>>>>which is why it's so strange (and stupid) that we would have statues and monuments to a traitor like Lee here.
>>>>He is not some founding father or great American patriot - as matter of fact he's the exact opposite and represents the south's desire to keep slavery. He was the leader of the army for the other side! arrrg!
>>
>>OMG! Who knew! Thank heavens today's patriots uncovered the truth!
>>
>>Come on, Victor. In the immediate aftermath, Lee was offered a federal commission by people who knew very well what had happened and what Lee stood for. And 50 years later, enlightened civic leaders who abhorred slavery, still were erecting monuments to him. And then 150 years later he's a traitor and symbol of hatred.
>>
>>Clearly he can be whatever people want him to be. Which says more about them than about Lee IMHO. Welcome to the Divided States of America: those who disagree are to be split off because their traitorous ancestors once had the effrontery to want to split off.
>>
>>Meanwhile inner city blacks continue to wonder when or if jobs and prospects ever will be theirs again as they look on in bemusement at people who are wealthy enough to fixate on - old statues.
>
>That last sentence just resonates the problems of the DNC right now. Too much focus on identity politics, too much focus on pointing out who is a bigot, too much focus on how many ways they can call the Trump administration a bunch of racists, the list goes on and on. And yet absolutely no leader in the party with any kind of track record at the state level for "smart government"

You're right about the DNC focus, but there are some good leaders at the state level.
I know you won't agree with this but Jerry Brown could easily lay claim to being the most effective governor in the US right now.
We have a good shot at getting the state house back here, and the candidate, Phil Murphy is saying some things that we should be hearing from democrats.
http://www.nj.com/politics/index.ssf/2017/08/murphy_tax_plan_would_raise_13_billion_heres_whod.html

It's not enough but it's better than the repubs who cut taxes on the wealthy and forced a regressive increase in gasoline taxes in order to maintain state roads.