It's fair to say that the primary campaign is in its final stages, no matter what side one is on. (I believe it's over and the Democratic Party is in the process of unifying behind Obama, but Hillary has to decide what she's gonna do/be able to do. Your mileage may vary.)

I've still got a LOT of problems with the Clintons. No need to go into them all here. Everyone is familiar with the pros and cons. I don't know what I'd do in November if she were on the ballot, but I'm willing to say that I'll at least think about that when passions recede.

I've come to two conclusions over the last week that are easier for me to see now, in the light of the results from Indiana and North Carolina.

One is a greater understanding of the depth of support for Hillary by women, and some of the reasons for this loyalty. I'm a white guy, so you might say I don't really have a stake in this either on race or gender, but I've had to figure out my own feelings on both issues during this interminable primary season.

At first, I didn't understand how powerful is the symbolism and reality of a woman having a real shot at the top job. Not only that, but I didn't appreciate how important to women (and others) it is that Hillary has refused to back down, or cave in.

I could make the argument that this admiration overlooks the things many of us see in her that are not so praise-worthy, but the two sides have been talking past one another for a long time and, frankly, this argument is getting a bit boring. I can recognize the admiration many have for the character it takes to be persistent in the face of long odds, because that speaks to the daily experience of many Americans. Many, if not most, women, as well as those who are on the lower end of the economic pecking order. Life can be hard and grittiness and a grim determination to persevere is all some people feel they have. So, they appreciate this stubborn resolve to keep standing in Hillary, because that's a strength that has nothing to do with one's bank account. I've come, grudgingly, to understand that allegiance, and actually think that's a core Democratic principle that we may have ceded too long to the Republican. It's about courage to face the challenges of the daily struggle, and we ought to honor that.

That leads to my second understanding, which is that there is a large -- and growing -- lower-middle class and soon to be middle and upper-middle class in this country that is suffering from the global economic system that's been in flux for a while now, but that has seen hundreds of thousands of jobs, and the American Dream they made possible, to foreign lands.

While good blue-collar jobs and those that didn't require a PhD were shipped overseas, as elites and multinationals here bought favorable treatment and laws from both Republican and Democratic administrations and lawmakers, the vast majority of Americans saw the good life bleeding away. A sense of hopelessness and fear is a very real thing out there now, and while BushCo and the Republican Congress has been in the majority, and can be fairly punished in November, it's not only them. Plenty of Democrats have played footsie FOR YEARS with the lobbyists and big-money power brokers, too.

What's become more clear to me, largely as a result of Hillary's campaign (even more than Edwards'), is that there is a great and growing economic injustice afoot, that its' something we must address for all, even the powerless, and that a Republican administration is likely to make things worse. But just any ol' Democratic administration might not be any better, depending on who's been paying their bills.

But the point is, Hillary was right to focus on economic issues, on the plight of those who're less advantaged. I still believe that she's too flawed to carry the banner over the River Jordan, and that Obama is the better choice, but I grudgingly admit that she has raised some important issues, and has made advocacy for those who need an advocate in the White House a more visible issue.