Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Obama's the One

I recognize that the four regular readers of this blog will not regularly check back when I post once a fortnight, and yet nevertheless I have not wholly rid (ridden, rode?) myself of the compulsion.

Preambles out of the way, I want to make a pitch for Obama. A couple of weeks ago, I outlined the major argument at BlueOregon, and yesterday I broached the subject of race in the election. Short of reposting the entire pieces (which are lengthy), there's not a way to briefly summarize them, but should you be wishing persuasion, do follow the links. Here's my capper paragraph, which maybe doesn't close the deal if you haven't read everything that comes before. It captures how I actually feel about the guy, though.

With his inclusive approach and personal charisma, Obama has already begun inspiring people. More than 100,000 people have already donated to his campaign, and he attracts thousands of people when he appears publicly. I get it. I haven't been inspired by a presidential candidate since I became politically aware in 1980. Obama strikes me as an antidote to the politics of slickness--he's warm, honest, and personable. We need reality now, not bromides, and Obama seems uniquely trustworthy. And as with earlier candidates, there's no compromise with Obama--he's liberal, smart, charismatic, and electable.
There's also a very engaging five-minute documentary at the Washington Post about his swing through New Hampshire with Michelle and the kids. Note particularly, about 40% of the way through the clip, Michelle's response to a question at a town hall meeting. She's good.

Consider yourself proselytized.

7 comments:

Jeff Alworth said...

Dog, as long as your comments are as, err, insightful, as these, you have the floor. Knock yourself out.

Anonymous said...

<><>the four regular readers of this blog will not regularly check back when I post once a fortnight<><>

Don't kid yourself, Kid, the masses check daily...

Anonymous said...

I'm definitely watching for new posts. Thanks for this one!

The rebel in me has wanted to reject Obama's "rockstar" appeal so I haven't really tuned in to him, yet. I think his ubiquity -- from magazine covers to the bestseller bookshelves -- put me off, too. But I'll definitely take another look.

I saw John Edwards when he was in town recently and was very impressed. He pulled no punches, including on issues where he was clearly disappointing some of the audience with his answers. I just felt he was very honest and, to use a hackneyed term, very real.

Looking forward to your next post!

Jeff Alworth said...

Oh no--three comments! I had come to terms with the death of the blog; now I have to come to terms with its coma--far more unsettling. Or maybe it's a zombie blog!--not really alive, but still moving...

Steve, you should check out that video clip and see how Obama strikes you. The thing that keeps getting me is his ordinary-ness. His pop status makes you think he must be somehow slightly intangible, but every time I see him, he seems like a guy I could be talking to in the line at Stumptown.

Chuck Butcher said...

Nobody exactly inspires me at this point. Maybe I've seen too much and done too much politicking.

This thing just won't die, will it?

Jeff Alworth said...

This thing just won't die, will it?

Zombie blog!

Magick Monkey said...

:justadog,

Who gives a crap what church Obama attends? Why should the general public care if he is Christ-like. As flawed as the bible is, who really knows what Jesus said or did, or if he really even lived?

As a libertarian, I'm not inclined to be a Obama supporter, but saying he's involved with organized crime is about as silly as some of the looney crap said about Bush. If you disagree, please inform us of your credible sources of information that support your claims.

Sympathizing with the goals of unions and recognizing the rights of gays to live their lifestyle does not make "true liberals" "homo-unionized-pervert puppets". And I think we should be past the point of using "homo" as an insult.

And how are they going to preempt your free speech?

You may want to think about the things you say before you say them (or, in this case, type them).

I know I'm probably wasting my time responding to you, but conservatives are, in some cases, correct, and even when not correct, they are often mischaracterized. I really hate seeing you make your side look so stupid.