Reactions to story from Guardian

• 

  Tell Your Friends

  http://www.talkleft.com/story/2008/8/29/32950/1906
  95 days ago in TalkLeft: The Politics Of Crime · Authority: 1,559

  What if they gave a convention and nobody watched? Sasha Abramsky tried to find a bar in Clovis, New Mexico that was willing to show Barack Obama's speech. No dice. In a town with numerous restaurants and bars, not a single one was showing the speech.
• 

  Tell Your Friends

  http://www.talkleft.com/story/2008/8/29/32950/1906
  95 days ago in Supporting the Democratic Ticket - TalkLeft: The Politics Of Crime · Authority: 1,193

  What if they gave a convention and nobody watched? Sasha Abramsky tried to find a bar in Clovis, New Mexico that was willing to show Barack Obama's speech. No dice. In a town with numerous restaurants and bars, not a single one was showing the speech.
• 
  http://tuition-research.com/tuition-research-wp/43508/43508/
  95 days ago in Tuition Research For All Universities · Authority: 2

  With profound gratitude and great humility, I accept your nomination for the presidency of the United States. Let me express my thanks to the historic slate of candidates who accompanied me on this journey, and especially the one who traveled the continue DENVER — Barack Obama accepted the Democratic presidential nomination Thursday night with a scathing assessment of John McCain and a searing indictment of the Bush administration, promising to repair “the broken politics of Washington” and preside continue Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., speaks after making a surprise visit to the Illinois women’s delegation luncheon in Denver Thursday, Aug. 28, 2008. DENVER — Barack Obama, launching his historic fall campaign for the continue While the start of the semester puts ample amounts of strain on students, faculty and staff, department heads are facing an additional source of stress: planning budget cuts for 2009. The Arizona Legislature voted in July to reduce the amount of continue “Money can t buy happiness” is not a cliche when it comes to boosting morale around the office. In these uneasy times, when many entrepreneurs are pinching every penny, knowing how to reward employees without spending a lot is crucial. “You can do continue The cost of sending a kid to college is skyrocketing at a rate that has surpassed the rate of inflation for each of the last five years, according to the College Board . That makes saving for college a high priority for parents or guardians who wish continue Filed under Tuition Research by Quickly bookmark
• 

  Barack Obama - Half Way There

  http://snptacticalvoting.blogspot.com/2008/08/barack-obama-h...
  95 days ago in SNP Tactical Voting · Authority: 55

  Given that I'm not an insomniac and I wasn't out partying till the wee small hours last night, I missed Obama's acceptance speech at the Democrat Conference. I'll be honest though, in the world of You Tube and constant news, I can't say I'm that cut up about it. Indeed, thanks to a suggestion by Holyrood Chronicles, I've had the chance to skim read most of the speech via The Guardian. I appreciate these words of Obama's were written by some of the finest speechwriters on the planet but, well, I have a couple of criticisms. For a start, the opening paragraph has a bit of a gaping flaw: "Let me express my thanks to the historic slate of candidates who accompanied me on this journey, and especially the one who traveled the farthest - a champion for working Americans and an inspiration to my daughters and to yours - Hillary Rodham Clinton." If I was a feminist I would actually be a bit put out by the idea that Hillary Clinton can only inspire America's daughters or the inherent suggestion that Barack Obama doesn't inspire females. For a country so keen to break down the racial bias, America should perhaps get working on the gender bias that's seemingly going nowhere fast. My next criticism comes in all this "the next Vice President of the United States" and "the next First Lady" stuff. John McCain is doing it too but you can't both be right. I know it gets the crowd going and you can guarantee a lot of "whoops" but look how silly Al Gore and John Kerry looked after they finished runners up in the last 2 elections. I can understand that if you keep saying you'll be the "next" something you can almost force it to happen. Alex Salmond managed it by promising a political earthquake in Glasgow East despite being faced by sniggers and sneering that he had no chance. But even still, it smacks a little of arrogance so I'd much rather people stick to what they know. That said, Obama is of course the real deal and I remain almost entranced by his dramatic rise to stardom and political importance. There are some great lines in the speech which, for me, sum up why I hope that Barack beats John McCain on November 4th: "America, we are better than these last eight years. We are a better country than this." "Now, I don't believe that Senator McCain doesn't care what's going on in the lives of Americans. I just think he doesn't know. Why else would he define middle class as someone making under $5m a year?" "Our government should work for us, not against us. It should help us, not hurt us. It should ensure opportunity not just for those with the most money and influence, but for every American who's willing to work." (I'm guessing, if real life is like the West Wing, there was a lot of debate over that "who's willing to work" phrase!) "And for the sake of our economy, our security, and the future of our planet, I will set a clear goal as president: in ten years, we will finally end our dependence on oil from the Middle East. Washington's been talking about our oil addiction for the last 30 years, and John McCain has been there for 26 of them." "Now is the time to finally keep the promise of affordable, accessible healthcare for every single American. If you have healthcare, my plan will lower your premiums. If you don't, you'll be able to get the same kind of coverage that members of Congress give themselves. And as someone who watched my mother argue with insurance companies while she lay in bed dying of cancer, I will make certain those companies stop discriminating against those who are sick and need care the most." "And today, as my call for a time frame to remove our troops from Iraq has been echoed by the Iraqi government and even the Bush administration, even after we learned that Iraq has a $79bn surplus while we're wallowing in deficits, John McCain stands alone in his stubborn refusal to end a misguided war." "The times are too serious, the stakes are too high for this same partisan playbook. So let us agree that patriotism has no party. I love this country, and so do you, and so does John McCain. The men and women who serve in our battlefields may be Democrats and Republicans and Independents, but they have fought together and bled together and some died together under the same proud flag. They have not served a Red America or a Blue America - they have served the United States of America." There is still another 10 weeks of these speeches, 10 weeks of debating America's place in the world and 10 weeks of considering how America can fix its domestic problems. I for one do not expect to grow tired of hearing much, much more of the thoughts of Barack Obama and John McCain. That's why I, SNP Tactical Voter, and the next husband of Maria Sharapova, approve this blog entry.
• 

  My next speech probably won’t beat Barack Obama’s…

  http://richardbaum.mycouncillor.org.uk/2008/08/29/my-next-sp...
  95 days ago in Richard Baum | Liberal Democrat Councillor for the St Mary’s ward of Bury MBC, and Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Bury North · Authority: 13

  One of the things I enjoy most about being a Councillor is that every so often I get to write a speech, and give it, and have people listen to it. Maybe it’s because I was always good at “English” at school. Maybe it’s because I have ideas about things and relish the chance to give them voice. Or maybe I’m an egomaniac… Whatever the reason,  I do like political speeches, even when it’s not me writing and giving them. More than any other form of communication, a few words spoken from the mouths of leaders can influence the course of history. How many were inspired by Martin Luther King saying “I have a dream?” Would the people of this country have remained strong against the Nazis were it not for Churchill saying that “We will never surrender”? President Abraham Lincoln at Gettysburg talked about “Government of the people, by the people, for the people” - a concept used to drive forward democracy for nearly 150 years since. The Gettysburg address, by the way, contained less than 300 words and took two minutes to deliver. This single blog post is well over twice as long! Managing to define a century, crystallise a vision of government, and go down in history simultaneously in the time it takes to phone for a pizza is quite a feat! I write speeches for Council and they aren’t even in the same universe as the great ones. For starters I don’t have the talent, but thankfully I can hide behind the excuse that it’s difficult to inspire a generation on the topic of free bus travel for the elderly. One day I want to write a speech that blows the doors off the room, with a broad theme and full of concepts that appeal to everyone. In the meantime I learn from other people, and I have quite a guide in whoever is writing Senator Barack Obama’s speeches. It’s not often that I read a speech on the computer screen off a website and it brings tears to my eyes. I do with some of his. Any writer who can manage to convey such hope through a speech without his words even being spoken aloud is a genius. And when combined with Barack Obama’s rhetoric, which could stir a corpse to dancing, the words become stellar and I genuinely believe will help to change the world. Last night’s convention speech by Senator Obama, accepting the Democratic nomination for President, was one such speech. An astounding tour-de-force of inspiration. I think everyone should read it. I won’t critique the American Presidential race. I don’t know enough about it beyond what I read in the news, and there are plenty of others who can give better analysis than I can. But I know the power of words, and how they inspire whole countries to action and change. At a time when the world’s feelings towards America have massive ramifications for us all, I want a leader at the helm who can make a difference with words as well as bombs. Someone who can inspire and who’s vision of hope can be communicated across the world. Unfortunately, I know, it’s more complicated than that. I care a lot less about what the next President will do to American domestic education policy than I do about what he’ll do against global terror. Which is why I don’t have a vote in the election and why a President’s job is the world’s toughest balancing act. I just wish it wasn’t quite so complicated, and that we all did have a vote over here! Some (just some) of the criticism of President Bush is unjust. And some (not all) of the faith put in Senator Obama to change the world is doubtless mis-placed. But I want the President of the United States to be a leader of the world capable of making the positive case for liberty and reason. And with speeches like this he will help bring billions onto the side of freedom and progress. Rick
• 

  “America, we are better than these last eight years. We are a better country than this.”

  http://www.biznicality.com/wp/?p=377
  95 days ago in Biznicality · No authority yet

  Text …after being let down by enough “Americans” tonight at least there is one who at least talks the talk. “But after this speech, anyone who highly and mightily demands that Obama produce specifics will merely be showing his ignorance and laziness.”
• 

  Obama’s convention speech

  http://larvatusprodeo.net/2008/08/29/obamas-convention-speec...
  95 days ago in Larvatus Prodeo · Authority: 220

  Obama has accepted the Democratic nomination. The full text (as prepared) should include a hat tip to Kevin Rudd - yep, the working families have made an appearance. For what it’s worth, there are some strange tropes in American politics, even if the broad sentiments are things most of us would endorse. For instance, Obama explicitly mentions the idea of “in ten years, we will finally end our dependence on oil from the Middle East”; it’s nonsense, and Obama is smart enough to know it. China’s economic growth is to be feared; here, of course, China is the magic pudding that keeps on paying more for our dirt, no matter how much of it we send over. And climate change seems to be right at the bottom of the list of priorities. Reaction from the American lefty blogosphere has generally been enthusiastic, but then again Obama’s ability to give a good speech has never been in doubt. Here’s hoping it puts him on track for a successful campaign. Aside for what it means for Americans themselves, McCain’s foreign policy is just scary.

Advertise on Technorati