"I will not support the election of the opponent of any Democratic nominee, I will not oppose the election of any Democratic nominee, nor will I support any non-Democrat against a Democrat in any election other than in judicial races [as mandated by Florida law]."

The Loyalty Oath. If you are a member of a Democratic Executive Committee in Florida, you sign this oath prior to qualifying to become a committeeperson. It does not apply to rank-and-file registered Democrats, or to elected officials. The Republicans have their own version, although not as restrictive.

It is there because if you are a part of the Democratic leadership team, you should be working for your team, not supporting the other side. It provides a means by which the party can purge members of it's leadership who divide the organization by working for the opposition.

But what happens when you have a candidate that you simply cannot support? That is the case in several area across Central Florida.

One would say that the most obvious way to not violate the oath would be to simply remain quiet, not speak openly for or against those candidates, work for those candidate whom you do support, and move on.

But with some, it's not that easy.

I shall not go into further detail here. But I will say this: There will be an interesting debate once this election is over regarding the Loyalty Oath, and wheather it should be reworded or even scrapped completely. The Oath is mandated by the state party, and in some states is not required at all.

And before I head to work (Yes, I'm actually working on a Saturday!), one more hurricane related note: Kudos to the amateur radio operators who volunteer long hours at locations throughout the area. Shelters, Red Cross HQ, the County Emergency Operations Centre, wherever needed. "Hams", as they are more popularly known, provide needed communication links especially when the power is down (and thus the phones are probably out). They often provide "Health and Welfare" traffic in hard hit areas passing messages to families that their relatives are OK. Even as we're getting ready for Ivan, they're preparing as well.

73s to ya!