Here is an excellent article by Rabbi Michael Lerner on the current situation concerning Barack Obama and his election prospects. The article echoes an essay that I have written (but have not published) entitled "Why This Black Progressive Cannot Vote For Obama".
But in addition to Obama's missteps, I believe that Race will be a determining factor in this election, at least for a significant number of voters; enough voters that it may likely swing the election to McCain (barring some miracle by Obama).
Saturday, September 13, 2008
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5 comments:
Quite honestly, after reading the article, I was left with this troubling question:
Why even bother to vote in November IF we're choosing between TWO shameless imposters, Barack Obama or John McSenile_?!...
...neither of which appears to really stand for Anything except trying to get himself elected to the Presidency!
Hmmmm....
Hi there Truthiz
As someone who has voted for third party candidates in past elections in protest, I am voting Obama for the very simple reason that it is the most effective way to PREVENT a McCain Presidency. I know -- I would much rather vote FOR something rather than use my vote AGAINST something but that is the choice I am faced with this election. I have been critical of Obama's centrist stance in the past and his seeming abandonment of the Netroots as his core constituency. But the prospect of McCain and Palin as President and VP just seems too important to ignore and too close of a possibility for me to register yet another symbolic protest vote.
Short term -- Obama has my vote for this election. Long term, I am looking to join with like-minded folks who are for real reforms and real post-partisan solutions.
@LAD:
I hear you...and trust, I'm not ignoring McSenile or his "pitbull" sideshow, Sarah Palin.
And at this moment I still believe that Barack is going to win.
But I won't lie. I'm very Frustrated by the fact that it appears I'm going to have to break a promise I made to myself 4 yrs ago when I left the Democratic Party, vowing that "Never again" allow myself to be "played" by those 2 political shams posing as the "Democratic" and "Republican" Party_
_"Never again" would I fall for them presenting me with the FALSE choice of having to vote for the "lesser of 2 evils", which in actuality is NO choice at all!
...and yet hear I sit knowing d*mn well that Barack really hasn't given me much reason to vote FOR him.
While McSenile has given me MORE than enough reasons to vote AGAINST him!
(shaking my head)...
Truthiz,
I agree... this is where I always end up, every 4 years... with the same frustration. The entire system of voting, the fundamental structure of the corrupt 2 party system, it's all nonsense to me. I don't see it as a Democracy.
I recognized that the American political system was a sham in the early 1990's. Americans don't have much of a choice when they enter the voting booth and choose a Republicrat. The U.S. has basically become a one party system with Conservatives dictating the political compass (in other words... Rethugs move further to the right and they do fine, meanwhile Dems have to move further to the Center). It must be true that there are more Conservatives/Republicans in the Country (despite the fact that I always hear the opposite... that there are more Democratic voters). I guess the problem could be that the Republicans are distrubuted across a much wider area, and therefore, politics must play mostly to their concerns...
Americans always end up with a choice between 2 evils.
But despite all this, I obviously want Obama to win. For me, its about keeping McSame away from the White House... away from control of the armed forces, away from nuclear weapons, because I think he's a classic nutjob.
But everytime I check the data...the situation gets harder for Obama. Michigan, Pennsylvania, and now Washington State (wth?) are all in play, while Ohio and Florida have moved Republican in recent weeks.
Obama may have to pull off some sort of miracle win without winning Ohio or Florida...and by holding onto Penn. and Michigan.
Which means he will have to win NM and CO...and perhaps NV.
But Obama seems to be losing ground all over the map.
And the strategy of his campaign... I just can't wrap my head around it. It is clear that they are going with the same basic strategy that John Kerry used. And that's a losing strategy.
Obama already has some built in deficiencies (like his Race) that he has to contend with and make up for.... which means he can't afford to slip up or be weak in his campaign at any time.
My upcoming posts will look at a few tactical things that are not happening in the campaign... take your pick, there are plenty of problems.
And has the Democratic Party abandoned Barack Obama? (That's another post). Am I the only one noticing this?
The surrogates have gone home. Notice the silence from the Clintons. Bill Clinton is MIA, nowhere to be found. I think they are loving Sarah Palin. Clinton has had nothing but kind words for Palin and Palin "praised" Clinton yesterday... all part of their strategy.
When the Dems left Denver... they weren't unified. This is the trainwreck I had predicted even before the Democratic split.
@AI- Nope. You're Not "the only one" who's noticed that the Democratic hieracrchy is MIA.
But IMO they didn't "abandon" Barack. They were NEVER really on board with him to begin with!
He snuck up on them and won the nomination, which left their Racist, phoney-azzez with NO choice but to PRETEND "it's all good." When nothing could be further from the truth!
Which brings me to the relative "silence" of the Clintons and "friends":
My guess is, Bill and Hil know full well IF Barack wins in November, not only will it be a repudiation of the Rethuglican party_but, in many ways, it will also be a rejection OF THEM.
Barack, a Black man, will have won the Presidency WITHOUT having named Hillary as his VP__WITHOUT the help of Bill and "friends" _and most importantly, DESPITE all that was thrown at him by the Rethuglican party.
That's a pretty strong Mandate for_(now what's that word?)...
Oh yeah_"CHANGE"_!
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