What's Wrong with this Picture?

"They seem to have forgotten the old Madison Avenue rule that making the identical claims as your competitor only strengthens his message, makes him seem like the real thing and you a cheap wannabe. A particularly disheartening example was John Kerry's recent claim to be a bearer of "conservative values," a tacit concession that liberals -- the rank and file of John Kerry's party, by the way -- really don't have good values. It was a tactical blunder that should have infuriated good liberals everywhere. "

Thomas Frank

This liberal is in a slow burn because of the grave mistakes being made by the Democrats. As I said in yesterday's post, it is a terrible error for Kerry to respond to charges of pessimism by constantly declaring that he is optimistic. This morning's papers quote Democrats saying that they won't attack Bush at the convention. Bush and the Republicans attack Kerry and the Dems all the time. Whatever happened to counter attacking? I guess it only works for the other side.

Comedian/activist Margaret Cho said it best in a Buzzflash interview. 

"The Democrats have a long-term inferiority complex, where we feel we do not have the right to protest those who stand in the ivory tower of privilege. This is why no one calls out conservatives when they are offensive, which is often. The conservatives know that the only way to get anywhere is to stand together. They have the luxury of not having to worry about a backlash, because they can look up at any protest and brush it off, acting as if the other side can't take a joke."

I guess we need comedians to run the campaign. They can't do any worse than the people who are doing it now.