Blog this ... and this ... and this, and this, and this ...

This is a quick blog and the first of many in my reborn blogging initiative ... all the twittering from http://www.twitter.com/bigpix2000 ... and here is one thing that came courtesy of @MzLaffy who also has a blog at http://thepoliticalcarnival.blogspot.com ...

 

This is the awesome video commercial for the upcoming BEATLES edition of Rock Band! Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

Long time since I blogged and mostly to rant about Obama before we knew he would be the nominee.  Well, times have changed and just before the critical and historic election, I want to get this in as an artifact in time to show why this man is the man we have been waiting for.  Here he actually answers someones question and actually stays with it all the way through!  No spin, no teleprompters, no coaching and no patronizing was involved here. 

 

Please indulge me and take a look:  (linked here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vFC9jv9jfoA)

 

That's about the gist of what this new blog after a long time is all about.  Since Senator Obama was considering a run for POTUS, I had always like the idea behind what he stood for and what he was about.  I hear from my friends and family from all over the world some of the most vitriolic and disparaging comments and, for the first time in my life, I have a hard time putting together decent retorts or arguments or even plain old alternative views to change their minds much less convince them that this is NOT what we are or what we have been. 

 

In that same time I was hoping and hoping that Hillary Clinton would not run at all because, whether she likes it or not, she was part of that whole thing that lead to this.  It really started at the end of the First Iraq war ... when we had a true coalition of nations and when the fresh fall of the Soviet Union was in the air.  Somehow the leaders we had became so over confident and smug, they lost their perspective. There was also so much nonsense going on in Congress that I felt that it was time for someone OUTSIDE the system to come and get things in order and prepare us for what should have been a true golden age for this country. 

 

For me that man was Ross Perot ("I'm Ross and you're the Boss")  The man on the democratic side that made the most sense to me, Al Gore, was not the front Runner and the economy was in a bad way which I attributed to both parties.  In fact, at the time, I equated corruption with the democratic party and I was in, what would be a common mode for me from that time, the "throw the bums out" mode.  With Ross Perot taking nearly 20 percent of the popular vote, it did not seem to me that Bill Clinton had any sort of mandate and the feeling that scandal surrounded him was quite strong. 

 

Sure enough, by the next election cycle the Democrats would lose the congress and I helped make that happen in a small way with my local congressman, the long running Dan Rostenkowski being caught with the hand in the proverbial cookie jar, getting the boot.  I don't even remember the Republican I voted in ... he did not do much and he was literally a seat filler running solely on the platform of NOT being a  corrupt Democrat.  In fact, now things started to look bad.  Suddenly this "contract with America" turned out not to be fiscal conservatives who wanted to get the business of the people done but a real "religious" agenda that wanted to make some severe changes to the cultural diversity that is this Nation.  Off the bat, they seemed to be over doing it ... and Bill Clinton was there helping them do it.  I was hoping Ross would run again ... but he did not.  Compared to Bob Dole, Clinton seemed to be the only thing to keep a balance on a congress that, left uncheck, would start going wild with power.  I had convinced myself at the time, rightly or wrongly, that US government was best served if there was balance ... If at least one of the branches of Congress (Senate or House) was Democrat then a Republican would have been ok with me ... in fact if it was Democrat I would have made it a point to vote Republican. 

 

And so I voted for Bill on the second go around.  And then the congress became more vitriolic and the biggest scandal was about to erupt.  

 

We talk about the later 90's with some fondness for the prosperity and seem to attribute it to our government but frankly I don't remember seeing it that way when it was happening ... It seemed to me it was Greenspan ( a Republican appointee!!) and the world economy working together in some sort of strange organic collaboration that made sure things were steaming along.  Actually, being in the industry that did boom, my perspective was that the businesses themselves where responsible for the prosperity ... the government just happened to be there.  I sooner credit the likes of Microsoft and, at the time, Netscape for changing the way people did their work and worked with information.  Again, the government was just there more nuisance than helper with the exception of Greenspan. 

 

When the worst hit, I was in major disbelief that Mr. Clinton could have been THAT stupid as to A) get caught or B) be with an underling instead of a more prominent or at least more compelling (sorry Monica) tryst partner.  I always understood from growing up in the Philippines that politicians might have their mistresses etc. but the understanding was that this was not something to splay all over the front page of every major newspaper. 

 

It was awful and the Republicans in their vitriol only turned me off more and more.  They were un-relentless to a point that I did feel sorry for Bill.  That said, I really thought Bill should have resigned once the jig was up.  It would have been the honorable thing to do and Al Gore was more than fine with me (he was my favorite since 1984.) But he didn't ... and he made things waaaaay worse. And  Hillary was right there the whole time in what I felt was the most hypocritical situation. It was fine to "stand by your man" but it was clear that she had known about all this stuff and their only real reason to be together was to satisfy what appeared to be HER need for political power.  What did she want?  I did not think the Presidency because until the second Bush ran the country would go for any nepotistic candidacies.  My opinion was that after it was over, she would divorce him and move on and I think if she did she would have been even more GENIUNE and certainly a stronger person in my eyes much more deserving of public office which the next obvious path for her. 

 

Once again I would vote for the "balance" but this time, to me, Al Gore was a better version of a Democrat.  That said, I was also stuck by the vitriol of the last two years that I was coming to the camp that said perhaps the entire congress should be Republican so they could get things done with the Judiciary branch being the "check." Naaaah!  Not this group ... but wait ... there was one chance and his name was John McCain the war hero.  A Republican that reminded me why I was one in the past and one that my father would have certainly looked up to.  It was unbelievable that another Bush was even considered viable.  In essence, Bill hurt things so bad that people considered this OK ... With Bill having NO military record whatsoever, it was ok for Bush to have one that would have been laughed at in the past.  McCain ran out of money and that was it.  At this point, it was clear that people were just fed up with the system.  It was not that they wanted change ... the feeling was that people where just fed up.  No one was riled up for change ... they just wanted it to be over.  This "new" tactic of only campaigning in the places you know you had support seemed idiotic. It was sure to be close but I never imagined it would be THAT close. 

 

The circus that happened afterwards was appalling.  When it was over, the only balance left was in the Senate.  I knew the vitriol would continue.  9/11 brought us together for a short while.  The quick turnaround with Afghanistan seemed professional and orderly.  Iraq was different.  It seemed to me they were making the case but why were we not able to get another coalition like we had before?  Other than the fact that Bush could not talk himself out of a paper bag, why weren't the obvious professionals like Powell making the case?  This doubt was nagging at me.  We need more proof, clearly.  Where was the smoking gun?  And why are we going in anyway? What's this you are for us or against us crap?  I could not believe what was happening.  Well ... I had to figure they can't be THAT stupid as to go in for just the sake of settling a score.  The people who voted where supposedly shown the intelligence that the regular folks like me have not.  They had access to all the facts, right?  They would not leave any stoned unturned! 

 

Well ... that is all history now and at least all the Democrats involved then have publicly regretted their votes ... wait ... all except one! 

 

In 2004 it looked like there was a chance to redeem ourselves but what they heck ... Kerry?  This was not change ... but perhaps it was something that could bring people so locked on the other side of things.  This was a case of "anyone will do." Let's settle for this ... like I "settled" for my last relationships ... settingling seesm to be toruble for me.  I wanted it to happen but the commitment was soft.  And Bush won fair and square.  So far things still in the dark ... those WMD's might still show up.  Things might still get better.  

 

They didn't.  And now, not only have I had enough but I really wanted change.  This Obama guy is exactly thye type of person we need for the next contest.  If not him, whoever it is better learn from him. 

 

2006 and It seems like we are on our way.  But it turns out that if the Executive branch becomes intractable, there is no way to make anything work. So now the Democrats will look bad only because they can't let things come to a total grinding halt.  They did not have the vitriol power of the last 10 years. Well ... it's bide our time till the next presidential election.   Hopefully Hillary knows she has way too many negatives to run and cost us another election. Edwards should run ... Biden certainly ... and they did.  But so did Hillary ...

 

More important, Barack Obama in inspirational fashion channel none other than Abraham Lincoln himself, one of my personal heroes,  has decided to run.  And from that moment, I felt something was happening.  His was not a long shot.  But would be work?  There was still doubt for me but, if anything, the contenders need to run against Hillary to make sure the old scandal laced people do not come back and prolong the pain.  A few months before the first primary, I was sold.  Something clicked in me.  Suddenly I was interested in something more than I could ever imagine that was NOT my daughter or NOT family related.  The website was different. Innovative. Compelling.  A Bit of everything that makes a Social Networking site worthwhile but not all the complexity and certainly none of the over the top customizations you see elsewhere.  There is something here ... Something is truly happening. 

 

Iowa was not surprising.  Hopes were raised for New Hampshire but it only served to remind that Hillary was still the favorite in the national polls and that Obama should not even be doing this well based on the "conventional wisdom" to date.  Many "pragmatic people" are telling me that it is too good to be true ... SETTLE FOR HILLARY ... TESTED AND READY AND VETTED.  Uh uh.  I could feel things changing.  His speeches made the hair on my skin go up.  My old sense of patriotism and pride from long ago ... they were back ... I loved politics when I was young but got turned off from it ... and suddenly I was a Political Junkie. 

 

This is real and it's not just me.  This is really happening.  If there was only more time, people who were slow on the uptake would see it too ... and sure enough they are seeing it.  I am seeing things very clearly and yes there is an element of chance ... there is a "roll of the dice" here ... but this is different.  People actually ACT different after being part of the movement.  Cats and Dogs can live together

 

It's not about balance anymore ... it's about getting things done ... and done without people shouting each other down.  Even the "bad guys" are holding their punches or seem to be worried about how they look.  That's what we want.  CIVILITY ... it's all we ask!  The world will know America is exactly the ideal that they have thought we were.  It can be that and more!  I feel it! I pray that when I see this posting many years from now ... well ...

 

Anyways ... I will probably post more items here on it.  I have more on my page on the Obama site and have been fairly prolific.  I will probably co post here. Other that the occasional notes on regular life, this will probably be a lot of Obama talk.  Better get used to it ... the world is changing. 

 

"We are the ones we've been waiting for!  "