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Four more years?
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Lugia
970 posts

Re: Get over your sorry asses
Nov 04, 2004, 21:06
Well, looking at it from the solid Blue state to the south of ya...

I think a lot of the problem here lies with the 'mushy' message of the Dems this time out. There was a lot of indefinition there, and Kerry was a good embodiment of that. He's a good guy, he's done great stuff in the Senate, but he's too apt to go over the heads of the Pabst 'n' Pickups crowd.

Contrast that with Clinton. In that case, you had a message distilled down to a simple line: "It's the economy, stupid!" and a guy that had, well, 'guy' qualities.

Instead of the dreadlocks and Chomsky-a-go-go set, what the Dems need defining the 'on-point' is a leaner, meaner and more direct means of getting the core point across. And then couple that with someone that has the sufficient 'image' qualities like Dubya's got. Not the stupidity...Clinton was far from stupid...but that 'just like you' sense to them. The Left's message needs to be tailored to today's soundbite mentality in 'sell mode', but then they have to be ready to grapple with the real issues in a real, comprehensive, and full-on intellectual manner once the cameras are out of the way.

Until this foobar mushy mentality gets out of the way, this problem will persist. I have to agree...too much energy was expended shouting AT Dubya and not enough on figuring out how to shout him DOWN. I just hope these lessons get picked up on fast, because now the game is to try and hold the bastards back for the next four years, and it will take some lean-n-mean reasoning to at least slow the far-right down.

By no means does this mean that things should lean toward the center, no. It just has to be 'sold' that way so that a large class of people in the USA who only pick up on things in that mode will be able to make sense of it. A straightforward 'why you should care, and why these things are bad for us' message. And then the right face to put on it...not some pandering celeb, but someone who really makes people feel secure while at the same time is able to make people feel they're on that person's level.

It shocks the fuck out of me, all the missed opportunities. Just something such as the 'Massachusets liberal' thing could've been countered with an ascerbic punch questioning why people would exclude a part of this country and a part of all Americans from being such, and how trying to divide the nation with words like that is unamerican, and it would've landed a nasty blow. But no one ever touched something solid and smackdown like that. They have to learn to throw good punches...and by that, I don't mean pulled ones, but all-on haymakers. Because Bush's people certainly did loads of punching, kicking, and biting; it makes no sense to insist on 'Marquess of Queensbury rules' in a barfight.
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