George,

Regarding the lack of Democrats running against Republicans in this last cycle: I believe there are two significant reasons for this, one is process and the other more substantive.

Process: The DPVA does not make a real commitment to fund challengers, meaning newcomers to politics without personal wealth are reluctant to run. Remember what Vance Wilkins did some thirty years ago: he got folks to run in hopeless races and eventually created a deep enough Republican bench to take over the state. Look at Matt Fariss. A true lump, with no political ambitions and little chance of raising enough money to run even a simple campaign, given his charisma and vision. Yet, the GOP dumped a fortune on him and he beat a competent imaginative Democrat, albeit in a district created to elect Republicans.

Substance: The Democrats have lost faith in their own narrative. TV ads that I saw on the races in SW Virginia made it very hard to distinguish between Republicans and Democrats. Both sides were for low taxes, low regulation, pro-life, etc. Until we Democrats restore our own faith we will never match the negative, greed driven intensity of the other side.

Al Weed (Electronic mail, November 10, 2011)