Smoke filled backrooms vs. public meetings...

[Oregone]

Well, honestly, I think this public meeting would never have taken place in the manner it did if there was no work behind a curtain. If Obama was winning by 90% or losing by the same, or if either supporter didn't have such motivated/passionate/powerful supporters, this meeting would of been on CSPAN-3 and had a 300 word writeup on page 14 of the newspaper. But we know it didn't... And I'm assuming with that premise, that much of this was pre-decided and pre-discussed (in the 100 Aussman emails for example). Hence, to be honest, most of this was probably done in that "Smoke filled backroom" anyway, but this was the public facade to the decision.

So today, this public meeting...it was a circus. Despite that assumption that this is probably all decided, discussed, studied, and debated in the last 6+ months, we saw yelling, drama, exploitation of the civil rights movement and apartheid, threats, and outright stupidity. Network coverage of many adults acting like illogical children yelling at each other, until they came to an illogical feel good solution (which was probably pre-determined). The Democratic party used a public meeting to irrationally display to the world what they probably forcefully argued about for the last few months with vivid language and stagecraft. They rehashed emotions, expressed threats, etc. etc. It seemed, to me, chaotic....

Was this more effective than a purely private backroom decision...You decide. I never thought Id feel this way.

Honestly...public hearings are great, if you have cohesive binding rules that are 100% logical and followed in EVERY scenario. Not the case here...its was a sideshow.

[99th_Monkey]

1. I disagree, despite the screaming Hillbots & Ickes' shameful inflammatory behavior.

Yes, it was a circus of sorts, but at the same time it more importantly WAS democracy in action...

.. the party grappling to unify through rough waters, and I applaud all the well-intentioned energy
that went into making it happen in the most public inclusive manner possible.

I think this will prove to be a defining moment for the Party, for the better.

To have disenfranchised all voters in MI and FL would have been self-defeating and not bode well for them in GE,
and at same time to have given MI and FL 100% of their delegate votes as though they were 100% valid elections
would have been disingenuous and would have set the stage for an even more chaotic primary process in future
elections.

But the Committee chose NEITHER of these two problematic paths, and crafted compromises that reflect
the reality of the situation as closely as humanly possible. I think this reflects quite well on Democrats
house-keeping of it's own rules; and now it's time to let the last few states vote and for Supers to come out of
the closet by Weds.

This is all good news for the party and the country in my view.

[Dr Fate]

2. After seeing it made, I'll never eat sausage again. n/t

n/t

[nadinbrzezinski]

3. Welcome to making sausage 101... the smoke filled room

happened during their very long, as in three hour, working lunch

But otherwise, you saw sausage being made

I hope you enjoy it, after you cook it.