17 posts tagged “politics”

After a weekend spent playing "Where's Barack?" and after the surge of elation I felt upon hearing of his Indianapolis Rally, I missed it.  Can you believe that?   I'm so lame!  I realized that if the gates opened at 7:30 and with the line extending down to Louisville ... the odds were not good that I would make it home before 10:00.  And that's pretty late for me to be out on a week night.  Plus, I felt the magnetic pull of my sweet little girl, and I would have been bummed to arrive home after her bedtime.  I did visit the scene of the rally briefly and that was pretty cool, but I guess it's official:   I am a fuddy-duddy. 

The Crowd Started Pouring Into the Park As Soon as they Opened the Gates

This is Where Ali Velshi Has His Makeup Done

This morning at my polling place, I had to present my license three times.  Then, when I was handed my ballot, I got all misty-eyed.  I can't believe Indiana ... INDIANA can make a difference in this historical election!  C'mon Hoosiers ... VOTE OBAMA!

My emotional state is becoming more and more fragile as our primary draws near!   I know the polls look iffy, but if Obama wins Indiana, then that should be THAT!  So, anyway ... this guy endorsed Obama

It's sort of funny because way back during the 2003 election, a friend of mine told me that if Tom Hanks ran for President he would likely win because he's perceived as this average, likeable, relatable guy.  So, why is he endorsing the "elitist?"  Ha!

In several recent conversations, when the Rev. Wright issue has been brought up, I've mentioned that well, sure Barack Obama has had to deal with the unpleasantness of this Rev. Wright issue, but Bill Clinton had Gennifer Flowers and he survived.  Now, some like-minded bloke or blokette has also made the connection and posted a nostalgic little video on YouTube. 

In his presidential deposition in January, 1998, while denying Kathleeen Wiley's sexual accusations against him, Bill Clinton changed his prior statements and admitted that he had sex with Flowers.  Whoops!

Dear Barack Obama:

Will you please promise me that you will have a rally in Indianapolis, so that I don't have to kick myself for not going down to Bloomington tonight for the rest of my life? 

I just don't think my wee one will handle the one-hour drive and the waiting in line very well.  And, we are already scheduled to help out at your Washington Township Volunteer office tonight. 

So, please ... pretty please with organic cherries on top ... will you come to Indy??!!  (Except not this Sunday - we have to go to a birthday party ... with ponies!).  There are many accommodating spaces downtown (e.g., nobody is using Conseco Fieldhouse these days), and the high school down the street from me has a nice gym!

Signed,

Maria's Mama for Obama

Here you see Barack Obama standing in front of a building that I drive past almost every freakin' day, except apparently when the next president of the U.S. is standing outside.  S**t!

28obama_3371

I do believe Maria and I will be canvassing this week and maybe this weekend.  We'll see.  Her demeanor dictates my schedule these days!  Did you know that she can do everything by herself and she doesn't ever need any help? Oy!

I really dig Mark Morford.  I love his snarky attacks on pop culture, his cutting political commentary, his keen insights into current events.  And now he has illuminated the case for an Obama candidacy and presidency like no other. 

But I'll even take it a step further. Because the greatest thing about Obama isn't really about Obama at all, per se. It's actually about, well, us.

This is the great revelation: We still got it. The collective unconscious, the deep sense of inner wisdom, that intuitive knowing that borders on a kind of mystical proficiency, where millions of people can actually look beyond rhetoric and media spin and merely feel the presence of something great in the room? Yep, still there. Who knew?

Yes!  Just the other day, I was struggling to express this same sentiment to G.  I was feeling fairly emotional (damn my goblet of organic wine!) and I lapsed into utter corny-as-hell-ness and said something like "It's as if Obama set people's hearts aloft and Hillary is trying to shoot them down like balloons."  [Note to Hallmark:  Call me!]

It's this: People feel it. They hear an Obama speech or read the articles or talk to like-minded folk, and they squint their eyes and weigh everything and then dismiss all that surface crap and get that look on their face that says, you know what? This guy gets it. He feels right. It's not a trick of light. It's not complete bulls—. It's not the usual spin and manipulation and fakery. There is actual meat on this bone. What a thing.

Yes, Mark Morford!  Yes, I say!  And I don't even eat meat!

Further evidence that Indiana's primary is a pretty big deal this year:  I have already received three campaign-related telephone calls.  Two, I believe, were polls conducted by local congressional candidates.  But my favorite came last night.  It went something like this:

Me:  Hello

HC:  Hi, this is Debbie from the Hillary Clinton campaign.

Me:  Uh huh.

HC:  Can we count on your vote in the Indiana Democratic Primary on May 6th?

Me:  No.

[Silence]

Then, she mentioned something about Hillary coming to town on April 23rd and that was that. 

So far, it has been pretty fun giving my opinions on things, but I'm still waiting for Ted Kennedy to call me!

This is Hillaryarious!

I'm Mad as Hell ...

I hope George Stephanopoulos wakes up bald!

So, apparently Barack Obama said some things at a closed-door fundraiser and the media, et al. latched onto it, twisted it, spun it and spewed it.  And, if you watched the "news," it would seem that nothing else of interest was going on in the world right now.  Had Barack opted to sing "Bomb Iran" or to fabricate a story about landing in Bosnia under sniper fire, I guess there wouldn't be a problem. 

As much as I enjoy this rare experience in which Indiana is relevant to the Democratic presidential primary, at the same time I am growing ever so weary of the media's tendency to focus on the innocuous minutiae and ignore such beefy and complicated issues as the war, the economy, health care, education, global warming, the mortgage foreclosure debacle, etc.  Instead of educating all of us on these issues and thoughtfully discussing what we need to do to cure our country's many ills, the cable news networks would rather turn this election into a veritable cock fight, in which vitriol is encouraged and downright celebrated.  The "loser" goes home battered and bloody.

And, while Elton John will call me a misogynist for saying so, I really think it's time for Hillary to see the writing on the wall, wrap up her campaign with grace and style and start supporting Barack Obama instead of doing the Republicans' dirty work for them.