John McCain is running on history. Obviously, the part of his life that is most influential to his thinking is that which he spent in a Vietnamese prison camp. There is no denying that his time there was probably so awful that many of us would have said or done almost anything to stop the torture and abuse. It is certainly to his credit that he did not. His stand against the current administration on the torture of detainees of the war on terror is a strong statement and is highly honorable However, noble performance during captivity does not mean that he automatically deserves or has the judgment and breadth of knowledge necessary to run this country. He constantly referred to Ronald Reagan’s time in office and his policies and conveyed a sense of the past being more influential to his thinking than is the future. He seems to not be aware of how we are doing out here, where people work for a living, do their best to educate their children and keep food on the table and gas in the car. His long history of supporting deregulation of the financial and other sectors of the economy, to the advantage of wealthy individuals and corporations, has contributed to an economy that today teeters on the edge of a meltdown.
Barack Obama focused his comments on the plight of the Average American in today’s world. The USA faces a damaged and abused economy, the world’s vision of America is to many people that of an arrogant and selfish nation and at this time diplomacy rather than saber-rattling and warmongering is so obviously what this country needs to reestablish our credibility across the globe. Senator Obama seems focused on the future and conveys a sense of understanding what we as American are going through and a sense of where we fit into the new 21st century global economic and political world. His background is one of hard work and service to his country. He is strong with respect to going after those that would do us harm, but is sensitive to why we have become a nation that is not respected by many others. He is committed to diplomacy, willing to talk and work out our common problems with leaders of other nations and he understands that one of humanity’s most urgent needs is to develop energy sources that are not only renewable, but that do not cause damage to our imperiled planet.
I called my 87 year old mother after the debate to get a sense of her reaction. She has been engaged in this and previous political campaigns and even at her age, she commented that Senator McCain seems so focused on the past that he is not what we, as a nation, need right now to confront our future. She understands the importance of electing someone with a new view and understanding of the world and how it works today.
The past is what it was. The future calls us to better times. Barack Obama is the candidate that understands that and once elected he will lead us through our difficult present into a more positive future.
Post from Mary Fox's Blog: My Analysis of the First Debate:"Heaping Live Coals Upon His Head"
By Mary Fox - Sep 27th, 2008 at 11:16 am EDT Also listed in: 10 groups For those of us who saw the first presidential debate last night, many of us were hoping that Obama would slam McCain during several of the moments that presented themselves. I originally was disappointed about this too. But I have had a night to sleep on my reaction and consider why the undecideds seemed to prefer Obama's style.
I have decided that Obama presented himself as strong opponent - yet a gentleman with sportsmanship. At one point he said "fair enough" and graciously took being cut off. He kept looking over at McCain and addressing him, but McCain would not reciprocate and look in his direction. At one point toward the beginning of the debate, in McCain's expression I saw glaring evil angry eyes and I thought he wanted to kill Obama. I extrapolated that that was the reason McCain wouldn't look Obama in the face - he was holding back from jumping across the stage and attacking him.
This debate was truly a battlefield for McCain - but a battle that Obama won. Every time Obama said "You're right, John," John's face on the TV looked like he was blinking hard as if he had just received a painful whiplash - like Obama was "heaping hot coals upon his head" (Proverbs 25:22). This is a very interesting dynamic indeed. For those of us unfamiliar with this biblical proverb, it says that by being nice to an enemy it will be as if you are "heaping hot coals upon his head". I think that is what we saw last night - a very stateman, kind, and gentle, cool and collected Obama and an angry, abusive and agressive old white man. Anyone in the audience who thought Obama's race was a problem for them, now are facing the option of a very angry, scowling, ranting old white man for the next four years or a very kind and diplomatic black man. On a more personal note, I find myself drawn to what I am calling Obama's "Daddy Factor". As a (white) daddy's girl, I see in Obama's vision for this country everything my father conveyed to me as the reason he loved our great nation - a nation where the "American Dream" actually happended - a land of the free and the brave. When I see Obama with his daughters, being a kind, gentle, loving father, I transfer all of my tender familial feeling for my father onto Obama. He is the kind of man my father tries to be - and sometimes is. He is the sportsman that my father taught my brother to be (in his semi-professional status as a tennis athlete). If I were to pick which candidate I would want as a father - I know I do not want the scowling McCain for my father - and I know I would want the kind, loving Obama to be my dad. A knowledgable, loving dad who could protect me and solve my problems. Maybe this is what the polls are showing us. Obama's kindness was the real secret weapon which made him the champion of the hour. He showed himself to be statesman, sportsman, gentleman, and even - I will add - a Christian in his demeanor and behavior. He is the kind of man I would want to be related to. The kind of man I would want to lead our great nation. A much better person than I, who was routing to see blood in the arena, currently am. God Bless the United States of America Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery. None but ourselves can free our minds. -- Bob MarleyP.E.A.C.E.(PositiveEducationAlwaysCorrectsErrors) -Martin J. Wade
It is crunch time!!! 39 Days left, the first of the three debates is this evening! John McCain has said he will be there. Not sure if that will actually make a difference or not. I'm sure his answers will be no better than the empty chair. GO BARACK!!!!
Come join supporters at Campaign Headquarters from 6-8 for a phone bank and then watch the debate here as well!!!!!!
Over the last seven years we have witnessed the administration of G W Bush exploit the fears of the people of America with deceptions, misrepresentations and outright lies. The manipulation of data used to justify the invasion of Iraq is well documented. Our constitution has been trampled upon by the president and his team. The United States has been disgraced by policies that allowed torture of detainees and virtually destroyed another country that had never posed a specific threat to the USA. Thousands of American sons and daughters have died as a result of poor decisions with little planning and unstated goals and unknown thousands of Iraqi citizens were displaced, killed and suffered through years of unbelievable horror.
Our economy has come dangerously close to a financial meltdown as a result of the Republican pushed policies of deregulation that allowed lenders and powerful financial institutions to make huge profits through unscrupulous lending practices at the expense of unknowing and uninformed borrowers. We have seen long established firms collapse due to mismanagement and greed, only to be buoyed up by the government at costs to the American people that may take decades to repay. Huge profits made by the oil companies are at historic levels. Meanwhile, the working people of America have seen their good jobs disappearing at a rapid pace as companies are given tax breaks while sending their work overseas. We have seen the value of our dollar decline and the buying power of our wages shrink.
Now the Republican Party has asked us to give it another four years by electing John McCain and Sarah Palin. John McCain, having suffered atrocities at the hands of his captors during the Vietnam War is regarded as a war hero. Sarah Palin is a self described “hockey mom” and claims to be a “maverick” that can shake up Washington and put things right. John McCain has the audacity to accept monthly Social Security payments while being paid in excess of 160K as a senator and while his wife’s company made over $6 million in 2007. Sarah Palin, as she is finally “looked at” seems to have a history of giving good state jobs to unqualified long time friends and of firing people with whom she has personal disputes. Her stands on women’s rights are unconscionable. This all sounds likeit would lead to a repeat or even an enhancement of the cronyism and greed demonstrated so well by the Bush Administration. These two are not the mavericks they claim to be. We can't afford four more years of Bush policies.
The greed and lies so clearly at the center of the thinking of many prominent folks in the Republican Party have made us less safe and more vulnerable to outside forces over which we have no control. They try to deny the effects of humanity’s activities on the planet. They pass tax cuts that benefit the huge multinational corporations and a few of the wealthiest of Americans while leaving the working people of America with less to spend on life’s pleasures that at any time in recent history. They now have stooped to outright lies in their advertising by telling us that the tax plan of Senator Obama will end up costing average Americans higher taxes while virtually every financial and tax expert has stated the opposite.
Senator Barack Obama has plans to reduce our dependence on foreign oil, to encourage companies to keep their jobs here in the United States, to reduce taxes for average Americans. He has the strength and will to do what is necessary to keep Americans safe and has demonstrated the wisdom that going to war to prove some point is not a smart decision. He is endorsed by virtually all labor focused and educational organizations as he is recognized by many financial analysts to have the best plans to revive our economy. His vision of the future will motivate us all as citizens and will help revive our nation’s soul. America must move beyond the divisiveness that is so strongly promoted by the Republican Party and focus on the message of unity and shared purpose that is promoted by Senator Obama and the Democratic Party. Somehow, over the years, the Republican Party has been able to convince many working Americans that they have their interests in mind, while in fact the tax plans and financial policies demonstrate exactly the opposite.
I plead with working Americans to look at the results of the past seven years and seriously make an informed decision whether the policies encouraged by this party are those that have helped you in any way!
We need to elect a president that encourages cooperation, diplomacy and unity of purpose rather than one who encourages division, deceit, and makes careless political decisions.
Don’t get fooled again America.
Talk, Live and Vote Obama/Biden.
Come one, come all. Bring your spouse or friend or neighbor!
Our own Obama Office will have an Open House this Thursday, July 24 from 6 - 8 PM. It is just down from the Chase Bank office on Sandusky St. Come on down and share stories and enthusiasm. We are just over 100 days from election day and we still have lots of people to talk to and educate. We really need to make this happen. We NEED Barack to be our next President. I've never felt so strongly about a candidate. The world needs us to make this happen. Please come and help us organize Delaware to win in November.
Dear Robinson for Congress Supporter,
This week we are undertaking a significant fundraising effort that we need your help with!
We are asking each of you to go to the ActBlue fundraising page for David Robinson and make a contribution between now and this Friday. http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/18783
If enough supporters contribute to the campaign through ActBlue over the next 5 days, we will be placed in the list of the “Top 5 Hot Candidates of the Week” that appears on the ActBlue website front page. Making it to this list will place our campaign in the national spotlight and will expose us to funders throughout the U.S.
You can help put Robinson for Congress in the national spotlight by donating once, or better yet, multiple times between today and Friday.
We have only 5 days to accomplish this goal.
Please consider giving a contribution each day - the more contributions we receive, the higher our ranking will be. A $5.00, $10.00 or $20.00 donation will put us one step closer to our goal!
http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/18783
Together, through our collective energy, we can send a New Voice to Congress. So get BLUE and ACT today!
For more information on David Robinson and his campaign platform, please visit www.robinson2008.com
For additional information about David and his campaign platform, please visit www.robinson2008.com
Launch a New Energy for Ohio and a New Voice in Congress with Us! David Robinson for Congress Campaign CelebrationWedgewood Golf and Country Club - Powell, Ohio June 5, 2008 5:30-8:00 p.m.Suggested donation - $25 Join David Robinson and other Robinson for Congress supporters to kickoff the summer season and rally into the the general election. The Robinson for Congress campaign is forging ahead and it is time for ALL supporters -- ALL those desiring change, ALL those fighting for our district, and ALL who believe it can happen -- to come together. Join us. Join David Robinson for Congress. Join us in sending needed change to Congress! RSVP by June 1 to: kickoff@robinson2008.comDonations accepted at the door, evening of the event
Wedgewood Golf & Country Club9600 Wedgewood Blvd. Powell, OH 43065(614) 793-9600
This Memorial Day holiday will find many of us surrounded by loved ones at parades, picnics and long vacation weekends. As we travel to these celebrations and welcome the long-awaited start to summer, let us honor first and foremost those for whom this holiday was meant to cherish -- the brave men and women who have gone before us for the sake of freedom. I join my fellow citizens in remembering the valiant bravery of the people who have given their lives so that we may live in freedom. Let us also honor the thousands of men and women who served alongside these patriots who survived the perils of war and those who still wait in support from home. And finally, lest we forget, we must do all we can to recognize their stewardship of freedom by keeping our commitments to them as veterans. This Memorial Day, we stand united. It is not the day to express dismay about ill-begotten wars and conflicts with which we agree or disagree. Nor is this the time to make anti-war or pro-war speeches. There is nothing political about it at all. It is a day we draw upon the strength we have as Americans -- our unity. A day to recall the poignant words of writer Peter Collier, to remember "those who had given all their tomorrows, as was said of the men who stormed the beaches of Normandy, for our todays." --David Robinson, Candidate, Ohio's U.S. 12th Congressional District www.robinson2008.com
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24751629
There are articles all over today about "talks" between rivals and "Terrorist Backed" or "Terrorist Backing" governments and organizations. Seems the rest of the world (besides GWB and his hateful crew) are all about discussing problems with your enemies. Shameful Bush! Shameful McBush!
David Robinson's Congressional Campaign Website has been updated and relaunched with a whole new look!
The revamped website includes the new logo for the Robinson campaign and a new slogan... "A New Energy for Ohio, A New Voice in Congress".
Also new to the site are two videos and a photo gallery.
Check it out at www.robinson2008.com
This is moving amazingly fast.
As Bush/McCain start attacks already at Barack Obama and from foreign soil. Barack responds and we are suddenly immersed in one of the great themes of Obama’s philosophy; That we need to talk to people we are not getting along with, and on a level that means something.
The Bush/McCain direction of confrontation, bullying if I can put it bluntly, their way around the world and demanding people do things their way or “we won’t even talk to you” is so wrong.
Obama seems to be willing to address the leaders of the world as an equal, with big guns, no less, but as an equal rather than as the “King of the World”, an image that GWB has somehow managed to obtain. We are, after all, only 1/20, yes, that is only 5% of the population of the world.
In these days, we need a leader who thinks and understands GLOBALLY!
Only by communicating with and understanding the views of our adversaries are we able to work out our problems without blowing each other to smithereens!
Obama is the only one.
It will be interesting to watch this debate on "World Vision" unfold.
OMG! OMG! OMG! This night is so exciting! Yes, the NC win is fabulous - SO MANY delegates!!!
AND it still looks like it's possible for him to win Indiana! Even with Rush Limbaughs republicans coming in to vote for Clinton! The independents voting for Obama have outnumbered them! WOOHOOOOOOOO
I wish I would have gone to the Primary Party tonight to be with all you awesome people! I know I've not been around since the Ohio Primary, but I'm still with you in spirit!
Bless all of you who have continued such strong efforts to get Senator Obama elected.
YOU ALL ROCK!
The Orchestra, the Arts, Our Community
Submitted to The Other Paper by David Robinson on 5/5/08
The well-publicized and documented troubles facing the Columbus Symphony Orchestra (CSO) are part of an even bigger picture that I find troubling. The CSO is a key contributor to our quality of life in Columbus, well beyond the seasonal performance schedule. The education programs and outreach, and our accomplished Youth Orchestra, bring music and more to our children.
In terms of the business case for our Orchestra, many writers and economists emphasize the importance of the creative class as a central driver of the new economy. The CSO employs significant numbers of artists who live here, raise their families here, and spend their money here. Perhaps most importantly, for businesses small and large trying to attract and retain talent, the CSO represents an important part of our cultural fabric and our image as a great American city. Simply stated, no symphony, no great city.
The root of the symphony’s problems is our ailing economy. Working families in Central Ohio are being pinched at every turn for time and money. When one is forced to choose between food, fuel, and the finer arts, it is the latter which will suffer first. And without an audience, our performing arts organizations will need additional support from the same sources everyone else is tapping: individual donors and the business community.
So where are we investing in the creation of tomorrow’s jobs? Where is the support for innovation? Our region needs leadership and a long-term development strategy to help us take action and improve the things that matter. Yes, I need food to live, and fuel to travel, but I need the arts to make the journey worth taking.
_____________________________________________________
Robinson is the Democratic candidate for Ohio's 12th U.S. Congressional District running against incumbent Pat Tiberi this fall. For more information on David Robinson and his policies, go to www.robinson2008.com.
It is appearing more and more like Senator Hillary Clinton is positioning herself to be John McCain’s running mate!
Her hawkish statements on Iran and her promotion of the absurd “gas tax holiday” along with her ceaseless personal attacks on the character and patriotism of Senator Barack Obama amount to “party treason”. Her unwillingness to move aside in this race, which is mathematically impossible for her to win without disenfranchising many if not all of Senator Obama’s supporters is damaging the party's possibilities in November. Her divisiveness is well documented, and it is becoming clearer and clearer that her campaign is more focused of Hillary Clinton’s self promotion than it is on the interest of our sad and struggling country.
It is impossible to deny the fact that another four years of Bushlike policies would be a disaster to our country’s status across the globe as well as our economy here at home. It is imperative that the Democratic candidate for President of the United States wins this upcoming election.
Time and time again, across America, it has been demonstrated that once a body of people hear and see and listen to the message of Barack Obama, the fears, biases and reluctance of the political body to vote for him dissolve. It is an undeniable truth that Governor Ed Rendell of Pennsylvania stated, and was admonished for, that there are people in this country that will not vote for a black candidate. Unfortunately, this is still true. However, the number of people that think this way is shrinking. At the same time, the number of people in this country who are less concerned with the race of a person than with their character and their ideas is increasing. It is clearly, to some extent, a generational phenomena, hence, Senator Clinton’s better showing among older voters in recent primaries.
Senator Obama has presented a view of America that provides hope and excitement for the future. He promotes an agenda that encourages us as individuals to support and promote our country; one that will allow the country to grow, prosper and become again a beacon of hope and promise to people, not only of our own country, but to the rest of the world as well. Senator Clinton also presents an agenda of hope, yet she does it in a mean-spirited and divisive way, which has never worked in the long run and is certainly doomed to fail again.
Never stop talking about Senator Obama! Make sure all your friends, neighbors and acquaintances know that you support his positivity and policies. Encourage them to learn about him. Read his books. With undying support and energy for his program, we can change this country and change the world.
Believe me a year ago I was not an Obama supporter. I was a John Edwards supporter until he left the race before the Ohio Primary, leaving me a decision to make - Clinton or Obama.
Clinton is tired. Didn't we have her in the White House trying to run things 16 years ago. Oh wait that was her husband, but that is not what she would have you think these days. SHE created peace in Ireland, SHE worked on Universal Health Care, etc. etc. OK so she did work on Universal Health Care and ALIENATED nearly everyone in Congress for her efforts. Plus a realization - since 1980 only two trains of thought have been in power - Reagan and the Bushes and Clinton. Sorry, I think it is elitist to think that only 2 families have had power for 20 years not exactly American with the idea that we elect a President every 4 years to prevent any family from taking power too long. Yes, I know she was not elected to office, but still I have a feeling she is not going to stray too far in her opinions from Bill.
Then there’s Barack Obama...
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE APRIL 15, 2008
CONTACT: CHRISTOPHER HOLGATE CAMPAIGN MANAGER 614-226-6948 cholgate@robinson2008.com
DEMOCRATIC CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE DAVID ROBINSON COMMENTS ON FEC FILING Columbus, OH -- The Robinson for Congress campaign, fresh off an impressive primary victory, just filed its first quarterly report with the FEC. Not surprisingly the numbers are heavily outweighed by his four-term opponent.
"Following our primary win, we've been strategically getting our campaign structure in place," said Robinson. "I'm not a career politician, so we're creating our campaign from scratch. But we're right on plan," he continued. Robinson also commented that his campaign has recently put in place an acting Finance Director and coherent action plan for raising the needed money, including an upcoming campaign kick-off fundraiser.
"We ran our primary campaign in a smart way that made very effective use of the money we did raise and we plan to do the same in the general election," he said, noting that millions of dollars in a bank account in these difficult economic times doesn't equal a guaranteed win. "I'm quite certain the every day voter is well-aware of that," he commented. When asked of Robinson, 'How much money are you going to raise?,' he responded, "As much as we need to win."
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