Washblog

I've called it a debate between the forces of message and the forces of infrastructure.  Between those who want to the focus of the party to be candidates, and those who want the focus of the party to be the values and principles that come from the people.  Between Progressives and Mainstream Democrats.  Between experience and energy.

David Korten's latest book, "The Great Turning: From Empire to Earth Community" is my latest kick, and I'm beating that drum as often and as loud as possible.  It describes the debate as being between the forces of power and domination vs. the forces of community and partnership, and it describes the difference as being one of a higher level of consiousness and understanding.

We can find splits like these anywhere.  Many of the big names like Joe Liebermann and Hilary Clinton are called names like Republican Lite.  The spectrum is wide and deep, and wherever anyone stands, there is always someone else on the other side of some line in the matrix.  The top election in this state is just such a race, where the lines are drawn in a criss crossing pattern based on so many different issues it looks like the party is playing a game of pick-up-sticks.  And people on both sides of all of these lines express concern that the voters who are not involved in the party will find that confusing and will vote for Republicans because they can't tell what Democrats stand for.

Here's an example.  Let me throw up a phrase that I'm sure we're going to hear about how united our party is.

Tim Eymen failed, and all Democrats are celebrating!!

There was a Veterans Caucus meeting at the convention in Yakima, and one of the resolutions that was debated was one asking for a repeal of the "don't ask, don't tell" policy.  Guess what!  The room was divided.

I heard from someone last night who voted against the resolution in that meeting.  He is under the impression that "those Homosexuals" should not be allowed on the front line, because things get stressful for our soldiers and if one of these Homosexuals starts getting friendly, they might be the victim of an attack from another soldier.  My question to him was why it works in so many other national armed forces around the world.  He said he didn't know.  We changed the subject.

I'm not kidding.  I'm not going to quote, because I don't want to bother asking for confirmation.  I'm too angry.  And I would ask others who know about the conversation to not reveal names.  I kept my cool during the discussion, because it's never a good time to voice anger without calming down first.  But I discovered this morning that I couldn't calm down.

I'll tell you why it works in other countries.  They grew up.  They realized that a mature society doesn't worry about these sorts of things.  There are rules against it, and they have purposefully developed the moral consiousness of their soldiers to the point that they don't worry about people breaking those rules.

So what this person was telling me was that the United States Military is not capable of training our soldiers to have a mature moral fiber.  We're just taught to kill.  Reminds me of what is currently in the news and under investigation.

So, there are those that want the party to accept diversity and not look divided.  I've been trying to create a balance and "make nice" between the various divisions in our party.  It's exhausting.  I'm getting burned out, I'm getting slapped around, I'm getting insults to my beliefs and the core of my very spirit thrown in my face by immature fools who are standing on the other side of some line or another.

I don't want this party divided.  I want a united party going into this election as much as Dwight Pelz does.  But we have to choose which side of which line we are going to stand on, and we need to define for ourselves and the voters that are looking at our names on the ballot which side of which line defines Democrat and which side defines something else.  Then, as a party down to the individual level, we need to agree to speak the same language and voice the same positions.  This, more than anything, is the purpose of the platform and resolutions.  And this, more than anything else, was shoved to the back of the bus thanks to the organizational workings of the 2006 Washington State Democratic Party Convention.  It just wasn't the priority it should have been, and we ran out of time.

America can do better.  So can the Democratic Party.