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orichalcum at 10:00pm on 28/08/2008
orichalcum at 10:00pm on 28/08/2008All I'm saying is, when I walked Eowyn right after Obama's speech, there were like 25 dogs suddenly out on our street with their owners. I've never seen that many dogs and joggers and what-not out on our block at any time of day.
On a more serious note, what I really liked about this speech was its proud ownership of Democratic values. Kerry's speech - and Gore's for that matter - felt defensive, afraid to be a Democrat, too worried about seeming tough and manly and noble.
I think Barack Obama pretty much worked through any insecurities about his masculinity or his politics in his books (or with Michelle's help). (And won't it be weird to have a First Couple I find sexually attractive?)
This was a speech about why you should vote for Democrats. About how we believe that the government isn't there to run your life, but to help you when you need a hand. About how America is about, in the end, the Golden Rule - and not only doing unto your neighbor, but understanding the perspective of that neighbor, and working together to protect and strengthen the whole country.
If you don't believe in that sort of collective responsibility, regardless of religion, or race, or class, or gender, or orientation, then I suspect this speech didn't do much for you. If you don't think of government as a potentially positive force in the world, Obama's not the right candidate for you.
But for me, it felt good to hear someone say that we measure progress not by the number of billionaires but by the living standards of our poorest and most desperate citizens, not by our GNP but by our percentage of healthy children.
It wasn't afraid, it wasn't angry, it wasn't nasty. It didn't say, "believe this or don't let the door hit you on the way out."
Tonight, Barack said, "Here I am. Here are the values of my party. Here's what I'll do as President." He made the choice very clear.
If you like his message, please make sure you're registered to vote, and on or before November 4th, help change America.
On a more serious note, what I really liked about this speech was its proud ownership of Democratic values. Kerry's speech - and Gore's for that matter - felt defensive, afraid to be a Democrat, too worried about seeming tough and manly and noble.
I think Barack Obama pretty much worked through any insecurities about his masculinity or his politics in his books (or with Michelle's help). (And won't it be weird to have a First Couple I find sexually attractive?)
This was a speech about why you should vote for Democrats. About how we believe that the government isn't there to run your life, but to help you when you need a hand. About how America is about, in the end, the Golden Rule - and not only doing unto your neighbor, but understanding the perspective of that neighbor, and working together to protect and strengthen the whole country.
If you don't believe in that sort of collective responsibility, regardless of religion, or race, or class, or gender, or orientation, then I suspect this speech didn't do much for you. If you don't think of government as a potentially positive force in the world, Obama's not the right candidate for you.
But for me, it felt good to hear someone say that we measure progress not by the number of billionaires but by the living standards of our poorest and most desperate citizens, not by our GNP but by our percentage of healthy children.
It wasn't afraid, it wasn't angry, it wasn't nasty. It didn't say, "believe this or don't let the door hit you on the way out."
Tonight, Barack said, "Here I am. Here are the values of my party. Here's what I'll do as President." He made the choice very clear.
If you like his message, please make sure you're registered to vote, and on or before November 4th, help change America.