Sometimes you just gotta...

I have noticed a disturbing trend here lately. Initially I just wrote it off as the typical passion of the silly season getting to people, but that perception changed for me last night.

I made a comment in a Diary (it’s a good one and is worth the read.) about people who may be contemplating voting for Trump over Hillary that I wouldn’t vote for Hillary OR Trump in the General because of reasons of conscience.

I do intend to vote for Solid Progressive candidates in the down ballot races but there are just too many things in Clinton’s history that I personally find completely out of alignment with my core beliefs and interests. (Bah, I am getting off topic and I don’t want to turn this into yet another Hillary vs Bernie Diary, that’s not the issue I am trying to address here.)

Of course, this has come up before and I expected some people to disagree with my choice, some quite passionately, which is fine, I can respect that. One of the foundations of our Democracy is respecting the right of the voter to vote for whom they feel is the best choice.

What I don’t respect and didn’t expect was that the venomous tone and outright hostility directed at those of us choosing to do so would get even worse than it has been in the past.

(I saved the Best Worst for last.)

Some were just the typical vote shaming:

That includes all the sux people on this site. You all ought to be ashamed of yourselves for this selfishness.

Protest votes are amusing if you are voting for President of the Freshman Class in High School. In a Presidential election you are just throwing your vote away — a vote that many good people have died trying to protect.

Big difference when you throw your vote away. And yes — voting for someone clearly not winning is throwing it away. I’m glad it makes you feel good but don’t complain about a state of affairs you created.

Some using Markos recent diary as a cudgel: (Not pointing fingers at the site owner, but I did notice more brazen and louder attacks after it’s posting.)

“FUCK YOU” as per Kos

But y’know, do your thing. I’m just happy that when this primary is over, saying you won’t vote for the Democratic candidate will be a bannable offense. See Kos’s post

I hope Kos bans the lot of you sux folks.

Those that were insultingly dismissive:

I don’t get the sulkiness from the Bernie/green side of things

when you declare that neither of them were good enough for you throw away your vote for ideological purity and allow someone as dumb and dangerous as George W Bush become President you have earned my scorn.

Then you want unicorns and rainbows and you aren’t a serious participant in politics and you need to find an MMO to play instead of treating politics as a game.

Flat thinkers. Black and white thinking absolutists.

To those that ridicule those that choose to vote their conscience:

Your vote of conscience? If you had a conscience you would do anything to keep Drumpf, Cruz or Rubio out of the White House. This will shock many of the burners but it is NOT all about you.

So basically, f*ck everyone who will be hurt because you’re a special snowflake and your vote is a precious little gem among the world. Your privilege is showing.

I hope you sleep as well as all those who rejected Gore and voted for Nader.You and your good conscience.

Well, if Trump is elected and hurts millions of people with his racist neo-fascist ideas at least your conscience will be clean.

So the purpose of your vote is to make you feel good?

And the outright insulting:

Are you a repub or a traitor?

But the one that took the cake and pushed me to write this Diary?

I never, ever thought I would see the day on Daily Kos where personal attacks and calls for violence would occur over an individual making the decision to vote their conscience and not support a candidate that they feel is the “lessor evil” anymore.

It’s worth noting that these comments are just a small sampling from just ONE diary, in the first 25% of the comments. I would also like to note that there were several people who are Clinton supporters who did call out those that were saying these things, but they were a significant minority unfortunately.

This was not in a “Pro-Hillary Safe Space”® Diary and is far from being a few isolated cases. I have seen it over and over again in many other diaries directed at posters that expressed similar sentiments.

I expected things to get intense around here as it does every primary season, but I just never expected to see the same level of discourse on here that you would on a RWNJ site.

Maybe some of these people are right and DailyKos just isn’t for us anymore. That would make me a sad panda but it looks like the writing is on the wall. :(