction is death and it’s way too easy to convince yourself to do anything other than actually sit down and put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard). (“Why, is that the classic ‘Hogan’s Heroes’ episode I’ve never seen where LeBeau dances the tango with Klink? Can’t miss this opportunity.”)
The temptation to hang out here is only going to get worse as the primary season rolls along and John Hickenlooper catches fire (do I really need a snark tag here?) and as we enter an actual election year. So I’ve got to go cold turkey.
While I’m gone, a plea.
As we all promote our preferred candidates and critique our non-preferred ones, let’s try to remember one thing: all our candidates would be a thousand times preferable to the dangerous, lunatic wanna-be tyrant haunting the White House and our fevered dreams. Let’s not permit our passions for one candidate or another or one vision of the future or another to divide us irreparably and let us not try to tar any of our candidates as something they are not.
None of our candidates is a racist, a misogynist or closet Republican. So if you’re one of those people suggesting some of them are, please just stop. Get real. As every parent says to his or her kids at one point, “Stop it! You be nice!”
Those of us who stalk DKos may have differing ideas on how to approach some issues, but we agree on 95 percent of everything. Our candidates may have different plans or notions on achieving our goals, but they all agree on the principle that everyone should have affordable health care; that we need to tackle immigration in a way that provides security but is also driven by compassion; that corporations and the rich need to pay more in taxes; that we need always to support civil rights for all citizens; that we should not govern by chaos but with careful deliberation.
And, most fundamentally, that this time, it really is the most important election of this or any other lifetime.
By the time I get back here, we’ll almost certainly have a nominee. I hope we’ll have had a spirited discussion but one that did descend any further into innuendo, false accusations and cheap shots.
Thanks for listening, and I’ll see you after the third draft!