On Being Serious about Serious Stuff

[MineralMan]

There's no question about it: This country is in serious trouble right now. With a narcissistic moron in the White House and a bunch of post-adolescent frat boys in control of both houses of Congress, there's a lot of really crappy stuff going down. Obviously, we have our work cut out for us. How we do that work is going to matter.

In order to recapture the White House and Congress, we're going to have to get a lot more people to vote for our candidates. I suggest that we may be going about it in a somewhat self-defeating way. I think we need to drop the sophomoric attacks on Republicans and focus on the hard facts that will convert people and help them decide to vote for our candidates.

While it's satisfying to call the President "Chump" and "Drumpf," I'm not sure that is the best approach. While it's easy and somewhat temporarily mind-easing to mock the people who surround this administration, laugh at their appearance, and make fun of them, I'm not sure that will help us in the 2018 election. We need to turn some minds around, and that's going to take a serious and thoughtful process if we expect to succeed.

The Republicans are going to lie through their teeth over the next 18 or so months. That's what they do. Calling them middle-school names will not get the job done of telling the truth about what they're doing to the country. That's only going to make some people we need to vote our way dismiss our arguments. That's not productive.

I predict that this post is going to be dismissed and forgotten by some. I understand. It's fun and cleansing to attack the Republicans with insults and name-calling. Those things make us feel better for a short time. However, I believe it will be self-defeating if we continue to use that strategy for very long. Instead, I suggest that we get serious and straightforward about getting the truth out there and skip that useless nonsense. Serious business requires a serious approach, in my opinion.

That's my opinion this Saturday morning. Thanks for reading it.

[sharedvalues]

1. K&R. Focus on GOP destroying America

Charles Pierce is a good model to follow.

[Wounded Bear]

2. Yes, we need to go beyond the name-calling...

no matter how much fun it is.

We need new candidates and we need better messaging for 2018. I'm down with that.

[MineralMan]

5. Yes, I think that's absolutely true.

We have to actually change minds. That can be very difficult, and won't be done by simply using ridicule and insults.

[rzemanfl]

3. K&R. n/t

[delisen]

4. I think you are right.

[Phoenix61]

6. I'm not sure about changing minds

but we definitely need to rebrand the Democratic Party. The view that we are spineless whimps is not helpful. And yes, resorting to middle school name calling doesn't improve that image at all. I've been pleasantly surprised by the resistance I have seen but that it is surprising is not good. It's seems obvious that the repubs are determined to act like frat boys during spring break. We need to be the adults in the room with a clear plan that makes our country better and an image that we have the strength to make it happen.

[MineralMan]

7. I agree, but I'm an old fart, and don't matter much, it seems.

[Phoenix61]

9. I don't know about the old fart part

but I always enjoy reading your posts.

[John Lee Pettimore]

8. I agree. Stay out of the gutter

HRC made a mistake with her deplorable comment. During the repub primary, everyone who tried to fight fire with fire lost to the school yard bully/pig. This was a lesson that should not be ignored. The old saying about not wallowing in the mud with a PIG because you just get dirty and the pig loves it, seems to apply here.