I planted my political flag today

Well, I finally did it. I made a donation to my Presidential candidate of choice. It's not much - we don't have much to give after the surgery and the property taxes - but it's a stake in the ground and I have firmly planted it.

My candidate of choice is Barack Obama.

Don't worry - I'm not going to inundate anyone with propaganda or persuasive messages about anyone. I know some people didn't like it when I tried to spark some conversation on W and sent out messages about why he had to go in 2004. But I felt like my country and all of the principles it was founded on were being snatched away from me and I couldn't just do nothing! I was irrevocably compelled to make my voice heard - to cry out at the injustice of everything that Bush embodies!

But like I said - I am not going to do that this time. The reason is because this time the race is about building up the American dream again, not about tearing it down. It is a new kind of politics, and one that I believe should speak for itself. I'll remark on things from time to time, but no active campaigning will be in my future. You are safe :)

The only two things I will do is:

1) Give you a link to the page where you can donate too, if you want:
https://donate.barackobama.com/page/contribute/decmatch?match_campaign_id=5&source=feature_million

and

2) Show you a music video that was put together recently for Obama:

This video was released a couple of weeks and already has over 4 million views on YouTube!



So, there you have it. Obama is my man. I'll still love all of you who don't agree with me, and I hope you'll feel the same way about me!

Natasha

Cherries for Change

Apparently the makers of Ben & Jerry's ice cream (yes, Ben and Jerry) have decided that Obama is their choice for President this year. They are creating a new ice cream called "Cherries for Change" and will be giving a large supply to Obama's Vermont campaign, where it can be given away on all of Obama's campaign stops.

Here is the report:

BURLINGTON, Vt. - The founders of Ben & Jerry's endorsed Barack Obama on Monday, and lent his Vermont campaign two "ObamaMobiles" that will tour the state and give away scoops of "Cherries for Change" ice cream.

"If there was ever a need for real change, and if there ever was a candidate to inspire us and make that happen, it's now," said Ben Cohen.
Added Jerry Greenfield: "Barack is showing that when you lead with your values and follow what you have inside that good things will happen."
Echoing Obama, Greenfield said he and Cohen succeeded when they opened their ice cream shop 30 years ago in Burlington by doing things differently, instead of copying the "tired ways" of doing business.
"What we saw is that when you want real change it's not a marketing slogan. You have to do things differently. And that is not going to be done by someone who's been involved in the system for years and years," Greenfield said. "It needs to come from inside and Barack Obama has it."
Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and his wife joined the ice cream duo to announce their radio campaign backing the Illinois senator.
Cohen initially supported John Edwards, who dropped out of the race earlier this month.
Rob Hill, director of the Vermonters for Obama campaign, said he looked forward to getting behind the wheel of one of the two ObamaMobiles — retrofitted Honda Elements.

(taken from http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap_campaignplus/20080219/ap_ca/on_the2008_trail)

I hope it's as good as the ice cream they created for Dave Matthews Band, One Whirled Peace...mmmmm..................

Momentous week for presidential politics

The aftershocks of Super Tuesday are still being felt, as Mitt Romney, who vowed two days ago to take his campaign all the way to the end, decided to concede to John McCain.

This came after a crazy whirlwind and (at times) shocking turn of events on Tuesday, Feb 5, when Mike Huckabee emerged as a legitimate candidate of preference (although it still appears to be a regional preference in the Sounth) and Clinton and Obama are virtually in a dead heat.

Another important moment - when Obama and McCain won Missouri, after the votes were so incredibly close that it was only after California's victors were announced that they could actually declare the winner.

This is important because for the last 100 years Missouri has all but once accurately selected as nominee someone who ends up winning the presidency.

You may be one of the many of us who have complained once or twice over the years how disengaged you've become with presidential politics because you never really have the chance to help decide who the nominees are going to be. By the time you get to vote, it's usually all over and a presumptive nominee has been unofficially announced by the press.

If that is the case, then here is your chance!

There is NO clear nominee on the Dem side, and no one knows if Huckabee's grassroots surge will continue against McCain.

If ever there was a time in American history where we are all truly being given the opportunity to impact the future of the country, this is it.

Many more delegates need to be won by all of the candidates before they can claim to be their party's nominee. In the Democratic party this is especially true.

Super Tuesday did NOT coronate each side's nominee and other states will have a chance in the very near future to weigh in, including Louisiana.

Come on Katrina victims, make your voices heard!

Here are some links in case you are interested in the more interesting points of what has happened this week:




A graphic representation of the number per state as the primaries continue: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21660914









Romney bows out:




Obama raises $7 million since Tuesday.... http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23050238/









...while Hillary has to loan herself money! http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23037431/








The significance of the Missouri vote:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missouri#Status_as_a_political_bellwether




Lastly...what happens if there is no clear winner of the delegates in the primary? That's right folks, the national convention takes on a whole new dynamic (something that hasn't happened in about 30 years) -

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brokered_convention

Obama at King Memorial

Another effective delivery by Obama. This one was for Martin Luther King's Memorial service on Sunday January 20, 2008.

When I look at these speeches, I look for a sense of earnest and evidence that the speaker is truly engaged in what he is saying. Not all of Obama's speeches can fall under this category, but this is definitely one of them.

It's kind of long, but worth it:

Obama one-ups Clinton in very funny moment today

I am in Waco again, passing time in my hotel room. I caught the last 45 minutes of the last Democratic debate, which took place in Iowa today. My interest had been a bit peaked because all I can see on the internet these days is how Obama is rapidly narrowing the gap between himself and Clinton, and I wanted to see how that would play out.

Everybody played really nice, and they even all stood up for Joe Biden when he was asked a character question on how some remarks he has made in recent days about people of various races should have been interpreted. I thought this was very admirable and a rare moment where I could see that everyone on the stage abandoned their own selfish motives for a moment to give a rousing cheer and applause for Senator Biden when he was done speaking.

But my favorite part was when the mediator asked Obama how he, with relatively little foreign policy experience, would utilize the many former Clinton advisors who have taken his side but still break from the past and bring about the change he was promising.

As he began to respond, you could hear from the other side of the room when Clinton started laughing, accompanied by a low rumbling from the audience. She picked up on that and said with a smile something along the lines of "I'm looking forward to hearing this".

Obama glanced at her and laughed for a moment, paused a split second and looked down to regain his train of thought, and then brought his head back up, looked her straight in the eye and said "Well I'm looking forward to you advising me too Hillary."

That really roused the crowd! Even the moderator couldn't hold back a laugh. I laughed my ass off and clapped in my hotel room along with many other people in the audience.

And by the way, I liked his answer too.

Obama just earned another point with me ;)

A word from Obama

Have you decided on who you want for President yet? I haven't either, but I wanted to share something interesting with you that surprised me a bit.

A year ago, when Barack Obama was just coming onto the political landscape, I wrote him a letter saying that he should run for President (I was very interested in infusing some new blood into the old game) and that he should make the recovery of the Gulf Coast one of his top issues.

I flattered myself by thinking that I might get a response back, but never expected it to happen. Sure enough, after many months went by I almost forgot that I'd even written.

Until I got this:

Your eyes do not decieve you, it is a response from Barack Obama that I got about a month ago. Yes, that is his handwritten signature on the bottom of the letter!

As indicated, he enclosed literature on what his position on the Gulf Coast is.

I was really affected by receiving this letter - partly because I never thought it would happen, but more because I could tell it wasn't just a form letter that one of his staff autoprinted and mailed.

I can see that his team is actually reading and responding to the letters he's receiving, and I can see that he played a personal role in writing the letter because of the content of the first paragraph.

Can Obama really be a man of the people? I wasn't too impressed with him when I saw him at the L.A. rally in February, but I think I owe it to him to have another look...