I was going to re-enter the topic of Hillary's comments about the RFK assassination using the cutting edge of humor to explain how crass and how gauche those comments -- which I take to be a previously written, once-used and long-discarded draft of an explanation for why she is justified to remain in the race -- truly were.  I left some examples in comments; I won't even link to them here.  But I've taken some time away from the computer today and I'm no longer in that mood.  I don't think that's any longer the point that needs to be made.

This diary is aimed not at my fellow Obama supporters, with many of whom I argued yesterday at length, taking the position that we did not need to and should not inquire into her motivation in making those remarks, because even the kindest interpretation told a horrible story.

This diary is instead aimed at Hillary supporters, which is why I will (as I usually do not) cross-post on MyDD.  I want to explain the reactions of my cohorts here.  I want to explain what it means to be an Obama supporter these days -- and especially yesterday.

I want to give voice to our fears.

What happened yesterday has, in my opinion, certainly decimated what little effort has been made toward unity within the Democratic party.  The wounds are undoubtedly deep on both sides, for sure, but I now see how little it takes to tear off the scab, and I'm genuinely worried about our chances come November, no matter who the candidate is.

I'm a Clinton supporter, and I admit that I'm readier to give Hillary the benefit of the doubt than I am Obama.  This reflects a human weakness on my part, some misguided overzealousness, a fierce loyalty that can slowly devolve into hate.  Many times I've had to check my feelings and reflect on the cause of my disgust or outrage, and I'm sure I share with many here the same icky feeling that creeps in whenever I post a biting comment or wise-ass reply-- that "oh sh*t, I wish I could take that back" feeling.  It leaves me dirtied and a lesser person.  It leaves the better issues undiscussed.  It demoralizes the people we need to help us push towards a big win in November.

The Obama campaign, seemingly the victor in this fight according to many opinion-makers, may not be ready to mend the torn fabric of party unity just yet.  There was a rapid response by campaign spokesman Bill Burton "Sen. Clinton's statement before the Argus Leader editorial board was unfortunate and has no place in this campaign."  I saw it as an unambiguous signal to resharpen the knives, that it's alright with the Obama campaign for partisans to read from Hillary's gaffe the worst thing you could ever imagine.  And so certainly the blogs overflowed with such convoluted logic and insinuations, followed closely by the soulless, profit-driven media.  We're back in the boiling cauldron.

Because Hillary is so smart and so cool and calculating (like all successful women, right?), she could not have made such a mistake (they're not allowed to make them), and therefore she really meant to bring up the specter of assassination as a surefire way to attack Obama and advance the cause of her candidacy.  At least that's how the prevalent logic goes.  Thus, what began as a gaffe (at worst) became another definite instance of the evil, calculating, demonic Clintonian strategy to either (a) scare superdelegates into thinking that "anything can happen" (which is so obviously true-- that, truly, anything can happen, ostensibly so), or worse (b) somehow stoke up the fire within her white supremacist supporters (in Appalachia, I'm guessing) to find a way to assassinate Obama before the convention.

I'm at a loss as to how to begin to untangle this mess, as I'm sure you are.  The back and forth on this site is a back and forth common in school playgrounds across the country, as many have observed. Months from now, as we're stewing in yet another tumultuous loss (perhaps), we'd look back to moments like this and understand that we had it coming all along.

Then of course Axelrod and Co. have since "defended" Hillary on some TV programs that I still refuse to watch, but only because the damage has already been done, and magnanimity and honor can once again flow from the victor's cup.  This has certainly been a hard-fought campaign, and the wounds are still raw, thus the tendency to continue the fight remains overpowering.  Maturity and generosity are now needed to once again form a unified party, and the best example ought to come from Barack Obama himself.  If he's really certain of his victory, he ought to rise above this silliness and publicly rebuke those who are still bent on further crucifying the Clintons for all the sins of the Democratic party.  He needs the Clintons to regain their stature as party leaders-- only then can Hillary's most fervent supporters find their way back to the fold and work actively towards a win in November.  It's the tactically correct move, and it's also compassionate and kind.

I'm a Democrat, and I'll vote for Barack Obama come November (if he is the nominee), but it will take some active bridge-building and lots of healing to make me push and campaign as actively as I had been for Gore in 2000 and for Kerry in 2004.

The progressive blogosphere and the MSM tubes and airwaves are flooded with reports on Hillary Clinton's Assassination Remark that she made while discussing staying in the race during an interview with the Argus Leader Editorial Board: