2004-01-29 - 2:08 p.m.

dear mr. trippi,

i was so sorry to see the headlines this morning. you must feel today like steve jobs did when that pepsi guy sidelined him at apple.

i'm especially sorry to see the dean campaign move towards a more centrist, top-down, democratic party leadership model. i've been bitching a lot in my blog about the failings and chaos of the bottom-up student-run organisation. but without that fire and enthusiasm, i never would have been drawn to the campaign in the first place. i love the way you used the internet to rally supporters and raise money. i love the way you told us (through the good doctor) that the country is ours for the taking. i'm sure you know that the fact that he came in third and second in iowa and new hampshire is amazing in and of itself. it's not so much what you did, but the way that you did it.

i guess i was kind of hoping that even as front-runner status slipped away, the dean campaign would use the race as a national stage to get the essential message out. i believe in the message. it is our country, and i do want it back. it now seems that the campaign is ready to change horses mid-stream to chase the nomination. of course this makes sense: vast amounts of money and energy have been expended (some of it mine) to get dean this far, he's got to see it through. but he's going to have to do it without me. i'd rather vote for the green party candidate than fall in behind a gore-provided telecom lobbyist. i'm no true believer, but i know a sell-out when i see one.

i took my 'dean for america' button off my parka this morning. i peeled the dean sticker out of my locker at the gym. without the core of the deaniacs, what distinguishes the governor from kerry or edwards? and why should i care? dean is a great motivational speaker, but what i liked about him was what seemed like commitment and integrity. he seemed to be breaking all the rules and making new ones. but when he started trotting out his wife like a trophy and stopped taking off his jacket, i could see the fervor leaking away. when 'the scream' nearly derailed him i could see that his passion was going to be smothered. when you left the campaign, the reasons i believed in the campaign departed as well. it was always you, joe. it was always you.

i know you'll land on your feet. you managed to change the texture and shape of presidential politics forever. you fired up an entire generation of apathetic keyboard jockeys. you made a dour former governor of a tiny state seem like a populist firebrand. your achievement speaks for itself. think about steve jobs today. i'm pretty sure his main occupation these days is laughing all the way to the bank, handing out ipod minis and itunes accounts to everyone along the way.

thanks for everything, joe. i really admire you.

sincerely,

volunteer #42, salem, NH HQ

see photos of my dean weekend on my fotolog

stay tuned for the final installments of my 48 hours as a deaniac!