About Jim Young, by Jim Young
I almost titled this The Political Junkie because that is what I am and have been for more years than I would like to think. From Bill O'Dwyer's NYC mayoralty campaign in the 40's to Gene McCarthy in the 60's to Bill Bradley in the 80's all have gotten my time,energy and money! Here in Delaware I have worked for Joe Biden.
The common denominator is that they were all Democrats of a somewhat liberal leaning (we could argue Biden!) who were interesting personalities in their own right. This explains my interest in Howard Dean very early in his presidential campaign. His medical background and tell it like it is style seemed right (and still does!) but I focused on Kerry because of his Senate experience,
His campaign was so lackluster that when I saw a MeetUp notice about Dean I decided to go. Twenty minutes in the meeting I was writing letters to New Hampshire. Now this was a unique candidate with a fresh approach to a campaign-I was hooked!
The rest, as they say, is history: except that rather than slink away after the primary our group reevaluated our commitment to progressive principles and values and decided that a big need existed in the Democratic party for a voice espousing these principles and the PROGRESSIVE DEMOCRATS were born.
Even though I'm a junkie, it's been more of the armchair variety so the opportunity to get in on the ground floor and create something is very exciting. Coupled with that is my conviction that the political pendulum is swinging in our direction because of all the excesses of the Bush administration. We just need to be ready!
I'm glad to be working with such a group of committed people and as a senior citizen hope to bring a historical perspective to our efforts. Thanks.
