So I don't know if you've been keeping track of the American presidential campaign (I hope you're not because there are much better uses of your time....I however seem to be addicted to anything political.....). I don't know about you but i think if you asked most people in the US today, they'd probably rather have a new election tomorrow than spend another 2 years with the current administration. As it seems about time for a democratic president, and with now real strong republican candidates appearing (at this still early stage) attention has been given strongly to two people, Hillary Rodham-Clinton and Barack Obama. Hillary (recognizable by simply her first name in many parts of the world) is a known quantity, which from what I read, is a good quality to have in US politics. People seem to be much more likely to vote for someone if they don't feel like they're going to be surprised by their actions. Obama on the other hand, is not very well known. However those of us who have lived in Illinois, do know him. I remember when he was running for the US Senate while I was at Wheaton. There was such a buzz around this charasmatic man. At that time I did a little bit of research on him and his biography was enough for me to set him apart in my mind. He was born to a Kenyan father and White American mother (from Kansas). His parents divorced when he was 2 and then his mother remarried an Indonesian man and the whole family moved to Indonesia, where Obama spent some of his childhood, before moving back to Kansas to be raised by his grandparents. In other words he was a Third Culture Kid (the type of youth that my brother and his wife work with).
Anyway, I've been reading more and more about him, and truly does seem a different sort of politician. Some of the comments he makes, cut through the intensely polarised, black and white understandings that are all too common in the US 2-party system and he is a politician that embraces that most issues are a lot more grey and require compromises along with difficult, unpopular decisions.
Anyway, I think this short video about his background and what even got him to this point is quite informative and worth a quick look.
http://www.barackobama.com/video/about.php
At the end of his speech on the video his rhetoric shows him to be a different type of leader, one perhaps who would be able to lead a now post-modern, pluralistic nation.
A place where I can discuss/vent/think about the things I come accross in my life... DISCLAIMER: I sometimes post ideas because I'm still thinking about them and want other opinions, so if you disagree with me on something let me know your reasons...
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6 comments:
I like his background too, but I don't buy his rhetoric yet. I have yet to hear him say anything that I haven't heard out of a dozen of other politicians. For some reason, when every other politician talks about "bridging the partisan divide," everyone just rolls their eyes. But when Obama talks about it, we go gaga over him. But it's the same message. I will say that he's far more charismatic than anyone else in the field, but I'm waiting for him to follow through on that with something more substantive.
I agree with Mark... its far too early to tell about Obama. But, I admit, he set my liberal heart a-flutter with his speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention with his rendition on "brother's keeper."
Yeah, I'd agree with you both Mark and Stina. I've been waiting for something of substance too in his speeches, some real policy initiatives. Part of me thinks that he's trying to keep those plans quiet because they might be considered too liberal, such as his drive for universal health care. He may come accross as too anti-business. I think people go gaga over him because unlike most candidates it does seem pretty clear that he wasn't thinking about running for president at all a year ago, and it also seems as if he's risen from the right places, community development. He also seems not completely self-interested in keeping the darker sides of his past out of public discourse, such as his previous drug use which he writes about in his auto-biography (again, so I've heard, i haven't had time to read it....but i do love hype...).
I should read his new book which talks about his plan for America. It's true though, all politicians will be corrupted in some way. So if that's the case, maybe at the least americans deserve someone with charisma, that might help their rapidly declining reputation abroad.
I quote from 'Jay Leno' when asked "did you inhale?" by the host in a joking manner, Senator Obama's reply was "Well that is the point now isn't it."
Today I went to a Senate Foreign Relations Committee congressional hearing. Since senators are busy people and can go and come at will it started out rather boring and ill attended -- and I looked around and thought how all the committee members were old white men, and then Obama entered the room. You're right, Mark, about it being rather 'gaga-esque' : but somehow Obama actually leads . Sure, he was simply asking Ambassador Negroponte about why we still sell mercury levels to developing countries... but it felt purposeful, and succinct. When he talked about his constituents I thought "Me!" and then remembered that I'd moved....
Local talk around here is that the mostly likely Dem outcome is a Clinton/Obama ticket. Time will tell.
Oh Diana, the life you lead now....it's great to have friends who can tell you the "local talk" in such places.
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