No.
But he is the best thing I have seen in a long time.
I dont care what color his skin is or what religious affiliation he is.
What I see when I look at Obama is hope and change.
He is real and in touch with MY world.
He knows that No Child Left Behind doesnt work.
He knows that funding college education is vital.
He knows that healthcare is mandatory.
He knows beyond big business.
He knows it is the PEOPLE not the corporations that make our country great.
I am 42 years old and this is the first time I remember getting goose bumps hearing a candidate speak. I wasnt alive during the Kennedy years but I am sure Kennedy would come out in support of Obama.
I think we have the chance to elect a person who will actually be the PEOPLES president.
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Comments: 142
I will attempt to that again here.
Obama is a good speaker yes, the problem is it takes more than speeches to lead a country. Sen. Obama has yet to lead in any political office he has served in. In Fact he has never stayed and served a single term in office without running for something else. On tough issues he did not vote yes or no he voted present. That is not what leadership is based on.
He claims how bad big buisness is and how lobbyists are bad. Yet, as soon as he had been elected to positions of power his wife has been "appointed" to boards of directors of big companies to effectually lobby him.
It takes more than good speeches and hope to lead. He should have taken the opportunites he had to lead and develop a track record. As of now we know very little about this man and some refuse to let us have a honest discussion about him. It is time he either explains what he really believes not in terms of hope but in substance and submits to answering the tough questions.
Moderately Diseased Pubic , same ol' same ol' , you need some new material.
You seem to be the only fascist wannabe up this early today.
Not!
The right puts out propaganda such as you just stated...it is up to each person to decide for themselves.
The left does the same.
I have voted Repub and Dem. I vote for the candidate not the party.
Hey Don.
Thanks Janet.
Brian we are so on the same page.
and I would give you that ten in exponentials if I could, because of the question.
No!
He isn't perfect, but he has done something darned near perfect . . .
He has called this nation . . . the PEOPLE back to the table.
The PEOPLE need to be called back, to be made responsible for this country.
I think about Michael Jackson's song "The Man in the Mirror"
People, don' blame Obama if this system -- this country -- doesn't work
It was not intended to work based on a President or a Congress.
That is why that Constitution starts out with those
three BIG words, and done so intentionally,
WE THE PEOPLE
Is Obama perfect? No.
But neither am I. And neither are YOU. Look in the mirror sometime and keep it real.
Thats right NO ONE is perfect but darn it Obama is the best I have seen.
He is far from being "perfect",as nobody is. But none of these fools who are running for office should win.
I wish Romney was still in.
Thanks for allowing debate and not responding with hatred as those like Don do. I dont think anything I said was propaganda but what I really feel. My one question to Obama is "why did you choose not to lead and duck tough issues until you ran for President."
Anyway thanks for the pleasentness of your response and you show what poltics is supposed to be about. You are a great American!
MDP:)
You seem to be the only fascist wannabe up this early today. "
I guess the truth hurts you Don,
You seem to be the only hate filled possibly paid obama blogger up this early
Sarah LOL.
Wilma yes I too see a bit of Ole Slick Willy in Obama.
I do know that the Hillary camp has some really slick marketing people and some under the table money floating around to promote bad PR - I'd love to see the bank accounts of some of the "religious leaders" there.
Damn shame.
someones religious affiliation is the last thing I look at...but more than I have ever seen Obama is slammed for the fake muslim thing and then he is further taken down by the folks in his church...and one still wonders why people are running away from organized religion.
But he is the best thing I have seen in a long time."
Lori, onemore thing, we can agree on.
Thanks Juan:)
that's all...
just a big fat TEN!
As for GWB, I think he and his cohorts should face immediate impeachment and imprisonment for lying blatatnly to the American people, and for not having the brains or ability to take their feet out of their collective mouths and their heads out of their butts long enough to realize they have screwed the public trust up it may never be fully healed and repaired.
You are so right Jack.
Sorry, but I have difficulty with all three of the Presidential hopefuls.
I think that whoever is President will have their hands tied by Congress and the Senate if they try to abolish some of the 'pork' and 'earmarks' that get tied to unrelated pieces of legislation.
We have focused so much on the Presidential candidates but what about those running for the House and Senate seats (sorry I stiill haven't quite got the differences between Senate and House down or is it between Senate and Congress?)
Look at how little the Democrats have been able to accomplish even with a majority of seats in the house... between the Senate and House Republicans they can't get enough votes to override GWB's Veto's which seem to be his automatic response to any Legislation if it's proposed by a Democrat...
I also think they should have set out articles of Impeachment right from the start...
I mean if they can impeach Clinton for dropping his drawers,
why not Bush for dropping the ball in Afghanistan and indirectly causing the deaths of thousands of Americans and Iraqis with his Iraq war debacle?
Hi Phyllis - The idea that Obama is just a good speaker with no substance just hasn't been listening. The canard floated by others is that his supporters are somehow mesmerized by his eloquence and don't hear his words. And furthermore, that his words are "just words" and he somehow has a secret mission he's managed to hide from all of us lackies who are incapable of rational thought.
I will concede that a very small minority of his supporters may simply be caught up in the "charisma" thing, just as there were those who hung on every malapropism of GWBush, who were caught up in Bill Clinton's "charisma," who ignore Hillary Clinton's machinations, and who don't question the "straight talk" of John McCain. But in all cases those people are relatively small percentages of the total support structure for a candidate.
The rest of us have our reasons, and those reasons differ from person to person. My reason is exactly the antithesis to the idea that Obama is perfect or that he is simply a good speaker. Perhaps 16 years in Washington has made me a cynic at heart, or perhaps it's my scientific training, but I tend to listen between the lines. I listen not for the sound bites or the talking points, but for what isn't said. I listen to get a sense of the thought process behind what is said. Obviously I can't read minds. But if you listen you almost see the thoughts, the logic, the synthesis of information that goes into providing an answer. And while Obama does get out his talking points like we force all politicians to do, on real, complex issues you can see that he is considering potential solutions from multiple points of view. In other words, he isn't so much looking to give you the answer you want to hear, but the answer you should be willing to listen to if we are find solutions to the issues that must be addressed.
No one is perfect, and to suggest it is not being honest with ourselves or others. But there are people who are different. People who think. Obama is one of those people. And with that we have a basis for getting things done in the White House and the world that benefit the people more than the politicians, that address the issues of our times rather than kicking them down the road for our grandchildren to manage, that will allow us to rebuild our reputations.
It won't be easy work, even with an Obama in the White House. But it can start with an Obama in the White House. It won't start with another Clinton or a McCain. It's as simple as that. To have a chance, we need to give ourselves a chance.
My 2 cents.
Again where does one apply to be a paid blogger like you are for the fascists?????
I could use the extra money to offset what your hero has done to our economy.
Count your choices, cupcake. More torture and war . . . or hope. It's a no-brainer even if someone in his chuch were to say "God Damn America for turning it's back on the poor!" Oh wait. Heh heh heh. My bad. It's STILL the only option and should he fail against the tremendous odds that he will no doubt face . . . at least we tried.
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
Some things I like about Obama:
-civility. even when he nails McCain for policy nonsense, he praises him for being a war hero. Even when he gets racial stuff from the Clintons, he refrains from responding in kind.
-brains. yes, he has some. No, GWB never had any.
-ability to express himself. And as David says, not just pretty words. Did Abraham Lincoln become our Greatest president with pretty words? Yeah, that and the ideas behind them, and the willingness to make sacrifices in pursuit of vital goals.
Just remember that those same Obama critics claimed that Bush was perfect. Are they ever right?
Interesting conversation... and you are even-handed and fair in your hosting of the thread.
I agree with you about all of Barack Obama's good qualities.
For me, being the father of a 13 year old, I worry about her future. Her generation is going to have to right many of the wrongs we have inflicted on the nation and the planet. So how a candidate thinks about our real needs is ultra important.
Example: We are working without a net as far as energy policy and environmental policy. The two are obviously very connected. When Senator Clinton hopped on with Senator McCain's ridiculous proposal to eliminate the federal gas tax for the summer it begs the question of just how serious either of them would be about conservation.
Cheap oil is over! Our economy is predicated on the availability of cheap oil, and is in jeopardy already. If we don't tell the truth about the need to alter our heavy consumption things will rapidly turn from bad to worse.
Senator Obama has the foresight to understand that pandering for votes by encouraging heavy consumption of oil is just wrong.
In my opinion, he is the guy with the greater grasp of what truly needs to be done.
You rule, Lori F.
Give you a TEN for this piece, Lori. Spot on!
Hey, it will be "Barack To The Future." Let's watch and learn from an above-average teacher.
Our nation will need that even demeanor and consummate communication skills.
It will not be a pleasant future. Best buckle up.
Today's decision by the Democratic Rules Committee was a milestone in this race. Many party members, myself included, were curious to see if the committee would stand up to the Clintons.
And Bravo! They made a fair decision that carries much significance. Not only did the DRC labor intensely to arrive at a fair distribution of delegates, but it appears that they recognize the future of the party depends on creative thinking. Congratulations should also go to the Democrats in both states for bringing to the table proposals that were realistic.
Despite Harold Ickes hysterics both votes were decided by definitive margins. I am pleased with the work they did and the outcome.
You are so right about the rough ride into the future. Buckling up is a good idea!
Uusally when candidates talk about change, the country ends up with a Jimmy Carter or some other failed president. Obama doesn't have solutions. He just has talk and that will not solve our problems.
Obama says we are wrong in the war agaisnt terror, when in truth we are winning and have a level of security that would evaporate if he takes the oath of office.
His only solution to our education problems is throw more money into it. As if that hasn't been tried.
He doesn't have solutions and he doesn't have voters. Hillary backers will walk away from the Democratic Party.
Some Clinton supporters will probably do as you suggest... walk away from the party. But frankly, I can't imagine too many will make such a choice.
Would you like to see Mr. McCain appointing two or three new justices? Would you like to see us in Iraq for another 10 or 20 years? Would you like to see permanent tax cuts for the top 1% of earners? Would you like to see continued lack of regulation in the banking industry, (and the oil companies, and corporations in general)?
I understand Clinton supporters are passionate and disappointed, but your suggestion, (desire?), that these folks will walk away seems doubtful when one looks at the consequences.
Hey, made a new friend through a comment on this article! That's always a sign of a good post and a small pleasure in exchange for a Saturday night on-line.
Come back to this one, tomorrow.
I'm just sayin.'
Mary Ann S., May 31, 2008, 9:37pm EDT
You're absolutely right, Mary Ann, Obama does not have solutions. He has ideas; good ones. He's ready to lead, guide, direct and activate the solutions that WE THE PEOPLE come up with. For (at least) the past 8 years we've had a radical dictator spewing out "solutions" for us. Do we want another president that whips out a fresh pen every week to bind the hands of the American citizens? I think not. "JUST TALK" is something we haven't heard in a very, very, very long time. Obama's "just talk" is a far cry better than the "talk" we get from his party's other candidate or from the "talk" we get from the opposing party. Oh, sure, there's the usual "I'm running for president, vote for me and I promise...." kind of talk. But there's something rare and different in Obama's "JUST TALK" (1) He calls 'em as he sees 'em. and (2) He listens.
I think reality is that someone who most Americans think is a Bush clone doesn't have a chance...so Obama will likely be the next US President.
The suggestion that all Obama critics thought Bush was perfect is just the kind of insulting comment I have come to expect from a lot of Obama supporters and it is just such insults that make me think that if Obama does win one of the biggest obstacles to achieving unity will be those among his supporters who seems to be little more than the left-wing equivalent of neo-cons. Both Bushes had enough imperfections to convince me to not consider voting for either of them.
A Marxist will not win in the United States. The American people, on the whole, are too realistic for that. His supporters largely base their decision on emotion, and idealism, which is why a majority of them are college students, who know very little about life. He cannot deal in factsbecause Marxism is a failure in every historical attempt, and in every way; and if You really listen, he says absolutely nothing.
May we deal with some facts? Government-run Healthcare is a complete failure, for example; just ask an HONEST Canadien. You believe that confiscating and then re-distributing money is acceptable. Seriously? You believe that the Government should steal more money from the successful, top1%. And yet, they pay 80% of the taxes confiscated in this Country. Do You really believe that someone in Maine is responsible for the educational funding of a "student" in Nevada?
Kennedy wouldn't recognise an Obama; listen to his words... he stood for Personal Responsibility.
We need to move away from the corporate, wealthy person's interests and back to giving real American's the tools to thrive. In a perfect world we could trust the rich to provide opportunities to the rest of us, but there is too much selfishness for "trickle down" to work.
Who do You fancy is creating all those Employment opportunities?
Also, "giving real Americans the tools to thrive" is un-American. Americans MAKE their OWN tools! Wouldn't You agree?
Great article. I will be supporting Obama and I only wish I was a college student. Sigh.. Long time ago and far away.
I beg to differ, Mike. High ideals are what got this nation going in the first place. It's time WE started putting our high ideals and dreams into action.
I knew Abraham Lincoln and Obama is no Abraham Lincoln or let me say that Abe was no Obama. We have televisions today. From the pictures I have seen of Abe he would not have charmed anybody at "HELLO". Abe was a critical thinker who practiced Euclidean geometry (what a geek) to keep himself sharp. Abe needed the long format style debate the way Obama needs the image. Obama will never enter into a Lincoln/Douglas style debate. To be fair, none of our modern day politicians will.
Would You care to describe what You know about the Political Ideology of Marxism, and how this is inconsistent with the platform of Obama?
You mean give Iraq control of their own oil?
Oh my God! The horror! Even the Idiot-in-Chief won't admit it. LoL!
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
It is true that not everybody liked Lincoln. He would not have been elected in 1860 without the split in the Democratic Party over slavery that gave him the White House. Many people who had not seen him at a public event thought of him as a "hairy backwoods ape", a naive and folksy imbecile unready for national politics. He had served one term in Congress ten years earlier and been voted out in disgrace because of his opposition to the Mexican War. Sound familiar?
There was also a racial element to the Illinois Senate election. Stephen Douglas, his opponent in that election and in the Lincoln-Douglas debates, sought to portray him as overly friendly to the black race due to Lincoln's resistance to the idea of allowing slavery to spread into western states. Not so, replied Lincoln (after all, people were even more racist then than they are now) I am not trying to end slavery, I am merely saying that we cannot continue down this road, it will lead to disaster. A couple years later, Douglas ws history and Lincoln was President.
Of course, Lincoln lost his life to an assassin. I am obviously not wishing for a parallel there. There will be a few people willing to attempt that, and there are plenty of guns out there. But hopefully the secret service are there now- Lincoln was unprotected at Ford's Theater.
Bush invaded Iraq, a country that did not attack us. Obama wants to invade Pakistan, a nuclear armed country that has not attacked us.
Obama proposed and passed the E85 bill. George Bush signed it into law. E85 has caused food prices to skyrocket.
George Bush exploded the deficit and Obama voted for it. Obama wants to explode the deficit. The Obama spend-o-meter is now up around $800 billion. The current Obama/Bush budget is settting records.
Obama requested $91 million in earmarks. Bush signed them into law. In particular, Obama requested a $1,000,000 earmark for hospital where his wife is administrator. The extensive list of the Obama earmarks can be found here.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/11/
AR2007101101573_5.html?hpid=topnews
Bush invades, Obama invades.
Bush deficit spending, Obama deficit spending.
Bush E85 inflation, Obama E85 inflation.
Bush signed Obama earmarks. Obama requested 91 million in earmarks.
Nope, we can't take a 3rd term of Bush through Obama.
Busted....I am slightly too young to have known Lincoln. I am horrible at deceit :)
My point is not about individual politicians but rather about how we as a people determine how to vote. Maybe it is just the actors but every time I have seen a re-enactment of a Lincoln-Douglas debate, I have been impressed. The format of such debates is the key to my point. Politicians including Obama deliver zero substance. The rhythm goes like this: three beats of talking points – one beat of "don't be distracted by talking points"-three beats of talking points- one beat of a divisive statement-one beat of don't be distracted by my opponents divisive rhetoric- three more talking points – repeat. I want reason and not rhythm. We need to expect more from all of our candidates.
An article by James Ridgeway:
This law sanctions contracts between Iraq's individual regions and foreign oil companies. It effectively puts an end to a nationalized petroleum industry that has provided most of the country's revenue.
Who plunged this country into an illegal war based on lies, propaganda and deception?
Who voted for that war and who voted against it?
That war has drained our national wealth, sent the dollar into a tailspin, and been responsible for the skyrocketing price of oil and gas. The price of a barrel of oil is tied to the dollar, as the dollar sinks the cost of gas goes up.
Who is it that vetoed the well deserved and increased benefits for health care and education for our returning Veterans???
Who is it that engineered a totally secret energy policy for our country? We still don't have the list of corporations that meet in top secret with Dick Cheney and laid out the economic and social policies that have led to the near total collapse of our economic power and moral influence in the world today.
Check out Scott McClellans book, he's only the latest defector from the bush inner circle, to try to distance himself from the totally failed bush government, to FINALLY tell the truth, that this pack of thieves and liars have led us all down the primrose path. And john McCain promises more of the same delusional polices.
You gals are living in LALA land...
Do you even read other peoples comment before you insult them. Since I am the only Carol to comment on this article I am forced conclude I was the Carol to whom the insult in your comment was directed. Do you even read other peoples comment before you insult them or is just knowing they have been critical Obama or one of his supporters enough to insult someone? My only comment attached to this article was in response to another reader who made the insulting assumption that anyone who is critical of Obama at one time thought Bush was perfect.
By the way, although I have not read Scott McClellan's book, one thing he made clear in the interviews with him that I have seen is that one of his main reasons for becoming disillusioned with Bush was Bush's failure to live up to his promise to be a unifier because the unifying actions he should have taken were opposed by his neocon supporters. While I think Obama is more sincere in expressing a desire to be a unifier, I do think he may encounter as obstacle similar to the one Bush did.
The government makes and enforces the laws, ie. decideds waht justice is, , and in case you have not noticed there is not much of that happening. While this show goes on and everyone does this, ie. what is happening here, arguing and bitching, all the government really does it provide an illusion that it is something that is important.
And it is, in the sense that the government tries to stop you from doing things that are bad for what is really going on in the world. It prevents you from organizing people to create real political power, it prevents your from interfering in what is really important to the rules of this world, and that is the continuation of their status quo.
Look at history in this world, it goes on for decades, centuries, so what can a man who is in office for 4 years at a time and has to please 100 senators, countless congressmen, and 350 million Americans possible do ... unless he is acting as a front for the real powers that be ... funny how George Bush changes so much in such a short amount of time.
"Industrialists", the people who own the means of production and who sell us stuff and provide jobs are the people who run this country and the world. The American people if they ever unified are just a threat to them, why do you think they had to go through so much trouble in the early 20th century to extinguish democracy in the US?
Is Obama perfect ... is that the right question to ask?
So hope and change may sound nice and the kids can get excited over the latest "fad" to play the game, but running a democracy comes down to the nuts and bolts, no matter how good the rest of the machine may look.
Interesting comment: " all the government really does it provide an illusion that it is something that is important."
I am sympathetic with this comment, although I think there are some very notable exceptions where the government actually does great things. I do think it is very difficult to attain any real power at grass-roots level... we've but to look at the lack of success of 3rd party candidates in our political arena.
This condition that you outline will change, either by choice, or by circumstance. It is very easy to imagine a doomsday scenario where order breaks down because of terrorism, or economic disaster, or climate change, or food and water shortages, or political revolution, etc. In such a scenario grass roots power becomes viable. Just sayin'.
the dems under clinton had the chance to capture/kill osama in afghanistan but failed coz the dems treated him like a law enforcement problem instead of the threat to national security that he was.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4540958/
and obama will do the same and worse. disarm us and make us sitting ducks for our enemies. when we're not secure all the other problems you mentioned mean nothing coz we'd be dead. watch him here:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=dl32Y7wDVDs&feature=related
McClellan's book is based on his impressions, not entirely on facts.
By the way, where does their oil money go right now?"
Nobody is suggesting we abandon them, a true multi-national force under UN auspices would have a Hell of a lot more opportunity than we do . . . they KNOW what WE'RE doing.
And the oil was NEVER meant to go to US . . . Iraq is now IMPORTING oil . . . at exhorbitant prices:
http://www.eia.doe.gov/pub/oil_gas/petroleum/data_publications/company_level_imports/current/import.html
The LACK of exports works VERY well in keeping OUR prices up so petroleum companies can continue their world record profits.
Really?
Then explain why he caved into corporate lobbying groups to vote "yes" for the Farm Bill? This bill was nothing but the pigs with their corporate snouts in the trough?
See The Economist: A harvest of disgrace
Obama is nothing more than another inexperienced say-anything, do-anything to be elected politician.
By the way, McCain voted "no".
Hey Bruce,
The rest of us made it into the 21st century, obviously you are still struggling with the first half of the last century. "Industrialists" no longer own the majority of capital, pension funds do. The largest stockholder in Exxon is the New York State Teacher's Retirement Board.
If you have a problem with "industry" take it up with the pensioneers and IRA holders who own it.
Just like he did for Veteran's benefits.
Source?
"He talks about curbing free trade and then his staff says to Canada, don't worry, wink, wink."
Source?
Regards,
Doyle I <~~~~~
If they must have Obama as a candidate, do it without disenfranchising two states.
Did anyone see Harold Ickes on Meet the Press? His comments are so absurd I can't even believe anyone takes him seriously!
I'm with you, Cynthia.
Every time I see some one talk about funding college education with my tax dollars I get the hives. My son put himself through college on grants, education loans, and money from his parents. Why can't YOURS do the same? There are enough programs out there that we do NOT need more. Get off your lazy rump and go find out about them!!!!
"He knows that healthcare is mandatory."
Didn't we already have this discussion when Hillary led a commission in researching national health care in Bill's first term? Didn't they discover it was going to be impossible to finance it? Go get a JOB and sign up for employer's health insurance. Or buy it on your own. Stop asking Big Government to pay for it for you.
"I wasnt alive during the Kennedy years but I am sure Kennedy would come out in support of Obama."
Well I WAS alive then and I can tell you that "ask NOT what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country" is NOT what you are writing about in your article!!!!!! Kennedy support Obama? Don't make me laugh.