Posts with the tag Vision Achieved Strategies

Elevating The Conversation - Barack's Long-Term Strategy!

Vision Achiever (George, Germantown, TN) — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 17:48:46 EDT

One thing that we know about you, Mr. Barack Obama, as you enter your second phase of seeking the White House: You want to elevate the conversation. But you don't seem to understand that on the surface - the media and some people (let's just say us) just don't want to follow. Having closely observed you for over a year, you have been consistent in your quest for a new kind of politics (you even wrote a book about it) that focuses on the issues that matter to hard working, every-day Americans - let's just say 90% of all Americans (even those of us that may think we are in the 1% of the upper-income spectrum, but really are the other 9% - so that percentage mentioned is conservative). You have a standard and consistent way of answering "hot-button" topics that steer back to the economy, energy, the war, and health care.

Sad to say that the media (and us) want just the opposite. We want to hear about the role of race. The media wants to get insight on the perceived feistiness of Michelle. Newspapers and Internet (right, center, and left) want to know just how the kids are being raised. Cable news is counting the number of white males and females that are sitting behind you at your rallies and town halls. We are all trying to figure out why the good people from PA should be bitter?!

The media doesn't want to talk about the long and short term proposal that you have on energy. We could care less about how your health care plan is structured. The economy?! Please. We have other things that need coverage: Just how will Paris Hilton respond to the McCain ad? Would Paris make a great president? Why do you hold your head high when answering a question? Are you arrogant? No, here is our favorite. Why are you having polling problems in the middle of August?! As if we (the collective we) cannot answer the obvious. Please!

What do you do, Mr. Obama? You answer media questions with integrity saying stuff like this: 'I don't think the back-and-forth between Paris Hilton and John McCain is what the American people are thinking about'- or words to that effect. How dare you try to make us think what's at stake. Can't you see we want it easy and dumb-ed-down-ed to the "sexy" issues that make us forget our problems? You know issues like the price of gas at the pump or the fact that military veterans cannot receive adequate and timely medical treatment?

No - we much rather hear just who cuts your hair and can he cut all types of hair or just African American hair? We would like to see Michelle "bob and weave" her head when she talks despite the fact she doesn't "bob and weave" her head, but rather is an extremely intelligent, poised, and professional lady - and is a great woman in her own right. We don't care about your strategy for having the big oil companies utilize their standard leases before drilling in other areas. We don't care that you plan to pay for the $1,000.00 tax credit for middle class families by rolling back the Bush tax cuts. And we could care less about your plan to tax windfall profits on these same oil companies, so that pays for alternative energy sources, and provides working-middle class families some short term relief through stimulus checks (I believe your coined it as relief).

But wait - you have a plan. You seem to realize that not all strategies will see an immediate impact - even the strategy of having an intelligent political debate - is that what you be guys call a communications strategy? I mean after all, you have been talking about a timetable for Iraq withdrawal for almost two years and even broached this topic in your book (something about having some audacity - but who remembers) - you know the chapter that discussed the world beyond our boarders. We forgot how you influenced decisions and our political debate by our sitting President and your opponent's campaign in just the last eight weeks. Only because we were to busy worrying about what's going on with you and Hillary Clinton. What did you and Bill really talk about on the phone?

It's amazing that you give us the opportunity to discuss real issues without beating us over the head! Why do you take such an approach? Why do you give us the benefit of the doubt knowing we have attention spans of two minutes on a good day?

I figure it's because you know we will pay attention to what matters one day. You know it may not even happen in this election cycle. I think you also expect us to see that there is only such much that you can influence; some of this pain will have to be felt - we can choose the method. I think you are trying to show leadership by example - isn't that what it is called - without stating that you are showing leadership by example.

You are giving us an opportunity to see why you love America so much. You know that we will eventually get it. It's just a matter of when!

Thanks Senator Obama for being the leader that you are. Now what is the name of those two books that lie about you and are bestsellers? We can't wait to read them.

President of the United States By Proxy!

Vision Achiever (George, Germantown, TN) — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 19:43:21 EDT

The Democratic Presumptive Nominee, Barack Obama, has without a doubt (and despite your political affiliation) accomplished much during his campaign for President of the United States. There are the obvious impressive accomplishments that include being the first African American nominee of a major political party and his historic fund-raising prowess through individual donations absent of lobbyist or PACs.

And, there are those often overlooked (read non-sexy) accomplishments that are truly noteworthy that include organizing a Fellows program (yes, the boss receives the credit during his watch), leveraging IT (and not just social networking sites - but IT in its holistic sense), and organizing a true 50-state campaign strategy.

Yet Barack's most impressive feat is going unnoticed. He is the first President we had by proxy. Win or lose, Barack Obama has influenced politics like no candidate perhaps in history - and in any case, for generations. He has influenced the nation's debate on foreign policy, alternative energy, education reform, and the housing crises. He is President of the United States by Proxy and is yielding influence not just with the current administration - even George H. W. Bush gives him some credit and provides some generational advice - but also in the demeanor of politics.

Republicans implement his talking points on their remaining stronghold (national security); Democrats are less conferential despite being attacked. Politicians are getting serious again about the business of being a public servant, and the political business model now practices Barack's model of grass-net root involvement. When thinking about the impact Barack has had on our politics, one thinks of the corporate American intern or invaluable assistant hidden away from view - he may not be President, but he runs the place. He may not receive the credit, but we all know who structured the deal and made it happen. That is what Barack - being young, new, a minority, and a freshman Senator - is facing. He is facing what many confront when they are the "first" or the "rarity" of an organization; an inclination (no unpublished right), by the brass to take credit for the superstar. That is what is historic about this campaign - and no one dares acknowledge it.

That is why Barack will never be able to completely reside in obscurity; he was our interim President (de facto - "go-to-guy"). But American has a choice this election - they can sit back and hope that Barack shows up to the stakeholder meeting that matters, or they can do their part in electing Barack to be the actual President of the United States. To quote another poplar political figure, Bill Clinton, "It's all on you."

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A Progressive Leader's View of Politics!

Vision Achiever (George, Germantown, TN) — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 19:16:58 EDT

The Audacity of Hope' is one of the most thought-provoking recently written books centered on world and domestic politics. Barack Obama offers his paragon of politics for the 21st century built upon a foundation of old guiding principles that stretch back to our Nation's forefathers to recent political figures and events that have shaped our political discourse over the last several years.

Though stretched in some areas, Barack pulls off an eloquently written prose of ideas that offer perspectives that are more practical than fresh (a dissertation so to speak). From family, values, faith, race, world politics, opportunity, and the constitution, he remains consistent in his love for country; however, skeptical of its future course. Specifically, on family his opinions on the erosion of the traditional family cannot be argued. Two-parent working households that compete with time spent with children is not opinion - it is fact. To further complicate matters, he points out - painfully - the erosion of the black family with startling statistics that pose no easy answer. Barack's approach however is a good starting point. From review of welfare laws that have separated families to engaging children as role model adults in order to compete against a pop culture filled with distractions (perceived and real).

His economic views are his strong point. Obama is able to pin-point in simple terms how globalization of manufacturing jobs, the emergence of low-paying service sector jobs, the complications and trade-offs of NAFTA and CAFTA have depressed our Nation's earning power, stagnated wages, and provided Americans with a lower standard of living despite our dominance as a economic superpower - the results now being felt primarily because of our cavalier approach to deal with crumbling infrastructure, job re-training, funding disparities in secondary education, and lack of affordable college-level education. Though Obama points out the difficulty in bold, fresh terms, his solution is based on the foundation of the past - Clinton's loose-ends with regards to NAFTA, the fallacy of 'No Child Left Behind' for Bush, and the missing link between teacher merit pay and performance. The solutions have been offered before. What Obama advocates is an executed, sequence-based series of action steps - a step-result-step-result format (a practical, perfect world format).

Adding to the texture and the value of this book is how Obama is able to talk about the role of faith without sounding preachy. He navigates his way through the role of faith in our politics, recognizing the difference in our religious views, but upholding the common ground found in most organized religion - value of life, respect for fellow men and women, and execution of the Golden Rule - common characteristics that stretch across the religious spectrum. His view is that faith within politics should be embraced from a world-view with the nuances of the differences down-played to prevent the widening of the gap that unites us all as Americans (or Americans to be) - a difficult view that he effectively framed.

On Race, Obama cannot win with everyone, but can relate to almost all of us. Being bi-racial, Obama tip-toes on this issue so not to alienate or shun his black roots, but open up enough to embrace his white roots. He discusses Race with the authority of someone given a "pass" to speak from both sides while leveraging his world experience to offer insight on the Latino and Asian American experience. It comes up short rather than flat primarily because a topic so complicated deserves its own work in and of itself - from Barack (maybe?). The decay of the black family, the resentment (real or perceived) of whites, the earning power (or lack thereof) for Latinos (and black), and the emergence (and impressive escalation) of Asians cannot be condensed within a short chapter. He points out the crumbling infrastructure and support system of the black family; however, his solutions break from past civil rights leaders and aims toward social responsibility, inclusion, and a "make it happen" approach to life - again, a hard explanation to condense. Latinos and blacks have common ground, but Obama doesn't really go into the details of the breaking (tipping) point that keeps these two races apart (only pointing out the obvious blue collar-low paying job battle - however, it's a lot more complicated). Instead he simplifies this discussion to the common threads we all share, the progress made, and the challenges ahead.

Finally, on world politics, Obama demonstrates the skill of knowledge, mastery of geography and government, and a "big picture" view of resolving our world standing. To this day (and as evident within this work), Barack is comfortable that he both voted and spoke out against the war and therefore is able to write with conviction on the faulty reasoning that led the U.S. to war. At the same time, he realizes the outcome and conclusion of our presence in Iraq and increasing our world standing will be anything but easy.

Engaging, straight-forward, and beautifully written, 'The Audacity of Hope' is a book to be shared and reviewed with the passage of time. Consistent in his view to this day - Barack Obama is able to acknowledge the past and offer insight on how to shape our future based on the framework of what we have and share as Americans and world citizens.