Reflecting on Obama's Speech
Saturday, August 30, 2008 (16:59:13)
Posted by horatio
I imagine by now that most people have had a chance to digest the speech Obama gave, and maybe even read reactions and supporters comments afterwards. Well, on a whim I decided to watch the speech at a friends place, and figured I'd offer my two cents as an 'objective' viewer (objective in that I'm neither an Obama or McCain fan). In case you missed his speech, you can watch it here or read it here.
My primary problem with all the back slapping and supporter comments so far is that they lack substance, and are primarily emotional cheerleading lacking critical reflection. I'm sorry, but that was not a "great" speech, either from a rhetorical or an oratorical perspective. I have seen him better present himself on the campaign trail or even in Congress, and with a few exceptions, I really was disappointed. I was expecting a rousing, Dr. King or Fidel style speech where he really marked out his territory and worked the crowd into an ecstatic frenzy. I never saw it, unless you consider the occasional mass booing of Bush and Chaney to by a "frenzy." Geesh, I think I got more goosebumps listening to Aragorn or V or William Wallace.
continued in Read More link...
Sure, these may all be different context, and no I wasn't expecting Obama to give some we are going to battle with the evil forces of the Bush army speech, but I really was hoping to get something that really resonated with me, and that just didn't happen. The whole speech felt too scripted (which it was) even if it was his own, and lacked the chutzpah that I was expecting for such a defining moment in time. I don't need Obama to tell me that things are bad, that pretty frickin' obvious!
Ok, so here are a few specific examples of major problems I had with the speech:
1. Clean Coal
Ok, when will people in this country get it through their heads that there is NO SUCH THING as clean coal, period! It doesn't exist, and is entirely a myth of the coal industry and their lobbyists in DC. Sure, some grades of coal have less sulphur, and so release less toxins and C02 into the air, but that does not equal "clean." I'd love to hear Obama talk about "clean coal" to some of my friends in VA/WV who have had their entire mountainsides clearcut, their homes destroyed and their futures ruined, all in order to get to that "clean coal," just how great it really is.
2. Immigration
Oh yeah, you missed that too huh. Funny, he started to talk about immigration and then said nothing! This was the biggest BS dodge I have seen in years.
| Quote:: |
| You know, passions may fly on immigration, but I don't know anyone who benefits when a mother is separated from her infant child or an employer undercuts American wages by hiring illegal workers. But this, too, is part of America's promise, the promise of a democracy where we can find the strength and grace to bridge divides and unite in common effort. |
Um, excuse me Mr. Obama, but you and me and every American benefits. Did you eat a salad this week, or have spaghetti or salsa or a steak or an omelet or...I could go on but I think you get the point. This country is ENTIRELY dependent on immigrant and undocumented labor, especially in the ag. sector, to survive. So to say that "I don't know anyone who benefits when a mother is separated from her infant child or an employer undercuts American wages by hiring illegal workers" is disengenuous at best, and outright anti-immigrant at worst. Once again, it shows that he is no more in touch with the reality of immigrant workers in this country than Bush (who for the record seems to be more in touch with migrant workers' reality). And as far as the illegal workers go, well, let's see. How about ConAgra, Heinz, Cargill, Kellog, Nabisco, General Mills, etc ... They all benefit from cheap migrant labor. And let's not even get into a discussion about job outsourcing by major MNCs, since that's an even uglier issue that is blamed on immigrant wage depression but really is about corporate profits, period! It sounds nice to say bad, shame on you, but this is just classic Orwellian newspeak.
3. GLBT
Oh yeah, thankfully he put in his two cents on this issue two:
| Quote:: |
| "I know there are differences on same-sex marriage, but surely we can agree that our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters deserve to visit the person they love in a hospital and to live lives free of discrimination." |
Hummm, what about being married, getting equal health coverage and being treated like normal people instead of second-class citizens. Guess that's still too much to ask.
4. Oil and Energy Independence
Yeah, once again, lots of nice talk but mostly hot air. Take this one example:
| Quote:: |
| And for the sake of our economy, our security, and the future of our planet, I will set a clear goal as president: In 10 years, we will finally end our dependence on oil from the Middle East. |
Come on Obama, get real. There is no way in heaven or hell that is going to happen, period! It would take more than 10 years to even begin to build the infrastructure...and with the efficiency of this current Congress, it would probably take 10 years just to agree on a bill, much less vote and fund it! This is simply nonsense pandering to the outraged voters over record oil and gas profits year after year!! And while it was good to tell people they have to also conserve energy, he didn't mention anything about riding a bike, walking or commuting, much less public transportation.
5. Race and Racial Equality
Yeah, I'm not the only one that noticed this. Why did he not even MENTION the racial injustice rampant in this country?! Is he afraid he is going to scare off the middle class whites? In fact, he didn't even mention the words race or injustice in his speech. Don't believe me, do a find query on his speech, the closest word is "grace." I simply don't understand how a black man in his position, with that many people all watching and supporting him, can simply ignore all the racial problems in this country? It blows my mind, especially since he has addressed this issue before.
Ok, so those are just a few examples of my critique of his speech, but I don't want to end on a total sour note, because I did like some of what he had to say, it just didn't come out enough to gain any new support for his cause. So here's what I think is the highlight of his speech, and probably what I would have liked him to spend a lot of his speech actually addressing, in concrete, substantive ways:
| Quote:: |
| Individual responsibility and mutual responsibility, that's the essence of America's promise. And just as we keep our promise to the next generation here at home, so must we keep America's promise abroad. |
If he had taken those two lines and made that his centerpiece for his speech, I think it would have made a much stronger speech, and one that would have resounded much more deeply with the public. Right now, so many people are jaded and apathetic, what we need is not another person to tell us how they are going to fix things for us, but someone who can inspire us to re-engage and fix things ourselves.
I think that was one of the strengths of the mid-late 60's, whether it was Dr. King, Malcolm X, JFK, Mario Savio or Huey P Newton: they all spoke about empowerment and individual and community action, ie. collective action.
From my vantage point, that's one of the major problems in this country, we lack a sense of collective action (perhaps with the exception of bombing the shit out of Afghans or Iraqis-an issue where the majority of us seem quite content to do nothing but collectively complain). If nothing else, I hope people keep pushing him to address these issues and take a more critical, but not over-the-top, stance on these issues, and *maybe* even change his position on some of these...here's to hoping.