With Hillary Clinton herself firmly behind Obama, the blogs seem to have turned inward in their search for unity. Posts abound about alienated bloggers 'coming back', the progress of achieving 'unity', and lots of thinly veiled fear at what might happen if this terrible internet-schism in the party continues.
I'll admit that I'm extremely new to posting, and relatively new to reading (been lurking for nearly a year now) but I can't seem to understand some of the sudden unprovoked outpouring of goodwill towards certain groups - most prominently alienated Clinton supporters.
If these people couldn't figure out Kindergarten level rules of etiquette in a Democratic primary - where the stakes absolutely could not be higher nor the imperative to remain civil more clear from the beginning - then what is causing people to suddenly want to welcome them back with open arms?
I've read the story of the prodigal son, and I like to think I've taken it to heart. The central theme though is returning repenting - which is something that I haven't seen in a lot of the cases.
In the case of the most notable (perhaps by this point notorious) 'defectors' there is Alegre, who unless I've missed something entirely has continued to spew vitriolic speech elsewhere after perpetrating the juvenile 'writer's strike' months ago. A willingness to forgive is one thing, but I see now reason why it should be either unconditional or proactive.
I sense an honest lack of goodwill in these efforts. I think instead they are motivated by fear - we've all seen poll numbers about Obama's eroded support amongst Clinton supporters, and we're all wondering what we can do to 'win them back' - or whether or not it might happen on its own. But to capitulate entirely runs completely counter to everything I think his campaign stands for. Chief amongst them Truth - a quality notably absent in the recent writings of Clinton supporters such as Alegre - and integrity.
So long as these people are content with their actions in divisively attacking somebody who even had the CHANCE to become the democratic nominee at the expense of truth, dignity, and self preservation I see no reason why we should mourn their loss. We can win this election, and we can win it with our without those few. The desperate desire to pander to anyone and everyone is what lead to the coalition of the unquestioning that has left Bush and company in charge of our failing eocnomy, energy policy, and war for nearly 8 years - and the damages are only mounting faster as the clock runs down.
I think we can not only afford, but can only stand to gain from choosing our friends more carefully.
I'd like to close by qualifying some of my assumptions. When I take about we and us, I'm not talking about Obama supporters. When I'm talking about desertion, I'm not talking about supporting another extremely qualified candidate for president. I hold 'us' to be the community of intelligent, committed democrats, independents, and rarely even Republicans who are capable of holding a level of civility while working towards common goals.
An important edit: As pointed out in the comments, my negative remarks here (and I fully admit that's what they are) are aimed squarely at those who supported Hillary Clinton at the expense of truth and decency. I also understand that this number is vastly outnumbered by those who supported Hillary for legitimate reasons and through respectable means - each and every one of whom I would bend over backward to help in joining those of us who support Obama