[via Nina Reznick]
Showing posts with label election. Show all posts
Showing posts with label election. Show all posts
MICHAEL SIMPSON REPORTING OBAMA VICTORY FROM NEW YORK
History is happenin' baby girl
Times Square Nov 4, 2008
My wife Judy and I had several business meetings in Manhattan on Tuesday, the day of the election. We were walking through Times Square that night after seeing Horton Foote's play, Dividing The Estate. There was an enormous, rainbow crowd packing the square. It was like New Year's Eve with people spilling out of bars onto the sidewalks and streets, celebrating, laughing and talking to strangers. Lovers and friends were holding hands and leaning against each other. Entire families had shown up for this historic night. Huge neon jumbo-trons were streaming CNN, Fox News, ABC, and The Jon Stewart Show. Everyone was excitedly reacting to each update that popped up on these enormous outdoor screens. It was an amazing spectacle.
We passed an elderly black woman who appeared to be in her 70s. She had her young granddaughter with her who appeared to be no more than seven or so. The little girl was holding her grandmother's hand and tugging on her sleeve, standing on her tiptoes to see what all the commotion was about.
"What's happenin', grandmama?" the little girl asked the gray-haired matron.
The elderly lady looked at the child. "History, baby girl. History is happenin'."
Just then another state was called for Obama. One of the huge screens – it was several stories tall and as wide as the side of the building – flashed a still photo of Obama.
The elderly lady reached down and, with effort, lifted the little girl into her arms. She pointed at Obama's smiling face.
"Child," she said, "I do believe that man is gonna be the next president of these United States."
The little girl looked at Obama, her big brown eyes wide with the wonder of it all. "Really?"
"As God is my witness..." She held the child close and hugged her. Tears of joy welled up in the old woman's eyes.
"The greatness of America," Alexis de Tocqueville wrote, "lies not in being more enlightened than any other nation, but rather in her ability to repair her faults." (The rumor that Alexis is a Beverly Hills plastic surgeon is incorrect.)
As a people, no matter how badly we lose our way or abuse the many blessings we have been given, we still have the ability to change course. Our great ship of state has turned into the wind and is now moving in a fresh direction with a steady hand and a firm gaze on the horizon.
Times Square Nov 4, 2008
My wife Judy and I had several business meetings in Manhattan on Tuesday, the day of the election. We were walking through Times Square that night after seeing Horton Foote's play, Dividing The Estate. There was an enormous, rainbow crowd packing the square. It was like New Year's Eve with people spilling out of bars onto the sidewalks and streets, celebrating, laughing and talking to strangers. Lovers and friends were holding hands and leaning against each other. Entire families had shown up for this historic night. Huge neon jumbo-trons were streaming CNN, Fox News, ABC, and The Jon Stewart Show. Everyone was excitedly reacting to each update that popped up on these enormous outdoor screens. It was an amazing spectacle.
We passed an elderly black woman who appeared to be in her 70s. She had her young granddaughter with her who appeared to be no more than seven or so. The little girl was holding her grandmother's hand and tugging on her sleeve, standing on her tiptoes to see what all the commotion was about.
"What's happenin', grandmama?" the little girl asked the gray-haired matron.
The elderly lady looked at the child. "History, baby girl. History is happenin'."
Just then another state was called for Obama. One of the huge screens – it was several stories tall and as wide as the side of the building – flashed a still photo of Obama.
The elderly lady reached down and, with effort, lifted the little girl into her arms. She pointed at Obama's smiling face.
"Child," she said, "I do believe that man is gonna be the next president of these United States."
The little girl looked at Obama, her big brown eyes wide with the wonder of it all. "Really?"
"As God is my witness..." She held the child close and hugged her. Tears of joy welled up in the old woman's eyes.
"The greatness of America," Alexis de Tocqueville wrote, "lies not in being more enlightened than any other nation, but rather in her ability to repair her faults." (The rumor that Alexis is a Beverly Hills plastic surgeon is incorrect.)
As a people, no matter how badly we lose our way or abuse the many blessings we have been given, we still have the ability to change course. Our great ship of state has turned into the wind and is now moving in a fresh direction with a steady hand and a firm gaze on the horizon.
Michael Moore's Letter
Wednesday, November 5th, 2008
Friends,
Who among us is not at a loss for words? Tears pour out. Tears of joy. Tears of relief. A stunning, whopping landslide of hope in a time of deep despair.
In a nation that was founded on genocide and then built on the backs of slaves, it was an unexpected moment, shocking in its simplicity: Barack Obama, a good man, a black man, said he would bring change to Washington, and the majority of the country liked that idea. The racists were present throughout the campaign and in the voting booth. But they are no longer the majority, and we will see their flame of hate fizzle out in our lifetime.
There was another important "first" last night. Never before in our history has an avowed anti-war candidate been elected president during a time of war. I hope President-elect Obama remembers that as he considers expanding the war in Afghanistan. The faith we now have will be lost if he forgets the main issue on which he beat his fellow Dems in the primaries and then a great war hero in the general election: The people of America are tired of war. Sick and tired. And their voice was loud and clear yesterday.
It's been an inexcusable 44 years since a Democrat running for president has received even just 51% of the vote. That's because most Americans haven't really liked the Democrats. They see them as rarely having the guts to get the job done or stand up for the working people they say they support. Well, here's their chance. It has been handed to them, via the voting public, in the form of a man who is not a party hack, not a set-for-life Beltway bureaucrat. Will he now become one of them, or will he force them to be more like him? We pray for the latter.
But today we celebrate this triumph of decency over personal attack, of peace over war, of intelligence over a belief that Adam and Eve rode around on dinosaurs just 6,000 years ago. What will it be like to have a smart president? Science, banished for eight years, will return. Imagine supporting our country's greatest minds as they seek to cure illness, discover new forms of energy, and work to save the planet. I know, pinch me.
We may, just possibly, also see a time of refreshing openness, enlightenment and creativity. The arts and the artists will not be seen as the enemy. Perhaps art will be explored in order to discover the greater truths. When FDR was ushered in with his landslide in 1932, what followed was Frank Capra and Preston Sturgis, Woody Guthrie and John Steinbeck, Dorothea Lange and Orson Welles. All week long I have been inundated with media asking me, "gee, Mike, what will you do now that Bush is gone?" Are they kidding? What will it be like to work and create in an environment that nurtures and supports film and the arts, science and invention, and the freedom to be whatever you want to be? Watch a thousand flowers bloom! We've entered a new era, and if I could sum up our collective first thought of this new era, it is this: Anything Is Possible.
An African American has been elected President of the United States! Anything is possible! We can wrestle our economy out of the hands of the reckless rich and return it to the people. Anything is possible! Every citizen can be guaranteed health care. Anything is possible! We can stop melting the polar ice caps. Anything is possible! Those who have committed war crimes will be brought to justice. Anything is possible.
We really don't have much time. There is big work to do. But this is the week for all of us to revel in this great moment. Be humble about it. Do not treat the Republicans in your life the way they have treated you the past eight years. Show them the grace and goodness that Barack Obama exuded throughout the campaign. Though called every name in the book, he refused to lower himself to the gutter and sling the mud back. Can we follow his example? I know, it will be hard.
I want to thank everyone who gave of their time and resources to make this victory happen. It's been a long road, and huge damage has been done to this great country, not to mention to many of you who have lost your jobs, gone bankrupt from medical bills, or suffered through a loved one being shipped off to Iraq. We will now work to repair this damage, and it won't be easy.
But what a way to start! Barack Hussein Obama, the 44th President of the United States. Wow. Seriously, wow.
Yours,
Michael Moore
MichaelMoore.com
MMFlint@aol.com
Friends,
Who among us is not at a loss for words? Tears pour out. Tears of joy. Tears of relief. A stunning, whopping landslide of hope in a time of deep despair.
In a nation that was founded on genocide and then built on the backs of slaves, it was an unexpected moment, shocking in its simplicity: Barack Obama, a good man, a black man, said he would bring change to Washington, and the majority of the country liked that idea. The racists were present throughout the campaign and in the voting booth. But they are no longer the majority, and we will see their flame of hate fizzle out in our lifetime.
There was another important "first" last night. Never before in our history has an avowed anti-war candidate been elected president during a time of war. I hope President-elect Obama remembers that as he considers expanding the war in Afghanistan. The faith we now have will be lost if he forgets the main issue on which he beat his fellow Dems in the primaries and then a great war hero in the general election: The people of America are tired of war. Sick and tired. And their voice was loud and clear yesterday.
It's been an inexcusable 44 years since a Democrat running for president has received even just 51% of the vote. That's because most Americans haven't really liked the Democrats. They see them as rarely having the guts to get the job done or stand up for the working people they say they support. Well, here's their chance. It has been handed to them, via the voting public, in the form of a man who is not a party hack, not a set-for-life Beltway bureaucrat. Will he now become one of them, or will he force them to be more like him? We pray for the latter.
But today we celebrate this triumph of decency over personal attack, of peace over war, of intelligence over a belief that Adam and Eve rode around on dinosaurs just 6,000 years ago. What will it be like to have a smart president? Science, banished for eight years, will return. Imagine supporting our country's greatest minds as they seek to cure illness, discover new forms of energy, and work to save the planet. I know, pinch me.
We may, just possibly, also see a time of refreshing openness, enlightenment and creativity. The arts and the artists will not be seen as the enemy. Perhaps art will be explored in order to discover the greater truths. When FDR was ushered in with his landslide in 1932, what followed was Frank Capra and Preston Sturgis, Woody Guthrie and John Steinbeck, Dorothea Lange and Orson Welles. All week long I have been inundated with media asking me, "gee, Mike, what will you do now that Bush is gone?" Are they kidding? What will it be like to work and create in an environment that nurtures and supports film and the arts, science and invention, and the freedom to be whatever you want to be? Watch a thousand flowers bloom! We've entered a new era, and if I could sum up our collective first thought of this new era, it is this: Anything Is Possible.
An African American has been elected President of the United States! Anything is possible! We can wrestle our economy out of the hands of the reckless rich and return it to the people. Anything is possible! Every citizen can be guaranteed health care. Anything is possible! We can stop melting the polar ice caps. Anything is possible! Those who have committed war crimes will be brought to justice. Anything is possible.
We really don't have much time. There is big work to do. But this is the week for all of us to revel in this great moment. Be humble about it. Do not treat the Republicans in your life the way they have treated you the past eight years. Show them the grace and goodness that Barack Obama exuded throughout the campaign. Though called every name in the book, he refused to lower himself to the gutter and sling the mud back. Can we follow his example? I know, it will be hard.
I want to thank everyone who gave of their time and resources to make this victory happen. It's been a long road, and huge damage has been done to this great country, not to mention to many of you who have lost your jobs, gone bankrupt from medical bills, or suffered through a loved one being shipped off to Iraq. We will now work to repair this damage, and it won't be easy.
But what a way to start! Barack Hussein Obama, the 44th President of the United States. Wow. Seriously, wow.
Yours,
Michael Moore
MichaelMoore.com
MMFlint@aol.com
Sometimes Even Fox News Gets It Right
November 1, 2008
New York Times
Shepard the Anchor
We do not often cheer on Fox News's coverage of politics. But we did the other day when the anchor Shepard Smith reported on an especially absurd turn in the "Joe the Plumber" saga.
John McCain's reference at the last presidential debate to Samuel J. Wurzelbacher, the Ohio plumber who worriedly asked Barack Obama about taxes, was a predictable campaign stunt. It ought to have lasted for half a news cycle, especially after it became clear that Mr. Wurzelbacher's taxes would go down under Mr. Obama's plan. But the Republican nominee simply will not let the plumber go.
On Thursday, he shouted: "I’m going to Washington, and I'm going to bring Joe the Plumber with me!" Earlier, in Virginia, Mr. McCain's running mate, Sarah Palin, announced that one of her favorite rally signs — sometimes made by voters, but more often supplied by the campaigns — was "I am Jo Momma."
Mr. Wurzelbacher has held press conferences. He was interviewed on the "CBS Evening News," where he compared Mr. Obama to Sammy Davis Jr. According to Politico.com, he has an agent and is exploring "a possible record deal with a major label, personal appearances and corporate sponsorships."
At a campaign rally this week, Mr. Wurzelbacher was filmed agreeing with another McCain supporter that electing Mr. Obama would be "death to Israel."
For five painful live-on-Fox minutes the next day, Mr. Smith repeatedly asked Mr. Wurzelbacher what evidence he had to back up that charge. Mr. Wurzelbacher refused to answer. He said it was up to Mr. Smith's viewers to figure out why he, Joe the Plumber, thought Mr. Obama was a menace to Israel.
Looking incredulous, Mr. Smith gave up. He read a statement from the McCain campaign praising the plumber's "penetrating and clear analysis."
Then Mr. Smith said: "I just want to make this 100 percent perfectly clear. Barack Obama has said repeatedly and demonstrated repeatedly that Israel will always be a friend of the United States no matter what happens once he becomes president of the United States. His words."
"The rest of it," he said, "man, it just gets frightening sometimes."
Yes it does.
From Michael A. Simpson
New York Times
Shepard the Anchor
We do not often cheer on Fox News's coverage of politics. But we did the other day when the anchor Shepard Smith reported on an especially absurd turn in the "Joe the Plumber" saga.
John McCain's reference at the last presidential debate to Samuel J. Wurzelbacher, the Ohio plumber who worriedly asked Barack Obama about taxes, was a predictable campaign stunt. It ought to have lasted for half a news cycle, especially after it became clear that Mr. Wurzelbacher's taxes would go down under Mr. Obama's plan. But the Republican nominee simply will not let the plumber go.
On Thursday, he shouted: "I’m going to Washington, and I'm going to bring Joe the Plumber with me!" Earlier, in Virginia, Mr. McCain's running mate, Sarah Palin, announced that one of her favorite rally signs — sometimes made by voters, but more often supplied by the campaigns — was "I am Jo Momma."
Mr. Wurzelbacher has held press conferences. He was interviewed on the "CBS Evening News," where he compared Mr. Obama to Sammy Davis Jr. According to Politico.com, he has an agent and is exploring "a possible record deal with a major label, personal appearances and corporate sponsorships."
At a campaign rally this week, Mr. Wurzelbacher was filmed agreeing with another McCain supporter that electing Mr. Obama would be "death to Israel."
For five painful live-on-Fox minutes the next day, Mr. Smith repeatedly asked Mr. Wurzelbacher what evidence he had to back up that charge. Mr. Wurzelbacher refused to answer. He said it was up to Mr. Smith's viewers to figure out why he, Joe the Plumber, thought Mr. Obama was a menace to Israel.
Looking incredulous, Mr. Smith gave up. He read a statement from the McCain campaign praising the plumber's "penetrating and clear analysis."
Then Mr. Smith said: "I just want to make this 100 percent perfectly clear. Barack Obama has said repeatedly and demonstrated repeatedly that Israel will always be a friend of the United States no matter what happens once he becomes president of the United States. His words."
"The rest of it," he said, "man, it just gets frightening sometimes."
Yes it does.
From Michael A. Simpson
America The Ignorant
The greatest nation on earth is shamed by voters too ignorant to inform themselves of the truth. Sent by Nina Reznick, Esq.
Where did we ever get the idea that the heartland was filled with ignorant, bigoted, intolerant morons? This video of a Palin rally in Ohio should put that misconception to rest.
Where did we ever get the idea that the heartland was filled with ignorant, bigoted, intolerant morons? This video of a Palin rally in Ohio should put that misconception to rest.
BREAKING NEWS--SARAH PALIN REPLACED BY TINA FEY
I have it through frequently reliable entertainment contacts that Sarah Palin has been removed from the Republican ticket—but only physically. With her own cooperation—“I just can’t stand the way the press looks at me anymore!”--Palin is being sequestered on Little Diomede (previously unvisited by an Alaskan governor), the island closest to Russia’s Big Diomede, where she will mend fishing nets, throw zingers at the locals, keep an eye on Putin for us, abuse her authority, and shoot baby seals for the remainder of the campaign.
Fey has taken up Palin’s schedule seamlessly, without the need for a briefing, and will continue the campaign filling in for McCain on days when he is too angry or confused to complete the planned itinerary himself.
The switch occurred yesterday morning, at nine a.m., when Palin was escorted by four ear-phoned, sunglassed men, disguised Secret Service into a waiting red pickup and driven by a circuitous route to Memphis International. Ten minutes later the Vice Presidential candidate’s limo pulled up at the bus station where Fey alighted to join McCain in his humongous campaign bus along with her own makeup and hair. Within minutes, according to reporters, the Senator from Arizona was laughing again, though he later admitted he didn’t “get” what Fey-Palin was talking about.
According to the Morris Office, who represents Palin, her deal for the prolonged impersonation, which includes weekend breaks so she can appear both as Fey-Palin and Palin-Fey on “Saturday Night Live,” was “in the mid eight figures”--but was tucked away in Clause 383e of the Bail-Out as a service to the public that both Republicans and Democrats agreed upon immediately.
Neither Fey’s agent nor her publicist could be reached, though their assistants reported they were “laughing all the way to the bank.”
One can only hope the bank wasn’t Wachovia.
Fey has taken up Palin’s schedule seamlessly, without the need for a briefing, and will continue the campaign filling in for McCain on days when he is too angry or confused to complete the planned itinerary himself.
The switch occurred yesterday morning, at nine a.m., when Palin was escorted by four ear-phoned, sunglassed men, disguised Secret Service into a waiting red pickup and driven by a circuitous route to Memphis International. Ten minutes later the Vice Presidential candidate’s limo pulled up at the bus station where Fey alighted to join McCain in his humongous campaign bus along with her own makeup and hair. Within minutes, according to reporters, the Senator from Arizona was laughing again, though he later admitted he didn’t “get” what Fey-Palin was talking about.
According to the Morris Office, who represents Palin, her deal for the prolonged impersonation, which includes weekend breaks so she can appear both as Fey-Palin and Palin-Fey on “Saturday Night Live,” was “in the mid eight figures”--but was tucked away in Clause 383e of the Bail-Out as a service to the public that both Republicans and Democrats agreed upon immediately.
Neither Fey’s agent nor her publicist could be reached, though their assistants reported they were “laughing all the way to the bank.”
One can only hope the bank wasn’t Wachovia.
OBAMA SHOOTS, SCORES IN HOOSIER STATE!!
Barack Obama's speech yesterday in Indiana was, frankly, one of the strongest he's ever delivered. And for five very good reasons:
1) He presented a clear and incisive outline of how our current financial crisis occurred (or was allowed to occur, under the present administration). Unlike John McCain, who prides himself on being anti-regulation and still maintains that tax cuts to the wealthy will prompt movement in the economy, Obama stated convincingly his belief that in a complicated global economy, there is a role for government in providing appropriate oversight.
2) Obama emphasized that the government rescue plan, though flawed, was crucial if we were going to solve the credit crunch. Cracking that logjam is vital, since both the average citizen and the small business owner relies on credit to secure a car loan, or maintain employee payrolls.
3) As a baby-boomer, I well remember JFK's call to the nation to pull together, to set lofty goals, and to understand that each of us had a stake in America's future. I thought both Obama's rhetoric and the content of his speech reminded us of that shared vision, shared responsibility, and shared goals.
4) He spoke vigorously against fear and panic, and in favor of the value of leadership in the face of crisis. Quite a contrast to the fear-mongering approach of a desperate McCain-Palin campaign.
5) Overall, he spoke as someone whose time has come. Despite McCain's best efforts in the debate the night before in Nashville, he was unable to convince voters that Barack Obama was not fit to be president. And since the only remaining weapon the
McCain-Palin ticket has in its arsenal is attacks on Obama as a person, it's apparent that Obama is surviving that onslaught pretty well.
That's why my favorite line of Obama's speech, in reference to these personal attacks, was, "I can survive four more weeks of John McCain; but this country can't survive four more years of Bush's policies."
Tell me about it!
Dennis Palumbo
1) He presented a clear and incisive outline of how our current financial crisis occurred (or was allowed to occur, under the present administration). Unlike John McCain, who prides himself on being anti-regulation and still maintains that tax cuts to the wealthy will prompt movement in the economy, Obama stated convincingly his belief that in a complicated global economy, there is a role for government in providing appropriate oversight.
2) Obama emphasized that the government rescue plan, though flawed, was crucial if we were going to solve the credit crunch. Cracking that logjam is vital, since both the average citizen and the small business owner relies on credit to secure a car loan, or maintain employee payrolls.
3) As a baby-boomer, I well remember JFK's call to the nation to pull together, to set lofty goals, and to understand that each of us had a stake in America's future. I thought both Obama's rhetoric and the content of his speech reminded us of that shared vision, shared responsibility, and shared goals.
4) He spoke vigorously against fear and panic, and in favor of the value of leadership in the face of crisis. Quite a contrast to the fear-mongering approach of a desperate McCain-Palin campaign.
5) Overall, he spoke as someone whose time has come. Despite McCain's best efforts in the debate the night before in Nashville, he was unable to convince voters that Barack Obama was not fit to be president. And since the only remaining weapon the
McCain-Palin ticket has in its arsenal is attacks on Obama as a person, it's apparent that Obama is surviving that onslaught pretty well.
That's why my favorite line of Obama's speech, in reference to these personal attacks, was, "I can survive four more weeks of John McCain; but this country can't survive four more years of Bush's policies."
Tell me about it!
Dennis Palumbo
Go Obama Go!
Congratulations Rudy, your iMix "Go Obama Go!" has been published in the iTunes Music store here.
Playlist Notes: The people are singing! From the irresistably infectious rock of the Obamabots "Yes We Can" to the YouTube sensation Obama Girl's "Crush" with hot offerings from Rankin Cobra, Blakk Rasta and more, Obama lovers are singing out for the next President of the US!!
Song Name - Artist
Yes We Can - Obamabots
I Got a Crush On Obama (Single) - Obama Girl
Obama - Pistol Opera
Obama -Extra Golden
Obama - Rankin Cobra
Obama - CD & O-Dubs
Obama Girl Vs. Giuliani Girl - Barely Political
Barack Obama (Root Version) - Blakk Rasta
Obama Meets Osama - Capitol Steps
Obama - Chick Willis
Obama Slammer Dub Mix - Rankin Cobra
Hey the Obama - Manson - Bubba the Love Sponge
Barack Obama (Dance Hall Version) - Blakk Rasta
Playlist Notes: The people are singing! From the irresistably infectious rock of the Obamabots "Yes We Can" to the YouTube sensation Obama Girl's "Crush" with hot offerings from Rankin Cobra, Blakk Rasta and more, Obama lovers are singing out for the next President of the US!!
Song Name - Artist
Yes We Can - Obamabots
I Got a Crush On Obama (Single) - Obama Girl
Obama - Pistol Opera
Obama -Extra Golden
Obama - Rankin Cobra
Obama - CD & O-Dubs
Obama Girl Vs. Giuliani Girl - Barely Political
Barack Obama (Root Version) - Blakk Rasta
Obama Meets Osama - Capitol Steps
Obama - Chick Willis
Obama Slammer Dub Mix - Rankin Cobra
Hey the Obama - Manson - Bubba the Love Sponge
Barack Obama (Dance Hall Version) - Blakk Rasta
$700 billion to bail-out Greed; $600 billion (and counting) to fight an illicit War:
Who will pay these bills?
That is the only important question about this election. Vote for McCain, and you will pay the bill by further erosion of your pocketbook and your dreams. Vote for Obama, and the bill will be paid by the people who incurred it—the corporations, the mortgage firms, the banks, the brokers the leaders of which became individually wealth not only at our expense but at the expense of their works whose benefits and welfare shrunk in direct proportion to the growth of their obscenely high annual compensation.
Ask yourself, who can better afford to pay this bill?
The profiteers demanded that government “stay out of the way,” so that they could profit unchecked, cutting back on benefits, raising fuel costs, raising interest costs, evading insurance claims, raising credit card interest rates, offering unsound mortgage bargains—in general, preying on the desperate needs of our weakened Middle Class and hopeless Lower Class.
But the moment the house of cards they created topples on all of us, they immediately turn screaming to the same government to save them and to put them right back in their high-paying offices. At Lehman Brothers, top managers who went home on Tuesday of last week were back at work on Thursday.
Don’t get me wrong: the bail-out is good. It gives us a shot at a way back, just as the bail-out of the savings & loans did a while back. It’s just a question of who will pay for it.
Vote for Obama and let the profiteers dip into their offshore accounts and help rebuild the country they have wrecked.
That is the only important question about this election. Vote for McCain, and you will pay the bill by further erosion of your pocketbook and your dreams. Vote for Obama, and the bill will be paid by the people who incurred it—the corporations, the mortgage firms, the banks, the brokers the leaders of which became individually wealth not only at our expense but at the expense of their works whose benefits and welfare shrunk in direct proportion to the growth of their obscenely high annual compensation.
Ask yourself, who can better afford to pay this bill?
The profiteers demanded that government “stay out of the way,” so that they could profit unchecked, cutting back on benefits, raising fuel costs, raising interest costs, evading insurance claims, raising credit card interest rates, offering unsound mortgage bargains—in general, preying on the desperate needs of our weakened Middle Class and hopeless Lower Class.
But the moment the house of cards they created topples on all of us, they immediately turn screaming to the same government to save them and to put them right back in their high-paying offices. At Lehman Brothers, top managers who went home on Tuesday of last week were back at work on Thursday.
Don’t get me wrong: the bail-out is good. It gives us a shot at a way back, just as the bail-out of the savings & loans did a while back. It’s just a question of who will pay for it.
Vote for Obama and let the profiteers dip into their offshore accounts and help rebuild the country they have wrecked.
OBAMA AND HISTORY
From Dennis Palumbo--For what it's worth...
Tonight, Joe Biden accepted his party's nomination as Vice President, to run with nominee Barack Obama, who speaks tomorrow night in Denver.
However, as good a running mate as Biden is, I think Obama's real running mate is history itself. The first African-American nominee of a major American political party. A man whose father was from Kenya, and whose white mother raised him herself, with the help of her parents. A black man with the unlikely name of Barack Hussein Obama, running for President. If this isn't the unfolding of history---a history with a new face, a new contour, a new expectation of how things go, I don't know what is.
History itself is Obama's running mate, and partner, and advisor. History itself is the thing with which he must contend, the thing he must convince with his oratory and policies, the thing he must both respect and challenge. But it's not his personal history that accompanies him on the upcoming campaign trail. It's our history, the history of the American voter, that stands with him on every podium at which he speaks in the coming months. It's our history that will be challenged, tested, wooed. It's a nation's history that will be made and, perhaps, re-made, in a new, 21st-century image.
Yes, history was made tonight, when Obama became the Democratic presidential nominee. And so he begins his campaign with his new partner, new constant companion, new (and truest) running mate: American history---as conflicted, complicated, disheartening, inspiring, and surprising an entity as any living, breathing person.
Only in November will we know whether the team of Obama and history itself can work together in such a way as to, frankly, reinvent each other.
Dennis Palumbo is the author of From Crime to Crime: Mind-Boggling Tales of Mystery and Murder
Click on book image to buy From Crime to Crime on Amazon.
Visit Dennis Palumbo's website here.
Read his blog here.
Tonight, Joe Biden accepted his party's nomination as Vice President, to run with nominee Barack Obama, who speaks tomorrow night in Denver.
However, as good a running mate as Biden is, I think Obama's real running mate is history itself. The first African-American nominee of a major American political party. A man whose father was from Kenya, and whose white mother raised him herself, with the help of her parents. A black man with the unlikely name of Barack Hussein Obama, running for President. If this isn't the unfolding of history---a history with a new face, a new contour, a new expectation of how things go, I don't know what is.
History itself is Obama's running mate, and partner, and advisor. History itself is the thing with which he must contend, the thing he must convince with his oratory and policies, the thing he must both respect and challenge. But it's not his personal history that accompanies him on the upcoming campaign trail. It's our history, the history of the American voter, that stands with him on every podium at which he speaks in the coming months. It's our history that will be challenged, tested, wooed. It's a nation's history that will be made and, perhaps, re-made, in a new, 21st-century image.
Yes, history was made tonight, when Obama became the Democratic presidential nominee. And so he begins his campaign with his new partner, new constant companion, new (and truest) running mate: American history---as conflicted, complicated, disheartening, inspiring, and surprising an entity as any living, breathing person.
Only in November will we know whether the team of Obama and history itself can work together in such a way as to, frankly, reinvent each other.
Dennis Palumbo is the author of From Crime to Crime: Mind-Boggling Tales of Mystery and Murder
Click on book image to buy From Crime to Crime on Amazon.
Visit Dennis Palumbo's website here.
Read his blog here.
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