From the Victor Go the Spoiled

It's probably a good thing that some bent-out-of-shape Hillary Clinton supporters are departing Denver early. By boycotting Barack Obama's speech, they're taking the pressure off the airlines to get everybody out of town at once on Friday, in much the same way that disgusted fans can beat the traffic by leaving a football or baseball game early.

For them it doesn't matter that their little snit might play right into the hands of the opposing team. I wonder how many of them are taking their sour grapes and flying straight to the Twin Cities. That way, they can be right there as they play into the Republicans' hands.

They certainly do have some arguable complaints: About the coverage, for instance, Barack Obama got from so-called journalists who seemed to cut him a lot more slack than Clinton, actually both Clintons.

And let's be honest: The sexism in media and out was disgusting. I am anong those who share the belief we still need to give some payback and somehow punish the worst offenders.

Nevertheless, one can also argue Obama simply ran a better campaign, skillfully outmaneuvering the Clintonistas every step of the way. No amount of sulking can change that.

This is not about whether Obama or McCain should be the next president. The issue here is whether some of these petulant Hillary Clinton supporters were being hypocritical when they were chanting about the need for change. Was/is their commitment as superficial as it appears? Do they really believe in anything but themselves?

Some might conclude that they're acting like spoiled children. If they don't have their way, make everyone pay. It's easy to say "Good Riddance. Who needs them?". Except that John McCain and Barack Obama do.

They could sway the election either way. How ironic would it be, that in spite of the pleadings of their temporary runner-up, they handed victory to the other side? A sore loser is, by definition, a loser. And for everyone who trusted they were sincere, it's a bitter lesson about how shallow some people's principles can be.

For more Huffington Post coverage from the Democratic National Convention, visit our Politics @ the DNC page, our Democratic Convention Big News Page, and our HuffPost bloggers' Twitter feed, live from Denver.

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Comments

[fathr2brodie]

Part Two

If you really want to be mad at anybody it should be the pundits who for the most part through fuel on the fire on a nightly basis when it didn't need to be. Then when it was obvious that Senator Clinton had no mathematical shot at winning the election and there was no speculation needed about who was going to when the facts were perceived as speculation.
I want to close by stating that I thought Hillary did a fantastic job last night. She was as gracious as I have seen anyone when with a heavy-heart passes the torch on to the next generation. All the bad feelings that I had bottled up from the primary are now gone. Hillary is going to be a fantastic fighter for the Democratic Party and Senator Obama. All I can say is you can either be like the person you respect and look up to and be part of the solution or you can perpetuate the problem by voting for John McCain a person who has nothing in common with your hero or the party she represents.

[CindyV]

When talking about sexism you wrote: I am anong those who share the belief we still need to give some payback and somehow punish the worst offenders.
Well, I write that when the DNC works behind the scenes to give Obama the nomination we still need to give some payback and somehow punish the offenders. So how do I punish the DNC? By voting for their guy and he wins? Well that kind of "punishment" isn't going to work. Hillary was mistreated by the press, but what the DNC did to her was beyond the pale. I'm still so mad at Howard Dean and Nancy pelosi that I could spit. Four years of McCain seems like punishment enough.

[FogCityJohn]

What exactly did the DNC do? Although you fulminate against it, you completely fail to identify its supposed offenses. Did you not like the nominating process? Well, *all* candidates had to suffer through it, not just Hillary, and all candidates had to play by the same rules.

You say that four years of McCain is punishment enough. May I ask for whom? For the millions of American who have no health care and won't have it because the Republicans hold the White House? For people like me, who have loved ones who might be called to serve in Iraq because McCain wants to continue the war for another four years? For the kids who won't get Head Start and SCHIP because McCain thinks the money should go to tax cuts for rich folks like him? Go vote for McCain if you want, but don't expect the people who have so much riding on this election to forgive you. For some of us, who wins the White House might be a life or death matter.

Hillary Clinton asked a penetrating question in her speech. Were you in the campaign just for her, or were you in it because you believed in the things she's spent her public life fighting for -- universal health care, the protection of children, etc. You, Cindy, clearly share none of Hillary's principles or beliefs. And I seriously doubt she'd like the way you've answered her question.