This piece grew from a comment that I never posted on BooMan’s piece Obama and that Generational Thang. Generational gaps are hard to quantify, but I guess my generation is at least one removed from BooMan’s (I was born in 1978). So I am going to offer a slightly younger perspective.
First, let me say that Obama is not my #1 choice. He is probably about #3 for me right now. But I could get excited about an Obama run. Here is part of the reason I think Obama appeals to my age group, but first let me set some generational context up.
Perhaps he was just ‘filling space’, but BooMan is right to mention MTV in his piece on Obama. When I was in junior high and high school, MTV was in the midst of its evolution from canned videos of hair bands into something much more cultural and far reaching. Hip hop and rap were getting more and more air time.
Let’s take a look at the lyrics from some two of the most popular bands / artists of the hip hop revolution.
We gotta make a change…
It’s time for us as a people to start makin’ some changes.
Let’s change the way we eat, let’s change the way we live
and let’s change the way we treat each other.
You see the old way wasn’t working so it’s on us to do
what we gotta do, to survive.
— Tupac, Changes
I feel the weight of the world on my shoulder
As I’m getting older y’all people get colder
Most of us only care about money makin
Selfishness got us followin the wrong direction
Wrong information always shown by the media
Negative images is the main criteria
Infecting their young minds faster than bacteria
Kids wanna act like what the see in the cinema
Whatever happened to the values of humanity
Whatever happened to the fairness and equality
Instead of spreading love, we’re spreading animosity
Lack of understanding, leading us away from unity
That’s the reason why sometimes I’m feeling under
That’s the reason why sometimes I’m feeling down
It’s no wonder why sometimes I’m feeling under
I gotta keep my faith alive, until love is found
— Black Eyed Peas, Where Is the Love?
There is a pervasive theme throughout hip hop (and perhaps as a response to the self-destructive nature of gangsta rap, but that’s a topic for another day) of problems being solved by love, understanding, and empathy. And if you’ve ever lived in a lower-income neighborhood with mixed ethnicities, I’m sure this resonates strongly with you too.
But this is only one side of the coin. Let’s take a look at some of the other lyrics from those same two songs (and know that these are merely two of many examples).
Cops give a damn about a negro
pull the trigger kill a nigga he’s a hero
Give the crack to the kids who the hell cares
one less hungry mouth on the welfare
First ship ’em dope & let ’em deal to brothers
give ’em guns step back watch ’em kill each other
<snip>
And still I see no changes can’t a brother get a little peace
It’s war on the streets & the war in the Middle East
Instead of war on poverty they got a war on drugs
so the police can bother me
— Tupac, Changes
Overseas, yeah, we try to stop terrorism
But we still got terrorists here livin’
In the USA, the big CIA
The Bloods and The Crips and the KKK
–Black Eyed Peas, Where Is The Love?
There is also a widespread distrust (mostly of the police, but also of the government at large) that runs as a parallel and supporting theme. We don’t see government as the source of the solutions to problems. We see the way that government functions as a rigged game. And it is. Solutions need to come from the people.
What does this have to do with Obama? I hope that Real History Lisa (of whom I am a big fan!) won’t mind me borrowing from one of her comments:
Those of us who have been involved heavily in politics know that when someone seems too good to be true, they usually are.
<snip>
I’m still waiting for some leadership from him, on ANY point, and I’ve yet to see it.
Where her cynicism (maybe too strong a word, and I don’t want to put words in her mouth) is based on past experiences of having her hopes crushed, we place our cynicism in the system itself. And we don’t expect a leader to come around who is going to really have our best interests in mind and be able to dictate that from on high.
A few months ago, I read Paul Wellstone‘s autobiography. One of the themes in his book that struck a chord with me is how much he talks about needing to build a groundswell of public support in order to get anything of substance done in government.
This is where Obama comes in. In Obama, I see someone who may not be the strongest leader from a managerial or policy standpoint. But damn, the man gets people excited. People I’ve never heard talk politics were speaking to me in awed tones after his speech at the national convention. He is not politics as usual to us. He offers a real hope for change.
If the people lead, the leaders will follow. In Obama, I see someone who could facilitate the restoration of the leadership to the public.
And that’s why I like him.
Sorry I haven’t been around much lately…real life stuff has been keeping me busy. But I wanted to weigh in on this one, although I only had time to touch briefly on a bunch of things that probably deserve their own diaries, if not books 🙂
I’ve been thinking along those same lines – that while Obama may not have much experience he has the ability to ignite passion and hope and idealism and, hopefully, move many, many younger people to the polls.
You were born the year I graduated from high school (OMFG!)and even I feel that the time is right for newer, fresher faces that more accurately reflect the population of our country. I have had “that feeling” about Obama since he spoke at the 2004 convention and it’s only gotten stronger.
That explains why you’re so much better at swearing than I am 🙂
That comes from being raised by a single parent construction worker.
And not just to the polls. To speak up. To write letters. To call bullshit when it so often goes uncalled now.
Our government is killing our country, and most people don’t think they can do a damn thing about it. And they’re right, unless a real wave develops.
you will be a very very wise being early in this life ;). I become hopeful where Obama is concerned when I consider his ethnicity and as XicanoPwr puts it, he isn’t lighter in color than a brown paper bag. It was very hard discovering that what my family so easily grasped about skin color was not so by everyone. I was even a little heartsick when I realized that a hot hate filled debate existed in my country about something that was done and settled within my family’s four walls under our roof. If Obama were able to get elected, even as a VP, it would soothe that wound in my heart. For me it would represent a willingness in America for a growth and human experience that I have felt sometimes America would never make it to. I just can’t find trust though in the man because I already know his short voting record and it hasn’t been progressive or even Democrat too many times already.
The fact that Obama is a ‘non-threatening’ African American, i.e. not really dark skinned, not loud spoken like Jesse Jackson or Al Sharpton etc., makes him far more electable to your average American who thinks he/she is not prejudiced but really is. He’s way easier for someone like that to vote for than an Al Sharpton.
White Man chase again in twenty words or less 😉
Speaking of Sharpton, he’s come a long way and I hope he throws his hat into the presidential ring again. Like Kucinich he brings up issues that most politicians don’t want to talk about.
Ask him about Tawana Brawley.
How many jokes does the man have to crack before you forgive him. Seriously.
I was discussing this on Tuesday, and I was saying the Sharpton had rehabilitated himself through humor, but the end result was that he was a clown.
He’s no longer a race-baiting lying asshole, but he isn’t exactly a serious Presidential candidate either.
Sorry, I have to agree with RHL here. I just can’t get excited about him yet. It’s amazing to me how he’s gone from zero to contender in the blink of an eye. Perception really is everything. And perception has provided him with something that he doesn’t yet deserve, a shot at the oval office.
That’s fine…I’m not trying to convince anyone I’m right. I certainly don’t subscribe to the silver bullet candidate theory. OTOH if someone really can find me a candidate that will get us universal health care, cause worldwide peace to break out, eat terrorists and shit puppies, I’m all for it.
I just think with Obama, it is less about the man than it is about who he can inspire. Look at how many people got involved in politics for the first time because of Howard Dean. I think Obama could be that++.
ejmw, I do think that you make a point well worth reading, and worth my recommendation.
I can’t really agree with you about Obama being similar to Dean. Dean inspired a lot of us because he was will to say things and take stands that were not calculated. Both he and Obama were outspoken against the war, but Dean took on the media, refused to exhibit false religious poverty, spoke out about globalization, etc. etc., when no one else was willing to do so. I don’t expect to see Obama ruffling many feathers.
He has far more charisma than Dean does, IMO, so maybe he will inspire people, but will they be inspired by his persona or by what he really stands for — assuming we can figure that out after his handlers get through with him?
You’re right, on substance there’s currently no comparison between them. I was offering only the idea that both of them inspire people who previously didn’t care, though they do it in very different ways.
If the people lead, the leaders will follow. In Obama, I see someone who could facilitate the restoration of the leadership to the public.
Interesting comment. I believe that a lot of politicians think they are responsive to the people and that they have the polls and focus groups to prove it. I beleive that Obama is a shrewd politician and will respond to the polls and focus groups as well. I’m already seeing it in the way in which he has publicly embraced religion. We have a lot of people in this country who are not educated about the issues and media that is unwilling to educate them. I want a leader who is well informed and competent. I want one that exhibits integrity and can state his case persuasively.
So the issue is which “people” are leading. The fundies. The bloggers. The youth. The elders. The rural folks. The elite intellectuals. The heads of corporations. No politician is going to please everybody. That’s why I’d love to see a politician who is true to his own conscience, even if I disagree with him/her some times.
I wouldn’t and couldn’t have come at this from the same angle but it kind of summarizes what I think about Obama.
To some degree, he is an empty vessel. Fill him up with the right stuff and you will get great outcomes, but allow him to be filled up by someone or something else and you will be disappointed by the outcome.
In a contrary example we have someone like Dennis Kucinich or Al Sharpton. They have vessels that can be filled with all the good stuff in the world, but they can’t cover the terrain. They can say and do and mean all the right things, but they can do no more than feed some other vessel that will make the full trip.
This isn’t strictly an electability argument. It’s more than that. Certain politicians have the capacity to change the nation and the parties, just through the force of their personality. They transcend party. We’ve only seen a few of them. TR, FDR and LBJ come to mind. Reagan and Clinton fall into some lesser category, mainly because they were so broadly polarizing. But Reagan came the closest of the Republican presidents.
I’m a tough judge, but Teddy Roosevelt and FDR are the only two 20th-Century Presidents that would let do the job again. And I think Eisenhower was the next best, although I still am appalled at some of his foreign policies.
From the radio commentaries I’ve listened in on and from what I’ve read, Obama sure’s a prairie fire across the generational divide and across the aisle wherever he lights: from CA, VT, NH. But can he raise the $40 million to jump start a presidential run?
Maybe people are just famished, for some truth telling.
but,
Wait for Gore “I haven’t ruled it out.” to announce.
UPDATE: December 16th, 2006
John Edwards to announce ’08 run
“In a good position to run
Edwards, however, is in a strong position as the leading candidate in Iowa. He was a top fundraiser in the race for the nomination in 2004 before he became Democratic Sen. John Kerry’s running mate.
Bayh decides not to seek White House.”
because I think this is the most civilised debate I have ever read here. Both sides have very good points to them. For me, I was blown away by Obama’s speech at the 04 convention. I thought, a real up and comer for sure. But the verdict is still out for me. It is way to early for me to make up my mind. I DO want a candidate with substance and not a clone/actor with no soul. That is just another candidate that wil do/say anything to get elected. I want to know what it is other than looks and charisma that have folks so stoked for Obama. Where does he stand on getting us out of Iraq? Will he support gay marriage/civil unions? DOes he believe in a woman’s right to choose? What will he do about Darfur? Global warming? and on and on. I need time to listen to what ALL the candidates are saying and doing.
I think we really need to look at this as a discussion, and not a debate. Because as you say, there is a lot that is still up in the air. That’s why I called this diary “Why I Like Obama” instead of “Why It Has to be Obama”. I like many of the other candidates as well.
It’s my belief that all of the candidates and likely candidates have both their good points and their bad points. Several of them, I feel, would make excellent Presidents.
per debate v discussion. I think one of the biggest reason folks are really liking Obama is they want someone to be excited about. They want that “rock star” magnatisim plus the brains and track regard to go with it. I feel at this point that Obama would make a great running mate as VP, setting him up for 2016 Pres run. We shall see.
To me, Barack Obama personifies everything that is wrong about American politics and those who consume it. He’s fast food. Tastes good, but in the long run it constricts your heart and can kill you. Empty, contrived and poll driven words do not inspire me. Physical beauty does not inspire me. Ethnicity does not inspire me. Deeds, conviction and an inate ability to reach into the life of the average person who knows bullshit when they see it and are so goddamned sick and tired of being played by the system…that inspires me. Obama is a beltway player now. I don’t know much about who he was before now, but now is all that matters to me. Obama can’t even begin to get his foot in my door.
Consider the alternatives. Two years (then four) in the Senate is mild compared to his competitors’ beltway credentials. I’m more concerned about a general lack of executive experience.
I don’t see him as slick or contrived or empty. I see him as honest and trustworthy and good-hearted and intelligent and articulate. I’m hoping his handlers don’t change him.
Just my instinct talking here.
I’m older than both Booman and ejmw, therefore I’ve seen a lot of candidates from Kennedy to the present. I even remember Eisenhower’s heart attack as a little girl, as well as Earl Long deconstructing before the eyes of Louisiana and the rest of the nation.
I’ve grown more cynical since Robert Kennedy’s assassination, because he was the last man who could marshal the respect and enthusiasm of people of color and of middle- and lower-class whites, and not just because his name was Kennedy. He embodied leadership, values and class, not just money or coolness. This last Kennedy gave me a yardstick for the kind of Dem candidate for whom I could give unqualified support.
Nowadays, I’ve been disappointed that we’ve been getting a long line of pathetic standard-bearers who just don’t inspire confidence at all, much less the kind of fire in the gut that would make me unashamed to support one of them. And that includes god-himself Clinton.
The first time I voted, in 1972, I voted for McGovern. He was the peace candidate, even though he had been in World War II. He had the support of most of the young and minorities, the Hollywood movie types (before the likes of Dennis Hopper voted Repub) and the music industry types. Unfortunately, because he was the candidate of the long-haired hippies, of youth, and of peace, and not law and order and Vietnamization, he went down to defeat.
I cannot bring myself to vote for Barack Obama. Because unlike McGovern and Dean,
You know, black folks used to pray that they would be able to get the kind of senators, cabinet members, and presidents that they would not be ashamed to own, and to step up for.
Instead, we’ve got sellouts or embarrassments like Condi, Thomas, and Powell who just want to get paid, and who are pointed out to us as leaders. But these are on the Repub side.
Obama is not yet on my sellout list for Dems. He’s not yet a leader in my eyes. And I have learned over the years that Reverends Sharpton and Jackson don’t always have my interests in mind either, but who ya gonna call?
I am still asking where is Obama going to be with my and our particular issues? When is he, and possibly others like him coming up the pike, going to be our leader as well and not sell black folks out in order to get the acclaim of whites because he’s not like Sharpton or Jesse?
More and more I have come to believe that the minute Obama does something ‘black’ that whites do not like or support or is different from what they think about him–that his support will waver and even plunge.
ejmw is of another generation that doesn’t necessarily trust the touchstones of history, or read books that shakes up their ideas about other people or countries or issues, or equip themselves to get serious by analyzing. And I am going by what I see and experience as an instructor in college classrooms. And it can be demoralizing to see them misread or go by Faux News knee-jerk faulty logic how the world actually is.
I’m also of the last generation (Mid-Boomer) that did not use the power of the image to give me all the information that I needed. We read. We experienced. We went elsewhere for answers, including ourselves. Most of all, we distrusted authority, including the authority of the image.
The image can really throw people for a loop. Because what you see is not necessarily there.
I feel the same way about Barack Obama. Two years is not enough time to make him memorable, real and real black for my taste. And after reading an article in the November issue of Harper’s written by Ken Silverstein, Barack Obama, Inc., I’m even more reserved about allowing myself to be carried away.
This: I’m also of the last generation (Mid-Boomer) that did not use the power of the image to give me all the information that I needed. We read. We experienced. We went elsewhere for answers, including ourselves. Most of all, we distrusted authority, including the authority of the image.
It’s my experience that Gen X deeply mistrusts authority and image both. I think we see image largely as a production of focus groups and advertising and not something that anyone should trust ever. It’s also my experience that Gen X is very focused on going elsewhere for answers, including reading in the blogosphere and elsewhere. That’s part of why I need to see a lot more substance from Obama before I’d consider him.
List five accomplishments Obama has acheived on the federal level. List five.
No offense, but did you even read my diary?
Yes, I did.
I could simply say “what blksista said” and “what Booman said”. Obama reminds me of a character on StarTrek Next Generation, who became whoever the person she was with wanted her to be. Now, I don’t think he is that sort, really, but it’s how he is held by the perceiver. Many people see him as reflecting their values, their hopes. Many middle and upper class people, I think. He’s a nice, attractive, smart person, who isn’t Hillary Clinton, nor a retired General, nor a Governor of an obscure state, nor a “loser” politician, nor a person from a part of the country that we are so often ashamed of.
I’ll same some more potentially unpopular things: I do think Obama passes the paper bag test. He is light-skinned, non-threatening to white persons. He doesn’t personally carry the history of former slavery – that’s to his advantage in certain white circles, sad to say. However, it is wrong to assume that he will automatically be charismatic to Black citizens and other people. He came to Detroit and was greeted cordially and with enthusiasm – but not, in my opinion, with wild fervor and intense excitement. I did not see the same kind of feeling that I saw when Jesse Jackson’s visit produced astonishing voter turnout where I was living.
Neither do I think getting people excited is necessarily the mark of outstanding leadership. It’s more the cult of personality at work, and I don’t think we know enough about what Obama has in his personality to be sure he should be the President. Give him some seasoning in a Senate that isn’t totally hamstrung by
Republican control, and see what he will do. Maybe then. . .
I’d suggest that all of you who have serious problems with Obama read his first book, “Dreams from My Father: Stories of Race and Inheritance.” He wrote it after he had finished law school and, rather than going for the position in a big law firm, went to Chicago to be a community organizer. His life experience is definitely unique, being the son of a Kenyan and American, but his mother also married a second time and moved the family to Indonesia while Barak was growing up. He explains in the book his rather complicated jouney to find an identity.
I don’t think the book will take away any reservations people have about him. I know that it just makes me more confused. What I see in the book and what I see today from him don’t necessarily jive. But it does make me think that there is more to him than we’ve seen so far. So I’m not ready to write him off yet – still watching.
It would be fun to resurrect the “book club” here at booman. We could read this book together and discuss what we think.
different cultural experiences I think his problem solving potential would be vast. I sense about him that “vessel” thing also. As odd and unpredictable as he strikes me sometimes personally, I am willing to listen to others too who I have come to respect the judgment of in the past. I don’t think he is a messiah but no man is and as my father always has said, who wants to be one because look at what they did to the last one ;). My judgment has never been without flaws and if the majority nominated him I would vote for him.
but his community organizing days are OVAH.
What about right now?
One year ago.
What has he done? What are his plans?
What does he feel about Katrina/New Orleans, police killings of minority citizens, Social Security and health care? And what does he plan to do about it, other than tout some company’s product in order to get it done? See the link that I provided in my earlier post.
How is he providing leadership, not posturing and PR? Because, frankly, that is what the book is. PR.
Dig deeper.
(Pardon me if I seem impatient and dismissive. But I am fucking sick and tired of PR, and I’m wanting action and leadership, not platitudes, excuses, and photo ops.)
I share your concerns, and pointed out my confusion. But I must add, that the book I referenced was written long before he ever ran for any office. I don’t see it as any PR for a political campaign. His latest book – another story.
The democrats seem to be falling in behind the idea of sending more troops to Iraq and the continued funding of both wars. Instead of addressing that issue, I see the cult of personality alive and well on this site. I’m with Louisiana girl.
What has Obama done for the working class? In that respect, what have the democrats done for the working class? They will throw a few crumbs our way, we can count on that.
In the meantime, our resources and our children’s future is disappearing down the black hole of Iraq.