Comments on: GUEST BLOG: Obama Addresses Education in America

By: NeuroticDem

NeuroticDem — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 14:40:00 +0000

Loyal –
Terrific link. I think it stands for itself here. Contains in it a lot of the neurotic feelings I’ve been having. The world view on this is a critical one. I’m not sure, at the same time, how correct he is that the color issue means Obama may be trailing, badly. This is a state-by-state election. My hope is that the places where color hurts him most are places he won’t get anyway.
Molly — AMAZING work for Obama this week! So great. And I felt totally calmed reading your reactions to Michigan voters, esp those who said they are waiting for the debates. I feel less confident that OBama will crush McCain — his debate performance angainst Clinton was always marginal. I hope, because of that, expectations for his performance are lower — that matters a lot. Keep up the great work!

By: Loyal

Loyal — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 16:16:00 +0000

My Obama minute. Linking this, courtesy of a comment in Hullabaloo. Please post this in your main blog Josh, it's worth peopel seeing.

Loyal

By: Molly

Molly — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 15:07:00 +0000

Things I’ve done for Obama this week: 1) Donated (the Times article freaked me out, too). 2) Registered a friend to vote. 3) Connected a friend in Philly who wanted to help but didn’t know how with a field organizer in the suburbs (my brother) who needs all the help he can get. 4) Two hours of phone banking.

The more I help, the calmer I feel about the election. In part because it’s time I’m not spending watching or listening to pundits. Instead, I’m talking to real Michigan voters, most of whom sound nothing like Bill O’Reilly.

Even when I speak to the undecideds, it’s a comfort. Yesterday I spoke to two undecided voters who said they were waiting for the debates to make up their minds. They both felt as though all the crap on the news is “fluff”, and wanted to see how the two men stacked up against each other before they made up their minds. What this said to me is that Michigan voters are careful, they’re thoughtful, and they’re not easily deceived by the spinmeisters. It also tells me that they will be Obama voters, because I’m confident that Barack is going to crush McCain in the debate.

By: Barbara W

Barbara W — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 09:43:00 +0000

The only comment I remember Obama making about paying for the education initiatives was — it could be paid for with what we are spending for just a couple of days in Iraq — that line got a standing ovation!

By: NeuroticDem

NeuroticDem — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 03:25:00 +0000

Dr dad –
You’re so right. If she was a man, she wouldn’t be here right now. If Clarence Thomas were white, he wouldn’t be on the Supreme Court.
It’s ideological affirmative action.
What’s amazing to me is that, if the polls are to be trusted, most people don’t seem to mind that after 8 years of right wing radicalism, we are going down that road again — only, possibly, WORSE. (who knows WHAT Palin thinks)
and yes — obama was sort of mocking palin’s original comment, basically saying, re the bush years, “you can put lipstick on a pig, but it’s still a pig.” he was talking about the bush-mccain years, not palin.
every single thing our guy says gets turned against him.
PS: Can’t believe you got all that WITHOUT NOTES! amazing! you’re ready for prime time!

By: drdad

drdad — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 03:12:00 +0000

Josh – he did talk about funding and made it clear this could be done without raising taxes but I could not remember the details (since I didn’t take notes) and I didn’t want to get it wrong.

In response to your reaction to the lipstick on a pig debate, here are my thoughts: Look at the trouble the country has gotten into over the last eight years because Bush and his cronies hired people on the basis of their political and/or religious views, instead of their competence and ability to perform (i.e., Katrina, the Justice Dept. hiring scandal, the Supreme Court picks, Iraq after the invasion – and this was the perhaps the worst because of the horrendous waste of American and Iraqi lives because they hired 22 year olds who opposed homosexuality and choice, etc., etc.). Bush doesn’t believe in Affirmative Action when it applies to people of color, just when people pass his ideology test. Now John McCain gets to make his first “presidential” decision and, does he choose someone based on competence, does he hire a person knowledgeable about the economy, or security, or banking regulation. NO NO NO – he hires on the basis of ideology and religion and who will get him the most support in the far right religious world, the world he had rejected a mere eight years ago.
So, was Obama’s comment about putting lipstick on a pig (I haven’t heard that, I thought it was lipstick on a pitbull) sexist – hell no, it was about trying to make an ideological hire look good by covering up (in lipstick) what he had really done – Affirmative Action for the religious right.
I think it is time to stop having ideological litmus tests in favor of hiring people in who can do their jobs well!

By: Loyal

Loyal — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 02:20:00 +0000

Great stuff DrDad. Keep on keeping on...

Loyal's Obama 60 minutes:
On Lipstick and Pit Bulls

Loyal

By: NeuroticDem

NeuroticDem — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 02:19:00 +0000

Jon,
I agree with eww. LOVED your post. Just when you got to the end of Obama’s criticism of education policy, I thought — well, what is his PLAN. Then, on cue, he laid it out, in, it seems, great detail. (You have a real knack for reporting!) Isn’t this really the crux of what Obama’s offering? Policy solutions?
I love, too, how he incorporates technology into these different policy areas — for instance, letting parents know whether their kids are in school. His grants proposal to fund these new teachers also sounds great. Did he say how he would pay for it?
Thanks for putting us right in the heart of this. A very quick scan of CNN tonight revealed 4 pundits on Larry King screaming at each other over whether what Obama said today about “lipstick on a pig” was sexist or not. NOT A WORD on this important education talk that you went to. I literally watched for 30 seconds and turned the channel in disgust.
Any wonder why the electorate is about to vote this country off a cliff?
I hope you’ll guest blog again!
MY OBAMA MINUTE: Gave a small donation to Moveon for Obama voter drives … gave a small donation to Obama (that Times article has me wigged) … continued my work organizing the local Jewish community for Obama.

By: eww

eww — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 00:53:00 +0000

Hi Jon.
Well done. You know I agree with all that you
heard today.
eww