I'll leave work soon and go home and watch the returns with a wild amalgam of emotions about the whole event.

Sadness to see Hillary, who I once admired so much along with President Clinton become the epitome of the Strategic brand of politics that I have come to so despise over the last eight years. Sadness also, in seeing that person suffer ignominious defeat after having presumed to have the contest locked up.  Joy, of course, to see Obama, the candidate I only really committed to after seeing him, when faced with that Strategic brand stirring things up, come to epitomize the Substance brand of politics that we almost got with the Dean campaign four short years ago.

But all that ties into emotions from something else that I'll share after the jump.

I love that Al Gore is making the big money. $100 million. And all that money, despite purity troll hostility towards making it, helps fuel his activism. Here's hoping he makes $100 million more!

Fuel his activism?  I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that you only meant the $100m gives him the means to do more and travel more and fund more activism but the first time I read that it sounded like you were implying that the money was the reward for his activism like it was a good little attaboy for doing good.  And therein lies the crux of the matter for "purity trolls" like me who might deem that much money in the hands of one person excessive.

Becoming independently wealthy off one's activism negates the honor of the activism.  It is my belief that one should not even attempt to get rich off one's activism because it betrays those who joined in the activism because they were inspired.

Amid all the horror of voter suppression and Diebold election theft, I thought I'd recount my experience this morning to sort of light a candle amongst our cursing of the darkness that is the GOP.

Join me in the Extended Body

There is all this slap and tickle going on amongst Kossacks with the DINO known as Harold Ford Jr. Here's a taste of what he's really like.

I hope this will give some of you pause about pouring on the "netroots support" for the beloved DLC goldenboy wannabe.

Local blogger LeftWing Cracker has some wonderful commentary on the whole thing.

This was my response.

America and I are estranged. Our relationship has always been strained. You know, she would flirt with me and I would be all moony over her when she was Clinton's girl but then I would see something in her diaries that made me think she was a whore. You know, she was with a bunch of older, white guys in the her youth and everyone thinks those guys hung the moon but I've read about them online and they were dogs just like most of the guys she's been with.

Can we make the jump where it's a little more private so I can tell you the rest of it?

UPDATE: I went to lunch after having made this post on a whim. I decided it was a mistake. Not only was it pretty immature as written but it was a little irresponsible. But make the jump and hear me out...

Much ado has been made about the Jack Abramoff scandal and it being a "Republican scandal". For the most part it is; but a new Vanity Fair article has information that it may turn out to be more than that.

Having read that, I realized that this is an opportunity for the Democrats to really take a stand. The common meme is that the Democrats don't stand for anything. Here's their chance. I said so in an email to DNC Chairman Howard Dean.

Check it after the jump...

These guys just don't get it.

I caught a few minutes of the Today show this morning and Carville and Begala were on trying to make money on a new book talking about how the Democrats need a spine transplant.

Despite the fact that the GOP Party is now being shown up for the din of corruption that most of us have always suspected (and probably assumed), the Democratic Party is not the default go-to party.

As Howard Dean hinted on the Leno Show the other night, the DEMS have to show that they are worthy of Americans' trust and that we have some kind of idea what we want the country to look like and be like.

Jump with me for a minute...

It seems to me that Dr. Dean has effectively been sidelined.

Remember the guy who was the voice of people who sick of it?  Remember the guy who the voice of the people who actually paid attention and knew the truth?  Where is that guy?

Why is that guy not on Meet the Press?  Is he on any television and I've just missed it?  It seems now is the time when we need someone to come to the forefront and just point their finger at Delay and those idiots and call them the lying bastards we all know they are.

What the F?

The general modus operandi here at Daily Kos and other blogs is  universal nearly.

There are a lot of us who spend a lot of time reading various sources of news and then picking an article that particularly outrages us.  We post said article and then vent or try to add some particular spin or insight to augment it.

I know that a lot of the big time bloggers (like Markos, I'm sure) are in and around DC and other places that allows them insight into what is going on where the rubber meets the road and can directly report on the friction there.

I'm curious though, has anyone put forth the idea of starting something like a bloggers/reporters ring?  I'm not talking about linking to other blogs.  That's all well and good.  I'm talking about getting a bunch of bloggers together and starting a real journalistic endeavour.  People whose life is politics but who aren't really in office.

We're always complaining about the slant of FOX and the SCLM and the egregious misrepresentation of facts on the part of hundreds of journalists.  I think that it would be interesting for bloggers to go legit and actually start reporting on the facts like maverick reporters.  Have bloggers out there digging into the stories and blowing the lid off when all the major networks play along.

I know there are underground news alternatives and outlets like Democracy Now and things like Free Speech TV but I think they are also slanted and prone to misrepresent.

We need reporting that is willing to forego as much bias as possible and really report and it seems bloggers are willing to say the truth.

I know that I may sound a little Pollyanna here or perhaps may not know about something like this so try not to rip me a new one.  Ok?

And if this is, by some miracle something totally new and un-realized in any way, let me just go ahead and copyright that to MemphisBryan 2004.

Look, being totally honest, I've been out of the loop for about a week and I haven't had a second to read every blog or any sites.  The honest truth is I've only been able to watch the evening news for the past week because..

My wife and I had a baby!  (I really just wanted to post about this but that's off topic, I'm sure.  But see the pics HERE: http://www.brassmask.com/)

But having been so out of the loop, especially since it isn't my job to keep informed 24/7, has given me the real opportunity to see how "regular" folks are seeing things from the evening news.  And I'm here to tell you, Kerry looks just like the dishrag, fence-riding, waffle lover that I have always pegged him as.

If there is to be any hope for the Dems this year, somebody better start calling delegates and getting them to throw it for Dean.

One diary post.

That's all I can find touting our default candidate.  Is this where we are?  When our candidate, the guy who we are supposed to vote for to save us from W goes on national television and takes questions from THE premiere television moderator, our reaction is one diary post about someone's brother now going back to Nader's camp?

Copernicus put up an insightful diary about Kerry's ludicrous op/ed piece where he, in my opinion, supported Bush in his out and out occupation and subjugation of Iraq.  In said diary, he compared it with a Nader article.

Unfortunately for Copernicus, this resulted in lots of ones, a zero or two and lots of derision.  This is just ridiculous.

Kerry Aides See McCain As Perfect Running Mate

The Boston Globe listens inside Sen. John Kerry's campaign for speculation about his running mate. "If there is a consensus among Kerry aides about who would be the boldest and most potent pick, it is Senator John S. McCain of Arizona -- a Republican."

"While Kerry has talked about his search with few people other than his wife, campaign manager, and the head of his search committee, Washington power broker James A. Johnson, many high-level staff members believe -- based on Kerry's past and recent comments -- that McCain will get serious consideration."

MSNBC reports "Speculation is running rampant over a possible Kerry-McCain ticket, in part because that trial balloon has not been shot down."

The Dallas Morning News says McCain is "Kerry's favorite Republican."