Break Time

There seems to be a new sport out there. Have you noticed? It involves scheduling too much stuff and then telling people how crazy your life is. After fitting way too much into a day someone I know sits down like she just conquered China. Frazzled, she starts pretending that it wasn't exactly what she planned. When I start noticing things like this I know it's time for a break.

Obamas Epic Speech

Reading the opposing commentary to Senator Obamas speech reminded me of why I chose the title of this blog. Actually I wanted In Simple Terms but that was already taken.
The analysis sounded like Christopher Hitchens discussing a Fellini movie with Camile Paglia! It made my head hurt. Senator Obamas opponents likely burnt far more midnight oil attempting to find fault with his speech than Senator Obama burnt writing it.
This is because only a lesser intellect with a mission in mind would take on such a speech. They came at it from every angle, reverse engineering it, then representing it as some sort of evil doctrine.
The lengths they went to neutralize this speech could only have come from people who seriously fear more than just the influence that Reverend Wright has had on Senator Obama. This is politics, designed to capture and sway each and every remaining malleable voter. There was something for everybody, a dispute de jour. It was a side campaign that clearly showed that their most determined intentions will be a formidable obstacle for Senator Obama.
About the speech? In Simpler Terms, the best I've ever heard. No reasonable human being would deny that it was brilliant.

You'd Think Reverend Wright Was Leroy Brown

Do people really think that if your pastor or priest or rabbi says something you disagree with that you should get up and leave forever. I disagree with plenty of what I hear in church but I stay put. I'm sure they don't consider me an agent for them nor do I consider them agents for me. We coexist because I accept that on balance they mean well and do more good than bad. Remember, it's about God, we're the the imperfect ones.
And isn't respect for individual thinking what should really trump here. If not, then why isn't every loony family member, friend, professor, staff member or supporter paid more attention to. What about Billy Carter's influence on Jimmy Carter or Roger Clinton on Bill Clinton. What about Geraldine Ferraro's influence on Senator Clinton? I find her words about Senator Obama more cleverly chosen but no less disturbing. In case you didn't hear, let me repeat it here for you. "If Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position, and if he was a woman of any color he would not be in this position. He happens to be very lucky to be who he is."
Senator Clinton's response was, "Well, I don't believe in that, and I think it's important that we try and stay focused on issues that matter to the American people." Senator Clinton, this issue does matter to a lot of people and it's why Reverend Wrights audiences like to hear about it occasionally, if for nothing else than to let them know that they are not alone in their struggles.
Isn't that what every church provides. Some just do it differently than others.
Reverend Wright shouldn't have dropped the n-bomb or used profanity of any kind and should have used his brain a little more but he did not invalidate the fact that for the most part white Americans enjoy the advantage of being first judged for their deeds-a luxury not yet afforded all African Americans.
Fire and brimstone style prophetic oratory was not invented by African American preachers and in fact early evangelical preachers like Billy Graham, Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson were allowed to draw and quarter America for it's sins and their deeds went unpunished. They even had actual victims-perceived threats like Jews, gays and pro-choice supporters and so on.
Beyond that remember that religion is a business because without donations it doesn't exist. For lack of a better word, entertainment brings people into church and that is why Reverend Wright was there. He built the membership up by giving patrons what they wanted. And like it or not that is how mortal humans behave even when given divine responsibilities.
Sure I'd like to see them all stick to matters of religion and faith but that genie was never in the bottle.
So with their newly found fodder we'll have to endure all those who wouldn't have ever voted for a black man named Barrack Obama in the first place. They will seize vigorously every opportunity to destroy his chances.
I know one thing for sure; the loudest of them I will listen to least.

Enjoy It While It Lasts

I got lucky and scored some good tickets to a Laker game the other night. They played Sacramento who I am a fan of because I lived in that area for several years. If you haven't tried it, suffice to say that it's not a comfortable thing to sit amongst a bunch of enthusiastic home team fans and want the other team to win. Making matters worse, Sacramento lead most of the game and in a dramatic ending won by a single point. I had to choose the middle ground and didn't root for either team because I didn't want to subject my family members to a fracas. It took a lot of self restraint and took a little of the fun out of it but it was a great game with mediocre defense which provided for a lot of made plays which is my favorite thing to watch.
What is so remarkable is that no matter how breathtakingly good the visiting teams plays were, it was met with dead silence.
To me the game of basketball can take on a near performance art quality when played well and viewed up close. But their is no mistaking that, all being equal, your favorite teams well executed plays are the best.
Being the political season and me being glued to it, you had to expect that I would transform this into something to do with politics, right? Well sure enough, my point is that like basketball fans the media and everyone else on the planet is biased about their picks in this Presidential election. I find that only when this is really taken to heart and accepted as fact can I step back and see this thing for what it really is.
For example, and it is hard to say this as an Obama supporter but, Saturday Night Live had it right in their season opener suggesting that the media was biased against Senator Clinton. To me it was very obvious. There were many excuses but I don't think any reasonable person could deny it. SNL being a New York City product and treasure consciously or unconsciously came to their Senators aid in pointing out the obvious. There has now been a call of foul from Obama supporters that SNL is biased against Senator Obama.
With a little introspection many in the media have now rushed to the starboard side of the S.S. Neutral. She'll likely list there for a while until a bigger story comes along.
One thing you can be sure of is that the power brokers, the ones who are compelled to put their opinions out there in an effort to convince others, be it the media or through the media, have already made up their minds. One fortunate byproduct is that this is as close to egalitarianism as we ever get around here because the common folk have something they need very badly and that is our vote. It's usually the other way around so being unaccustomed to this role and unsure how to convince us they make plenty mistakes. These stumbles and blunders tell us a lot about them and their real intent and makes watching that much more fun. Enjoy it while it lasts.

Time to re-group

When it comes to political speeches, if it starts sounding like a different way to say the same thing, then chances are it's stopped working. Senator Obama tried to use the same stump speeches perhaps a week longer than he should have. In states where his message needed to be as fresh as possible it wasn't and the Clinton and McCain campaigns assertion of empty words was able to take root.
It's probably due to fatigue but when your strategy includes, if it ain't broke don't fix it, you had better be sure of it.
Re-invention can be risky but not as risky as what just happened in Texas and Ohio. Never underestimate our tendency to cut people down to size when they get ahead and remember who he's running against, a prominent political figure who not too long ago was the presumed heir to the throne.
Time to dig deep and find some more of what you are before any more people start to question it.