Is it just me, or are all of you members of my Obama family going through this crazy loop-de-loop, roller coaster of fear and excitement every day?
I spend half my day feeling exuberant and hopeful and excited and then the other half feeling terrified and sure the Republicans are going to pull off some big election voodoo like they did in 2000 and 2004.
I can tell you that in 2004, the day after the elction, I awoke to the image on television of John Kerry standing on the steps of Faneul Hall, giving his concession speech, and I felt like the world as I knew it, had disappeared.
For months (nay, years) after that election I felt that I was a foreigner, living in a foreign land, with a culture and society that had nothing to do with me--a culture I did not and could not understand--a culture whose values and ideals were so far removed from mine that we could neve see eye-to-eye.
Because, I thought, if there are that many people in this nation who cannot see what a terrible "leader" GWB is, then I do not share the very basic and necessary ideology of what it is to be an "american". I couldn't try to see the "gray area" of that election, for there was none.
This year, this election, the choice is even more clear. And the risk is even more grave.
I can't imagine a worse scenario if these evil clowns could somehow pull this off again.
Please, somebody, talk me down. I feel like I must be underestimating the American people's tolerance for BS and lies and division and distortion, but, after 2004....I just can't seem to warm up to that idea.
When I sit down and seriously conider what kind of change is possible under President Obama, I get kind of shaky and weepy. I feel myself floating into a hazy, dream-like state; a state of hope and excitement; of fearlessness and optimism.
Tonight I watched "When We Were Kings", a documentary on the famous "Rumble in the Jungle" boxing match between Goerge Foremen and Muhammed Ali in October of 1974 in Zaire. For those of you who haven't seen it; rent it, borrow it, or buy it: it's spectacular.
The movie highlighted a message that I've been trying to broadcast to everyone I talk to about this election.
This election is not just about the obvious choice between two candidates, or the astronomically poor choices of John McCain, or of the massive problems facing the US today. There is a larger issue that I feel so excited about, I can barely contain myself.
Some people think that Obama's race is a question mark, as if being black somehow makes him less qualified, less acceptable, or less "real". In my eyes, I see his race as an enormous plus; a bonus. And here's why...
I have heard stories fom a number of different sources about how, for the first time in our nation's history, the vast minority population will be able to have a leader who understands who they are and where they've been and the unique (and supremely unjust) struggles that minorities face in this country. This, in and of itself, is one of the most beautiful and poetic things that could happen to us as a nation.
But, more than that (as if that weren't enough), I truly believe (and try to just go with me on this journey) that we are at the precipice of ending our issue with race in the US.
I'm not kidding; and I'm not crazy. We all know someone who has been racist, homophobic, or discriminatory in some way, who has had the very foundations of their beliefs turned 180 degrees by the mere fact of working with, getting to know personally, or otherwise personally relating to the object of their discrimination. This happens everyday on main streets across this country; on factory floors and in offices; in schools and churches and hospitals and communities.
Racism, like any other form of discrimination, cannot stand up to any kind of scrutiny. We all know that. But, when we are presented with an opportunity to hear the stories and share the experiences with people who are different, we realize, on a very personal level, how connected and similar we all are.
This election is the nation's first opportunity to share this experience on a national level in a way that no other President has been able to do with mere "dialogue".
I not only believe that Obama is the best candidate for President right now -or at any time on our history- regardless of race, I welcome the opportunity this country has to grow up and out of it's long history of racism and to embrace the genius and leadership that can only come from equal representation.
For the first time, we are facing the possibility of a leader who can represent the best America has to offer, in a package that makes that representation meaningful to everyone.
So, let's roll up our sleeves a little further, dig deep in our pockets, and do whatever we can to make this dream (and it is a dream come true) a reality.
We've got about 15 days left until we can wake up to a brighter, more just and rational world...
Im so excited!
I'm a little confused. Let me see if I have this straight.....
* If you grow up in Hawaii, raised by your grandparents, you're "exotic, different."
* Grow up in Alaska eating mooseburgers, a quintessential American story.
* If your name is Barack you're a radical, unpatriotic Muslim.
* Name your kids Willow, Trig and Track, you're a maverick.
* Graduate from Harvard law School and you are unstable.
* Attend 5 different small colleges before graduating, you're well grounded.
* If you spend 3 years as a brilliant community organizer, become the first black President of the Harvard Law Review, create a voter registration drive that registers 150,000 new voters, spend 12 years as a Constitutional Law professor, spend 8 years as a State Senator representing a district with over 750,000 people, become chairman of the state Senate's Health and Human Services committee, spend 4 years in the United States Senate representing a state of 13 million people while sponsoring 131 bills and serving on the Foreign Affairs, Environment and Public Works and Veteran's Affairs committees, you don't have any real leadership experience.
* If your total resume is: local weather girl, 4 years on the city council and 6 years as the mayor of a town with less than 7,000 people, 20 months as the governor of a state with only 650,000 people, then you're qualified to become the country's second highest ranking executive.
* If you have been married to the same woman for 19 years while raising 2 beautiful daughters, all within Protestant churches, you're not a real Christian.
* If you cheated on your first wife with a rich heiress, and left your disfigured wife and married the heiress the next month, you're a Christian.
* If you want to teach children about sexual predators, you are irresponsible and eroding the fiber of society.
* If, while governor, you staunchly advocate abstinence only, with no other option in sex education in your state's school system while your unwed teen daughter ends up pregnant, you're very responsible.
* If your wife is a Harvard graduate lawyer who gave up a position in a prestigious law firm to work for the betterment of her inner city community, then gave that up to raise a family, your family's values don't represent America 's.
* If you're husband is nicknamed "First Dude", with at least one DWI conviction and no college education, who didn't register to vote until age 25 and once was a member of a group that hates America and advocated the secession of Alaska from the USA, your family is extremely admirable.
OK, much clearer now.
I've always found it curious how many Americans are so disinterested in, or indifferent to, our political process. We have this somewhat unique opportunity to be as involved as we want to be and to guide our nation's path...for many, that "opportunity" is boring, dubious, or overwhelming; for others, it is a pleasure and a right that we hold sacred; a responsibility we see as fundamental.
Writing letters, sending emails, or making phone calls to members of congress is a great example of the kind of power that we, indiviual Americans, have. In my own life, I have seen policy changes based on nothing more than protests, civil disobedience, and simple activism in the form of a letter-writing campaign. It is awe-inspiring when you witness hundreds or even thousands of people joing together with a common voice, sharing their concerns in a public way, demanding justice, peace, or action from our nation's leaders. It is especially incredible to realize that within these groups of hundreds or thousands of individuals are many differing opinions and lifestyles; ideologies and faiths; races and ages and genders; and yet, for that one moment-- on that one subject, they can find a common ground on which to meet to make change.
It is even more incredible when you recognize that that group of 300 or 3000 is such a small percentage of our nation's vast population, and yet they can still effect change; they can still make thir voices heard.
That's why I find it so curious when so many people feel that "it doesn't matter" whether they vote, or that their vote "doesn't mean anything". This is, in part, because of the past eight year's insular and devious administration, but it's also because the American people long ago gave up their responsibility to make this nation "by the people" and instead, handed that responsibility, and it's power, over to Washington.
I was thinking about Obama's morning nes blog and this agreement he's made to close the remianing "Enron" loopholes and how few Americans even know what that truly means; myself included.
So many people have complained that Obama doesn't speak specifically enough on the issues, but when he does, there are vast numbers of people saying (to themselves), "I don't really understand this, so I'll just gloss over it and look for some juicier news". We cry out, "We don't want to hear speeches, we want to know exactly what your plans are!" and then our lo attnetion spans begin to make our eyes glaze over while we wait for the next video or song to ease our sufferng.
On political bloggin sites, if you look at the number of comments on "real news" stories versus those on "gssip"-type stories, the difference is both huge and disturbing. In the time it takes those gossip stories to garner hundreds of comments and reads, the real news gets 10 or 0 and can barely keep the AMerican interest.
We need to be more involved not just in our politics but in the common threads that bond us all together, here in America and around the world.
It isn't enough to know every time McCain says something stupid or without flair; e must also care about what happens in our own Midwest and around the globe and have the same passion for all people, everywhere because we all share the same humanity, the same dreams, the same needs.
Caring and being involved isn't somethng to be proud of; it is our responsibility as members of the "greatest nation". We can't keep calling ourselves something like that, and using the American brand as a defining tool when over half of our population can't be bothered to spend 1/2 an hour, once every years, voting; and over 80% of our population can't do it once every two years.
As AMericans, we should be willing to spend AT LEAST as much time being involved in our politics as we are in shopping for clothes, watching sitcoms, or surfing the web.
If not, the change we seek will only be a slogan. Obama can't do this by himself, and helping him win the elction in November will be only the beginning of our job, as Americans.
This FISA bill vote sure has a lot of people crying, "I'm outta here!"
I'm confused and disappointed at the fairweather support for our candidate. I understand the importance of holding these telecomms accountable fo thier illegal activities. If we lived in a country where our leaders ere held accountable, we wouldn't need Obama s much as we do today.
But, alas, we are in a conundrum, aren't we? We need Obama to be elected in November becasue of the nasty, vile, divisive and distractive campaiangs and agendas of the Republican, and yet, becasue of those same things, we need him to support a compromise bill on FISA. If h didn't, the Republican smear and spin machine would have all the fodder necessary to label hm "weak on terrorists" and we have learned, the hard way, that they don't need anymore than that to win electons.
It's precisely this kind of scilla and charibdis we an expect more of in the future with a country so deeply divided. we better get used to the idea of compromise; not just because there will be a lot more of it, but also because we live in a country with a wide variety of belief systems and none of ours is more importan than anyone else's. We need to brig something to the table to negotiat with, and sometimes that means compromising some of our values for the greater god.
I'm no constitutional law scholar and I don't pretend to have all the answers; but I do know that we need to have passage of a FISA bill so that the illegal and unwarranted wiretapping of innocent Americans will end. If this means compromising on our abilit to pursue civil litigation against these corporations, I am willing to make that tade-off; especially if if means the differece between another BS election or Obama getting into the white house.
We must choose our battles and stop pretending that Obama is the answer to all of our society's ills. He is not. He will do his best fo us, all of us, and we must trust in that and then become active participants in this democracy. We are responsible for holding our lected officials accountable...
Well, I was less than overhwelmed by HRC's "concession" speech, but I still sent a message thanking her for her support.
I was sort of hoping that she might talk more about Obama than herself, that she would stop with the "18 million" stff and that she would explain to her supporters why voting for McCain would be completely counterproductive and, also, ....very very stupid.
However, I'm not her speech writer and I don't get to have it my way, so that's fine.
I would like to say, as I did in an earler post, that I think we need to put as much of the recent animosity behind us as we can so that any HRC supporter who wanders into the OBama firest won't get too spooked to come back.
We probably could win without the HRC supporters who refuse to vote for Obama, but it wouldn't be nearly as much fun as seeing McCain get less than 40% of the votes in the GE, so, let's bite our tongues, put a fresh smile on our faces, and move forward together.
Whaddya say?
Wow! I nearly wept when I saw this ad of Barack speaking spanish..is this a presidential first? I've never seen a major candidate confident or savvy enough to take on a foreign language, on camera. Good for you!
What a guy!
Let's hope that the people of PR feel the same way: connected, included, and cared for.
I've been readin a lot of very negative posts lately and thinking a lot about this excruciating end to the primary and I've come up ith a few insights that I'd love the Obama Nation to think about:
This election is a life-chainging experience for millions of Americans, and for many it is their first "brush" with politics. I'd like to see more inclusion, hope, and dignity in our methods when interacting with people who do not agree with our perceptions of Barack and his candidacy. This is not the time for division and it is not the time for bravado.
This is a time to take Obama's message of hope to the masses through example; treating every American with respect and giving them good reasons to check out what our candidate is all about.
When we counterattack and dismiss the millions of Americans who do not agree with us right now, we show a weakness of character that belies our confidence in Obama. It also displays an unwillingness to consder all sides and make infomed, rational choces.
Let's refrain from the petty, undignified tactics and take our cues from our candidate: let's make sure that we don't say or write or even think anything that we wouldn't want to hear from the other sides of this equation.
There are a lot of people and differing stories in this country, and to each of them, their story resonates as the most compelling; the most valid. If we are not willing to openly listen to their stories and share our own, we are not respecting the process or the intent of democracy. All Americans deserve to be heard, and hopefully, when they have had their chance to tell their story, they will be more willing to listen.
On another note, as excruciating as this RBC meeting seems, if we respect our party leaders to make a fair and reasonable decision, we will be far better off than if we assume the worst about them and make a remptive strike via protesting the meeting. Let's all take a breath and see what happens. There will be plenty of time and opportunity to protest an unjust decision and to have our voices heard before the convention.
I know we're all feeling really anxious right now and wondering when the end of this difficult time will come, but we must be confident and patient.
Having said all that, let's take a moment today or tomorrow to earnestly pray (in whatever form that takes for you personally) that justice will be done; that the leaders of our party wll not feel pressured to make any particular decision; that the truth will weigh more heavily than any manipulations or any one person's agenda; that the change that was started by Obama will be a factor in the remaining days of this primary; and that, in the interest of justice, representation, and legitimacy, that the RBC and the remaining superdelegates will opt for hope over fear.
As a final note, I just want to say that I'm almost as excited about Micehlle being our fist lady as I am about Barack being our POTUS. You go girl!
Let's refrain from the p
