Dawn Teo: Fred Hobbs set off a flurry of sound-bites and interest when he was asked why Representative Lincoln Davis was delaying his endorsement of Senator Barack Obama as the party's nominee for President. Clearly part of the problem is that they just plain haven't gotten to know Senator Obama in Tennessee yet, but the fact is, they handed the extremists among their opponents something to run with in a week when most of the truly bad coverage was about McCain (unless you count the backlash against Megyn and Malkin and the "baby mama" debacle, but they aren't running for office.) Going into the weekend the commentators on the right were anxious for any story to chase the Supreme Court Gitmo decision -- and the crisis of faith it represented -- off the headlines, and Hobbs played Lincoln Davis right into their hands.
The Tennessee Democratic Party issued a statement on Friday that the Tennessee Democratic Party is united behind Obama. On Monday, they published the statement on the front page of their website. The statement also blamed Republicans for the outrageous comments coming from its own party leaders... This is some great reporting from Dawn Teo that gets beyond the sound-bites from last week.
I just saw a link from Nikke Finke's DeadlineHollywood Daily to Vanity Fair's "BlogOpticon" , which has what it considers to be "relevant" and "well-read" blogs.
They've got a good set of blogs divided into four squares on a kind of scale grid. Some of my favs are there, like Valleywag. But you know what kills me, with the exception of Michelle Malkin, who's an Asian Woman but who writes as if she wishes she was a White conservative spinster, there's no other obvious blogger of color and none who are Black.
Now, it's not because there are not blogs out there who are popular and written by people who happen to be Black, like me. But it points to a kind of blind eye to the fact that if a person's Black, and they're blogging, they don't have to write about "Black matters" to be read.
It reminds me of James Woods' line in Oliver Stones' Nixon, where he says "There's that Negro saying Negro things!" Well I think some people expect "Negros" to say "Negro" things, so they can categorize them. And when they don't then they're a "Black Conservative."
How retarded.
How and why this freaking list.. was formed is beyond me and fairness (read on), but it's here. I feel sorry not for me, but for bloggers like Natasha, the East Cost law student -- as of this writing -- who has the wonderful blog "Young Black and Fabulous" about Black celebs. Oh, so you say that's a "Black Blog", well how the hell do you explain "Stuff White People Like?" It's a blog designed to draw White People to read it by making fun of White People. You know, many people don't even know what that term is. Well, what it is are people who don't consider themselves "of color". And that certainly shows up in this Vanity Fair chart.
Makes me wanna puke.
Vanity Fair writes that it's picked the "most influential blogs" -- gimme a freaking break. Ze Frank lost his steam a long time ago. Rocketboom.com is a has-been vlog. Hey it was the first, but let's face it, it's surrounded by a sea of new vlogs that draw viewers, like Renetto on YouTube.
Rocketboom's seen better traffic days, especially around the time the great Amanda Congdon was there. Joanne Colon's run as "Hottest Woman on The Internet" was replaced by a bevy of women in nude photos, like Lindsay Lohan, to fully-clothed female bodybuilder Kristy Hawkins.
And click on Rocketboom.com -- what do you see? A damn pop-up ad for..Vanity Fair. So let me get this straight -- the "most influential blogs" are really just those that have ads regarding Vanity Fair.
Emily Gould just offered a quote in her blog Emily Magazine, and from the Sex and The City Movie that made me think of the San Francisco Bay Area.
Here's the quote:
“Why does Odysseus stay so long with Circe? And why, having stayed so long, does he finally leave? Why do we always stay too long in relationships we know aren’t good for us? Sometimes there’s a complicated tango of neediness and unavailability going on. Other times, it’s because those relationships are with witches who have turned us into pigs.”
I can't think of a few people I know who fall into this quote as a model, well couples. It seems here it's a kind of weird divide between single and mated -- married or not -- and not happy in either case. It's the total lack of communication, I say. Too many people who don't know how to take off their iPods when it matters most -- and no, that's not when it's not working,
What? Well, my point is that iPod's keep people from hearing things, like police sirens, or bus horns, or someone elses voice. In all cases the person is plainly disconnected. That means they lose the practice of talking. Just plain banter is lost. That forms the basis for good relationships.
This has been a most extraordinary three days, and to prove it, we have Tiger Woods amazing come-from-behind-in-pain performance at the U.S. Open Sunday. I missed this because I was watching Tom Brokaw and friends of Tim Russert talk about Tim's contributions and remember the man. But my Mom kept me posted on the exploits of Tiger. This video says it all:
As much of a power in his field was Tim Russert, he was matched by Stan Winston's amazing achievements in special effects. I remember Winston's creatures in Jurrasic Park, as well as the famous video where Winston explained how he adjusted to the then-new technology of computer graphics that Director Steven Spielberg wanted to use.
Winston was responsible for the monsters we saw in movies like Alien, ET, and The Terminator. He also worked with Phil Tippet and invented the film technique of "Go Motion" animation.
The video below features Winston discussing the formation of the creatures in Jurrasic Park:
Winston was one of my favorites, and I will miss him. I may even watch Jurrasic Park in his honor this evening.
Stating that this election is too important to do otherwise, Al Gore officially endorsed Senator Barack Obama in a rosing speech given at Cobo Hall in Detroit this evening.
Jojned by Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm and Senator Obama, Gore was litterally blasted into emotional orbit by the crowd's yelling of "Yes We Can" again and again. Gore said that elections matter, reminding the crowd of Florida just by using its name. The Nobel Prize Winner then talked to the crowd explaining the importance of solving the crisis of Global Warming. He compared our current crisis to that facing "The Greatest Generation" of men and women who served during World War II, saying "That’s what the Greatest Generation did to win World War II, and then came home to start the Marshall Plan, unify Europe, create the United Nations and create the basis for peace and prosperity for decades."
The speech was stirring, to be sure.
MSNBC explains the significance of this event after showing Gore's speech:
Yes We Can!
Thank You, Governor Granholm, for your introduction and your great leadership. Thank you, Michigan, for supporting me in 2000. I’ll never forget it. Congratulations, Detroit, on the Red Wings victory in the Stanley Cup finals.
I speak to you this evening as a citizen as of the United States. I speak to you also as a citizen of the world because the outcome of this election will affect the future of our planet. For America to lead the world through the dangers we’re facing, to seize the opportunities before us, we’ve got to have new leadership. Not only a new president, but new policies. Not only a new head of state but a new vision for America’s future.
I want to begin with a few words to my fellow Democrats. We have just concluded an historic contest among the strongest field of candidates any political party has ever offered for the presidency of this country. An inspiring group of men and a woman with experience and vision, competence and boldness. Their vigorous competition has attracted record numbers of voters in every part of America, reinvigorated our democracy, and helped to rekindle the spirit of our country. And now we’ve made our choice.
As the general election begins, let us remember our obligation to honor our highest values of our democracy, and conduct this campaign in a spirit of respect for the Republican nominee.
[Audience Boos]
No, no! In that case, I’m glad I brought it up, because as Senator Barack Obama has said, John McCain is deserving of that respect. He has demonstrated bravery in war and as a prisoner of war, and has served in the House of Representatives and in the Senate for many years. Moreover, he has demonstrated a willingness to debate some critical issues, including the climate crisis, that many Republicans have refused to discuss at all.
But even as we acknowledge his long experience, we must and we will make our case that America simply cannot afford to continue the policies of the last eight years for another four.
And we all know that a long tenure in Washington, DC is the same things as judgment, wisdom, and vision. Nevertheless, the other party seems to think that age and experience are factors that will work in their favor during this campaign.
But our shared experience as a nation tells us otherwise. I remember when one prominent Republican wondered out loud whether the Democratic nominee, and “really is grown up enough to be president.” Another used the phrase, “naive and inexperienced.” Yet another said, “the United States cannot afford to risk the future of the free world with inexperience and immaturity in the White House.” Who are they talking about? Every single one of those quotations came from the campaign of 1960, when the Republicans attacked John Fitzgerald Kennedy for allegedly lacking the age and experience necessary to be president.
Richard Nixon’s slogan in that campaign was “experience counts,” to which John F. Kennedy responded, “to exclude from positions of trust and command all those below the age of 44, would have kept Jefferson from writing the Declaration of Independence, Washington from commanding the Continental Army, Madison from fathering the Constitution, and Christopher Columbus from even discovering America.” On January 20th, 1961, as a 12-year-old boy, I stood in the snow in front of the Capitol as John Fitzgerald Kennedy took the oath of office. I know what his inspiration meant to my generation and I feel that same spirit in this auditorium here tonight building all over this country this year. I feel your determination after two terms of the Bush-Cheney administration to change the direction of our country.
In looking back over the last eight years, I can tell you that we have already learned one important fact since the year 2000: take it from me, elections matter. If you think the next appointments to our Supreme Court are important, you know that elections matter. If you live in the city of New Orleans, you know that elections matter. If you or a member of your family are serving in the active military, the National Guard or Reserves, you know that elections matter. If you’re a wounded veteran, you know that elections matter. If you lost your job, if you’re struggling with your mortgage, you know that elections matter. If you care about a clean environment, if you want a government that protects you instead of special interests, you know that elections matter. If you care about food safety, if you like a T on your BLT, you know that elections matter. If you bought poisoned, lead-filled toys from China or adulterated medicine made in China, if you bought tainted pet food made in China, you know that elections matter! After the last eight years, even our dogs and cats have learned that elections matter.
And this election matters more than ever because America needs change more than ever. After eight years of lost jobs and lower wages we need change. After eight years of incompetence, neglect and failure we need change. After eight years in which our Constitution has been dishonored and disrespected we need change. After eight years of the worst, most serious foreign policy mistakes in the entire history of our nation we need change.
In September of 2002, I argued strongly that the invasion of a country that had not attacked us would be a mistake, and would divert attention, resources and resolve from the effort to track down and capture those who had attacked us. I argued that the occupation of Iraq would be dangerous and harmful for our country. And I well remember how few elected officials were willing to take that position in favor of protecting our national security by remaining focused on the right objectives. But I remember that an eloquent legislator in Springfield, Illinois named Barack Obama spoke up boldly and clearly with the force of reason and logic to join in opposition to that blunder. To those who still do not understand that the withdrawal of troops from the search for bin Laden in order to launch a misguided invasion of Iraq was a mistake, it’s time to say: We need a change. To those who want to continue making that same mistake over and over again indefinitely, it is important for us to say loudly and clearly with our votes this November: We need change. We intend to have change.
To those who want to continue borrowing money from China to buy oil from the Persian Gulf and burn it in ways that destroy our planet’s environment, it’s time to say: We need change. Barack Obama knows that we are too dependent on foreign oil and carbon fuels, and has proposed a plan to create millions of good new jobs and renewable green energy conservation and efficiency. Here in Detroit you know we need to revitalize our automobile industry with a commitment to plug-in hybrids and low-emission vehicles to solve the climate crisis and create the jobs of the future.
The future is ours: not to predict, but to create. But make no mistake: we need to change our policies on climate. Not too many years from now the next generation will look back at the decisions we make this coming November and the policies we put in place in January of next year. Were we to ignore the warnings of the scientists around the world and look the other way as the entire North Polar icecap melts before our eyes and the consequences we’ve been warned about unfolded, our children might then well ask: what were they thinking? Why didn’t they act? Why didn’t they choose change when they had a chance? It is my deep hope that they will ask another and very different question. I want them to look back on this historic year and ask: how did Americans in 2008 find the moral courage to rise and successfully solve a crisis that so many said was impossible to solve? How did they find the strength to change?
As Americans, we know that our democracy often moves very slowly, but we also know that when we must, we can shift gears quickly and suddenly pick up the pace to respond boldly to a great challenge. That’s what the Greatest Generation did to win World War II, and then came home to start the Marshall Plan, unify Europe, create the United Nations and create the basis for peace and prosperity for decades.
Many people have waited for some sign that our country is awakening once again. How will we know when a massive wave of reform and recovery and regeneration is about to take hold and renew our nation? What would it look like if such a change were beginning to build? I think we might recognize it as a sign of such change if we saw millions of young people getting involved for the first time in the political process. I think we might just recognize it if we saw that new generation casting aside obsolete and hurtful distinctions and reaching out to one another across the ancient divisions that have frustrated action in the past. I think we would know this change was coming if a new generation rejected the special interest politics of the past and the big money that fueled it, and instead used the internet to get small donations and unite Americans in a common effort to realize our common destiny. If we saw it coming, we’d recognize it by the words “Hope” and “Change.”
Perhaps we would recognize it if we heard a young leader rise up to say, “We’re not a red state America or a blue state America. We are the United States of America.” We would know that change was on the way if that young leader reached out not only to the supporters of the other candidates in his party, but also beyond partisan lines to Republicans and independents and said to us all: “America, our time has come!” I think we would recognize it in a candidate who, in response to those doubting our ability to solve the climate crisis and create a bright future, inspired millions to say, “Yes We Can.”
We have such a nominee, we have such a leader! Yes we can! Ladies and gentlemen, the next President of the United States of America, Barack Obama.
Patti Solis Doyle left the Hillary Clinton campaign in disgrace just a few months ago after loses in primaries and especially in money. Reportedly scapegoated for the Clinton's overall poor performance in the early stages of the campaign, Patti Solis Doyle has been hired by Obama for America with the title of "Chief Of Staff To The Vice Presidential Candidate", a move that some say is a slap to the Clinton campaign and the NY Observer says that move is a "Fuck You" to Senator Clinton.
I'm not one to agree with that view. I think the Obama campaign knows it needs the Clintons, but also their judgement is tempered by the fact that the Clinton political power has been damaged, and perhaps irreparably.
I think too much is written into that "fuck you" view, and I'm going to go out on a limb and say that it may be the opposite signal and that in a need to come together, perhaps it's best that the two work together. Hell, the source is a donor who may know less than I or you or anyone else -- just gives money. I think there's a suprise in store here.
Andrew Sullivan reports that other Obama staff members hired are:
Constituency Director: Brian Bond – formerly LGBT Outreach Director at the DNC National Field Director: Jon Carson – formerly Obama for America Voter Contact Director Senior Advisor to the Campaign and Chief of Staff to Michelle Obama: Stephanie Cutter Industrial States Regional Director: Paul Diogardi – formerly Political Director for the Democratic Governor’s Association. Battleground States Director: Jen O’Malley Dillon – formerly Iowa State Director for John Edwards for President Chief of Staff to the Vice Presidential Nominee: Patti Solis Doyle Latino Vote Director: Temo Figueroa – formerly Obama for America National Field Director First Americans Vote Director: Wizipan Garriott Northeast Regional Director: Eureka Gilkey – formerly Obama for America Deputy Political Director 50-State Voter Registration Director: Jason Green – formerly Obama for America political and field staff Campaign Chief of Staff: Jim Messina – formerly Chief of Staff to Senator Max Baucus LGBT Vote Director: Dave Noble – formerly of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force West Regional Director: Matt Rodriguez –.formerly Obama for America New Hampshire State Director Senior Advisor: Michael Strautmanis African American Vote Director: Rick Wade
The event that many have been waiting for has happened. On his blog, former Vice President and Nobel Prize winner Al Gore has annouced that he will back Senator Barack Obama for President.
While some have complained about the timing of the event, saying it was about time, there's no question that it's an enormous development, which will start many thinking that Gore may be Obama's pick for Vice President.
After all, remember the woman I talked to who was with the "Gore Obama" movement? In this video, I asked her about switching that to Obama / Gore. Now, she's got no real choice.
Gore Asks Supporters To Contribute; So Do We
This is what Gore wrote on his blog:
A few hours from now I will step on stage in Detroit, Michigan to announce my support for Senator Barack Obama. From now through Election Day, I intend to do whatever I can to make sure he is elected President of the United States. Over the next four years, we are going to face many difficult challenges -- including bringing our troops home from Iraq, fixing our economy, and solving the climate crisis. Barack Obama is clearly the candidate best able to solve these problems and bring change to America. I've never asked members of AlGore.com to contribute to a political campaign before, but this moment and this election are too important to let pass without taking action. That's why I am asking you to join me today in showing your support for Barack Obama by making a contribution to his campaign today: https://donate.barackobama.com/support Over the past 18 months, Barack Obama has united a movement. He knows change does not come from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue or Capitol Hill. It begins when people stand up and take action. With the help of millions of supporters like you, Barack Obama will bring the change we so desperately need in order to solve our country's most pressing problems. If you've already contributed to Barack Obama's campaign, I ask that you consider making another contribution. If you haven't, please join the movement right now: https://donate.barackobama.com/support On the issues that matter most, Barack Obama is clearly the right choice to lead our nation. We have a lot of work to do in the next few months to elect Barack Obama president and it begins by making a contribution to his campaign today.
I see that West Virginia is pink... I wish Obama luck here. After months of trying to get the word out, and talking to people I have realized that their are some very racist ignorant people here. The good news is alot of people are saying they wont vote for eaither candidat. It is sad that they will not be voteing but if they don't vote for Mc Bush than that is even better.
Good morning. It’s good to be home on this Father’s Day with my girls, and it’s an honor to spend some time with all of you today in the house of our Lord.
At the end of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus closes by saying, “Whoever hears these words of mine, and does them, shall be likened to a wise man who built his house upon a rock: the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house, and it fell not, for it was founded upon a rock.” [Matthew 7: 24-25]
Here at Apostolic, you are blessed to worship in a house that has been founded on the rock of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. But it is also built on another rock, another foundation – and that rock is Bishop Arthur Brazier. In forty-eight years, he has built this congregation from just a few hundred to more than 20,000 strong – a congregation that, because of his leadership, has braved the fierce winds and heavy rains of violence and poverty; joblessness and hopelessness. Because of his work and his ministry, there are more graduates and fewer gang members in the neighborhoods surrounding this church. There are more homes and fewer homeless. There is more community and less chaos because Bishop Brazier continued the march for justice that he began by Dr. King’s side all those years ago. He is the reason this house has stood tall for half a century. And on this Father’s Day, it must make him proud to know that the man now charged with keeping its foundation strong is his son and your new pastor, Reverend Byron Brazier.
Of all the rocks upon which we build our lives, we are reminded today that family is the most important. And we are called to recognize and honor how critical every father is to that foundation. They are teachers and coaches. They are mentors and role models. They are examples of success and the men who constantly push us toward it.
But if we are honest with ourselves, we’ll admit that what too many fathers also are is missing – missing from too many lives and too many homes. They have abandoned their responsibilities, acting like boys instead of men. And the foundations of our families are weaker because of it.
You and I know how true this is in the African-American community. We know that more than half of all black children live in single-parent households, a number that has doubled – doubled – since we were children. We know the statistics – that children who grow up without a father are five times more likely to live in poverty and commit crime; nine times more likely to drop out of schools and twenty times more likely to end up in prison. They are more likely to have behavioral problems, or run away from home, or become teenage parents themselves. And the foundations of our community are weaker because of it.
How many times in the last year has this city lost a child at the hands of another child? How many times have our hearts stopped in the middle of the night with the sound of a gunshot or a siren? How many teenagers have we seen hanging around on street corners when they should be sitting in a classroom? How many are sitting in prison when they should be working, or at least looking for a job? How many in this generation are we willing to lose to poverty or violence or addiction? How many?
Yes, we need more cops on the street. Yes, we need fewer guns in the hands of people who shouldn’t have them. Yes, we need more money for our schools, and more outstanding teachers in the classroom, and more afterschool programs for our children. Yes, we need more jobs and more job training and more opportunity in our communities.
But we also need families to raise our children. We need fathers to realize that responsibility does not end at conception. We need them to realize that what makes you a man is not the ability to have a child – it’s the courage to raise one.
We need to help all the mothers out there who are raising these kids by themselves; the mothers who drop them off at school, go to work, pick up them up in the afternoon, work another shift, get dinner, make lunches, pay the bills, fix the house, and all the other things it takes both parents to do. So many of these women are doing a heroic job, but they need support. They need another parent. Their children need another parent. That’s what keeps their foundation strong. It’s what keeps the foundation of our country strong.
I know what it means to have an absent father, although my circumstances weren’t as tough as they are for many young people today. Even though my father left us when I was two years old, and I only knew him from the letters he wrote and the stories that my family told, I was luckier than most. I grew up in Hawaii, and had two wonderful grandparents from Kansas who poured everything they had into helping my mother raise my sister and me – who worked with her to teach us about love and respect and the obligations we have to one another. I screwed up more often than I should’ve, but I got plenty of second chances. And even though we didn’t have a lot of money, scholarships gave me the opportunity to go to some of the best schools in the country. A lot of kids don’t get these chances today. There is no margin for error in their lives. So my own story is different in that way.
Still, I know the toll that being a single parent took on my mother – how she struggled at times to the pay bills; to give us the things that other kids had; to play all the roles that both parents are supposed to play. And I know the toll it took on me. So I resolved many years ago that it was my obligation to break the cycle – that if I could be anything in life, I would be a good father to my girls; that if I could give them anything, I would give them that rock – that foundation – on which to build their lives. And that would be the greatest gift I could offer.
I say this knowing that I have been an imperfect father – knowing that I have made mistakes and will continue to make more; wishing that I could be home for my girls and my wife more than I am right now. I say this knowing all of these things because even as we are imperfect, even as we face difficult circumstances, there are still certain lessons we must strive to live and learn as fathers – whether we are black or white; rich or poor; from the South Side or the wealthiest suburb.
The first is setting an example of excellence for our children – because if we want to set high expectations for them, we’ve got to set high expectations for ourselves. It’s great if you have a job; it’s even better if you have a college degree. It’s a wonderful thing if you are married and living in a home with your children, but don’t just sit in the house and watch “SportsCenter” all weekend long. That’s why so many children are growing up in front of the television. As fathers and parents, we’ve got to spend more time with them, and help them with their homework, and replace the video game or the remote control with a book once in awhile. That’s how we build that foundation.
We know that education is everything to our children’s future. We know that they will no longer just compete for good jobs with children from Indiana, but children from India and China and all over the world. We know the work and the studying and the level of education that requires.
You know, sometimes I’ll go to an eighth-grade graduation and there’s all that pomp and circumstance and gowns and flowers. And I think to myself, it’s just eighth grade. To really compete, they need to graduate high school, and then they need to graduate college, and they probably need a graduate degree too. An eighth-grade education doesn’t cut it today. Let’s give them a handshake and tell them to get their butts back in the library!
It’s up to us – as fathers and parents – to instill this ethic of excellence in our children. It’s up to us to say to our daughters, don’t ever let images on TV tell you what you are worth, because I expect you to dream without limit and reach for those goals. It’s up to us to tell our sons, those songs on the radio may glorify violence, but in my house we live glory to achievement, self respect, and hard work. It’s up to us to set these high expectations. And that means meeting those expectations ourselves. That means setting examples of excellence in our own lives.
The second thing we need to do as fathers is pass along the value of empathy to our children. Not sympathy, but empathy – the ability to stand in somebody else’s shoes; to look at the world through their eyes. Sometimes it’s so easy to get caught up in “us,” that we forget about our obligations to one another. There’s a culture in our society that says remembering these obligations is somehow soft – that we can’t show weakness, and so therefore we can’t show kindness.
But our young boys and girls see that. They see when you are ignoring or mistreating your wife. They see when you are inconsiderate at home; or when you are distant; or when you are thinking only of yourself. And so it’s no surprise when we see that behavior in our schools or on our streets. That’s why we pass on the values of empathy and kindness to our children by living them. We need to show our kids that you’re not strong by putting other people down – you’re strong by lifting them up. That’s our responsibility as fathers.
And by the way – it’s a responsibility that also extends to Washington. Because if fathers are doing their part; if they’re taking our responsibilities seriously to be there for their children, and set high expectations for them, and instill in them a sense of excellence and empathy, then our government should meet them halfway.
We should be making it easier for fathers who make responsible choices and harder for those who avoid them. We should get rid of the financial penalties we impose on married couples right now, and start making sure that every dime of child support goes directly to helping children instead of some bureaucrat. We should reward fathers who pay that child support with job training and job opportunities and a larger Earned Income Tax Credit that can help them pay the bills. We should expand programs where registered nurses visit expectant and new mothers and help them learn how to care for themselves before the baby is born and what to do after – programs that have helped increase father involvement, women’s employment, and children’s readiness for school. We should help these new families care for their children by expanding maternity and paternity leave, and we should guarantee every worker more paid sick leave so they can stay home to take care of their child without losing their income.
We should take all of these steps to build a strong foundation for our children. But we should also know that even if we do; even if we meet our obligations as fathers and parents; even if Washington does its part too, we will still face difficult challenges in our lives. There will still be days of struggle and heartache. The rains will still come and the winds will still blow.
And that is why the final lesson we must learn as fathers is also the greatest gift we can pass on to our children – and that is the gift of hope.
I’m not talking about an idle hope that’s little more than blind optimism or willful ignorance of the problems we face. I’m talking about hope as that spirit inside us that insists, despite all evidence to the contrary, that something better is waiting for us if we’re willing to work for it and fight for it. If we are willing to believe.
I was answering questions at a town hall meeting in Wisconsin the other day and a young man raised his hand, and I figured he’d ask about college tuition or energy or maybe the war in Iraq. But instead he looked at me very seriously and he asked, “What does life mean to you?”
Now, I have to admit that I wasn’t quite prepared for that one. I think I stammered for a little bit, but then I stopped and gave it some thought, and I said this:
When I was a young man, I thought life was all about me – how do I make my way in the world, and how do I become successful and how do I get the things that I want.
But now, my life revolves around my two little girls. And what I think about is what kind of world I’m leaving them. Are they living in a county where there’s a huge gap between a few who are wealthy and a whole bunch of people who are struggling every day? Are they living in a county that is still divided by race? A country where, because they’re girls, they don’t have as much opportunity as boys do? Are they living in a country where we are hated around the world because we don’t cooperate effectively with other nations? Are they living a world that is in grave danger because of what we’ve done to its climate?
And what I’ve realized is that life doesn’t count for much unless you’re willing to do your small part to leave our children – all of our children – a better world. Even if it’s difficult. Even if the work seems great. Even if we don’t get very far in our lifetime.
That is our ultimate responsibility as fathers and parents. We try. We hope. We do what we can to build our house upon the sturdiest rock. And when the winds come, and the rains fall, and they beat upon that house, we keep faith that our Father will be there to guide us, and watch over us, and protect us, and lead His children through the darkest of storms into light of a better day. That is my prayer for all of us on this Father’s Day, and that is my hope for this country in the years ahead. May God Bless you and your children. Thank you.
The website "Cinemocracy" is working with the Democratic Party on a contest called "Define Democracy" which calls for you to make a short video not longer than five minutes which "defines democracy".
You can enter the contest at Cinemocracy through July 15th.
Every once in awhile, it's good to stop and take stock of..talent. Vanessa Hudgens has it and it's expressed in this video. Now, I'd not known of her until I decided to click on her YouTube video and that was because it was on the front page of YouTube. Then I realized Hudgens was at the center of the Internet photo scandal a while back.
Ok. It seems there are so many of those.
She can sing and dance. Her voice is soulful and reminds me of Paula Abdul or any one of the Pointer Sisters. I'll be one of the half-million MySpace friends she has who puts their sneakers on!
But from a Zeitgeist perspective, Vanessa's one of the emerging young women who aren't African American, but have the soulful voice that Black female singers have been known for. She's part Irish American and Filipino American. But her style is emblematic of the diversity that Hip Hop has for all practical purposes forced on America. Because Hip Hop and Rap are the dominant music culture forms, American Culture, including what kids listen to, and who they try to sing like, have been litterally controlled and shaped by them.
Dawn Teo:
Hobbs played Lincoln Davis right into their hands.
