The Democrats' Rough Road to Acceptance

In her 1969 book, On Death and Dying, Swiss-born psychiatrist Elizabeth Kubler-Ross outlined the five stages of grief to describe the emotions of one dealing with death. As the 2004 presidential election was coming to a close late Tuesday/early Wednesday, it brought to mind the author’s insightful observations. It occurred to me that Democrats were probably in the process of going through something very much like this.

I thought it might be instructional to go through these stages in context of John Kerry’s presidential campaign which, in effect, had become “terminal” in the waning hours of the incoming election returns. The “five stages of grief” might be the perfect template for how Democrats will handle their defeat.

1) Denial: As the numbers in Ohio started to look good for George Bush, Democrat strategists refused to concede, insisting that provisional ballots would still win the day. CBS, CNN, and CNBC could not bring themselves to admit that a Bush victory was only a matter of time. As the numbers continued to add up in favor of George Bush, Kerry Campaign manager Mary Beth Cahill released this statement: "The vote count in Ohio has not been completed. There are more than 250,000 remaining votes to be counted. We believe when they are, John Kerry will win Ohio." Even as John Kerry was preparing his concession speech on Wednesday, CNN, ABC, and CBS still refused to give Ohio to Bush. Dan Rather still hasn’t conceded.

2) Anger: In the ensuing weeks, Democrats will be looking for people to blame. They’ll look for “logical” explanations as to why they lost. They’ll say it was stupid voters who got fooled into voting for Bush. They’ll claim that Democrat voters were the victims of disenfranchisement and voter fraud. Weird conspiracy theories that defy the imagination will dominate their discussions. Their hatred for Bush will intensify.

3) Bargaining: Kerry voters will calculate and recalculate electoral vote combinations in an unrealistic hope that if some tally results are challenged, the numbers could still change in their favor. There will be a few Democratic Party holdouts who will concoct a number of legal schemes in hope of attracting the sympathetic ear of any judge willing to listen to their desperate pleas and supplications.

4) Depression: Kerry voters will slowly sink into a confused apathetic funk. “How could this happen?” they will ask themselves. “We had George Soros and the press on our side. We had Michael Moore and Bruce Springsteen. Where did we go wrong?” Even as reality sets in, Democrats will find no answers to console them.

5) Acceptance: This is the most difficult step of all. Some in fact will never make it to this stage. Just ask Al Gore supporters. Many of them still haven’t accepted their unfortunate fate. If Kerry supporters are going to recover, they need to get through this last step.

Between now and the inauguration, you’ll see a lot of media pundits and Democrats experiencing one of these five stages of grief. Most will be found somewhere in the middle of steps One, Two or Three. Some will make it to step Four and may never be heard from again, unable to make that last leap to Acceptance. But it’s acceptance that will be the key to future political viability for Democrats.

I’m no therapist, but you don’t need a degree in psychology to understand that life goes on. Most of us inherently know that we need to find ways of getting over our failures and shortcomings. Yet since the Republican surge of 1994, Democrats seem unable to face up to the errors of their ways.

Democrats might start with following some of their own advice. According to the Kerry flunkies at MoveOn.org, they’ve declared, “It's time for a change in leadership.” Although that directive was aimed at unseating George Bush, the Democrats might want to consider a change in their own leadership. On any road to recovery “heal thyself” might make a good first step.

the truth is this: the American people are not the stupid or mean ones. the dems have sunk into an incredibly arrogant, intolerant and mean-spirited outlook on life. it has little to do with reality or the "heartland."

THEY were the ones people were worried would riot in the street if their guy did not win.

THEY were the ones who, for partisan gain, tried to make our dear soldiers doubt their mission and their sacrifices.

THEY are the ones who mock all that we hold dear, including religion's place in our hearts and lives.

THEY are the ones who lied and lied and lied until they had run out of lies, and then regrouped long enough to think of still MORE lies, like BUSH KNEW, or BUSH LIED or WE MUSTN't FIGHT THE TERRORISTS because they might get MAD at us.

THEY are the party that reacted with 20/20 hindsight, always criticizing destructively, rather than build a vision of the future for themselves.

THEY are the ones who always view themselves as better than any of us, the stupid shmucks in the hinterland who pay for all this stuff.

no, it will be a long cold winter for these fools, unless they have the decency to listen to zell miller or pat caddell, who remember what it was like to be a party that truly cared about people more than power, about shaping the future more than selfishly tried to acquire more real estate than everyone else.

but it would have been a longer and colder winter if john kerry had become president, because he was a symbol of everything that is elite and disconnected from those of us who pay his salary, however minute that salary might be compared with his income.

and he would have been so disliked that his party would have been disenfranchised for many years to come, even more than now.

as it is, the hole they have dug is a big one.

One of our very kind and sensitive Freepers, COUNTrecount,
in September of this year had some loving suggestions for the left wing lunatics after we kicked Kerry's butt:

"You leftists will experience an overwhelming sense of loss when Kerry loses the election in November. You will have feelings of rage, humiliation and shame, followed by intense feelings of worthlessness. The best antidote for these feelings is to get back to your usual routine as soon as possible.

Here are some tips to help you leftists cope with your loss:

1. Remember, marijuana is still your best friend. You've known this since high school when you started skipping class, getting tattooed and pierced, having casual sex and devoting your life to Bud. So light up your bong, invite what friends you might still have and spend the next two months in a state of stupor. You deserve it.

2. Let your hair grown long. As you stare into your mirror day after day, week after week, you can amuse yourself as those locks lengthen and mark your long slide into non-productivity. Remember that work and success only help Halliburton.

3. Get married and divorced more often than J. Lo. Mail a joint to Jennine Garofolou and Whoopie Goldberg. Remember that Kerry said these people are the heart and soul of America.

4. Watch Teletubbies. This show has secret messages just for you. So pay attention.

5. If you have young boys, send them to Neverland. This may be your one chance for fame and fortune without working. Think of your offspring as a cash crop.

6. If your parents are still alive, you can get money out of them. Tell them you need an operation. They know you're unemployed. They are riddled with guilt and contantly ask themselves where they went wrong with you. Use the money for those things that make you happy like marijuana, alcohol and pills.

7. Speaking of pills, search your parents' medicine chest for Vicodin, Atavin, Darvon., or codene. Old people have a lot of pills they haven't taken. Call their doctors and tell them they need refills. Medicare should pay for most of this. Just think, if Kerry had been elected, you'd have an even bigger stash with socialized medicine paying the bills.

8. Did you ever stop to think why perverts flash strangers? They say it's a rush. Give it a try.

9. Try eating dirt. What the hell?

10. Follow well dressed strangers around town, and then promise to go away if they give you money. The chances are you'll be hassling a Republican.

Good luck with this. You'll need to survive until the next election so that Republicans can stay sharp by competing with you guys.

PS You've done wonders with the Democratic party. Keep it coming.

24 posted on 09/21/2004 2:17:05 PM PDT by COUNTrecount

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