June 23, 2008

From the Mail Bag

Re “Dear Obama Supporters: We told you so.,” Blue Girl of Blue Girl, Red State writes:

Appreciate the link to our post about “feeling jilted” but I think you missed the point a little bit — first of all, my partner, the male half of the blog, wrote that piece, and he was writing extemporaneously and applying metaphor.

Second, we didn’t support him in the primary. We both backed other candidates, and voted for another candidate in our respective primary races, and have not lost sight of the fact that more Democrats had a different first choice.

I just want to make sure that you know we are as disgustd by the “fall in love with” and “come to” Obama memes as you are. I’m going to vote Democratic in November — but I am voting against McCain.

My apologies — I did miss the point, and I appreciate the correction.

(Funny this: I found myself in the very same boat today; I caught a link to the Newswire this evening that mischaracterized ours as a pro-Hillary blog. Not that we’re anti-Hillary [we’ve never denied her failings], but I felt the need to clarify that Hillary wasn’t our first choice, either — although she’s a million times more acceptable to us than Obama. How do you like that for coincidence?)

I applaud you for voting true to your beliefs. I relate to (and respect) Republican revulsion (”against McCain”) far more than I do to Bluedog blindness (”my party, right or wrong”).

I do wish I could find the magic formula that would convince all Kool-Aid-immune Dems to make a stand, en masse, against what’s been thrust upon us (say “third party” with me a few times, and it starts rolling off the tongue easily), but I realize there’s no chance of that happening this cycle (or the next, or the next…). As I’ve often said, I’m a Greenie at heart, but I can’t bring myself to join the Greens, because I believe the party has no choice of ever being a serious contender until it comes to grips with the fact that it cannot run a presidential nominee until it builds its base from the ground up, as — yes — the Republicans did. If there’s one thing I admire about the Repubs (and it’s probably the only thing), it’s their steady patience and tenacity: To rebuild the party, post-Watergate, and spread its influence (albeit like a slow-growing cancer), the GOP worked to get their own elected to the lowest levels of government (school boards, town councils) on up (county government, state, etc.). If the Greens would hold fast to their Ten Key Values but shift gears and focus on slow growth, I’d be their biggest cheerleader — and their biggest activist, and as big a donor as I could be.

But I digress. As usual.

On the “‘fall in love with’ and ‘come to’ Obama memes,” that’s something I’ve been wanting to blog about at length: how Obamanation has (unknowingly? that’s debatable) co-opted the worst angle of born-again marketing: turning The Messiah into one’s lover (often in so many words). It’s one of those high concepts that will demand much attention, research and thought, and I myself may never get around to writing it — and I’m not sure I could do right by the concept. So I’ll just throw the idea out there, and invite those better than I at synthesizing such a raw idea to turn it into something clear and digestible. (I’d love to see Anglachel, riverdaughter, Dr. Violet Socks, and my better half, Buffy , all take a shot at it.)

Again, thanks for the correction. And hang in there — the future, for better or worse, is up in the air.

As Marilyn Monroe sang in her last, unfinished film: “Something’s got to give, something’s got to give, something’s got to give…”

Posted by: Sapphocrat

Permalink | |