Tweety Bird: The Clintons think its their party.

If like me, you get e-mails from both the Obama and Clinton campaign, you probably got an e-mail from "[e-mail]" thanking you for your support. I don't believe anyone will read the reply I sent back, but I post it below.

No-once again you're wrong. you didn't win because of me, you won in spite of me. And during this evening's MSNBC coverage I learned one important thing from Chris Matthews,  your new found pet parrot (otherwise known as tweety bird).

The Clintons believe it is their party and they can do what they want to.

Well, I hate to sound trite and echo old popular songs but "you would cry too if it happened to you." What am I talking about-your decision to echo and run on every right wing smear of the last 40 years. Your decision to use to attack people like me: middle class Democratic activists who vote on foreign policy. Your decision to make it clear that you don't want people like me because we're too "elitist." And finally there is your decision to play the victim card and engage in the most ridiculous, simplistic peurile second wave feminist politics imaginable. If I follow your logic, it would have been a breakthrough of historic proportions to have a white female President of South Africa under apartheid. Isn't that what you're saying? Here's how it breaks down. You claim that if you win it is an advance for women. But you win by subtly appealing to racism, by attacking anyone with any kind of liberal or progressive view and by legitimizing the Republican meme of liberal=elitist and effetist. And then you say that if you win, you reserve the right to totally obliterate countries. This was, I will point out, exactly the view that other Democratic Presidents from Truman, to Johnson, to Kenneddy, to Carter and yes, even your husband rejected. While unfortunately, Democrats (like you) have been all too willing to get us bogged down in wars with no clearly defined objectives that start under pretexts, they have at least rejected using nuclear weapons on these countries. Even at the height of the Cold War many good Democrats and even some Republicans sought to reduce or at least control the spiraling arms race.

So no-you didn't win "because of me" you won "in spite of me." And if by some stretch you do become the nominee, if you win the General Election, it will be in spite of the best efforts of people like me to work long, hard and diligently to create a third party alternative here in Ohio.

I've done this too long. Since college I've done it every election cycle. I've done what I could for Democrats, been a good soldier and voted for candidates who didn't have the guts to challenge the Republican Party on the issues. I've voted for Democrats who pandered to the Republican right instead of standing up to it.

And now, if you become the nominee I will be asked to vote for a Democrat who thoughtlessly mouths the slogains of the Republican far right, engages in alliances with the "vast right wing conspiracy", all so that it can your party.

Well, if this happens, it will be your party. But it won't be mine. But I'm betting you think the party can do without us "elitist, San Francisco Democrats."

But I've decided not to mourn. Better yet-I'll do what I can to organize.

I won't leave quite yet because its still not completely your party-and I hvae a hunch that when its all over-it still won't be your party.