If You Hear the Dogs, Keep Going...

I loved so many things about Hillary's speech last night:

• "No way. No how. No McCain."
  
• "I want you to ask yourselves, were you in this campaign just for me, or were you in it for that young Marine and others like him? Were you in it for that mom struggling with cancer while raising her kids? Were you in it for that young boy and his mom surviving on the minimum wage? Were you in it for all the people in this country who feel invisible?"
  
• "And after so many decades, 88 years ago on this very day, the 19th amendment giving women the right to vote became enshrined in our Constitution. My mother was born before women could vote. My daughter got to vote for her mother for president. This is the story of America, of women and men who defy the odds and never give up."
  
• "On that path to freedom, Harriet Tubman had one piece of advice. If you hear the dogs, keep going; if you see the torches in the woods, keep going; if they're shouting after you, keep going. Don't ever stop; keep going. If you want a taste of freedom, keep going. And even in the darkest moments, that is what Americans have done. We have found the faith to keep going."
  
• "It makes perfect sense that George Bush and John McCain will be together next week in the Twin Cities, because these days they're awfully hard to tell apart."

Watching the Democratic National Convention has brought tears to my eyes quite a few times this week. Hillary's speech was amazing. The media is driving me nuts, though, with their reports of divisiveness and acrimony in the party...from the Clintons' hidden annoyances and the Clinton supporters who plan to vote for Obama to people who thought Michelle Obama looked tense and unhappy during Hillary's speech.

This is the first major political convention in which thousands of bloggers are writing live during the speech, and millions are commenting live. It's been fascinating to observe, and for the most part, I've enjoyed reading the blog posts.

But I'm gravely disappointed in the media. Not only is the mainstream media not showing several of the major speeches, but the pundits are criticizing every little thing and creating more controversy and drama than truly exists. And Maureen Dowd of the New York Times? Any respect I once had for her has gone out the window, reading her pure vitriol and hatred of the Clintons. I have chosen to watch the speeches on PBS, where they have reasoned commentary by Jim Lehrer, Mark Shields, and conservative but fair David Brooks (also of the New York Times) and they broadcast 3 hours of the most significant speeches (including Lilly Ledbetter yesterday). It's not live coverage, but it's after the children's bedtime so I can focus on what they are saying!

It's been awhile since Democrats have had a candidate to get excited about, much less TWO! We are very fortunate to be in this position. Even thinking back to Bill Clinton's heyday, I don't think that people were as fired up or motivated to engage and vote. As Democrats, we need to be focusing on that excitement and how lucky we are to have not only had a historic primary race but also to have a great candidate we can get behind...and ignore the media trying to stir up a sh_t storm! Go, Democrats!