I don't write diaries. Once in a while, I'll get an idea and flesh it out in a draft, but never seem to hit the Publish button. This happens because I realize that what I have to say usually amounts to just clutter. I can't stand sifting through all the clutter to get to the real stuff, so in the end, I delete my thoughts to spare you all. Fortunately, an hour later, someone else gets the same idea and writes it better than I ever could. I'll rec, I'll tip, I'll comment. I'll make jokes, even. But I'll stop myself before publishing some tripe that doesn't advance the election of Barack Obama. Therefore, I'm bringing the serious:
We at DailyKos are quick to condemn John McCain for saying that he’d rather lose an election than lose a war. Not only is he lying, he implies the opposite of Barack Obama. I’m about to say something equally offensive to many of the contributors who are reading this.
There are people on this site who would rather lose an election than lose an argument. Odds are, I’m talking about you.
Dear Half-Assed Contributor:
You do not have The Answer. Obama has been running his campaign smoothly for eighteen months. He knows what he’s doing. You do not.
You are not the next Chris Matthews, Keith Olbermann, Chuck Todd, or Rachel Maddow. You don’t know a damn thing about winning elections. Your diary/comment is not going to get 5,000 recs and Markos will not notice you. You will not be asked to be a regular contributor to this or any other site. You will not get an audition to go on TV to debate Pat Buchanan. You will not anchor a news hour and get paid six figures. However, there may be a liberal think-tank opening soon that will have room for your ideas – a place where that kind of creative thinking is needed and rewarded. But, you will not be invited to that either.
While you might, MIGHT have some interesting, outside-the-box ideas, they are irrelevant right now. The machine is in place for victory in November. The campaign needs parts & labor, not new engineers. Donate. Volunteer. Talk to your neighbors. Talk to your family. Talk to your neighbors’ families. Changing people’s minds one at a time is far more likely to turn the election than your hare-brained scheme, or worse, your 20/20 hindsight. For example:
"If only he’d chosen Hillary we’d be up by ten points right now."
Maybe. Maybe not. So what? IT IS WHAT IT IS. Roll with it. Republicans roll with it, right or wrong, and that’s why they win. Palin was a horrible choice, but they didn’t cry foul. They fell in line, and the polls prove it. When Obama does something, anything, we FREAK OUT. What was the deal with The 24-Hour Greek Column Hissyfit? It turned out to be nothing. Just like everything else we’ve made a big deal out of so far. Do I wish he’d done some things differently along the way? Sure, but I can’t think of a single issue or gaffe that is responsible for the fact that we’re not up by 30. [My answer to the above? Joe Biden is incredible. I wouldn’t trade him for anyone else, and he wasn’t on my personal short list. Obama was right, and I was wrong, as usual]
On the other hand, there are many contributors to this site who do know what they are talking about. They have expertise in various fields that allow them to speak cogently and teach us a few things from time to time. They appear on the rec list nearly every time they post. There’s a reason for this – they’re smart. Smarter than you. Their diaries have substance.
Regular contributors like billmon, bonddad, Granny Doc, teacherken – these are thoughtful people who work hard to bring us important information (note: not an exhaustive list). You need to read more and write less. We’ll all be better off if you do.
Here’s my pledge. I cruise DailyKos pretty much all day unless it gets crazy at work. From now until November 4th, anytime I find a useless, vacuous, snide, petty remark about how Obama Isn’t Doing What I Want, I’m going to ding you. That’s right, HR, donut, (0+/1-), pick your poison. I know, I only get five a day. But I will not be choosy. First five comments/diaries that fit the criteria above are getting punked. I won’t suggest that anyone else follow suit, but I’m just tired of the bullshit. I’m spending all five right away, so I would at least recommend not making stupid comments before noon.
I’m upset, I know. This is a political site and people have their opinions. But way too much of the stuff I see is counterproductive to the "mission statement" of DailyKos:
This is a Democratic blog, a partisan blog. One that recognizes that Democrats run from left to right on the ideological spectrum, and yet we're all still in this fight together. We happily embrace centrists like NDN's Simon Rosenberg and Howard Dean, conservatives like Martin Frost and Brad Carson, and liberals like John Kerry and Barack Obama. Liberal? Yeah, we're around here and we're proud. But it's not a liberal blog. It's a Democratic blog with one goal in mind: electoral victory. And since we haven't gotten any of that from the current crew, we're one more thing: a reform blog. The battle for the party is not an ideological battle. It's one between establishment and anti-establishment factions. And as I've said a million times, the status quo is untenable.
We are here to GET DEMOCRATS ELECTED, not show off our ridiculously inferior analytical skills. So get out of your comfort zone and engage people. Win this election first – then we’ll talk about your Awesome New Ideas next year. Until then,
Donate. I have.
Volunteer. I am.
Represent. I do.
Don’t ever give up.
UPDATE: Holy crap! Rec list? I'm speechless. It's just a rant. Hopefully a real story wil come up soon and knock it off.
Since it did get some attention, I'll back off on the "donut factory". If you really deserve it, I'll ding you (and I'll still use all five every day), but don't be afraid to post what you feel. This site has made me a better Democrat and a better man, and it's due to people like you who are willing to share their stories and make me proud to be a liberal.
UPDATE 2: Top? OK, this is just silly. Now go recommend good stuff like this and let's get back to work.
I'm humbled, really. And in case you missed it in the comments, I apologize to anyone who was offended - if you saw it as rude, it wasn't intended for you.
UPDATE 3: Oh my God, fantastic discussion. Even from the folks who don't like me very much right now. HR threat recinded - it's no longer necessary, as I think the topic has been fully digested and pooped out by now. Like I said, it was just a rant. Didn't mean to pluck feathers, just ruffle 'em.
FINAL UPDATE: OK, some people are really taking this personally. If it weren't for the generally positive reaction I'd be drooging myself right now. Today wasn't supposed to be my 15 minutes. I thought a few people would laugh, and maybe we'd clean up the recent diary list a bit, but I never expected this.
To the very many negative commenters, thank you. I don't disagree with anything I've read here today. With all of the discourse about what our purpose here should be, certainly DKos can't be any worse off now than it was this morning. We should absolutely talk at length about new ideas and how to form the progressive agenda going forward. Next year. For 2012. Right now, the candidate we support needs real help. Thanks to everyone who already does, and welcome to those who are just starting!
Now I'm going to take my own advice and slip into the shadows for a while, until my blood pressure returns to normal. Should be about...55 days.