Reid Failing to Learn from his Predecessors Mistakes (aka, Lessons of BlogNashville)

It still seems that Nevada Senator Harry Reid still does not get it. Some how Senator Reid thinks its OK to speak is mind and in the process demean others while making an ass out of himself. Since his ill-fated words last week calling the President “a loser,” then apologizing; Senator Reid still appears that he has learned nothing and is back at it again this week.

I tell people how I feel about things. I don’t try to hide how I feel,” Reid said.

“Maybe my choice of words was improper, and I have indicated that maybe they were, but I want everyone here, I repeat, to know I’m going to continue to call things the way that I see them, and I think this administration has done a very, very bad job for this nation and the world.”

Senator Reid would probably be better served to stop the politics of everyday hateful rhetoric and start acting like an adult. Last weeks comment, referring to George W. Bush as “a loser” did exactly what for the Democratic Party, the United States and the political discourse? What does one expect from the people who follow such leaders but more hate and nonsense? One does wonder what Harry Reid is thinking in that his predecessor, Tom Daschle, met his demise in the exact same way. Being in a party of “no” and obstructionism is one thing; however, to just spew out hateful and childish rhetoric is another. Personally, it shows just how shallow the Party has gotten. This did not come from a US Representative from some small part of New England, it came from the Democratic Senate Minority Leader. If he cannot stand up and “act like he’s been there,” who will?

To borrow some teachings from BlogNashville and the ever talked about “Respectful Disagreement” seminar I pose the question to Dave Winer. First for those who did not attend BlogNashville, the seminar on “Respectful Disagreement” was pretty much anything but. Let’s just say it got a little out of hand and it had all the congeniality of a Godzilla vs. Megalon movie. The aftermath of posts between InstaPundit and Dave is a macrocosm of the seminar itself. I am not even sure if I buy the “shared values” aspect as my position as a blogger is to express an opinion and persuade no different than I do in real life away from the key board. To cut to the chase the mood in the room can best be described by a comment from Stan Brown, the man who dared to laugh at Dave Winer:

No you don’t. An hour and a half is a very, very, very long time sometimes.

I suspect that the only people who will ever watch the full hour and a half video will be those with a morbid fascination for train wrecks, a sick sense of humor, masochists or someone looking for a text on how NOT to moderate a discussion.

Even an eccentric like John Jay Hooker was wondering if Winer had mental problems.

Question: Would this be an example of what not to do and how does one get to shared values when a political leader of Reid’s stature in the Democratic party fires the first volley of such hateful rhetoric? I can only wonder if any one of us had stood up and called you the same what the reaction would have been? Wouldn’t Harry Reid be an example of that 10% that needs to be flushed out as he serves no functional purpose in intelligent political dialog?

Added to Beltway Traffic Jam