In my email tonight I see that Jim Dean of the DFA has sent out an email asking for money to run ads whining at Congress for this stinking war funding vote. (We have to "pay" Bush to raise the minimum wage with the blood of our children? Sorry guys, this does not strike me as a great trade.)

John Edwards on the other hand has sent out a tocsin to arms:

About an hour ago, the Senate caved to President Bush and sent him another blank check to continue the war in Iraq.

This is a serious blow for all of us, but no one lost more today than the troops in the field who continue to sacrifice so nobly and their families still waiting back home.

It's a hard moment, but you and I don't have the luxury of getting discouraged. We must remember: This is not over. For those of us committed to change, it has only begun.

This weekend, thousands of us will take action in our communities to support the troops and end the war. We will speak out in public. We will send care packages to soldiers in Iraq. We will gather letters for Congress and the president. And on Memorial Day, we will remember and honor those who sacrificed everything for their nation.

Join us:

www.SupportTheTroopsEndTheWar.com

After tonight, one thing is now perfectly clear: No one else is going to end this war for us. Bush will not listen. Congress will not fight. There's no one left to lead the country now but we the people.

That's what it comes down to. Yeah, Edwards has the luxury of being out of office at the moment and didn't have to face the decision those still in Congress did. Sucks to be them, doesn't it?

For that matter it kinda sucks to be us, too. Because John's right. We who seek real change are not exactly happy with our Congress at the moment. We busted our butts and actually produced Dem...well, at least non-Republican majorities in not just the House, which we figured early on was a sure thing, but both the House and Senate. And what has it gotten us so far?

Okay, some long-overdue investigations bringing into the light things we knew were dirty several years ago. That's the price we pay for having to drag the rest of the not-paying-attention public along behind us. Fair enough.

And now we've finally got a real bit of important, good legislation passed, the minimum-wage increase. That really matters to an awful lot of people, not all of them high-school kids flipping burgers. Once the minimum goes up all wages go up, and all the major deities know this is not even close to catching up with the increase in expenses since the last raise...but it beats shit out of staying where it was.

But that's not nearly enough. You know it, you're depressed as shit over the vote yesterday, and the knowledge that we did not succeed in cutting off the money for this stinking hideous war. Dammit. But the solution is not to go off and sulk, or wallow in the self-indulgence of cynicism. The only answer, now and for the rest of our lives, is to dig in and fight harder.

Edwards is the only one I've heard of at this point who is at least with us in this dark time. I have grown suspicious of the word "leadership" but dammit he seems to be offering some. When the enemy seems to be rallying for a new assault, the tactic required is to group together on a strong point and re-form the troops.