I've been left scratching my head. What does the Republican party think it is going to get by snubbing "community organizers" and the everyday people who run campaigns? Don't they realize those are the people who will get them elected? Those are the people who donate and support them? But maybe it is different for them. I've never really bought into the idea that Republicans are a bunch of white, rich, men-- but maybe they are-- maybe, they don't need lowly community organizers to help their campaign. Maybe they really are run by big corporations and wealthy donors. That's the only assumption I can make after they railroaded the people working on the ground.
I'll stand up for them. Community Organizers are the reason why women can vote. Why America went through the Civil Rights movement. Why we work a 40 hour work week and why children have mandatory school hours and restricted work hours.
I understand McCain doesn't need their money now, as he will be taking public financing as of tonight and that's fine- but doesn't he still need their votes? Doesn't he still need them to knock doors and participate in voter registration drives? Doesn't he need them to be the ones to energize others and get excited about his campaign?
I watched the convention last night hoping that Governor Palin would blow me out of the water. She did a fabulous job delivering a speech, but I was disappointed in how snarky she came off. I was surprised when after the speech others made that same comment-- I thought maybe it was just me.
Can't we be above this in politics? Can't we be above the "I can't believe you don't believe what I believe, you must be stupid" attitude? It's the attitude that drives me crazy in people like Glenn Beck and Keith Olberman. How in the world can we assume that we know everything? Isn't it possible that for just a moment we recognize we might not have all the answers and we might need someone else's opinion on something.
Neither candidate is perfect-- they each have their flaws. But I watched Obama and was inspired by his speech. I wanted the world to be the way he painted it. I wanted to say, "Yes-- we DON'T agree on abortion rights, but I do want to stop the number of unwanted pregnacies." I felt like he was trying to draw me in. I watched Governor Palin and I thought, "Man, she sounds mean." It reminded me of the way girls acted in high school-- trying to drag others down so they could feel better.
I'm really trying to look at them in equal lighting-- I don't buy the arguement that Palin can't be VP because she's a mother. If anything, that makes her more qualified. We wouldn't dare ask if her husband was qualified if he had been the one to be selected. I do question her judgement in returning to work three days after the birth of her special needs child, but she knows more about the situation than I do, so I'll give her the benefit of the doubt. I know Obama gives pretty speeches and that he will need to do more than that to be a good president. I worry about his far left social standings. I'm not sure he really does have enough experience-- we saw this with President Clinton. It took him almost two years to shift from campaign mode to presidency mode and Democrats in Congress lost the mid-term elections because of it.
So I'm still left scratching my head. Experience and Snarky vs Inexperience but Inspiring. I know which way I lean, but I'm still not convinced I'm right.
3 comments:
Rep's can snub organizers because Rep's are Reps for ideology's sake. They see the civil rights movement and women's suffrige as events in history books that should be forgotten as ancient and now everything is equal. work weeks and schools are govt. infringment on the market which should govern itself.
Community organizers are now for Gay rights, abortion, environmentalism, and rallying the lazy poor for handouts instead of getting jobs.
All of my own snarkiness aside, community organizers function within urban centers which are decidedly Democratic, even in Utah. The Rep base is more often rural, suburban, or spread out in the rest of the country that fill in the space between large cities. These are the people who live in areas where day to day life depend on iol (no public transport), live and work in places that the community organizers are trying to restrict access too.
As for the presented snarkiness, I do not credit the Dem's for sounding less hostile. The Rep's challenge is to both energize it's base and pull in the skeptics. Fear will do the trick with both. Fear of Obama's position far to the left, fear of his inexperiance, fear of his alleged racism. The advantage they have are people's doubts over Obama and they are playing their advantage hard.
Where ya at Rob? Maybe we can hijack this blog into an all out political battle leaving Amanda to scratch her head over her own creation here and not just snarky speaches.
She may sound snarky, but isn't that the VP candidate's job? To be the "attack dog"? Just wait 'til Biden gets going. And I'd be a bit defensive sounding too if I had the national media passing judgment on my children...
I've actually been called a "stupid republican" because I didn't agree with what one of my very liberal friend's political opinions. So it happens on both sides.
I have my doubts about both candidates as well and still have a lot of research, debate watching, etc. to do. Obama may be inspiring, but I'm not sure he'll back it up. I'd rather have experience + a strong (snarky) woman than inexperience + inspiring any day.
Of course, everyone is entitled to their own opinion, that's what makes this country so great. :)
P.S. How are you guys doing? I may be in Philly for work in a couple of weeks. If the meetings actually happen I'll give you a call and we can meet up!
Watch out for that Brohammas man. . . We should all sit down one day after some community organized volunteer project and discuss this election. Especially someone going into medicine; the things you will see in the hospitals, experience, witness, as well as how it will affect your ability to help people in the future. There are many reasons why the United States has progressed so far in medicine, there is a reason it is ahead as far as cures to cancer and other diseases. Obama is a pretty sunset, a sunny day, but around the corner of his fluffy white clouds is the storm of disaster and degeneration; medicine and patients will be hurt by his contribution.
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