Don't mess with Boston (Kerry column, Bostonians will love)

[Killarney]

http://www.moderateindependent.com/v2i4runmate.html
<i>The one thing the nation is about to learn about John Kerry is that, yes, he is from the North East, and yes, he may have some liberal views, but he is not a whiny, sniveling liberal. If Texas is the tough-guy capital of the Republican Party, Boston and New York are the tough-guy capitals of the Democratic Party. And while Boston may be more known for corduroy-wearing intellectual types, ask anyone who’s been to Boston and you will find out that it is a city full of people who love a good fight and don’t put up with crap from anyone.

The Bush team has been a team of bullies, and there is nothing bullies like less – or that is more effective in countering bullying – than someone who not only will stand up to them, but who loves to fight. Bullies bully because they think they can get away with it without fighting.

Indeed, Bush, Cheney, et. al have lived their entire lives like this, talking like bullies to the world but sending others off to do the fighting when it comes down to it.

And so in their campaign against Gore they bullied and he didn’t fight back, so they had a field day.

This time, they found someone who likes a good fight, who will bring out the tough-guy nature of Northeasterners that is often lost to the label Northeast Liberal. </i>

more...

Damn, this fired me up. :toast:

[dae]

1. Good article, hope Kerry keeps hammering the Hell out of em.

:kick:

[LeftPeopleFinishFirst]

2. I love Boston!

And I think Kerry deserves to win, he is not a spineless liberal.

:)

[nicecakes]

3. That's debatable

He seems to be running away from the liberal base and refuses to stand tall and boast about being a liberal.

[WilliamPitt]

4. Boston in the house

:)

[The Spirit of JFK]

5. Politics as Blood Sport

Pretty much sums up politics in Boston, right on down to elections for crossing guard.

Of course, then there is the media, who stand outside the ring and throw in a 2 by 4 in every so often just to keep it exciting.

Kerry beat a very popular congressman named Jim Shannon, a real N.E. man's man populist, for the Democratic nomination in the 1984 Senate race...a very crowded race, which he won.

In 1990 he beat Republican Jim Rappaport...a very wealthy and very conservative real estate developer. Rappaport had a ton of money, his own and donations from Reagan Republicans. Rappaport used the smear campaign from the get go...pretty nasty. The media had a field day with it. But Kerry backed off the nastiness and won with the issues. And this after the whole Dukakis running for president fiasco and backlash. Oh the tank flashbacks...!

In 1994 Kerry was losing big to Bill Weld, a witty, charming, smart and media friendly Republican. Weld was socially pretty progressive and fiscally conservative....went over really big in Massachusetts as governor (hell, even I voted for him for Governor). To the political establishment, Kerry was now an outsider and was getting pounded by the press. But he changed his delivery (not his views) a bit, did some great interviews, wiped the floor with Weld in debates..and won.

The man is a closer. He's got focus and the survival instinct and can deliver the message. Getting beat up and spit out in the Boston political free-for-all for years has really honed his skills.

[MAlibdem]

6. HELL YES!

REMEMBER CONCORD AND LEXINGTON, REMEMBER BUNKER HILL!

And we Irish, oh boy...get me drunk and angry...oh BABY!