Did my man earn the prize?

Barack Obama today was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace.

Huh?

Did he earn the prize? Ummm. No.

If someone can tell me exactly what peace he achieved, perhaps my mind will be swayed. Until then, the value of a Nobel Prize has gone done a few notches in my mind.

How to satirize a black president

Just a sampling.

• The first president to not be able to hail a cab.
• The first president to die first in an action film.
• The first Huxtable president.
• The first president whose black children weren’t a tightly held secret.
• The first president whose head can be Photoshopped onto NBA slam dunk contest winners.
• The first president who’s deft at employing the suffix “izzle.”

Credit, yo.

When the Historic is Personal

So many articles have been written in the past week trying to encapsulate the "historic" nature of this presidential election. Yes, we elected our first African American president. But in many ways, this election is less about Obama than it is about us, I think. As J is so fond of reminding me, he's only a symbol. But what is he a symbol of? As I have watched reactions to the election beaming into my computer from around the country and around the world, it seems to me that this election is a deeply personal one with individual meaning.

I signed up as a supporter of Barack Obama and made my first donation to the campaign within hours of Obama announcing his candidacy. And sue me, but I think that gives me some street cred in this discussion. I wasn't a disaffected Hillary supporter or a PUMA with a eleventh hour change of heart. I was there on day one. And thus, I am going to try to express what it means to me. Settle in folks, this one may take a while.

We all knew that Hillary was going to run. I assumed she was my candidate. I honestly thought we were going to see some combination of a Hillary Clinton/John Edwards ticket. Yawn. I mean, I like Edwards' youth and upbeat attitude, but he is too GQ and too little substance for my tastes. And as I have mentioned before, Hillary Clinton just hasn't impressed me. I mean, I want to like her. I think she earned her chops and all. But, meh. You know? She just smacked of "been there, done that." I didn't need to relive the first Clinton administration. Now if Bill had been able to run again, I might have had a different opinion of this race. But that is neither here nor there.

Barack was neither GQ nor old school. I had a reasonable familiarity of him having gone through his first campaign for Senator. I liked him. I liked his demeanor. I liked his intellect. I liked his inclusiveness. He appeals to my better nature. I can't really place my finger on one time or one thing that he did that convinced me. I do recall that I read most of the information on Obama.com about his positions on various issues. I have no idea what John Edwards positions are on anything.

For all this talk of his being a ground-breaking black politician, I can say only this. In Illinois, black politicians are a dime a dozen. Harold Washington, Jesse Jackson II, ward aldermen, and if I recall correctly, Senator Carol Mosley-Braun was the first female black candidate for the presidency. Being black and being powerful isn't Earth-shattering stuff around here. And honestly, it isn't hard to listen to Obama and forget that he's black. He doesn't have that East Coast cadence to his speech. He doesn't have a distinct southern influence either. Except when he says Montgumry, Alabamuh or the United States of Amurica, I am amusingly reminded of Bernie Mac turning to the camera for one of his television sidebars with "Amurica". It is easy to forget that Obama is black.

Sometimes it took Michelle Obama standing by his side to remind me. Like, "Oh yeah. There's that." And I can't look at his children, who look like dolls in their pretty campaign dresses without thinking of those little girls in the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham. I don't know why. Symbolism, maybe.

I guess what I'm trying to get at is that I was invested in this campaign. From the beginning I felt like I was fighting for my guy. But for me, it wasn't entirely different than my support of Bill Clinton. I am a Democrat. I used to be a flaming, far-left extremist Democrat. Now, I've moved slightly rightward, but still firmly within the Democratic camp. I was fighting for my Democratic candidate. To put it in perspective, elections for me are like Kentucky-Duke basketball games. It is clear from the outside who should win and who should lose. There is the team with God on their side and then there is Duke. No great moral battles are won or lost out there on that basketball court. There is no great moral victory in the game (although perhaps there should be given the legacy of Adolph Rupp). It is merely competition.

I hang out mostly with white folks. I've discussed this before. Internet friendships aside, I was entirely removed from the historic importance of his candidacy to the African American community. My black friends, who I mostly talk to on the phone, were split in their support. Guv claimed he was a Republican and was voting for McCain. Mark said the same thing. Of course, I know now they were only yanking my chain. But, Guv teased me about my support. He was forever asking me what it was that made me so gung-ho for Obama. I'd explain. I'd try to be patient. He was forever non-committal. I was frustrated, then infuriated that he wouldn't budge in his support of McCain. He would just laugh and change the subject. He wouldn't even discuss his opinions. He just kept asking questions. I wondered more than once if he simply didn't want to get his hopes up. Only Clint was with me. Clint was all in, too.

So it was never about race to me. Even when I went to the rally in St. Louis, it wasn't about race. Then one day, it was. That was the day I went to Charleston, Missouri, and canvassed with Curtis. We knocked on a fair number of doors of African Americans that day. At first it was just me and Curtis doing the spiel. After a bit, I began to see that people looked at me hard when they came to their doors. They looked at me hard, but they spoke to Curtis. To this day, I still don't know what they thought when they saw the two of us on the stoop. Did I look like some sort of well-meaning white person trying to tell them what to do for their own good? Did Curtis and I just make an odd couple? Did they think that the Obama campaign purposefully sent out an interracial couple to show diversity? I'll never know. I just know that I got some strange looks.

But that day, listening to those voters we sought to convince to get to the polls, I heard something different in their voices. Some things you have to experience to get. I heard and I understood in a way no one ever could have described to me that this election had great, significant, and lasting meaning to these folks.

I have never talked here about Michael. Michael lives in Michigan. East Lansing. I opened myself up to him and he opened my eyes to the realities of his world. We never discussed it. He did it by being himself. The things that Michael taught me have changed me forever. He taught me that there are black men afraid to take even one day of their earned vacation for fear of management figuring they can do without them. There were a few times I was frustrated with him for not speaking up to his bosses. You see, Michael is brilliant. Granted, he is a emotional mess but, hey, who isn't? But there he is, Brilliant Michael afraid to take even one day off for fear of losing his job. He knows in his heart the black guy is the first one laid off. He knows what it feels like to have a boss always take credit for his work. He knows what it means to have to work twice as hard and be twice as good. He's lived it every day of his life. The thing about Michael was he never once made me feel bad for complaining about the stupid crappy stuff in my life. For my petty little concerns. I wonder how he did that. I wonder if he had lived in his reality for so long that he didn't even notice the disparity in our lives anymore. There were times that I felt so sorry for him.

Anyway, maybe it was because of Michael that I even noticed what was happening in Charleston. I don't think I convinced one reluctant voter of how important it was to get to the polls on election day. I don't think there was a voter who intended to stay away. No. I think the real value of that day was how they helped me to understand something I never would have understood otherwise. That for people different than me, Obama DOES have meaning. He is a symbol. He is the symbol of hope. Maybe not for J. Maybe not for younger people.

I realized that day in Charleston that I was rooting for the home team and at least part of the boosters were staking their lives, their hopes, and their dreams on that election. There were people daring to hope of a world where they could cast aside those concerns about job security, about the inequality of lay offs, about the credit deferred. While I can't speak for them, my feeling of it was this: they just wanted to be able to relax. They wanted to lay down those extra burdens. They wanted to stop being afraid. They wanted the playing field level. They didn't want more. They didn't expect more. They just wanted what I always assumed everyone had.

When they called the race, I had lost my sense of it as a competition. Some part of those people in Charleston had become part of me. It was more important to me then that I acknowledge that moment as more meaningful for those different than me. At that moment, I gave away that moment to those who truly deserved it. And in that moment, I felt more unified with my countrymen than I have ever felt in the past. It was not my moment, but it was not just their moment. It was Amurica's moment.

I wish Bernie Mac had lived to see this. He would have made me laugh. And I wonder if Michael will finally take a day off.

What J awoke in me

It's funny. The other day Liv was describing my blog and she said of Daktari: "it's about politics". I sort of laughed because for the past 8 years, I have been about just about anything BUT politics. Not because of other interests. Not because of lack of time. Because the Bush administration rendered any effort wasted.

One month before I turned 18, Ronald Reagan was elected President. I learned of this news in the Indianapolis Greyhound Bus Station on a black-and-white television set that I pushed quarters in every 20 minutes to get a show. It's been 25 depressing years of watching conservative America perfect their game. Eight years of that madman and then the beginning of the Bush legacy. The Panamanian Invasion was just the first flex of Bush 41's military will. We had the Persian Gulf War, the first armchair war, as its sequel. It just never seemed to end. When Clinton was in office, the Republican Congress seemed unstoppable. Newt Gingrich penned that sickening document, the so-called Contract with America and, worse still, acted with impunity. Liberal America was defeated. I was in disbelief when 43 was elected. But Bush 43 was so bad he formed the end paren or coda to this dark period in American history.

Or so I stand ready to believe. I think this may be why my conversations with J about race, politics, campaigns, gender, historical perspectives, future aspirations and the like have been such an exciting time for me. This is perhaps why I connected so fervently with the Obama campaign. It has been a long road, not devoid of hope, but in which hope was fleeting.

The thing I partly attribute to Obama (and mostly to J) is the re-awakening of that part of myself that is concerned with the world outside my life. The part of me that used to be engaged and excited and determined to change the world. The part of me that was stolen before I was even old enough to vote. The part of me who knew that I was capable of great things. It's the part of me that I mistakenly attributed to youth and assumed I had outgrown. I didn't realize it was merely dormant, hidden in a dark fog only waiting to be called forth. And like Ebenezer Scrooge, I realized that it isn't too late to change. I am capable of great things. There is still time.

I'm not the same person I was

This election has changed me and not in some small way. This election has changed the way I look at the world. I can't go back to the way things were. I won't. I don't want to.

I will never be the same. And because I'm not the same, the world will never be the same. This election, this day, I've undergone a paradigm shift in my life. And because I'm part of a team, I wonder how many other lives will experience this same paradigm shift today.

My voice has convinced a friend. My friends have changed communities. Our communities have changed the shade of states. These states are effecting change in this country. Maybe we can once again change the direction the world is headed. Call it the butterfly effect. Call it hubris. I call it freedom.

I am not the same. I am part of something bigger. I am connected to my fellow man. All because of one man's vision. All because of one man's heart. All because I dared to believe. Dared to have hope.

And while I'm not a fan of sports as an analogy for life, I do think there is something to be said about the struggle. h/t to Al Giordano.

Poll Watching and Voting Day Errata

The Google search image of the day.




Voting in Dowell is a brisk business this morning. There are about 40 cars lined up at the fire station. I stuck my head in and there is a line about 4 or 5 people deep. In a town of 450, that's something. Added bonus. The Jackson County Health Services is at the dispensing flu shots, also at the firehouse. Given that most of the people in Dowell are retired, this means that Dowell retirees can kill two birds with one stone. Vote AND get a flu shot. Genius.

This is Penn State University and the time is 7 am. 1000 university students in line to vote. So much for those lazy young people. I don't know which to be more excited about. That young people are voting or that this is in PENNSYLVANIA! Take that pollsters.


Guv said he and his wife were #1 and #2 to vote in his precinct this morning. Way to go GUV!!!!

Alvin in St Louis said that it took him 1 hour 50 minutes to vote. There was a line, but no one was leaving in disgust or because they had to. Sounds like people are giving themselves plenty of time to vote. Great news!

I've spent 2 hours on the phone with my Gram. I'm pretty sure IF she votes for president, she'll vote for Obama. She told me today that she hasn't voted for President since JFK. I pointed out to her that was nearly 50 years ago and maybe it was time. She is a hard one. I'm not sure that I've convinced her. Honestly, I think she's afraid that someone will try to assassinate him and then she'd be responsible. So I'm not sure what she's going to do inside that voting booth. I'm still trying to get in touch with my nephew. He may actually be registered to vote in another district. He may be able to vote by going to his old district.

Any interesting election day stories from you? See anything interesting online today?

The Best, The Worst, and the Utterly Perplexing from the 2008 Election

My best attempt at non-partisan commentary wrap-up on this election season. I'm sure there are other moments, but just a few I threw together while wasting time on a Sunday morning.

For those having trouble viewing video on my site, I'm going to always try to include url links to embedded video.

Simply The Best category:

Yes we can. Greatest speech by a political leader in the United States in the 21st Century. Certainly the greatest concession speech ever given. January 8, 2008. For the full video of the speech, go here.



From the Alaska Women Reject Palin rally in Anchorage, AK, on September 14, 2008. h/t Mudflats.


























You can't argue with the power of 18 million cracks. Despite what anyone thinks I think, I actually do think that Hillary exited this hard-fought race with dignity and grace.











"Senator Obama, I am not President Bush. If you wanted to run against President Bush, you should have run four years ago."
Video here.

Campbell Brown is my hero. Here she is giving her now famous "Free Sarah Palin" editorial.


Other clear winners in the media portion of this election cycle: Jack Cafferty, Rachael Maddow, and yes, Keith Olbermann. Jury still out on Chris Matthews. I have also been somewhat impressed by Pat Buchanan's ability to gain a broader, occassionally non-partisan view of reality. Jon Stewart's commentary didn't seem as biting this year as the folks on the legitimate news themselves.

Then there's The Worst. Who can forget these memorable moments? I get verklempt just thinking of these.

The hands-down winner? Or should I say the "hands-up" winners??

"Senator McCain....Do you believe in evolution?"

"Yes".

"I'm curious, is there anybody on the stage that does not believe in evolution?"

Question asked during the GOP primary debate.

For those of you scoring at home, from left to right that's Brownback, Huckabee and Tancredo with their stupidity showing hands raised. Video here.

"Our opponent … is someone who sees America it seems as being so imperfect that he’s palling around with terrorists who would target their own country." Sarah Palin stump speech, various locations.

The Ashley Todd racism incident that wasn't.

Who can forget the mocking of community organizing that went on at the Republican Convention?
This goes beyond offensive in my book. Rudy Guiliani is a dick.

Head-scratching Moments:

Video here.

KATIE COURIC: "You've cited Alaska's proximity to Russia as part of your foreign policy experience. What did you mean by that?"

SARAH PALIN: "That Alaska has a very narrow maritime border between a foreign country, Russia, and on our other side, the land boundary that we have with, uh, Canada. It's funny that a comment like that was kinda made to, char..., I don't know, you know... reporters."

KATIE COURIC: "Mocked."

SARAH PALIN: "Yeah. Mocked. I guess that's the word. Yah."

KATIE COURIC: "Well, explain to me why that enhances your foreign policy credentials."

SARAH PALIN: "Well, it certainly does because our..our next-door neighbors are foreign countries there in the state that I am the executive of."

I'd go on, but honestly, I find it too painful and I was trying to be non-partisan.

Pat Buchannan flip-flops on Sarah Palin selection. My favorite part is where he says "If I was a Republican I would have been disheartened going to my convention if they had chosen an good man, a nice guy, in Gov. Pawlenty, we wouldn't even be talking about this."

IF he was a Republican?

Strories from the political field

If you want to see exactly how vibrant, how motivated, and how organized the Obama campaign really is, read this. I've posted my story. Read some others.

Yesterday, on my way back from volunteering, I spoke again with my Gram. Although I thought she had already decided to vote for Obama, turns out she had only decided not to vote for President. When I told her that I had given my Saturday, put 160 miles on my car, paid for the gas out of my own pocket, headed to a small town to talk to total strangers and to get them enthusiastic about the election and to motivate them to vote (and to take everyone they know with them to the polls), she was impressed.

She told me that she guessed she was going to have to vote for the man. I told her that I wouldn't be out beating the streets for Obama if I didn't think he was the best man for the job. She said, "I could tell you I was going to vote for him and then not do it", then she paused and said, "but then I guess I'd have to go to the altar." In any event, my electioneering has, I think, convinced her that her vote would be best spent by pulling the lever for Obama.

Interesting thing is that my relatives all live in more important states than I do. Kentucky. West Virginia. I think I've brought my mother, sister and now my grandmother on board. I'm a little irritated that I was unable to impress upon my nephew how important it is to REGISTER for pete's sake. He is not going to get off scott-free over that one.

Tuesday can't get here fast enough for me.

Today I put my money where my mouth is

That is to say, today I put my feet on the street, knocked on doors and asked people to support my candidate. Sure, I've done harder things. Heck, I've asked people for money. Of course, those were very rich people. Now that I think about it, my life has taken some interesting turns.

But today I traveled to Charleston, Missouri, to canvas for Barack Obama and Joe Biden. Missouri, of course, is an important swing state, and I'd sure like to see it go blue. I was partnered with a very pleasant, humorous, and rather cute man named Curtis from St. Louis. Well, St. Louis and Sikeston. He has homes in both places. I laughed and told him if he kept this up, he was going to look more like John McCain than Barack Obama. Curtis is about my age. I didn't ask him how old he was and I have noticed that black men seem to age exceptionally well, but I'm guessing anyway that he was mid- to late-40s. We walked and knocked on doors and as we walked we talked. Turns out Curtis is a first time voter. Never voted in an election before (can you believe that!). So this was also his first time beating the street for a candidate. I asked him what drove him to not only register, but to volunteer. He said, "I figure if I'm going to do something, I should do it all the way." True.

Curtis was funny. We laughed and had a good time. Almost everyone we talked to was excited about voting for Obama/Biden. We just told them how important it was to not get cocky, to make sure they went to the polls on Tuesday, and to take everyone they knew with them. The most common reaction we got was nodding heads. One younger fellow was in his front yard and I noticed he had a truck. I told him not to go to the polls until he had filled that truck bed up with voters. =)

We knocked on doors in public housing, single family homes, and apartment complexes next to industrial areas. The area we canvassed had mostly black voters, but about 1/3 of our list was white. Only two households told us that they weren't going to vote Democrat, one black and one white. The white lady was an issue voter and that issue was abortion. End of discussion. The other lady was married to a hard-core Republican. There wasn't much to talk about there. An older woman told us that she was "probably going to vote for one of them but didn't know which one and it probably didn't matter anyway--they were both the same." I told her, "if it doesn't matter to you which one you vote for, why don't you vote for Barack Obama as a favor to me." ;) She was the only voter I got that racist vibe from. The fact that she went out of her way to try to convince me that it wasn't because he was black probably made me suspect her. You can't win them all, I guess.

I had a very good time. I'd do it again. In fact, I just might. I could go down and work with Curtis again driving voters to the polls on Tuesday. As long as I get back in time to host my own party, it could all work out.

He gave me his phone number. Said he hoped to celebrate the victory with me or commiserate our loss. I can't decide if he was trying to pick me up or not. I'm kinda clueless that way. Although I bought a piece of this campaign, today I feel like I earned a piece of this campaign. When he wins, it will be doubly sweet.

Election Rap

Exercising my civic muscles

I voted today. Early. I went to the Jackson County courthouse. Had to wait in line if you can believe that. I purposely chose the courthouse because I knew they didn't have electronic voting machines. I am still a bit suspicious. I feel better now because I had a paper ballot. Paper ballots leave....a paper trail. In case of any recount, there will be no question about for whom I intended to vote.

Barack Obama and Joe Biden. Damn. =)

Ok, I was reading Samhita's post on the role of race in this election over at Feministing and I think I have a last few things to say about this before I await the big count.

First. I did not vote FOR Obama because he is black. Just because: A) I find black men attractive, B) have spoken out on the importance of electing a black American president, and C) have been droning on and on here like a schoolgirl with a crush on the captain of the football team does not mean I voted for him because he is black.

I will tell you exactly what it is that led me, on February 11, 2007, to join the movement to elect Barack Obama. I didn't know about Barack in the Illinois State Senate. I wasn't in his district so he eluded my radar. By 1996, I lived in the western suburbs and never returned to live in the City. My first exposure to Obama came, like almost everyone else, when he gave the keynote speech at the Democratic Convention in 2004. Wow is all I can tell you.

I remember the first time I ever saw Bill Clinton. I was watching C-Span. A freak occurrence back in those days, and they were doing a live feed from the national governors association meeting (I think). Bill was on a panel discussing education reform in Arkansas. I was captivated. I didn't think anything about it for a long time until he announced his candidacy for president and I knew I was voting for him immediately. I knew, from that first little snippet I heard that this man had the right stuff. That night at the 2004 Democratic Convention, I felt that same electricity about Obama. I was all in.

He ran for US Senate against Jack Ryan, a longtime Chicago name in politics. However, a sex scandal which saw Ryan's apparent *cough* sexual fetishes *cough* to come to light as the result of a bitter divorce battle, led him to withdraw from the race. The Republicans brought forward none other than Alan Keyes to challenge Obama, which is to say that there was no challenge mounted at all. Illinois may be an odd place and racial influences have a heavy hand in Chicago politics, but in the city that revered Harold Washington, Alan Keyes was a laughable puppet. It made me feel good to be able to vote for Obama. I was proud of our junior senator if not a little perplexed by all the attention he was receiving. Before he was even sworn into the Senate, reporters were asking about his presidential ambitions.

In any event, as the 2008 election season approached, there seemed to be renewed talk of his candidacy. I couldn't imagine that he would throw his hat in. When he did, I knew that his greatest competition was going to be Hillary. I have read Hillary's autobiography. I was not impressed. In fact, I was incredibly underwhelmed. Let's just say, she's no Madelein Albright. Despite having roots in Illinois, she never really impressed me. I know. I know. I'm a hard one. I'm trying like hell to think of a woman that HAS impressed me. Albright does. Ok. I promise to write a post on women who impress me. Back to the task at hand. February 11, 2007. He announced. That was it for me. I was in. All in.

But I never answered my own question. Why was I all in? Why did I have every confidence in this candidate who, admittedly, lacked the experience that the rest of the field possessed?

1. Intelligence. I have no doubt of Obama's intellectual prowess. I am someone who wants someone infinitely smarter than me in the Oval Office. Bush didn't make the grade. Cheney? Smart but in an evil genius sort of way. McCain doesn't make the grade. Hillary does. But of all these people, Obama is heads and shoulders above the competition.

2. World Vision. By this, I mean, he has a firm grasp on how others receive and perceive the United States. I think too many politicians are blinded by their own "patriotism" and love of country to ever put themselves in the other guy's shoes. And this is one area in which I think race plays a role. In the same way that black people understand that whites fail to grasp their own privilege, Obama's background and yes, his heritage, give him perspective that the rest of the field lacked. They flat out lack it. They can't buy it. They can't see past the tip of their noses.

3. Diplomacy. Diplomacy first. Diplomacy last. Diplomacy always. I am sick to freakin' death of this cowboy mentality that we ride in with our guns blazing and spread democracy by making the other guy stare down the barrel of a gun. See point 2.

4. Economic policy. In fact, virtually any Democratic candidate's economic policy is preferable to me to trickle-down economics.

5. Communication. Read any of Obama's books. Both will impress you with the clarity of his thinking, the soundness of his reasoning, and the sincerity of his emotions. I came away from reading Dreams of My Father with the sense that this is a brilliant man who struggled through a difficult childhood and was smart enough to see that a new world awaited. He is smart, rational and emotionally healthy. He thinks and communicates in ways that most of us wish we could on our best days. He's the real deal.

6. An inspiring leader. Hillary fell flat here. Flat. Prostrate. I'm talking steam roller. Who in recent memory has been a more inspiring speaker than Obama? He inspires not only Americans. He is inspiring the world.

So while I believe that this election offers an unparalleled opportunity for America to grow as a nation--to begin to seriously address our racist past--and to look forward to a post-racial future, I'm not naive enough to think we are there already, despite the campaign that Obama has run. I have discussed many times before why I think it is more appropriate for America to elect a black president at this time than a woman president. I have spoken about why I think that McCain is not the man for this time, while Obama is. I have spoken about my party, my prejudices, and my aspirations.

I want Obama to win. I voted today. Please, please, please. Vote.

Together, we can. Oh yes we can.

100,000 Strong for Obama: A Photo Journal

I was a part of history today. I attended Barack Obama's campaign rally in St. Louis under the Gateway Arch. The sky was clear, the weather was temperate and the crowd was exciting and in amazingly good spirits.














100,000 joined me to hear our next president speak. In case you've never been in a crowd of 100,000, all you can say is WOW. I found the event very well organized, which actually amazed me because I had heard that the venue was picked only a few days ahead. Crowd control was fantastic. The police at the security station were were organized, efficient, and pleasant. In fact, I can't say anything negative at all about how the city, city representatives, the Obama campaign, organizers, attendees, and even vendors conducted themselves. Kudos to all! St. Louis rocks!



I can also say I was somewhat surprised that the event was so diverse. I expected high African-American and white turnout, but I was actually surprised at the level of turnout of Asian Americans and Latino/as. It wasn't uncommon to see three generations of families present. It was all peace and love and support for Barack Obama.















We had a group of 8. I didn't realize it, but I was the driving force behind our little contingency. I sign up to get updates from Barack Obama's official site. No one else who came with knew about the event until I started talking about it. In any event, we had a fantastic time.





And Barack Obama did not disappoint. He was charming, relaxed (well, as relaxed as a guy can be speaking in front of 100,000 people), forceful at times, and inspiring. His speech, as I remember it focused primarily on his tax package, stories about pie (the economy), health care, and getting out the vote. I left inspired. I'm committed to volunteering in Missouri the weekend before the election. You can thank Barack for giving me the motivation to get up off my ass and make a difference this time. But, this is an election of firsts for me. I have never become involved in any way in a presidential election before, other than voting of course. Before Barack Obama, I have never sent money to a political candidate. Before Barack Obama, I have cared enough to go hear a candidate speak. Before Barack Obama, I wouldn't have dreamed of sticking out my neck or pulling on my coat and working for a candidate. I hope after November 4, I'll be able to say that I was a part of this grand thing that happened during my lifetime. I was a part of the change in America.

It was history and I was there!



Go America! GoBAMA!!!!!



For those who are interested, more pics are available here. Click on the gallery name to enter.

To head back to Feministing click here. And thanks for dropping by. Come back again soon!

Update: I find it interesting that the big news out of this rally was the number of people it drew. All the photos from this event focus on the crowds. It was impressive. In one day, Missouri rallies drew 175000 people. This is momentum for change.

Watching a Campaign Crash and Burn

Rachael Maddow's analysis of the second presidential debate rings true. McCain's is a campaign that is unraveling. Desperate to do something that will capture attention, McCain looks like a man trying to win a gold medal in diving by doing the biggest cannonball. First it's Palin as VP. Then it's suspending his campaign to address the economic crisis. Now it's another bailout of people who made poor borrowing decisions. McCain's campaign is doomed. Why? Because he's now cast, not as an underdog, but as a loser. And no one wants to jump on the loser bandwagon. I think most people who claim to not have made up their mind have. And I think they are all leaning Democrat. I listen to these supposedly independent voters talking on the various news outlets. I don't think there is an undecided voter left in America at this point. McCain can't put the economic crisis behind him, and that is the one issue that he tanks on. He's done. Might as well pack up the banners and call it a day. Nothing left to do but wait for the fat lady to sing.

Tonight, the media certainly seemed to think America has settled on a president. Chris Matthews even described America reflecting back on having elected its first African American president in response to his ability to lead in a time of crisis. So much for inexperience. Apparently, Obama is the man we can trust.

Whether or not Obama is capable of such leadership remains to be seen. I think it will simply be a hard and difficult road for us all and the president may just be along for the ride. Certainly, the next president has been saddled with debt, wars, foreign policies and hardships that will make his job infinitely more difficult. It's not the world is such a more dangerous place. It's that we are so much less capable of dealing with it.

I do think in spite of it all, the world will breathe a collective sigh of relief when Obama is elected. His inauguration will be that 21st century Camelot and at least for a time things will look up.

And then the hard work will begin.

Seducing the Swing(er) States

Man, this is delicious.

All Barry needs is a bottle of Couvoisier. Johnny needs some hair. And Gary (sigh).

I love it that Barry and Johnny are flipping him off at the end. LOL

Hillary and Bill can't win this election

Watching the first night of the convention, I was invigorated. I was charmed by Mr. Robinson's home-spun introduction of his sister, and I was drawn into the warmth of Mrs. Obama's speech. And then I sat and watched Charlie Rose. Honestly, I wish I could tell you who the guests were. A lot of pundits I don't know by name.

And I was still feeling up and positive, right up until the moment that one of Rose's guests pointed out that on her latest trip back to her Democratic working-class roots, her people chimed in that they weren't going to vote for a black man. That this talk of "not knowing who Obama is" is just code for "I'm not pulling the lever for a nigger"?

And then my bubble burst.

I knew that race was the elephant in the room that no one was talking about. But what if I have been so incredibly naive as to think this country is ready to transcend race and gender and embrace leadership by a new generation? What if my last post is nothing but bullshit? What if it isn't about liberal vs. conservative, young vs. old, left vs. right? What if it truly is black vs. white?

If that is the case, there is nothing that Hillary supporters can do to sway this election. They will have no impact at all. They are as pie-in-the-sky as I am. Are the Democrats running under the radar to McCain because they don't want to....won't...vote for a black man?

God, I'm just a bit queasy right now.

I'm not just afraid of losing an election. I'm afraid of losing America. I'm afraid that this country will lose it's soul. For the first time in my life, I'm afraid of my countrymen.

Man, do I feel stupid

So all day yesterday, I'm watching my cell phone for my veep text message like I have Turetts, only to learn on INTERNATIONAL FUCKING TELEVISION, from the likes of Lester Holt no less, that Barack Obama has selected Joseph Biden as his running mate.

My veep text message came at 3:39 am CDT. Even me, who hasn't had a good night's sleep in about a week wasn't up at that hour.

Don't promise me the inside scoop and give it to the international community first.

Man, I feel like a dipshit.

The Dream, forty-five years later

On Thursday, August 28, 2008, Barack Obama will accept the nomination of the Democratic Party for President of the United States. This date is historic for more than the present events would indicate. Forty-five years earlier on August 28, 1963, MLK Jr. gave his democracy-altering speech, I have a Dream, on the mall in Washington, D.C.

I am feeling very.....dare I say it?

Hopeful.

I find hope in this because it seems that the struggles of the past 45 years, at least with respect to race relations in America, may possibly have turned a massively important corner. I have been meaning to write a missive here on race in America as I see it, and haven't managed to have all my ideas coalesce into some coherent whole. In any event, I'm hoping that a trip to Springfield on Saturday to see the man speak will help ground some of these ideas in my mind.

I have never become involved in a presidential campaign before and perhaps I am naive to think that I make any difference to his, but I have cracked open my wallet this time and talked to friends about my candidate. That's something.

I'd like to meet the man who prompted me to action. I want to be sure he's all I envisioned and not just a rock star.