| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| w22dheartlivie |
Posted - 11/05/2008 : 06:29:43
It is. November 4, 2008 will be remembered as a key date in American history. It is a great day. I went to the polls, I cast my vote and I hoped. I'd given this a lot of thought and I knew who I would vote for, but honestly, I'd not been choosing the winner for quite a long time. In that, I was feeling a bit like Ben Affleck. In his monologue on Saturday Night Live, he announced that over the years, he'd back political candidates on a regular basis. Candidates like Michael Dukakis, Al Gore, John Kerry, and a litany of local politicians. However, he'd come to realize his endorsement might be a jinx, so he was taking that occasion to announce his endorsement for John McCain. I felt his pain.
In any case, I voted. And I waited, watching the returns all evening. I wasn't prepared, however, for the emotions I felt when Barack Obama was declared the winner of this election. It had occurred to me what a momentous occasion this would be in the history of equality in this country, but watching it happen, was quite astounding. I'm proud of this country. I'm proud that such a huge number of people cared enough about this country's future that a record number and preponderance of registered voters went to the polls. I'm proud that many who may never have crossed the party lines before did so this time. I'm proud that such a high percentage of voters were first time voters. I'm proud that the president was elected by the best cross-section of the populace that has ever voted. I'm proud that the bastions of Republican conservativism - Ohio, my own Indiana and in the biggest turn-around-by-a-Southern-good-old-boy-state-in-a-decade, North Carolina - didn't fall back on the same old, same old. I'm proud that the words of the naysayers were proven wrong. Less than forty five years ago, people were murdered during an attempt to register black voters in Mississippi. In such a short time, it's a huge leap in the progress of this country that yesterday, a black man was elected president. I'm proud that my niece's babies will never be able to remember a time when a person of color couldn't get elected to the highest office in the country. I'm proud that we've possibly vindicated the founding fathers, who posited that all men are created equal. I'm relieved that some of the ideals of the 60s (1860s AND 1960s) may be coming to fruition.
Idealist? Yeah. I think I've always been. Idealism? I think it might have a flicker of life left. I was inspired by Obama's acceptance speech. I look forward to the future, even as he comes into a governmental mess. The Supreme Court is aging, some very interesting times are upon us. I was inspired by John McCain's concession speech. In the end, he showed himself to be a gracious man. My reaction to it was "Wow. This guy might have won if he'd spoken as eloquently as he did last night." In any case, I'm proud that I've seen this in my lifetime. It may be worth sticking around for. |
| 15 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| MisterBadIdea |
Posted - 11/10/2008 : 16:30:42
I read a brilliant critic refer to Obama's election as Batman Begins after eight long years of Batman and Robin. |
| damalc |
Posted - 11/10/2008 : 16:14:38
quote:
Originally posted by Airbolt
quote:
Originally posted by 9amalc
i am overwhelmed with emotion about the election of our next president. as some of you know, i work in the media and my job is to be neutral observer. but once i saw on Tuesday night that Obama had won Pennsylvania and Ohio and had more than 200 electoral votes, i couldn't stop grinning, and almost cried a couple of times in my office. and forget about trying to sing Sam Cooke's "A Change Is Gonna Come," or listening to MLK's i've-been-to-the-mountaintop speech.
i also have serious concerns for the president-elect. his will be the most scrutinized presidency ever. and i hate to think about it but i'm sure there are others out there who would like to see this presidency end ... ummm ... prematurely.
for now i'm gonna keep smiling and play Sam Cooke only when i'm alone.
There's been times that I thought
I wouldn't last for long
But now I think I'm able to carry on
It's been a long, long time coming
But I know a change is gonna come
Oh, yes it will
(sniffle) now why'd you have to go and do that, Airbolt? |
| Airbolt |
Posted - 11/10/2008 : 15:04:59
quote:
Originally posted by Se�n
quote:
Originally posted by Co-nine The Westy
quote:
Originally posted by wildheart9livie
I suspect this is closely related to the portrayal of the British as having bad teeth and lousy food, the French being rude and elitist, and the Australians drinking Foster's beer, saying Crikey and mostly eating barbequed shrimp. Stereotyping?
Crikey!!! What have you got against tossing a shrimp on the barbie while knocking back a cold one?
Errrmmm... the fact that Fosters is poison? 
Paul Hogan must have immunity!
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| Sean |
Posted - 11/10/2008 : 08:47:41
quote:
Originally posted by Co-nine The Westy
quote:
Originally posted by wildheart9livie
I suspect this is closely related to the portrayal of the British as having bad teeth and lousy food, the French being rude and elitist, and the Australians drinking Foster's beer, saying Crikey and mostly eating barbequed shrimp. Stereotyping?
Crikey!!! What have you got against tossing a shrimp on the barbie while knocking back a cold one?
Errrmmm... the fact that Fosters is poison? |
| w22dheartlivie |
Posted - 11/10/2008 : 07:21:16
quote:
Originally posted by Co-nine The Westy
quote:
Originally posted by wildheart9livie
I suspect this is closely related to the portrayal of the British as having bad teeth and lousy food, the French being rude and elitist, and the Australians drinking Foster's beer, saying Crikey and mostly eating barbequed shrimp. Stereotyping?
Crikey!!! What have you got against tossing a shrimp on the barbie while knocking back a cold one?
Well, nothing, but I'm guessing youse all do a bit more than that, eh? |
| Conan The Westy |
Posted - 11/10/2008 : 06:54:31
quote:
Originally posted by wildheart9livie
I suspect this is closely related to the portrayal of the British as having bad teeth and lousy food, the French being rude and elitist, and the Australians drinking Foster's beer, saying Crikey and mostly eating barbequed shrimp. Stereotyping?
Crikey!!! What have you got against tossing a shrimp on the barbie while knocking back a cold one? |
| ChocolateLady |
Posted - 11/10/2008 : 06:49:58
quote:
Originally posted by Mr Savoir Faire
Don't get me wrong: I'm excited to have a black president.
Excuse me for being naive, but how long is this going to fly before the world stops looking at him as the "first black/Afro-American president" and starts talking about him as simply "President Obama"?
If you ask me, its already getting old, already.
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| Airbolt |
Posted - 11/09/2008 : 18:46:15
One thing the US leads the world in - commentators who sound like WW2 superheroes!
I give you WOLF BLITZER and CHARLES KRAUTHAMMER! |
| Whippersnapper. |
Posted - 11/09/2008 : 12:41:49
Hey Livie, Americans may have got us Brits wrong, but two out of three isn't bad!
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| w22dheartlivie |
Posted - 11/09/2008 : 07:11:03
quote:
Originally posted by Mr Savoir Faire
Also, I am tired of Europeans coming up to me (I street-vend in Times Square when I'm not doing stand-up comedy) and talking down about Americans as if I wasn't one; telling me how fat, racist, and ignorant Americans are. I'm not sure why there is this perception. The US has fantastic colleges and a lot more diversity than most places. If anyone could explain this perception, please do! Much obliged.
I suspect this is closely related to the portrayal of the British as having bad teeth and lousy food, the French being rude and elitist, and the Australians drinking Foster's beer, saying Crikey and mostly eating barbequed shrimp. Stereotyping? |
| Mr Savoir Faire |
Posted - 11/09/2008 : 06:34:17
I was hoping that Ron Paul would win. Failing that I pulled for Obama due to the investments I made in him.
I printed up 2500 bumper stickers a week before that say "Mission Accomplished: President Obama". I sold them all night in Times Square with a hired team until morning, where I stood in line and bought every copy of the New York Times I could (60 copies!). I even paid people to stand in line and buy copies for me.
I was surprised at how much I was able to sell the Times for.
However, to sell these products I had to pretend I believed in Obama. The truth is that I want to believe, but politicians in the US are crooks. It's nice to think change is coming, but Clinton offered Healthcare in 92 and 96 and Bush ran on an anti-war platform.
We'll have to see how he does as president. I'm hoping for the best, but we will have one party controlling the house, the Senate, The presidency, and soon the Supreme Court.
Don't get me wrong: I'm excited to have a black president. This is a true inspiration; especially considering civil rights were only forty something years ago. Also, I am tired of Europeans coming up to me (I street-vend in Times Square when I'm not doing stand-up comedy) and talking down about Americans as if I wasn't one; telling me how fat, racist, and ignorant Americans are. I'm not sure why there is this perception. The US has fantastic colleges and a lot more diversity than most places. If anyone could explain this perception, please do! Much obliged.
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| turrell |
Posted - 11/09/2008 : 04:29:32
quote:
Originally posted by wildheart9livie
And what's all this about gasoline dropping from almost $4.00 a gallon to $1.98? What's THAT all about?
Mostly a slight rebound in the value of the dollar - most of the increase in gas prices was due to a weakening dollar (fueled in part by our massive and growing budget deficit). |
| turrell |
Posted - 11/09/2008 : 04:24:33
quote:
Originally posted by MisterBadIdea
I'll tell you what, I've been thinking a lot about this election, and I stumbled upon a theory about why McCain lost, something particularly revelant to this forum. Because, you see, the McCain campaign was rejected for the same reason that so many of my FWFRs get rejected: They go over the four word limit.
During an economic downturn the party in the White House has not been re-elected since 1900. McCain was even or ahead until Lehman failed and the market lost 30%. Add to that Obama's entirely compelling candidacy and a heavy pendulum shift after 8 years and the old man couldn't get it done. He should have been finishing up his second term instead of seeking his first - he had the wrong message for these times. That's my nutshell analysis. |
| w22dheartlivie |
Posted - 11/09/2008 : 03:09:20
There has been a lot of talk about Martin Luther King, Jr. and his trip to the mountaintop and his dream. As everyone can tell, I'm thrilled about this win, but I honestly didn't think it would happen in my lifetime. Apparently that was true for a great many people in this country. It's interesting, listening to the young people this week. (Oh. My. God. Did I just say that?? WHEN did that happen???) While I know that racism is alive and well around, I was pleased to discover that it isn't as ingrained as it once was.
When my sister had her daughter, way back in 1984, it was still quite overt here. The small town school system where we had graduated had been all-white since we could remember. Still, my sister enrolled Brooke in kindergarten, but with an eye toward transferring and paying the tuition to attend the rest of her school years in a nearby, larger, racially diverse town. My comment was to wait and let's see how things progress. As it turned out, there was never an issue with my niece's race. She was popular, active in school functions and seemed quite happy. She had never heard the N-word until she was 8 years old and was taking gymnastics lessons - in the nearby, larger, racially diverse town. I'm not sure what made the difference. Maybe it was because Brooke had always been there and her peers didn't see her as different. Maybe it was because my sister, fearful that my niece wouldn't be accepted, was very strict with her - to the point that I finally spoke up about it. Maybe because she was funny, smart, quite pretty, small and nicely built (geez, I hope that wasn't it, but kids can be fickle).
In any case, my goddaughter and I were discussing all the events of the week. She observed that the kind of racism she remembered from her younger days seems to be dissipated to near absence. The school has become more racially diverse and she doesn't hear the epithets that still were around 20 years ago. It's a great time in America. And what's all this about gasoline dropping from almost $4.00 a gallon to $1.98? What's THAT all about? |
| Koli |
Posted - 11/08/2008 : 23:04:27
duh said:
quote:
As one from a heavily agricultural state, I worry about how farmers will fare under Obama. On paper, most farmers may appear "wealthy" because of the value of their land and equipment. Yet, they have very little in the way of cash. Farming is something one does because one loves the life, not to become wealthy. Yet, their role is absolutely essential.
I was delighted to hear of Obama's victory (even though I found myself listening to his acceptance speech at 5:00am our time because our alarm was wrongly set  ), and I think he'll do a great job for the USA. However, I understand he supports the US Farm Bill (which McCain didn't) and is likely to be more of a protectionist on trade. This doesn't bode well for progress in the WTO talks.
I was delighted even though Obama's victory cost me �20. I'd bet on McCain winning, in case he sneaked it, because I thought that the �130 I stood to win if he did would cheer me up.
The result seemed almost too good to be true, coming just a couple of days after another mixed race man, our own Lewis Hamilton, took the Formula One World Championship. I'd like to think that black and mixed race people in the USA, UK and elsewhere will be inspired by their success and walk with a spring in their step after this great week.  |
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