Just so we're clear, I bleed burgundy and gold. From August to February every year, if the Redskins are playing, I'm watching. Period. It hasn't been easy to be a Redskins fans oh these past years. They're my team and I'm not an apologist - even when I knew that Steve Spurrier was not the answer to the Redskins' losing woes I was still behind him. That made it all the more painful when he slunk off in the middle of the night without even a statement or a word to his team or the fans. Weeks later, finding out that the dictatorial Dan Snyder had somehow landed the return of Joe Gibbs was like finding out someone was documenting the second coming of Christ. My goodness. THE Joe Gibbs. Last season was hardly anything to shake a stick at - but Gibbs and a Gibbs-led Redskins team has always taken the long view. I'll take it with him.

So imagine my delight at losing sleep to watch the Redskins come back from a 13-0 defecit in the 4th quarter against the hated Dallas Cowboys to win the game out from under them by a score of 14-13... They may still need work, the quarterback may be over the hill and one bad hit away from retirement, but they showed spirit and fight. They showed and unwillingness to give up, even though there was only 4:33 left in the game and that had yet to score. Now that is what I'm talking about. Even if they lose more than they win, if they go down fighting, the tide will continue to turn and they will, again, be a championship team.

I can only hope that the tide is turning for the Democratic party in the same fashion. For those of you who have gotten to my blog from Daily Kos, you'll know that I was involved in the total shitstorm kicked up by a dairy posted by Illinois Senator Barack Obama. Senator Obama wrote a perfectly reasonable and well thought-out diary for the Daily Kos community. I applaud and appreciate him for doing it. My reaction, personally, was really dismay at what I did not hear - no sense of fight. No sense of really addressing the key issues that Democratic faithful consider and live with every day. I'm sure Senator Obama concerns himself with those issues - I have to believe that he does - but it just came a time when so much bad news had been assailing the Republican party yet no one visible, unified voice was coming out of the Democratic party with regard to these issues. Daily Kos diarist ToqueDeville kind of summed it up - that what Senator Obama's diary had inadvertently done was shine a light on the elephant standing unacknowledged in the room: The Absence of leadership.

The Washington Redskins don't lack leadership. I can't think of a more principled or steady leader than Joe Gibbs (I'm sure the same can be said of any Championship coach). With Gibbs at the helm, there's always a chance the Redskins will win, regardless the opponent, because he fosters in his team an unwillingness to give up or to play below their individual and collective capabilities. THAT is what I want to see from the Democratic party. Sure - I'd love to take back the House and the Senate in 2006 and then reclaim the Presidency in 2008. Do I think that's likely to happen? Probably not. But eating into the Republican majority in the legislature is a step in the right direction.

It's simple - the Democratic party has to possess the same character as the Washington Redskins did with 4:33 left to go in their game at Dallas two weeks ago. They have to not give up. They have to not feel overmatched. That have to not concede one inch of their talent or principles in the fight to represent us, their constituents. I don't expect miracles and wouldn't hold anyone accountable for failing to deliver on a miracle. But I do expect fight. Simple fight and an unwillingess to give in.

I'm in. Is my party behind me?

Postscript. The Redskins defeated the Seattle Seahawks 20-17 in overtime. This moves their record to 3-0. BY GOD 3-0. Woo hoo!! Hail to the Redskins!!