Hey, at least they stopped hating Iowa. Now they just hate our process

[Debi]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x3888442

x(

[DU9598]

1. I think that insurrection was shot down

Keep an eye on it for me ... I need to get back to work!

[Debi]

2. Look, I've already professed my undying love for you

:shrug: what more do you want from me?

[DU9598]

3. The love is mutual

:pals:

[Debi]

4. shhh people will talk

:yoiks:

[Debi]

5. Replying to my own thread w/a question.

Here's a story being relayed in this "caucus hate fest" - We're too small of a state for this story to either be proven true or debunked.

We have to remember that many of the caucuses are in private homes in rural Iowa. So in 2004, the daughter of a prominent family that opened its home for the caucus, started moving toward the Dean group. Her father said: one more step and you are grounded for a week.

So not only did she went with her parents, others decided to follow the leader of the community in whose house they were the guests.

So, inquisitive Iowa DUers - what prominent family in Iowa, that has a father/daughter combination where he could 'ground' her for not caucusing for his chosen candidate, hosted the 2004 precinct caucuses at their home? How hard could that be to figure out? Only 1,700-some-odd precincts in the state - all caucus locations were made public prior to January 19, 2004.

I think the story is bunk and another bs reason to 'hate' on Iowa and our political process.

[HuskiesHowls]

6. I think it shows how little they know about Iowa people

There were also references to people being intimidated by their bosses in that thread. It seems that "they" ("they" being all the detractors) seem to think that we are a bunch of sheeple. I don't know any Democrats that would be so easily intimidated. I feel that when it comes to politics, people around here do a great job of standing up for their own beliefs.

Maybe its just the way I was raised, and the people I know...but that's the way it seems to me.

[rurallib]

9. I know what would have happened if I had said that to my girls

perhaps I need some parental training?
Oh they would have run to the Dean group had I said stop.

[Debi]

10. I'm making calls to all the precinct captains to organize our caucus night

festivities and just got off the phone with the Obama precinct captain - she's never participated in a Democratic Caucus and I told her that none of the rumors are true :P. I told her this current fairy tale and the one about the opressive husband/wife. She said "oh, my partner would never do that." Amen.

Caucus night is going to be fun in my little township, most campaigns have precinct captains and they are names that I don't recognize from previous caucuses! What a social event here in Black Hawk County :bounce:

d.

[haroldgiowa]

7. I don't understand the rest of the country.

I don't understand how anyone with a mind of their own needs to rely on Iowa to cast a vote in the nomination process. We are not the ones eliminating candidates, it is the sheeple who fall in line due to results from early primaries and caucuses. If the tables were turned I wouldn't let the outcome of any where else determine who I support. Just as the same as endorsements. They carry very little weight with me. Maybe they should ask the candiates why they put importance in our process. Or ask the medea, We are just doing our civic duty for our party.

It is not our fault, if people think I need to feel guilty, which I don't, that people can't think for themselves. I also don't even care if they understand our process or not. Party rules and laws let us determine the process to pick OUR delegates. It is only important that we understand it. The caucuses were never meant to be a primary. The caucuses are 2500+ mini-democratic convention held throughout the state to do the parties business. I feel we have got it more right then states, which hold primaries where winner takes all.

[DU9598]

8. Amen

You summed it up so well.

[YvonneCa]

11. It's not that we don't have a mind of our own...

...we do. It's just that after Iowa and NH, some candidates we want to vote for will drop out before we can vote in OUR primary. This year, in California, that will be on Feb 5th...but it used to be JUNE before we could speak. By then, many candidates we wanted had dropped out and the nominee was already chosen. Sorry, California...your primary means nothing.

I don't want Iowans to feel bad, or guilty. The system is what it is. But we could improve it for everybody.

[dflprincess]

12. I have gone round & round about caucuses with the person who wrote the post Debi links to

who is from Minnesota. Her problem with caucuses is that they (a) take time and (b) only "insiders" show up.

I've pointed out that the time argument doesn't move me as Democracy is messy and time consuming and I figure that if my old man had the time to spend nearly 4 years in the service (part of that time being shot at in the Pacific theater) I can find at least a few hours every couple years to participate. The insider argument doesn't impress me either. I'd be considered an insider now, but I wasn't one when I went to my first caucus in 1972. The caucuses are open to everyone and if you choose not to show up, that's your problem (like voter turnout for primaries is that big).

I don't see how a caucus can be called "undemocratic", they're closer to town meetings and God knows a lot more time gets spent on issues and I think it's harder for the candidate with the most money to persuade the voters by just using a slick ad campaign.

The only problem I have with the Iowa caucus is that it gets all the attention while Minnesota's get none (yes, I'm jealous). Every 4 years I wished I lived there just because it would be so much fun to watch the candidates personally sucking up to voters.