Murray's Weblog

Post Mortem 2004

Well, the votes are in and we pretty much know where the country stands.

At times I feel sick to my stomach. I'm sure I'm not alone. But I also feel a relief that the 2004 campaign is over. I'm worn out. I'm exhausted.

And yet for some unexplainable reason, I don't feel despair. The local (Fort Collins, Larimer County, and Colorado State) elections went relatively well. Sadly, it looks like the puss-sucking-harpy-from-Hell Marilyn Musgrave defended her seat, albeit by a tight margin. But the Democrats look to have taken the State Senate, and possibly (I have to check) the House as well. We also got a Democrat into the US Senate, again with razor-thin margins.

Everywhere the Democratic organizations have grown and thrived in really exciting ways. My own group in L.A., the Stonewall Young Democrats, is up past a membership of 200 and we've been credited as one of the most recognized groups in helping Barbara Boxer's (CA Senate) campaign.

Here in Colorado, the Colorado State University Young Democrats have grown from a group that was pretty much defunct a few months ago into a very lively organization. (Of course, college political groups fluctuate wildly, so keeping that group going will take constant nurturing.) The county Democratic organization has also developed from a barely-existing skeleton into something rather amazing.

I can't speak for the rest of the nation, but if L.A. and Fort Collins are any examples, this black cloud has one heck of a silver lining.