December 7, 2007

To the Berks County Democratic Committee:

I am no longer a Democrat and therefore am resigning from the Berks County Democratic Committee. It is awful watching what the Democrats at the national level are doing (supporting torture and other impeachable offenses of the Bush crime family), and not doing (putting an end to this illegal war and refusing to hold the members of the Bush administration accountable). And then seeing what the Democrats are doing at the state level nothing is also very discouraging.

But then there is our own little Berks County Democratic Committee. On the local level we think we will find like-minded people who will want to work together. What I found instead was an atmosphere of vindictiveness and a majority of members who have no vision and no compassion, and who are petty and myopic. This is pervasive because the leadership, headed by Tom Herman and supported by others, uses juvenile bullying tactics.

We saw it when Tom Caltagirone was given the floor to lecture us about our unpatriotic behavior for not supporting his treasonous actions on the floor of the Pennsylvania House. This meeting created acrimony and divisiveness.

It continued at the meetings where Committeeman John Morgan was berated unmercifully in an orchestrated attack that brought to mind the worst of junior high. Those involved in this debacle should either resign on their own or be forced to resign.

I also found that the local committee does nothing that would make it a purposeful organization. It seems that the reason for the existence of a county-level committee would be to make sure there are candidates fielded for every elected position that becomes available, and then to support those candidates, both financially and with volunteers. The candidates should never be forced to give money to the committee; rather, they should be getting money from the committee. And there should be no questions about how finances are handled or the unequal way candidates are treated.

The committee should concern itself with constant and active fundraising for the aforementioned purpose and that purpose alone. Finally, the committee should be standing up very publicly and strenuously for the ideals that Democrats once believed made them the party of the people.

Unfortunately, those ideals do not seem to matter any longer. There is no clear direction with regard to any moral or principled stand, as exhibited by the four-year battle over whether to support impeachment, when it was clear all along that Bush and his administration were breaking laws and committing unspeakable acts against humanity. If we as a committee were making a difference ,there would be press coverage and there would be support in the community for our efforts.

Instead, we are a non-entity. The cronyism of the committee is a detriment to positive action and to attracting and keeping people involved. And when I see that only a few people are fighting the battles for many, and are hindered by the committee, it is time to tender my resignation and continue to fight in a different venue with like-minded people.

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