Sunday, August 24, 2008

From Obama to Downloads


Mother Jones News has a very good article, "The Audacity of Hype", about Obama and one that has some good thoughts. They presented the question, " Is Barack Obama exaggerating when he compares his campaign to the great progressive movements in U.S. history?", and they asked a variety of thinkers and writers what they thought. Here are a few snippets;

Ta-Nehisi Coates
Author, The Beautiful Struggle: A Father, Two Sons, and an Unlikely Road to Manhood
Well, I think he's exaggerating, in the sense that it's hard to understand a great, substantive moment in history while it's still happening. We knew 9/11 was a historic moment, if only because nothing like that had ever happened. But we didn't know—and maybe still don't completely know—what that actually meant. So in the sense that all people who compare the ongoing, shifting, malleable present with the past, he is indeed exaggerating. Let me just state the obvious—electing a black president will be historic, and I guess quasi-progressive. But the substance of what his presidency will be for America just isn't known yet.

Debra Dickerson
Author, The End of Blackness
Kudos to Obama for reaching transcendence, but no way is the undeniable excitement he's generated anything remotely resembling America's past great progressive movements. To point out the obvious, the very examples he's invoking had specific purposes—winning World War II, ending slavery then Jim Crow, enfranchising women. Beyond dethroning Bush II, worthy though it is, what's his goal? Even were he to peg his entire candidacy on ending the Iraq War, that wouldn't transform America the way past convulsive movements did. At best, electing Obama might be seen as the final death throes of a racism that still dares to speak its name, but it might just be best if he stopped playing to his fellow citizens' lazy vanity—look, Ma! I'm changing America without sacrificing anything in the least!—and kept what he represents in perspective. His nearness to the presidency is an amazing, wondrous thing, but America won't be much different afterward, blasphemous as that sounds.

There are many others of varying thought that you might find interesting indeed.

I have been very busy, getting Max ready for his senior year and ready to graduate in Jan. and then off to the Navy. It is more labor intensive than I had imagined it would be. Then, we are getting back in to the busy time at the coffee mega giant. The college kids are back and business is crazy. I am working long and busy hours. When I get home I am too tired to blog and even too tired to watch any news etc. Although I did notice that last Sunday's N.Y. Times had a huge article about The Daily Show and how more Americans are now admitting to getting their actual news info from that show. No big surprise....I have been for years. Kudos to the entire team at The Daily Show!!

Somewhere I am finding the time to train for my first 5K race. It is at Kent State and it is the Bowman Cup 5K. On Oct.11th, I believe, a Sat. I downloaded a training plan for a 5K and have been trying to stick with it. I have to make modifications every so often to allow for my schedule and how tired I might be, but for the most part I am doing a pretty good job. I am excited to run my first race! Had I not gotten the mp3 player I do not think I would have been able to keep going. It makes a huge difference in my timing and desire to keep moving.

Speaking of the mp3 player. I find that I am always making lists now, on scraps of paper all over my house, of songs that I want to download. After I am finished here I am adding today; Bowling for Soup, Pat Benatar and some Aerosmith.

What's up in your neck of the woods?

4 comments:

Esteban said...

The civil rights movement involved many people being injured and killed over their cause. It was a struggle. The Obama campaign involved outshining a bunch of other sheister politicians.

It will certainly be historically significant if he gets elected, much more so than it would be if Mccain does.

Also the historical significance of these things seems to depend on what party you belong to. All the pomp and circumstance surrounding Nancy Pelosi didn't seem to be there for Condoleeza Rice or Colin Powel

What If There Is dog? said...

Hi,Dharma,The senior year wizzes by...beleive me...and with only half a year...yohwhee.

I like Obama/hate McCain,so for me,the election is a no-brainer.No more of the same,I say.

Y-day was my 50th birthday.Hearing from 2 of my boys whom are at college was a different feel,but watching The Browns lose felt just the same.

I have really been enjoying the Olympics.Work has been tiring,so I didn't stay up much past nine o'clock watching them,but I have enjoyed watching what i saw.

What If There Is dog? said...

Ooh,yes...keep running

Dharma said...

Hey Esteban!

Glad to see that you are still among the cyber folk. I could not agree with you more. I was not in to the whole rah, rah over Nancy Pelosi and I am not impressed with her performance either! Of the people that you mentioned I have the greatest respect for Colin Powell, as a matter of fact I have been giving some thought in to reading his book.

This entire election year has left me feeling very sad and disappointed.

Drew,

Happy Birthday to ya!!! :-)
Well, you don't want to hear my thoughts on Cleveland football. I am just surprised that they still have it, although from what the sports pundits claim, they just have it so the low life local drunks have somewhere to go and get drunk and use bad language. They say that Browns games have the worst reputation for terribly behaved fans.

Max will be done in Jan, so thi "year" is going to go by REALLY fast!!