It's About Us
A bunch of us gathered together last night to watch the acceptance speech for Obama. Most of us were a little nervous that the big stadium, the high expectations, and the set itself would set the stage for a let down.
Didn't happen.
It was a great speech.
Here's the text.
I particularly liked the part where Obama took on the right's main wedge issues:
We may not agree on abortion, but surely we can agree on reducing the number of unwanted pregnancies in this country.
(APPLAUSE)
The -- the reality of gun ownership may be different for hunters in rural Ohio than they are for those plagued by gang violence in Cleveland, but don't tell me we can't uphold the Second Amendment while keeping AK-47s out of the hands of criminals.
(APPLAUSE)
I know there are differences on same-sex marriage, but surely we can agree that our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters deserve to visit the person they love in a hospital and to live lives free of discrimination.
(APPLAUSE)
You know, passions may fly on immigration, but I don't know anyone who benefits when a mother is separated from her infant child or an employer undercuts American wages by hiring illegal workers.
But this, too, is part of America's promise, the promise of a democracy where we can find the strength and grace to bridge divides and unite in common effort.
I know there are those who dismiss such beliefs as happy talk. They claim that our insistence on something larger, something firmer, and more honest in our public life is just a Trojan horse for higher taxes and the abandonment of traditional values.
And that's to be expected, because if you don't have any fresh ideas, then you use stale tactics to scare voters.
(APPLAUSE)
If you don't have a record to run on, then you paint your opponent as someone people should run from.
You make a big election about small things.
And you know what?
It's worked before, because it feeds into the cynicism we all have about government. When Washington doesn't work, all its promises seem empty. If your hopes have been dashed again and again, then it's best to stop hoping and settle for what you already know.
I get it. I realize that I am not the likeliest candidate for this office. I don't fit the typical pedigree, and I haven't spent my career in the halls of Washington.
But I stand before you tonight because all across America something is stirring. What the naysayers don't understand is that this election has never been about me; it's about you.
(APPLAUSE)
It's about you." (more)
Indeed, it is.
It is about us.
And let's hope we are indeed better,
than the last eight years.
Because eight is enough.
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Didn't happen.
It was a great speech.
Here's the text.
I particularly liked the part where Obama took on the right's main wedge issues:
We may not agree on abortion, but surely we can agree on reducing the number of unwanted pregnancies in this country.
(APPLAUSE)
The -- the reality of gun ownership may be different for hunters in rural Ohio than they are for those plagued by gang violence in Cleveland, but don't tell me we can't uphold the Second Amendment while keeping AK-47s out of the hands of criminals.
(APPLAUSE)
I know there are differences on same-sex marriage, but surely we can agree that our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters deserve to visit the person they love in a hospital and to live lives free of discrimination.
(APPLAUSE)
You know, passions may fly on immigration, but I don't know anyone who benefits when a mother is separated from her infant child or an employer undercuts American wages by hiring illegal workers.
But this, too, is part of America's promise, the promise of a democracy where we can find the strength and grace to bridge divides and unite in common effort.
I know there are those who dismiss such beliefs as happy talk. They claim that our insistence on something larger, something firmer, and more honest in our public life is just a Trojan horse for higher taxes and the abandonment of traditional values.
And that's to be expected, because if you don't have any fresh ideas, then you use stale tactics to scare voters.
(APPLAUSE)
If you don't have a record to run on, then you paint your opponent as someone people should run from.
You make a big election about small things.
And you know what?
It's worked before, because it feeds into the cynicism we all have about government. When Washington doesn't work, all its promises seem empty. If your hopes have been dashed again and again, then it's best to stop hoping and settle for what you already know.
I get it. I realize that I am not the likeliest candidate for this office. I don't fit the typical pedigree, and I haven't spent my career in the halls of Washington.
But I stand before you tonight because all across America something is stirring. What the naysayers don't understand is that this election has never been about me; it's about you.
(APPLAUSE)
It's about you." (more)
Indeed, it is.
It is about us.
And let's hope we are indeed better,
than the last eight years.
Because eight is enough.
HOME
Earthfamily Principles
Earthfamilyalpha Content IV
Earthfamilyalpha Content III
Earthfamilyalpha Content II
Earthfamilyalpha Content
Links
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Labels: political philosophy, the world
posted by oZ @ 6:29 AM
11 Comments:
from Tim Jones --
"As we know, Barak Obama gave his speech on the 45th anniversary of Martin Luther King, Jr. giving his "I Have a Dream" speech.
If John McCain gives his speech at the Republican convention next Thursday, it will be on the 51st anniversary of the day the Ford Motor Company introduced the Edsel."
nice comment Tim.
I'm glad OZ posted this.
The dem convention pulled at the heart and mind and has re-energized me a bit.
I stopped contributing (after being a precinct capt for Obama and a delegate to the state convention in TX) when he voted for the FISA fiasco. Other elements of recent speeches -- endorsing "clean" coal, off shore drilling (with another mother hurricane headed for hundreds if not thousands of drilling platforms in the gulf, how smart is that?), "safe" nuclear energy, horation leading to an expanded war in Afghanistan, bizarre comments in defense of Israel's apartheid occupation of Palestine — these things have cautioned me.
It was a mainstream speech, showing Obama to have moved from the left to the middle -- even to the right sometimes. And that bothers me.
But the idea of 4 more years of Republical control of our government bothers me more, and in spite of this very predictable move to the center by Obama, I like him.
America is nothing if not complex. A candidate who agreed with me all the time would have zero chance (or desire probably) to get elected. And Obama is much more that just ok --
His candidacy is historic, he's brilliant, and I have to believe that the principles that led me to support him early on -- his sense of history, understanding of the US Constitution, the movement that has grown around him -- it is my opinion that he will be a good president, one of the great ones even.
I'm going to begin writing checks again, making calls — working for the greater good because the alternative is unacceptable to me, and because I like the company.
Susan Bright
It was Obama's second greatest speech. I watched on C-Span so there were no pundits, punditing afterwards and I could digest the words myself. It was very well done. highs and lows and mini climaxes and it was like a epic poem in a strange way. If he can deliver even a quarter of what he wants to deliver we may survive.
I watched a lot of the convention. There was a lot of weeping for joy.
McCain has picked a woman for his VEEP. Someone who has been governor for one term and was a mayor of some dinky Alaskan town. She has a kid about to deploy as does Biden. She has zero in the realm of experience in affairs of state. But she is good looking and that may be what counts with the Gops.
I just watched a video of Charlie Rose interviewing Governors Palin and Napolitano a while back - I don't care much for Rose as an interviewer but it just convinced me that Palin is a real dud, how can we seriously consider having such an air head potentially become President of this country - if you can stomach all 18 minutes of it here is the link (actually i don't think Palin spoke more than 3 minutes of that time since she had nothing to contribute) -
http://www.charlierose.com/shows/2007/10/12/2/a-conversation-with-governors-janet-napolitano-sarah-palin
Rose to Gov. Palin, "Do you know what the Bush administration energy policy is?" Gov. Palin, "Well, we hear about it through the media."
The people themselves
were again made beautiful.
We begin to see.
Again I have to say that Palin is an IDIOT, she claims Alaska can deliver enough oil to replace our importation of foreign oil. IF we could pump enough oil out of Alaska to meet our daily consumption (20 million barrels) it would require a pipe 40 feet in diameter to deliver it. The current pipe is 4 feet in diameter and can deliver 2 million barrels a day. Do the math.
OK, lets giving her credit as a genius and she can build a 40 foot pipe OR 10 four foot pipes to get the oil here it will be gone in 1 1/2 years. Does anyone think we will be ready in that time to replace our energy needs with alternative fuels OR to go cold turkey on oil consumption.
If the Alaska oil reserve proves to be only 6 billion barrels (the low estimate) it will be gone in less than one year.
And to think that woman could become our president.
I am not making it up, hear her for yourself, FOX interview:
http://www.foxbusiness.com/story/markets/industries/government/mccains-vp-pick-brings-energy-campaign/
Great night last night. but as he says, it's about US. I keep reminding folks of that in my precinct. Obama has given our precinct more volunteers than I ever imagined. not a lot, but several and they are hard working.
I have to run to stay ahead of them.
Marge, chair of Pct 355
The Rag has a good story up on Palin... http://theragblog.blogspot.com/2008/08/what-is-mccain-thinking-one-alaskans.html
Hi all. I followed a link here posted by Susan Bright on a women in technology listgroup, just so ya know.
I have to agree that Obama's speech was superb, and that Palin is...well...the word that comes to my mind is "frightening." She seems to have taken a page out of Dr. Laura's book and applied it to politics. She seems as ruthless as Cheney, and the last thing we need is another vice president blinded by ambition in step just behind a feckless dope.
And yes, I'm calling McCain a feckless dope, mainly because of his about face on many of his previous positions in an effort to kowtow to Republican decision makers.
I just at this very moment watched a female Republican senator on TV explain why the combing of Palin's background and the questioning of her experience is sexist. I wonder, if that same senator was as quick to jump to Hillary Clinton's defense during the protracted Democratic primary. I wonder if she considered it racists when the Republicans harped on Obama's "lack of experience," and dug up every little potentially dirty bit of his background they could find.
Probably not.
Sorry to vent on your nice blog. I keep trying to forbid myself to watch the news during the RNC. Alas, I can't resist.
Dana
All apologies, the interviewee in question was Carly Fiorina. I was listening, not watching, and assumed the answerer was a politician.
Ah well.
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