Jeff and MJG,

          It's not that I dislike Dean...for the most part I'm trying to be realistic. Maybe I've listened to too much of this "electability" talk from the media. Maybe I've read too much about Karl Rove and have become concerned with his skills as the "iron fist" of the neo-cons to the point where it's had an effect on my judgement. I don't think Dean is alone in his NAFTA concerns and they all would like to silence that "giant sucking sound"...

I think if you sat on the floor with every Democrats policy papers and a pair of scissors you could create a pretty damn good platform. It would be nice to think...and I'm again trying to be a realist here...that these guys will be elected on policy issues but the fact is it's really not going to play out that way. Yes it matters and we should look at those ideas but I'm afraid that there will be a lot more involved in this general election process.

The other part of that is...as pointed out by Eric and I think Lee as well...right now these guys are running a "primary campaign" where, sure, there are some basic items on the table and the idea is to separate yourself from the other Democrats...I think the focus will shift and the platforms will become more defined with time but there's some things to consider about that.

To get back to Dean...the reformer...I think he became the front runner because he had the chance to run a go for broke campaign due to the fact that they never thought they'd generate the momentum that they did. The big problem with that though is...yes it electrified angry Democrats and some independents...something we should be thankful for...but it has also pushed Dean further out and he's not seen as "mainstream" or "centrist" enough to sway voters in the general election. In fact, not only do Republicans think Dean will turn people off...so do Democrats...I mean I really think they saw him as exciting but also as a problem.

So, in a funny kind of way, I think Dean has done his job for the Democrats. Maybe he's aware of this maybe he's not. He sacrificed himself saying all the things that you might say others don't have the guts to say...he assaulted the Bush Administration so heavily that the media and the people began to pay attention. He did the damage he needed to do but the results of this are that even liberal voters see him as too far out to run against Bush...and the goal for all these people is just to remove Bush from office. So, that's why the slogan "Dated Dean...Married Kerry"...people want the guy that can win and I think you're seeing that people don't think that guy is Dean.

Keep in mind, New Hampshire was supposed to be a Dean state. It was a Dean state up until about the week before Iowa...with the Iowa win and the unfortunate media attack on Dean after his speech there...the train came off the track.

Dean was the governer of Vermont...not exactly a  state that seems filled with major challenges to confront...ask Lee...it's not Texas, or California, or New York, or Massachusetts even...hell it's not even Arkansas. Trust Rove to point that out in some very ugly ways that highlight any errors he may have made there...where he was working on a far smaller scale than stepping into a fouled up economy and "War On Terror" and Iraq mess.

The thing Dean has to face is sure he can get the angry "anybody but Bush" voters but can he swing those on the fence? Dean is a lovable little cartoon to those of us that are "Mad as hell and aren't gonna take it anymore" but to many others he's a wild-eyed blowhard that has pushed the bounds of reasonable political debate. That's risky going into a general election...even if we like his policy papers. Even those "mad as hell-ers" don't want to risk 4 more years of Bushco bungling.

America is a country full of people that fear extremes and Dean is an extreme to many. We're not really in a fight fire with fire mood either I think. We've fought too much lately and it's all been ugly and draining. Dean and Gephardt dueling in Iowa killed them both. I'm hoping it works against Rove and his filth and people don't want to hear that crap.

I feel sort of sorry for Dean because he did us all a big favor. For that I respect him. I wonder what he'll do when this is all over because he taught the Democrats and anybody running a campaign a thing or two. I really think the way he organized through the internet was great.

I think the thing is though the people that gave Dean money were expressing their outrage and their belief that we need to scream and shout from the top of the mountain that what Bushco has done is wrong...but I'm not sure they believe in the man as much as they believe in the idea.

Yes there's 48 states to go...it's early but people who vote in these things tend to be the ones that pay attention and I think more of them than not have given in to the idea that Dean...while being a good man that said what needed to be said...is not the guy they believe will beat Bush. We want change but it tends to happen slowly...not in big broad strokes.