15 posts tagged “2008 presidential election”
I didn't go on the cruise. Please don't leave me any "Oh, I'm so sorry!" comments. I don't mean that in a harsh way--I just mean that I didn't go because I was really anxious about flying with my ears still being kind of plugged up. I've had horrible hay fever--the pollen is so thick right now that the cars are covered in it. The artist's manager who'd handled my arrangements understood. Told me he suffers from bad allergies, too, and has had a couple of flights where he thought his eardrums would explode upon descent. They're finally starting to open up and I simply didn't want to mess with flights. So don't cry for me, Argentina. ;) I get the weekend to just...exhale...move to my own rhythms...have some space... And all of it is much needed after feeling so stressed out the past few weeks.
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On a separate note (and I haven't even told Jeffrey about this yet--he was gone most of yesterday and this morning we were focused on getting him packed and to the airport)... By accident (via reading a link and then being reminded of someone and Googling him) I learned yesterday that one of my oldest, dearest friends died last summer. I was devastated to read that news online. I hadn't spoken to him in years, but he still pops up in my thoughts occasionally. It gets worse. What I also saw online was that four years before his death, he'd been beaten by two police officers in the town where he'd lived for decades. (A very liberal, white university town...just like this one.) He wasn't charged with a crime and when he took the city to court, he won a quarter million dollar lawsuit. But his injuries had led to surgery and left him with a permanent limp. I (obviously) had no idea that he'd been through all of that (we were off the mainland during that time). It broke my heart to read about it. I'd known him for 35 years. He was my first love. Imagine for a moment your first love. Now imagine that person being dragged from their car and beaten by two people with metal clubs, all while the person stood there open-palmed--taking, not resisting, the blows.
I'm sorry to be sharing such upsetting news, but it's been a helluva 24 hours. Canceling my getaway...and then being utterly shocked and upset over that news. I try not to talk too often on this blog about politics or issues or race--at least I try to bring them up less than I did at my previous blog. But this is the reality I live in. As I've said before, I'm supporting Barack Obama for President because I honestly believe he's the best candidate with the best character for this critical time for our nation. I'm not voting for him because he's half-black. But his race is an important part of who he is, and I personally haven't spoken to anyone who wasn't moved by the speech he gave on race on March 18th. (If you didn't see it, I encourage you to join the more than 3-1/2 million people who've watched "A More Perfect Union" on YouTube here.) Those of us who came of age in the early days of feminism (early 70's) have been seen to be disloyal to our sisterhood by not supporting Hillary Clinton. Today The Root posted an extraordinary letter written by Alice Walker that so beautifully puts that into perspective. I encourage you to read it here.
This morning, already weepy over missing my getaway with my sweetie and my heart aching over thinking of my dear friend being beaten, I watched this video from last May by slam poet Darian Dauchan..."Damn you, Barack Obama..." (It includes profanity, but I think you can handle it.) And I broke down. This one's for you, A, wherever you are...
Remember when I posted the YouTube video of Derrick being drilled by a random guy outside the L.A. debate on why he supports Obama? He explained Barack's health care proposal better than Barack does! That video is here.
Well, Derrick later posted a video explaining a few things: how he wasn't a plant for the Obama campaign, how he'd never met the interviewer before that moment...and most importantly, why he supports Obama. This made me cry...
The whole town of Obama, Japan is pulling for Barack! :)
In response to will.i.am's video for Barack entitled "Yes We Can"...we have...this... :)
I loved this video when I saw it a couple of days ago. And since I'm channeling all of my energies into getting through this work-week (one more day...and then three glorious days off), I thought maybe--like me--you could use a laugh on your Friday. This clip made me move "Election" (which we've never seen) to the top of our Netflix queue. Here is "Hillary's Inner Tracy Flick" (only 1:38)...
Happy Friday, all!
Since health care is one of the biggest hot-button issues of this election season, I thought I'd share this video because this is the best articulation of Obama's health care plan I've seen yet. (Derrick lays it out better than Barack!) :) I believe Hillary misleads voters by constantly saying she's going to provide "universal health care" for all of us. I just had a conversation about this with a teacher at school last week. He was supporting Hillary and honestly thought she was going to give us socialized medicine--that our government would be giving us free health care under her plan. I explained that she's proposing a mandated health care plan where we'd be required to buy private health insurance. It was only this past weekend that she said she'd enforce it by garnishing the wages of anyone who doesn't voluntarily sign up.
And since we just learned on Wednesday that the Clintons have put $5 million of their own money into Hillary's campaign, I thought I'd point out that in December Bill Clinton was heard at an Iowa event saying (in a jab directed at Michael Bloomberg who's considering a run) that although it's a constitutional right, he believes self-funding a campaign "violates the spirit of campaign finance reform." :) Here's the link from that New York Sun article.
I fell asleep at 7:30 last night--it's been a crazy 10 days or so. We've got a very busy day at work today, so I apologize for putting any sort of creative effort on hold. Looking forward to our weekend getaway so I can recharge a bit. I will get caught up on my blog-reading...promise. In the meantime, happy Thursday!
I went through more than one tissue watching the story of Joshua Stroman...
As you may or may not know, on Sunday afternoon there was a rally for the Obama for President campaign at the UCLA campus in Los Angeles. By the time I remembered it was happening, Caroline Kennedy was nearing the end of her remarks as covered by CNN. But then they cut away for their regularly scheduled programming. Fortunately, C-Span carried the rally in its entirety. It was truly a wonderful event and I feel very lucky that I was able to watch it. Oprah followed Caroline. I admit I've had my issues with Miss O. lo these many years--my affection for her sometimes wanes. But after hearing her speak at the Obama rally today, I feel a lot of love for her because she so beautifully articulated what many of us who are strong, independent, feminist women try to say when we're explaining why we're supporting Obama rather than the female candidate. If you have 13 minutes to spare, I encourage you to listen..
Oprah quoted Toni Morrison, who said this of Barack Obama:
“In addition to keen intelligence, integrity and a rare
authenticity, you exhibit something that has nothing to do with age,
experience, race or gender and something I don't see in other candidates. That
something is a creative imagination which, coupled with brilliance, equals
wisdom.”
“If Barack Obama was a state, he’d be California. I mean think about it: diverse, open, smart, independent, bucks tradition, innovative, inspiring, dreamer, leader.” ~Maria Shriver
“I’m voting for Barack Obama not because he’s black. I’m voting for Barack Obama because he’s brilliant.” ~Oprah Winfrey
“Obama is a poem, lyric and filled with possibility.” ~Los Angeles Times endorsement
“I have never had a president who inspired me the way people tell me that my father inspired them. But for the first time, I believe I have found the man who could be that president — not just for me, but for a new generation of Americans.” ~Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg“I am convinced that Barack Obama is the one presidential
candidate today who can…salve our national wounds and both inspire and pursue
genuine bipartisan cooperation.” ~Susan
Eisenhower (grandddaughter of President Eisenhower and a life-long Republican)
“I
am proud to support Barack Obama, and look forward to him leading this country
toward a brighter, more hopeful future.”
~Ethel Kennedy
I have never been this excited about an election in my entire life--and never more excited to participate in a California primary. Watching that rally in Los Angeles on Sunday afternoon right before the Super Bowl, I never felt more proud to be a woman listening to those four powerful, strong, very smart, dynamic women speaking their truth. I believe it's moments like those at the rally that will re-energize us as a country and give new meaning to the United States of America.
I ask only this--that if you're a voter in one of the 23 states or American Samoa that will be voting in primaries and caucuses on February 5th, that you not take your fear to your polling place, but instead bring your truth (whatever it is). Most importantly, please vote! (And if you're a Democrat Abroad, don't forget you have a week to vote!)
P.S. And if you haven't seen the "Yes We Can" song video that I put in the post below, check it out. ;)
Where my energy has gone over the past week...
- forgetting that creativity even exists (except in a few random moments)
- feeling really stressed out about how much I have to do at work in the coming weeks and how much I'll have to rush to meet the deadlines
- spending a lot of time with family since my folks were visiting most of the week
- hauling 5 loads of laundry to the laundromat in the rain
- not sleeping enough
- forgetting to drink water
- spending a lot of time following the election (although I'm not going to feel bad about this since this is truly a history-making time)
- forgetting to buy shampoo
- running out of bottled water at home (we don't drink tap)
- feeling like I spent most of the week 'pedal to the metal'
I'm spending my Sunday winding down...since I have to really gear up the minute I hit work Monday morning. The sun's out and I'm just going with the flow. I'm not going to try to 'accomplish' anything today (although I might get around to putting away the laundry.) Jeffrey was gone all day Saturday at a recording session in Marin County and he's gone till late afternoon today doing his regular Sunday gig. Here's a photo recap of last week...
It's burning up the internet, but just in case you haven't seen Will.I.Am's new song and video for Barack, check it out...
