We must stop comparing apples to oranges and start comparing apples to apples.

[democrank]

It`s safe to say most everyone here supports the Democratic Party....the apples. Few support the Republican Party....the oranges. It doesn`t require much critical thinking or soul-searching to respond to threads about asinine comments by Ted Cruz or Sarah Palin. We have a half zillion threads a day about Fox News to play with, or throw in Ted Nugent and Presto! a regular post-fest. I know it`s not for everyone, but shortly after Junior Bush was selected, I promised myself I`d never visit Fox News or Free Republic again......and I haven`t. That decision was like taking a soothing shower after tarring roads in 95 degree heat all day, plus I don`t ever run the risk of infesting DU with mind-numbing crap by repeating some of the hateful, ignorant stuff those fools spew. That way, I can use my energy to better advantage and concentrate on issues that concern me.

I campaigned for and voted for President Obama twice. If I compare him to Junior Bush, Sarah Palin, Mitch McConnell, he gets a Thumbs Up. I`m comparing apples to oranges. If I compare President Obama to Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, former President Carter, former Senator Bill Bradley, Howard Dean, the late Paul Wellstone and others, both thumbs aren`t up, because I`m comparing apples to apples on the issues. I don`t care about the so-called chess matches. That`s all part of stage-crafting, image-making and I`d rather spend my time fighting for veterans or children living in their Mother`s Chevy.

Since he has disappointed me many times, I don`t care all that much about what President Obama says. I watch what he does, how he does it, who he does it with....and to. That usually tells me what I need to know....without a focus group.

Our party needs a serious back-to-basics correction. Skip Wall Street, head to Main Street.
We need to mingle with a few less consultants and a few more loggers and teachers and janitors and mechanics. We need to get back to the hands-on people, the folks we always used to represent. The folks we looked out for, the folks who mattered to us. We have to stop making excuses for our leaders and start holding them accountable. If they sell us out....no checks, no votes. Most importantly, we need to take control of the message and not let it be dictated to us by some number-crunching, out-of-touch operative. Just like Dr. Dean said, we do have the power. Sadly, we frequently get talked out of using it. Just tell yourself to stand up and be counted. Just like we did when we were fighting for Civil Rights, Women`s Rights and the end of the Vietnam War. A good place to start is to bypass corporate media and seek out alternative news sources. It`s like opening the door to a new world. ~PEACE~

[Cleita]

1. Thanks but we won't get the country we want

until we have campaign finance and election reforms. Then we can separate the apples from the crab apples.

[polichick]

2. "Sadly, we frequently get talked out of using it." Yes, often by...

our own "leaders." Remember when liberal groups ran ads against Blue Dog Dems and were attacked by the WH?

Problem with the Dem Party is that it has been taken over by corporate interests - so much so that even a lot of posters here believe that only a corporate Dem is "electable."

Beinart's article about the millennials talks about a new approach - good news is that more and more of them (and others) are using, as you say, alternative news sources. imo technology/social media will have a big role to play.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/09/12/the-rise-of-the-new-new-left.html

[JayhawkSD]

3. Very well put.

Thoughtful and elegantly expressed. If more people thought that way there would have been a Democratic Presidential Primary elelction in 2012. There should have been one. It is shameful that the Democratic Party did not allow one.

The lesser of two evils is not good enough. This country deserves better choices than that.