When listening and reading Kennedy’s nomination acceptance speech at the 1960 Democrtic National Convention, it is actually somewhat freaky how relevant his words are today.  I think Obama could take the speech and swap “terrorist” for “communist” and “McCain” for “Nixon” and almost read it word for word.

Well, except for the part where he calls his opponent young.

This part gives me chills.

Perhaps he could carry on the party policies, the policies of Nixon and Benson and Dirksen and Goldwater. But this Nation cannot afford such a luxury. Perhaps we could afford a Coolidge following Harding. And perhaps we could afford a Pierce following Fillmore. But after Buchanan this nation needed Lincoln; after Taft we needed Wilson; and after Hoover we needed Franklin Roosevelt.

But we’re not merely running against Mr. Nixon. Our task is not merely one of itemizing Republican failures. Nor is that wholly necessary. For the families forced from the farm do not need to tell us of their plight. The unemployed miners and textile workers know that the decision is before them in November. The old people without medical care, the families without a decent home, the parents of children without a decent school: They all know that it’s time for a change.

We are not here to curse the darkness; we are here to light a candle. As Winston Churchill said on taking office some twenty years ago: If we open a quarrel between the present and the past, we shall be in danger of losing the future.

Give it a listen.

I don’t remember the first “truth about Obama” e-mail that was forwarded on to me, but the hate-filled crap still seems to be flying around the internet.  Almost daily I hear some type of reference to Obama linked to Islam, playing on the xenophobia of fearful Americans that equate Islam with every societal ill from high gas prices to gay marriage.  Instead of making educated decisions in the voting booth, too many turn to opinionated “news” reporters and hate mongerers with keyboards.  A public fist pound between a husband and wife is called a “terrorist jab” on a “fair and balanced” “news” network and a scarf gets a donut commercial pulled from the air.

Oh, and somewhere there are people who heard from “high ranking” folks that somebody saw a video of Michelle Obama using the term “whitey.”  Oh, and conveniently enough, it happened at Trinity.  Nobody actually can produce anything remotely related to this, but it’s enough fodder to keep the focus off of real policy long enough to maybe convince a few more voters that we aren’t ready for a biracial president.

Right.  Having a non-white president would be the worst of our problems.  The last 7.5 years have been so successful, why not have more of the same?

I know this may sound like a bit of a stretch for some, but stick with me here. This primary process is shaping up to be like something straight out of the movies. Specifically, the 1976 Oscar-winning Rocky.

It’s pretty clear how everyone lines up.

(more…)

This is fantastic.  Let’s hope the people in Ohio, Texas, Rhode Island, and Vermont take former President Clinton’s advice.

“… you better vote for the person who wants you to think and hope…”

[youtube Qe0BPwWAxnk]

Oh Cleveland, how I miss you. I’m enjoying some of Great Lakes Brewing Company’s finest and taking a little e-diary of the 1.5 hour debate. Let’s see how it goes, eh?

(All times are in CST)

8:03: Hillary comes out first to defend her rage-driven rant from the other day. She was just defending herself apparently.

8:05: And now the question is turned to ask about the picture of Obama in traditional garb. “As far as I know…” Hillary says, “it didn’t come from my campaign.” That should probably be written down as many times as possible.

8:08: Hillary is citing her experience in healthcare. I wish Obama would bring up the HillaryCare debacle from Clinton presidency.

8:15: Seriously, change the subject.

8:16: No, seriously. This isn’t a debate on your healthcare plans.

8:17: Oh, awesome. NAFTA. This should be fun. Can we go back to healthcare?

8:17: Wait, did Hillary really just cite Saturday Night Live? Man, I wish I had DVR. She also just said Laredo is the largest inland port. I love quirky random facts. You get 10 points, Hillary.

8:18: A “trade timeout”? International trade is not a 3 year old toddler. You lose 10 points, Hillary.

8:22: I love Tim Russert.

8:23: Wow, Hillary cared about NAFTA when she was trying to get votes in New York City, but now that she’s in the Rust Belt, she claims Tim Russert doesn’t have all the facts?

8:26: Almost a half hour, and we’ve only talked about healthcare and NAFTA? Tim! Brian! Do something!

8:28: Did anybody else see the intro to this debate when it was mentioned that Ohio is the birthplace of more presidents than any other state in the union? MSNBC better check their stats. Virginia leads by 1.

8:31: Oh, Hillary would follow through on her promises IF she had the resources of the White House. Apparently the resources of the Senate are not enough.

8:32: I wish there were people in the audience from each city that’s mentioned so people could cheer.

8:33: Yay! A new topic! What could it be? Iraq.

8:35: Reeb - I’d love to talk about what Obama is saying, but Hillary is droning on… and on… and on… I think I’m going to send her staff an e-mail with the definition of “concise.”

8:37: Yep, she’s still talking. Without a break. If she goes 3 more minutes, it will confirm she is a robot.

8:38: Obama makes a fun parable about driving a bus into a ditch. Some parables are better than others, apparently. Generally, driving a bus into a ditch isn’t top shelf material.

8:40: I think it’s now a debate on who thinks they can win a debate with John McCain.

8:42: Again, I love Tim Russert. Fastballs up under the chin. “If you pulled out of Iraq and it went to hell, would you re-invade?” I think it’s pretty clear neither candidate was prepared for that question.

8:44: Hillary made a good point earlier. Why is she getting all of the questions first?

8:46: Wow. The first commercial break. I wonder what the candidates do during commercial breaks. If it was me, I’d have a game of Wii tennis or something similar ready to go. That’s about the only way I could make it through something like this.

8:48: What’s with all the heartfelt commercials out there now? Do blood-sucking banks really believe we would fall… oh… he’s giving the old man his wallet that he found? You mean the bank behind this commercial would give me my wallet back if they found it? Sign me up!

8:50: Hillary snuck in after the telecast started. I wonder if it’s because the line in the women’s room was longer than the line in the men’s room?

8:52: I wonder what the candidates are writing down while the other is speaking. I hope it’s a sudoku puzzle. I bet they both could do a five star sudoku in about 20 minutes. In fact, maybe they should publish their sudoku abilities.

8:55: Hillary mentioned taking away subsidies from the student loan companies. 100 points for Hillary.

9:00: We’re at the one hour mark. I’m out of beer. I need to go to the bathroom. I wish it was time for another heartfelt bank commercial break.

9:02: Ooo… public campaign finance money comes up. This reminds me to commit $1 of my tax refund to campaign money.

9:04: Wow, Anna B. No need to call Hillary names. I mean, I’m not her biggest fan, but she is a respected elected official.

9:05: Hillary back-tracking on her loan to her own campaign, making her tax returns public, and her archived records as 1st lady just looks shady. “I’m kind of busy right now,” she says.

9:07: This entire situation with Louis Farrakhan is pretty interesting. I think it’s probably one of Obama’s most complicated issues as of late. A figurehead in the African American community putting his support behind Obama, which is obviously important, but that figurehead happens to have a history of very anti-semitic remarks. I think it’s making a lot of nothing.

9:11: There’s a difference between “rejecting” and “denouncing” according to Hillary. She knows, because, you know, she’s been there before.

9:13: Woah - there is an audience there! No time for that, though… commercial break! Bladder salvation!

9:15: While relieving myself, I started wondering what the staffers of each campaign are doing right now. If the West Wing taught us anything, they are huddled in a room making smart ass remarks and pumping their fist a lot. I kind of wish I were there… or playing Wii boxing.

9:17: Yes! The National Journal claim is brought to the stage! I loved reading how Obama was named the “most liberal senator.” Obama sounds very prepped - he points out that the votes that the rating was based on contained only two differences between his record and Hillary’s. Obama also points out that his position on Senate ethic investigations - that if a senator is being investigated for ethics violations, that senator is not allowed to sit on their own investigation committee - is a “liberal position.” How many conservatives are really going to stand against that? Score one for Obama’s prep team.

9:21: The debate is winding down and Putin gets brought up. I think this is more appropriate for the Presidential debate - not the primaries. I would hope there are no huge differences here between Hillary and Obama.

9:23: Oh, I see why it was brought up. What would the candidates do if Russia invades Kosovo? Now that’s a good question.

9:24: Ooo - Tim just asked if either candidate has a position or vote they would take back. Hillary gets it first and briefly mentions her vote to authorize military action against Iraq, but quickly turns it to what she will do, not what she has done.

9:26: Now it’s Obama’s turn. Terri Schiavo is brought up and the inaction of the legislature before a break that allowed all of that drama to unfold. That’s an interesting one that hasn’t really been mentioned by anyone. Hmmm…

9:28: Well, it’s wrap up and make nice time. It’s been an honor… and a… WAIT - Brian has a last minute question! Ha ha!

9:29: Now this is a turn of events. Why wouldn’t your candidate be the best nominee… SNAP!

9:30: Obama briefly mentions how capable Hillary is and turns to McCain. I supported McCain in 2000 and really thought he was the best leader for the country. I wonder if he changed, or was it me?

9:31: Now it’s Hillary’s turn to talk about Obama’s worthiness of the nomination. The first clapping in the audience comes after Hillary pointing out she would be the 1st female president.

9:33: Lorain, OH… represent! Man, this audience is boring.

9:34: So that’s it. Brian Williams closes it up. Look at those eyes… so pretty… so welcoming… so inviting… I think he won the debate.

9:35: It’s so weird to me when presidential candidates sign autographs.  I mean, really?  Autographs?  They’re not playing the main stage at Lollapalooza.

9:36: I’d love to sit here and listen to the analysis and spin, but my friends and some cheap burgers are waiting for me.  Hopefully this is the last primary debate so we can all look forward to a mudslinging presidential race!

My winner - neither.  It was like watching a shoving match that doesn’t escalate beyond shoving.  I hope nobody in Ohio, Texas, or any of the other remaining states wanted to use this debate to make up their mind.

For the past week, I’ve been repeatedly accused of being deceived. I’m being won over by slick words and pretty speeches, rather than solid policy proposals. It’s interesting and somewhat perplexing to listen to television pundits, editorial writers, and even people I know tell me I am lacking the ability to think independently.

And apparently it’s not only me. Millions of young people are being told they don’t understand politics. We’re the “Facebook” crowd, as Hillary Clinton’s chief strategist called us, “only a few of [us] look like [we] could vote in any state.”

Of course, we see how that worked out in Iowa. Catching pretty much everyone not paying attention to Obama off-guard, the young vote that’s been sought after for the past few elections finally showed up. The same vote that could have spared this country 8 years of G.W., the same vote that was pretty much sworn off, made it to the Iowa caucuses and turned some heads.

I think what cracks me up more than anything is that one of the first points I hear in the argument accusing me of being deceived is that all Obama does is go out and make pretty speeches. He’s naive and his supports are too. We don’t understand the complexities of world affairs and the best approach to handle issues like terrorism or the global economy, and Obama glosses over these items in his well-spoken speeches.

While I can’t deny that Obama’s speeches are light on content and heavy on inspiration, I’m stuck wondering who among the major candidates of either party are giving us in depth views on specific policy ideas they would enact. When, ever, have the primaries been the time to be heavy on content? The answer is never! The purpose of the primaries is to simply energize your base and convince voters that you understand the issues that need to be addressed as president and that you are ready to take them on. If you highlight enough issues that strike a chord with voters, pretty soon you see your delegate count rise as people say to themselves, “wow, this candidate understands what I’m struggling with and is ready to take them on.”

And is it really that bad of an approach? Why is it a problem when a candidate seeks to inspire people? If any candidate took time to lay down policy after policy after policy, they’d quickly find themselves at the bottom of the polls and without an invitation to televised debates. The majority of the American electorate does not want to have to digest anything. Why do you think Ron Paul is quickly becoming the Libertarian version of Nader? (insert Tracy Jordan line from “30 Rock”… “I think I voted for Nader… NADER!”)

Believe it or not, Obama and his team have pulled together ideas and policies to approach some of the biggest issues our government faces. The struggle I keep finding is that the people accusing me of being deceived don’t want to have an actual discussion. They want to be the cool people that make fun of the bandwagon-jumpers, but don’t want to hear that someone of us made our decision with clear, educated, rational thought.

So, anyway, that being said, I am effectively suspending my campaign for president and officially endorsing Barack Obama.

Well, Super-Amazing-Fantastic-Tsunami-Fat-Duper-Tuesday is finally here. It’s such a weird feeling to know that at the end of the day, the race for party nominations will be a lot closer to a final decision. I don’t think it’s hard to guess which candidate earned my vote this morning. Much to my surprise, my polling location was a half of a block away and had no lines this morning as I was given a marker, a long sheet of paper, and instructions to basically play a matching game. I am officially a Chicago voter.

A cold and knee-deep snow gave me a reason to work from home on Friday and Monday, allowing me to take in all of the beauty that is the 24-hour news cycle. For the most part, I was treated to a loop of sound bites and in-depth analysis of what each candidate had for breakfast that morning. I’ve heard that the primary and general presidential election have become nothing more than a beauty or popularity contest, and if you pay attention to what these pundits have to say, you’re probably right. There’s no coverage of their actual positions or proposals, but instead we get to hear crap that doesn’t matter but somehow has been classified as news.

Somewhere in the garbage that’s fed to us, someone can actually dig a little and find real news and important coverage of the ideas and strategies that each candidate is talking about. The thing is, I am still waiting for a Hillary Clinton supporter to show any sign of understanding what her proposals are. I’m just left dumbfounded. I hear a lot of criticism thrown at Obama about how great his speeches are, but how little substance there is in the form of actual policy and proposals. Maybe it’s because I’ve been reading his books and campaign literature and listening to his speeches for the past year, but I just don’t see how anyone that has invested time into researching the candidates could say that.

But maybe that’s the problem.

I have a lot of hope for today’s results. Across the country, my age demographic is finally starting to pay attention and follow through by heading to the polls. There is a deep desire to have a president that inspires and leads in a positive way for the greater good, not a shill of war-mongering corporations.

I feel like there’s something better that we should be striving for, and to me, there’s only one candidate that can lead us in that direction.

[youtube 2fZHou18Cdk]

If you’ve received, forwarded, talked about, heard about, posted about, or had any other interaction with the crap-filled lies spread about presidential candidate Barack Obama, please read this.

If you have something… oh, I don’t know… researched and intelligent to say about Obama, I’d love to hear it.  Otherwise, move your mouse away from the forward button and read on.

Barack was born in Hawaii on August 4th, 1961. His father, Barack Obama Sr., was born and raised in a small village in Kenya. His mother, Ann Dunham, grew up in small-town Kansas. Her father worked on oilrigs during the Depression, and then signed up for World War II after Pearl Harbor, where he marched across Europe in Patton’s army.

Barack Obama grew up in Hawaii with his mother and his grandparents, and he lived in Indonesia with his mother and step-father for four years when he was in elementary school.

After graduating from Columbia University in New York, he became a community organizer working with churches on the South Side of Chicago. He then attended Harvard Law School, where he was the first African American president of the Harvard Law Review.

After studying at Trinity United Church of Christ, he was baptized and remains a committed and active Christian. He continues to attend regular services with his family at Trinity United Church of Christ.

Barack has never been a Muslim or practiced any other faith besides Christianity, and in January 2005 he was sworn into the U.S. Senate on his family Bible.

Barack’s patriotism and profound belief in the underlying principles of this country led him to teach Constitutional Law at the University of Chicago. He also worked as a Civil Rights attorney in Chicago, protecting the voting rights of minority communities. Eventually, his commitment to the people in his community led him to run for office as an Illinois State Senator where he served for 8 years representing the 13th district.

In the U.S. Senate, as a member of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee, Senator Obama has fought to help Illinois veterans get the disability pay they were promised, while working to prepare the VA for the return of the thousands of veterans who will need care after Iraq and Afghanistan.

Barack believes that you show your patriotism by how you treat your fellow Americans and veterans.

In November of 2007, General Tony McPeak, Major General J. Scott Gration, and Secretary of the Navy Richard Danzig wrote an open letter praising Barack’s commitment to our troops and to US veterans. Here’s an excerpt:

“We also admire his strong support for our troops and veterans. As a member of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, he has fought to improve care for wounded troops, slash red tape, and reform the disability review process. He also passed legislation to combat homelessness among veterans. As President, he will expand housing vouchers, and launch a new supportive services housing program for at-risk veterans and their families. In addition, he will improve mental health screening and treatment at all levels: from enlistment, to deployment, to reentry into civilian life.”

I’ve learned an important lesson while following the Democratic presidential nomination race. Apparently, you can say anything you want about a candidate as long as you follow it up the next day with an apology. Why didn’t I think of this strategy earlier in life?! I feel like I’ve missed so many opportunities to gain an advantage on others by spreading vicious lies about them!

Professor: “Dave, it seems you didn’t put a lot of effort into this paper… almost like you did it an hour before class…”
Me: “I heard you stuff apples with poisoned razor blades and hand them out to sick kids at the hospital.”

Then, of course, I would send a follow-up e-mail directly to the professor the next day with a pseudo-apology that somehow still supports my claim.

Or even better…

Cop: “Sir, it seems you were going about 20 miles per hour over the posted speed limit of 30 in that school zone you just blew through.”
Me: “Officer, I heard you sold your own children to pay for your wife’s implants.”

Seriously though, isn’t this strategy of the Clinton campaign just becoming a bit old? Let’s see what has been brought up by Hillary and her supporters in the past couple of weeks, only to see an “apology” surface 24 hours later…

-Obama is still doing drugs;
-Obama’s ambition to become president started in kindergarten, which obviously means he’s unqualified (I mean, really? Does that work for all childhood ambitions? “Sorry John Glenn, we heard you once told your grammar school teacher you wanted to be an astronaut. We’re scrubbing your mission.”);
-Obama doesn’t have the experience to lead (apparently 6 years of elected public service is greater than 10? I should probably check my math skills.);
-And of course today, when a former senator who has endorsed Hillary has now apologized for pulling the Muslim card. Nevermind the Clinton staff members that forwarded e-mails claiming Obama is a Muslim who wants to bring jihad to the US. Fantastic, huh?

Oh, by the way, I heard you once robbed a Meals on Wheels truck and set it on fire in front of group of starving orphans.

Don’t worry - expect your apology in and e-mail tomorrow.

So, Pastor Daniel spoke on Sunday on the topic of suffering and the wisdom within the Bible pertaining to the earthly pains we are faced with.  It was a great message and can be found on iTunes if you’re interested.  What struck me a couple of times though is how peaceful my life has been over the past several months.  I had to keep asking myself, is this how I should feel though?  Should I be happy that I’m happy and just ignore it?

I mean, I’ve got a great girl.  She’s been such a steady part of my life since February and has become a rock of trust and comfort.

My job stresses me out at times, but I believe in what I am doing and I feel both supported and challenged by my boss.  I know that she believes in my abilities, but she also wants to see me grow and develop within the organization.

But why… why in the world… why in the world are people supporting Hillary Clinton?  I just don’t get it.  She’s been torn apart in every debate by Barack, she’s shown in polls done by left-leaning organizations that she’s unelectable, and she’s got a laugh similar to a hyena using a jack-hammer.  HMOs?  Thanks Hillary.  She polarizes people in her own party, let alone the country.  The time is perfect for an idealistic, young, strong leader, and Mrs. Clinton just doesn’t fit the bill.

Why?  Why do I have to suffer through another primary candidate that shows so much promise, but somehow isn’t established enough?  In the grand scheme of things though, I keep getting gut checked by Pastor D’s message.

But why?  She’s too polished and her handlers are too aggressive to let her pull a Howard Dean and trip in the homestretch.  Can someone who supports Hillary honesty stand up and give me 5 reasons why she should be president?  I can go back and forth all day about Barack, but I see no valid support of Hillary or her platform.  Does she have a platform?

Anyway, I like mint ice cream.  It’s my favorite.