I'm guessing that I'm too late to get a response, but I'm confused. I can only pull up the last 10-15 comments. That means if I've been joking around on a blog I can't go back and see where the discussion went after a comment posted on another blog that I now can't find because I can't figure out where to get anything...

Sorry for whining, but I'm feeling left out because the instructions for finding old blogs are so cryptic on blogs like this. I've been here about 3 months but have no idea what the technical conversation you're having is about.

Grumble, grumble, grumble...

Posted at May 11, 2008 3:41 PM in response to Posting Instruction

I wouldn't support Obama if I thought he was likely to abuse executive power. The presidency requires making decisions, often unpopular ones. Power corrupts, but in Obama's case I'm more certain than I have been in a long time that we'll see more integrity than we've had since Carter. Not that Carter was a saint, but I don't expect sainthood. But I think Obama might manage to combine power and integrity.

But for those who doubt, there are two reasons to be at least a little less worried:

#1: Americans are uncharacteristically concerned about the campaigns and overall policy issues. Both Clinton and Obama supporters are going to continue to be attentive to how government is working. And as we've seen, it's a whole lot harder to keep things secret than it used to be.

#2: Captain's right about elections keeping politicians accountable, especially in light of #1. As we saw in Clinton I, a weakened executive means losses in both houses, often devastating losses. And without a Democratic-led Congress, we're back to complete gridlock.

I believe Obama will win in November. I think it'll be enough to give him a mandate but not a Reaganesque landslide.

Posted at May 11, 2008 2:28 PM in response to How will his power be kept under control?

Yep, laughing certainly is fantastic. When things are funny. I have a very twisted sense of humor, but Hitler is simply not funny to me. And I'm not even one of those Shoah-obsessed kinds of Jews. I just think that comparing Hillary to a man who burned millions of Jews, Gypsies, and homosexuals is beyond hyperbole. And just not funny.

But if it's what you need to do to get your ya-yas out and get over the Hillary-rage, go for it. I just can't sanction it myself. Sorry.

Posted at May 9, 2008 9:44 PM in response to you MUST check this out!

Sick. Nothing funny about it. Go ahead, dehumanize the dehumanizer and see how human you remain.

Sincerely,

An ardent Obama fan.

Posted at May 9, 2008 9:30 PM in response to you MUST check this out!

Loneoak, you've got the most reasonable plan I've yet heard. Have you sent it to Obama's campaign?

But--

A highly regarded exit poll in Indiana showed that 73 percent of the voters who voted for Clinton were thought that the Wright stuff was "very important."

Important to whom? Did they think it was important to other voters or to them? Did it perhaps even make them vote for Obama because it's been blown out of proportion and choked off the political discourse? Did some actually approve of his renunciation of Wright for political reasons? After seeing how well things went for Obama this Tuesday, I think we have to give the American electorate a little more credit than to assume the worst.

But for the GE, you're right about reaching out. Expect much more from him on class, race and gender. Expect that he'll get even better at talking honestly about his views and saying what he means without pandering or talking down to voters.

Posted at May 9, 2008 9:29 PM in response to Ideas for reconciliation

Ack! I'm surprised my government-computer browser would even let me follow that link!

Posted at May 9, 2008 9:14 PM in response to Shouldn't I/we be allowed to vent?

Me three; I've gotten so that spit doesn't fly from my mouth when I talk about Hillary, but only because I check myself constantly.

Venting is good, reduces the chances of heart attacks, and helps with stress. But Ben's right--if Obama supporters focus all our energy on attacking Hillary (which is exactly what's happening right now on TPM) we're cutting off our nose to spite our face. Remember--if you're filled with anger and hate, all that adrenaline keeps your brain from doing what it's made to do--think clearly and make good decisions.

So go ahead and hate what Hillary has done, but try to remember that she's still a human being and that she still deserves to be treated like one. Maybe shunned, maybe criticized, but not beaten. And maybe even let go of it so we can get cracking on getting Obama elected.

Posted at May 9, 2008 9:11 PM in response to Shouldn't I/we be allowed to vent?

There was absolutely nothing funny about that video. Call me an old fashioned Jew, but there's nothing funny about comparing Hillary to Hitler.

Let me repeat: There's nothing funny about comparing Hillary to Hitler.

That you find it funny simply says that you've lost all perspective on her humanity. By doing so, you diminish your own.

As a fervent supporter of Obama, I renounce and repudiate this video and any other like-minded smears on Hillary.

Posted at May 9, 2008 9:01 PM in response to Tasteless? Yes! Gut-busting hilarious? Also Yes!!

Thank you so much for this blog--what a breath of fresh air Mr. Ben Ami's article is. I have been very frustrated by the failure of Jewish charitable organizations to actually lobby for peace. I wish that the ambivalence of the U.S. Jewish population were more widely reported and reasonably discussed.

And tnathan, please read the entire article. And please try to read it with an open mind. We all tend to absorb only the information that supports our views. It's a natural human trait, there's nothing inherently wrong with it, but if we don't rise above our preferences and at least perceive there's another idea out there, we can't properly consider the big picture and come up with effective strategies to move ahead.

I think that kind of non-thinking is what's happened to a lot of Jews, and particularly to some powerful Jewish organizations. Anger and fear block our ability to exercise judgment and discretion. We need to fight anger and fear in order to figure out how to make things work.

And I admit to a fair amount of ignorance. But it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that Israel's current strategy isn't working, and that the U.S. government isn't helping.

Posted at May 9, 2008 8:51 PM in response to Five Myths About Being Pro-Israel by Jeremy Ben Ami of J Street Project

Larry, it's too bad we can't actually have a conversation about how to move on. All the TPM blogs are going to be infected with invective (ooh, I love words) for a while. I'm with you, though--give it three weeks. Hillary will either drop out or will become irrelevant as Obama gets the delegates needed whenthe Rules Committee seats MI and FL the way Clinton just rejected. She may be acting a little crazy just now, but she's no fool.

Meanwhile, back at TPM, let's hope we don't get stuck in this bloody alternative universe forever.

Posted at May 9, 2008 7:26 PM in response to It Is Not Racism