A Speech Called Hope
Thank you Sarah for pointing out Barak Obama's magnificent speech. I'm thinking it was before I started this blog that I took a Comp II class called "The Blues as Literature". Although I despised the professor (a subject for another day), I loved the material. Actually, most of it was self-taught as he did little teaching, consequently, I was free to research as much as I liked. I wrote about six papers around that theme which opened my eyes anew to racial injustice. Not only slavery, but lynching, sharecropping, Jim Crow laws, segregation, poverty, welfare, and the breakdown of African American families. The unfairness of it all made me weep as did Mr. Obama's speech.
Yet, he spoke of hope. Sarah imagined rightly so that I'm a Republican. That said, I'm not sold on all the party stands for, abortion comes to mind. Primarily the notion of less governmental interference in daily life is what appeals to me. My contention is that the bureaucracy has gotten so large as to be out of control. The truth of the matter is that if BA is the Democratic nominee, I intend to vote for him.
Bruce and I have gone round, and round regarding the president's role and influence. One of the other classes I took the same semester as mentioned above was US Government. I learned that the publics perception of the duties of the president are not well understood. Generally, when thinking about government, underestimating the influence of the Congress, as well as the Supreme Court, is more typical than not. What I'm looking for in a president is someone whose ideals match closely with my own.
While I was working woman would tell me that they wanted to go to a woman doctor. I repeatedly told them that gender was not a good basis for choosing a doctor. I feel the same about politicians; what matters most is their abilities. Hillary Clinton is the perfect example of this mis-guided (according to me!)thinking. Repeatedly she claims to have 35 years experience which is completely inaccurate. She has been the wife of a politician, but she's held office for only 7 years, six if you count the fact that she's spent the last year campaigning. (I wonder what other group of workers could get away with essentially being away from their job for over a year, all the while receiving a paycheck?) There may come a time when a woman is the most eloquent, inspiring, and accomplished candidate but this election year in my opinion the woman is not it. Let's give the country hope for the future, not revisit the past with the Clintons.
With that in mind I'm posting a sure sign of hope--a peach blossom from a neighbor's yard. Spring, the season of new beginnings in the natural world is in full swing around here, let's hope some of it rubs off on the political process.
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Now playing: A Fifth of Beethoven / Walter
via FoxyTunes
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Now playing: A Fifth of Beethoven / Walter
via FoxyTunes
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Now playing: A Fifth of Beethoven / Walter
via FoxyTunes
2 comments:
I, too, posted about the speech and agree with most of what you said. How interesting that I'd never thought of Hillary's 'experience' in the context of another career. What if a doctor's wife wanted to become a surgeon? Does she get to walk into a hospital and say: "I've had years of experience because my husband is a doctor"??
As far as politics go, I am democrat even though I also wish the government had less involvement in our daily lives. I just figure, if they're going to have involvement, I at least want to agree with them on the key issues.
I'm glad you liked the speech, gail!
for what it's worth--and I am not particularly a hillary fan--I do think it's important to remember that hillary did have some important and prestigious work for not-for-profits prior to her first-ladyship. Of course, she also did things like serve on the board of wal-mart. I guess it depends on your perspective as to whether that's valuable experience or not!
:)
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