for Dean supporters who've been in for the long haul...

[newsguyatl]

like me... i've been supporting dean for quite a while now... even before folks could laugh at his chances... i mean, i'm talking back when NO ONE outside of vermont even knew who he was...

NOW, he's basically the democratic frontrunner! i smile even when i type the words... this is just amazing... what an unbelievable last several months this has been... i can't wait to see what the coming months have in store... what are some of your experiences so far?


i had a gut feeling from the very beginning that i was getting behind a winner... i knew all of the people i was working with weren't a bunch of out of touch "hippies," but rather HIGHLY intelligent, in-the-know, passionate and involved folks who knew a true leader (and winner) when they saw one...

i hope others across the nation will soon join the campaign and become part of history in the making... they won't be disappointed...

[Kazak]

1. I don't know about that...

but I've liked him since the best since the nine candidates were revealed...Kucinich is an obvious second choice.

[Ellen Forradalom]

2. We have nine fine candidates

an embarassment of riches.

[sfecap]

3. Newsguy...check your PM

n/t

[Larkspur]

4. I was a Gore supporter until he bowed out, but Dean had always been

in the back of my mind because I did like a lot of the things he said. After Gore dropped out, I gave all 9 candidates the chance to earn my support. Dean was the only one who did. His op ed on commondreams.org in April finally triggered me to commit to him. I was not only impressed with his op ed but the fact that he or someone on his staff had read the column, which had been published the week before, that had knocked Dean's anti-war and national policy positions and were alert enough to respond to it in a timely manner.

Since April, I've just gotten more impressed and excited about Governor Dean and I was thrilled to meet him in-person at the July 22 Portsmouth, NH. Yep, I was one of the 650 people attending that rally.

[newsguyatl]

5. larkspur

isn't he amazing in person? thanks for sharing...

sfecap: check your inbox

[Larkspur]

17. isn't Dean amazing in person?

Yes, he's awesome!

He was energetic and was really glad to meet people. He greets you as if you are a new found friend and he's excited about meeting you.

[Upfront]

6. Not Normal

it sure wasn't normal for me , but the first time he called Bush out, and the way he did it, got my attention. I am just one of many who are tired of letting them run over us. When I saw that Dean would not, and heard him speak, I was on board. I am sticking with this man all the way to the White House.:toast:

[pansypoo53219]

8. when i read what he was

saying. i went, 'now there is a candidate with NUTSACK. and have been a quiet deanie baby to my e-pals, even the middle of the roader likes him now. Now if only we can stay unified and take the simian DOWN.

[Cha]

7. I started liking him about a half an hour after Gore

dropped out and I was recovering from my feeling of being kick in the stomach! I really liked what Dean had to say about Gore when he had heard the news of his "not going to be in the race"...I think I have the exact quote over in the archives but it was something to the effect of Gore not getting the respect that he deserved.

And then the whole aspect of Dean's stance on the incoming attack on Iraq made me just want to support this man.

Don't ask me why I didn't go for Kucinich who I admire, also. It's just a visceral thing!

I don't agree with him on every subject but the two most important ones..the attack on Iraq and the civil unions, I do!

EDIT:to say that I love the way the Dean People keep up the Attacks on bush and have up to date responses on attacks that they receive from the bushwa and the dinos.

They have what a "grassroots" campaign should have...People! not corporations. And I'm thankful they have made such great use of the internet for a 2003 grassroots history making campaign.

[LouKYDem]

9. Dean

I really like Dean at this point in time... initially I was leaning toward Kucinich, but then I learned more about Dean, and considering that Dean has a better chance of beating Bush than Kucinich, I think that Dean is the way to go in 2004.

[newsguyatl]

10. hey

louKYDem, welcome to DU :hi:

glad to see you're a deanocrat...

zidzi: thanks for your post... i remember reading about dean being highly supportive of gore, too... he also called hillary before he decided to run just to make sure she wasn't...

[Cha]

14. Newsguy! Thanks! I didn't know that about Dean

calling Hillary! What a classy thing to do! All I see with Dean is a classy Tiger!

[newsguyatl]

15. hehe

classy tiger, lol, i like that zidzi! yeah, i read somewhere that hillary was the only person dean called after gore announced he wouldn't run...


eloriel: check your inbox

[Eloriel]

11. So true, Newsguy

I wish I could remember exactly when I fell for Dean. I was already a supporter, though, when that Vermont woman made a pest of herself here at DU about Dean (remember that?) -- so much of a pest that I was one of those telling her to CHILL for heaven's sake.

But I will NEVER forget, as long as I live, watching his amazing speech to the CA Dem Convention, shouting out his famous "I WANT MY COUNTRY BACK!" I nearly burst into tears. If I hadn't already been a supporter, he'd have definitely had me then, no matter what.

Since then, I've been nothing but amazed, delighted, awed, inspired, and then amazed, delighted, awed and inspired all over again. They are running such an AWESOME campaign!

Just in case you missed it, here are two articles from today's Comments on the blog. The first is absolutely amazing, and the 2nd one is pretty good, but they guy seems to feel it necessary to hedge his bets on Dean a little bit (so many of these pundits still don't totally get it) in the remainder of his article:

USNews & World Report
http://www.usnews.com/usnews/news/11dean.htm

Germond on Dean
http://www.sunspot.net/bal-te.campaign01aug01,0,5889923.story
PORTSMOUTH, N.H. - The Portsmouth Herald published a front-page picture the other day of Howard Dean, his shirt sleeves rolled to the elbows as usual, delivering one of his red-faced campaign speeches with the harbor in the background. The accompanying article said he had attracted an audience his staff estimated at 650 people.

To veterans of the New Hampshire presidential primary wars, that was obviously a stretch - 650 at a rally in July?

But an inside page of the paper carried a photograph taken from above that showed the crowd was indeed 650 people, give or take a few dozen.

What this suggests to those involved in the contest for the 2004 Democratic presidential nomination is, first, that the process may be more advanced than usual and, second, that Dean, the obscure former governor of Vermont, is lighting a fire in the electorate.

And that is news. A hot candidate can draw that sort of turnout here in the last week or two before the primary but not, as in this case, six months ahead.

snip

At this point in 1991, he notes, then-Gov. Bill Clinton of Arkansas hadn't even made a final commitment to compete.

more

And I might as well go ahead and post these links, since so many people also don't get it that Dean is catching on not JUST with Dems:

BRAND New Democrats for Dean
http://brandnewdemocrats.blogspot.com

Independents for Dean
http://deanindependents.org/

Republicans for Dean
http://republicansfordean.blogspot.com/

Eloriel

[newsguyatl]

12. thanks

for your awesome post eloriel!

yes, i'll never have his california speech out of my head... those veins in his neck throbbing, his fist up in the air, his face beet red, his voice cracking as he shouted "i want my country back!" man oh man, was that amazing!! had the same effect on me, too, eloriel...

also, thanks for those links! i can't wait to see his new ad to run in texas... they don't have that up anywhere do they?


oh, and dean's gonna be in atlanta next month, not sure if you've heard... don't have the specifics yet, but i will let you know when i know more!

[Eloriel]

26. OMG! ATLANTA NEXT MONTH!!! YIKES.

Here I've been SO envious of the people on DU who've had a chance to meet him. OMG.

Is it on the Georgia Dean website? Are you SURE about this? Tell me MORE!!!

ELoriel

P.S. Thanks for your nice words. :loveya:

[Cha]

13. Thanks for all these Dean links, Eloriel.

It's always good to read one of your posts regarding Dean. :-)

[dansolo]

35. For me, it was after the Operation Push debate

That was a good opportunity to have a direct comparison of all of the candidates. Before then, I was leaning towards Kerry, largely because I was unfamiliar with Dean. But after that debate, I have been completely behind Dean. He impressed me a lot, and at the same time Kerry really turned me off.

[dajabr]

16. Hi everybody!

It's great to be in such good company with all the "long-haulers" here. :-)

I think more than a few of us share a lot in common...

Despair over Gore dropping out

First-time contributers, MeetUpers, campaigners (my feet still hurt!), Primary-watchers, and in some cases - campaign advisers (just comment at the blog).

We all saw something, maybe we didn't recognize it at first it seemed so foreign at the time. That fire. That willingness to call bush* on his bullshit. And we've seen it grow, day by day, here and in the "real world." And what a ride it has been so far.

So, buckle your seatbelts... I have a feeling the best is yet to come. And I can't wait to share it with all of you.

:toast:

[Cha]

20. Thanks, dajabar!

And we're all over the Country, too! :toast:

[Tinoire]

18. Well good luck to all of you!

Dean is very lucky to have your support. I look forward to future discussions with you guys.

May the best man win and may we KICK * OUT!

[Cha]

21. That's nice of you, Tinoire! Thanks!

I'll toast to that! :toast:

[AnnabelLee]

19. I don't know if I qualify for "long haul" status

I've been a supporter since I saw his March 17 speech to the California Dem Convention. It was absolutely electrifying to hear him say, "I don't want to listen to fundamentalist preachers anymore!"

I've been to three meetups, & the number of people attending is increasing steadily. I met him & saw him speak at the Wisconsin Dem Convention. I found it very exciting.

I've been talking to two of my neighbors about Dean, & one of them brought him up on her own a couple of days ago. She's elderly & is very impressed by the fact that Dean is a doctor, & was a governor for eleven years. I'm glad he's going to be on Larry King so she can see him.

[Cha]

23. What you lack in length you make up for in enthusiasm!

:-)
And you got to meet him; that's got to some kind of bonding experience!

It does seem like a long time since March 17th!
So much has happened! Like Mike Malloy says "there's a scam a day".

Monday the 4th of August is going to be a big Day for Dean and all of his supporters! There's Larry King and the ads in Texas which I think is Huge! :D

[AnnabelLee]

30. I hope you get to meet him soon, zidzi!

:hi:

[ryharrin]

22. Dean's been my guy since January.

Went to the first Syracuse, NY meetup in February. There were only 3 of us there. Now we have over 100 people on our mailing list, and have meetings twice a month. He's going all the way!

[Cha]

25. That's so cool! I haven't been to a meetup..too far for me to

drive with my car. So I just "meetup" on the internet!

I like hearing all the experiences from all Dean's supporters.

And maybe some day Dean will cross my path! :kick:

Like the inaugeration in Washington! I don't see many of us missing that!

[ScreamingMeemie]

29. Start one in your area!!! The more the merrier!

As long as you have two people you are good to go.

[maggrwaggr]

24. I first heard of Dean long before he came out against the war

I can't even remember how I found out about him, but I checked him out and sent links to all my friends and said "here's the guy for 2004"

Then when the war fever started up, and all the lies started spewing and I found myself thinking "I can't believe people are falling for this bullshit" .....

Guess who didn't fall for the bullshit either? Dean.

He was the ONE GUY who said what needed to be said.

And since then, every time he opens his mouth I find myself thinking "that's exactly what needs to be said".

Then I sent him money, which is something I've never done for anyone.

I think he's great. I think he's the only guy out there worth a damn. To be completely honest, I'm pretty sick of the Gore/Clinton way of doing things, the "diplomatic" way they have of putting everything -- to me that's just being a pussy.

The repubs declared war on us for years, it's no time to be a nice guy, or be understanding of their position or any of that dogshit. It's time to fight back so we don't get fucked up the ass.

Clinton was WAY WAY WAY too into having everybody like him. Gore isn't much different. He's mealy. He's like that teacher on SouthPark who's always saying "Mkay ...?"

That's not leadership. Leadership is going out on a limb and having the world follow you.

Go Dean.

[Eloriel]

27. What a cool quote!

Leadership is going out on a limb and having the world follow you.


You got it! Great post, too.

Eloriel

[Cha]

28. Yeah! I hear you! You have described the person

who I want for the President of the United States of America, very well!

Two years of the bushwa leading the dems around set me up perfectly for Dean! It was the "Perfect Storm" for candidate Dean!

[fabius]

31. I converted about a month ago

hearing about his grassroots success and fundraising success.

Not only a great leader but a great organization, the website and blog are awesome. I check in every day. Signing up 2000 people a day!

I'm a great admirer of Kucinich, but the Dean organization really has the muscle retire Smirky permanently.

[Egnever]

32. Me love you long time!

:P

I dont remember what it was that first drew me to Dean. I remeber looking through the candidates thinking we were sunk and then coming accross him. I dont remember what it was exactly but I am sure it was just one of the many times he has been willing to stand up to bush and call BS!

I remeber something making me go look at his site at the time and thinking how lacking in information it was. I remember looking for a way to get more information and running accross an unoficial message board linked from his site i think at the time. There were maybe 15 posts on that board at the time wioth people allready asking how they could get more info and making suggestions on what needed to be done to get the message out and get the campaign comunicating with thier supporters. I remember people saying they had writen to the campaign at the email provided at the time but still having not recieved a response,

My how far they have come since then!

I have watched the www.deanforamerica.com site take shape. I have seen the blog explode! I have seen them take suggestions from people and run with them having the effect of not only enhancing the campaign but also giving a true feeling of contribution.

I love the message and I love the fact that the campaign is truely people powered!

Tommorow I am going to my second meeting and I cant wait! The fact that we as a people are taking the reigns and doing so much on our own to move this campaign forward is amazing and inspiring and hard work all at the same time!

I have never seen anything like it and im happy to say i have been arround to see it grow from very humble beginings to the jugernaut it is becoming.

If the rate of growth of this campaign continues at the pace it has shown in the past few months GW will need to ask our permission to even get his name on the ballot in 2004!

[Cha]

33. Thank you, Egnever, for your essay on your Dean

experience!

It is really interesting to me how they Grew! It gives me confidence that they are to continue and see this thing the WHOLE way! :kick:

[AmyStrange]

34. Been with him since May or June of last year...

someone here in the DU started a thread with "our next president..." or something like that and it was about Dean and I loved the way he thought and a lot of what he had to say.

Because Dean was really the first to do more than just hint at the fact that he might run, us Deanies back then were bashed relentlessly almost from day one. And anyone in here who tells you that Deanies were the first to attack other candidates is pure bullshit.

Back then when we were attacked, since no one else had even announced (except Gore kind of---and most Gore folks were cool from day one) and when folks attacked us we couldn't do anything about it, because we couldn't attack back. It's against the rules to attacke other DUers, but it isn't against the rules to attack a DUer's candidate. So many Duers attacked Dean mercilessly and we had to take it.

Then when other candidates started showing up and people started rallying around them, some Duers started attacking them and some were Deanies, but not all so in a way a lot of people seem to think that Deanies started attacking first and that is a lie.

I don't agree with attacking other candidates for whatever reason, but I can certainly understand the frustration that makes it happen.

!!! GO DEAN !!!





Dave (AmyStrange.com)
http://www.SeattleActivist.org/MyLifeStory.html
DU (slang/ folklore) Glossary (Dictionary): http://DUG.SeattleActivist.org/
Index of WMD Articles: http://WMD.SeattleActivist.org/

Here are some excellent resources and timelines of quotes and interviews and newspaper article quotes documenting the different things Bush and Co did and said for the last two plus years concerning the war in Iraq and WMDs (and other fun things) from the Howard Dean Website---even if you're not a Dean Fan, these are still excellent resources:

The Bush Administration And WMDs: Then And Now:
http://www.deanforamerica.com/site/PageServer?pagename=bush_wmd_summary

Niger-Uranium Timeline:
http://www.deanforamerica.com/site/PageServer?pagename=niger_timeline

Bush and WMD: Assumptions vs. Reality:
http://www.deanforamerica.com/site/DocServer/TikTok_-_Bush_-_Iraq_-_Side_by_Side.pdf?docID=781

The Bush Administration and WMD: What did they know and when did they know it?:
http://www.deanforamerica.com/site/DocServer/TikTok_-_Administration_-_Iraq_Deception.pdf?docID=762