My Day at the Texas Senatorial District Democratic Convention

So nearly my entire day Saturday was spent caucusing for my presidential candidate of choice at my local senatorial district democratic convention. In the end, our precinct got the result we wanted in terms of delegate representation, however this came at a great cost. For example, the feeling of physical danger on the part of several members of our precinct.

It's hard to summarize my experience, but in a nutshell, it involves a fist fight (!), numerous violations of the Texas Democratic Party rules, general mob-fever, total chaos, confusion, booing, screaming and yelling, utter disrespect for a previously revered elected official at the national level, repeated unnerving sensations that I was part of some kind of staging of an adult inner city Lord of the Flies, and finally and most disturbingly, veiled misogynistic, homophobic, and racial hatred.

Did I mention that I was with DEMOCRATS?! Because it sure didn't feel like it.

clipped from www.chron.com Traffic jams, long lines, crowds, confusion and chaos marked Texas Democratic regional conventions Saturday as an unprecedented number of political activists turned out to help elect presidential nominating delegates for Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama.