By dawn's early light, resenting having to leave for work in an hour, I googled goodly news for recent local commentary. Found the following from Olympian 5/7/06:

* Democrats have revved up an anti-McGavick PR machine that has not been matched by the Republicans. So far, the Democrats are flailing him as a rubber stamp for Dubya and mocking him as a shill for the insurance industry.

* What is his message? So far, he isn't directly making the case for why Cantwell should be turned out of office. In an age of sophisticated spin and hard-edged attacks, he comes off almost Pollyanna, seldom mentioning Cantwell or policy differences. Instead, he offers himself as a pragmatic problem-solver who would help restore civility to the Senate.

Can positive win? The campaign has polls that show strong support for the approach of civility and pragmatism, and huge antipathy for self-serving pols are who mired down in politics.

"We have tapped into something very powerful," said McGavick, who is in the position of criticizing a D.C. culture dominated by his own party.

* How does he grab the middle? Cantwell's advisers expect her to have a stronger stake to the centrists and independent swing voters that McGavick needs.

Apparently experts are predicting a tight race despite an "early" Cantwell lead.

Apparently experts assume Democrats can't hold early leads.

Apparently (according to ace Times opinionator Joni Balter), Dwight Pelz is a fumbler/quarterback who is "living proof the the Democrats eat their young."

Apparently non-fact checking Times and Stranger opinionators group all those public Cantwell challenders into some in-the-woods evil coven in Seattle where Democratic liberals drink the blood of the young they eat. (At least if I'm a "young-eater" I'm under the radar out here in rural America where there's a hell of a lot more woods and places for political covens to do secret stuff. They don't know what I'm up to.)

Apparently, the experts are lining up the reasons why Democrats aren't as smart or sophisticated as lock-step repuglicans who successfully recruit nine-million-dollar a year CEO swift-bloaters to self-portray as interested and familiar with kitchen table budgeting, shopping at Target and buying refrigerators on time.

As someone you and I know said to me last night, "we've got a couple of people who've gone years or forever without having to budget a two-week paycheck on behalf of a spouse and kids."

Back to fingers that point ...

Maria has a lead ...

McGoofus doesn't ....

Historians portray Georqe W. Armstrong Custer Bush as having wandered into trouble and backtracked up to a hopeless hillside where he was forced to dismount, lose his flashy "mission accomplished" hat and stand there until someone literally popped his bubble.

This while having misused and misplaced part of his troops and weapons who could have been more wisely and strategically utilized to avert total disaster.

Historians have suggested that not only were these troops left out of the loop and mis-deployed, but that they themselves engendered the ire of the know-it-all in charge by challenging his strategy, priority and deployment of forces.

Well, guys, I'm telling you now ... set yourselves up to disregard  true liberal/progressive disagreement with Senator Cantwell in the name of single-mindedly playing not to lose. Then try to blame the debacle all on Cantwell-questioners.

Do it and we'll bite your fingers off.

If she loses, it will be because you could not unite Democrats by excluding or suppressing alternative viewpoints and advocating a primary that's a mere formality coronation of a candidate solely because of the (D) behind her name.

If we could get to the other side of the primary having given voice and in-depth consideration to those with legitimate reasons for reluctance to blindly crown her the nominee, we stand a better chance of igniting grass roots fire.

If you - in an act of political cowardice - suppress alternate views, you disregard and diminish those who disagree. You also pretend that  offering your respect to those who agree to shut up and respect your own pretend higher political wisdom is in fact the smartest political tactic.

In dissing dissenters what you get back for those who shut up is a pretend respect for your own pretend respect.

It has come to my attention, for example, that Suzy Sheary initially refused to let candidate Wilson speak at the King County Demo Convention, but that she also indicated that if he were to speak, she would absent herself during that time.

He was eventually given 3 minutes which of course amply compares to the brass band and bunting nonsense given Maria shortly before she came to the office where we got to talk to her,  post-coronation,  from worshipful but civically uninformed King County Demos.

Don't know if that's true or not, but if so, I think I make my point well and Suzy Sheary owes all of us an explanation.

I think I make my point that says the object is not "Republican liteness" for Democrats, the object seems to be Republican tactics as the way we should do business too.

If we don't come out of our primary having given voice and contribute to respectful debate, we'll come out of a rally prepared to do battle with a partial arsenal and archers with only broken arrows.

© Arthur Ruger 2006