I wanted to say something earlier about this whole Bill O’Reilly/Dennis Miller vs Jay Z/Jeezy issue but refrained from doing so. But I can’t let it go.
As you may or may not know I always come to the defense of hip hop when ‘outsiders’ try to demean or denigrate the art form that I love. I defended Luda when he expressed how he felt about Madame Secretary Hillary Clinton. Like I said then, I’ll say now. I may not agree with his choice of words but I understand and agree with the point he was making. So back to the whole ‘President is black’ debacle…
I was over at Eb the Celeb’s spot * Hey Eb!!! What up!!* and I saw this post (<—click here)and I felt that it summed up what I am feeling to a tee. So hop on over and read it, but before you do I’m gonna give you just a taste of how I feel.
Okay first I gotta say that Nas really REALLY disappointed me on this one! I mean they more than likely picked him for this song because of his ability to make conscious records right? Does he bring that to this politically charged track? No!! He’s rapping about strippers, rose gold and rims. What the hell? Smarten up Nas! Now personally, I don’t think the song was offensive or inappropiate for the moment. Maybe it’s because I’m a big Jeezy/Jay Z fan and that’s overriding my senses, but to me the song was not that offensive. Just like in Luda’s case I’m sure some of the things said could have been said differently but what ever happened to freedom of speech? I mean really? It’s the first amendent to the constitution!
Now in the same token that goes both ways. Mr. O’reilly and Dennis Miller are protected under that same amendment to say whatever they feel about hip hop and that song/show but I also have that right to state that I disagree with them. Not fully, but partially disagree. They did present a good argument that that may not have been the right place but who are they to say when and where I can express my support or non support for the president or anybody?
My issue is that there are way worse things going on and that have happened than a song supporting and showing love for the first African American president. I mean we made history, can we relish in it for just a bit? Not too long though because we have work to do, but just for a little while. Why does it seem that he is constantly attacking Hip hop? *Sidenote; I’m still mad that nobody stood up for those Dixie Chicks when they were anti war/Bush and Toby Keith went hard on them with that wack ass patriotic song he made! If I was blogging back then I would have had their backs!!* Life is so much bigger than rap!
Anyway check out my girl Eb’s Post
Peace Sincere
*Update: So here’s the remix to the Remix that Bill & Dennis were talking about. This time Jeezy goes in on them, along with Bernard Maddow and a little extra on Former President Bush
Here is the awe inspiring inaugural speech by President Obama *Feels so good to say that!* (full text below if videos stop working. Reading is fundamental!)
My fellow citizens:
I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.
Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of our forbearers, and true to our founding documents.
So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.
That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.
These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land – a nagging fear that America’s decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.
Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America – they will be met.
On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.
On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.
We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.
In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted – for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things – some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.
For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.
For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.
For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.
Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.
This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions – that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.
For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act – not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology’s wonders to raise health care’s quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. And all this we will do.
Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions – who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.
What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them – that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works – whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end.. And those of us who manage the public’s dollars will be held to account – to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day – because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.
Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control – and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our Gross Domestic Product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on our ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart – not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.
As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience’s sake. And so to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.
Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.
We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort – even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.
For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus – and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.
To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society’s ills on the West – know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.
To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world’s resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.
As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us today, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment – a moment that will define a generation – it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.
For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter’ s courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent’s willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.
Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends – hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism – these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility – a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.
This is the price and the promise of citizenship.
This is the source of our confidence – the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.
This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed – why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.
So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America’s birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:
“Let it be told to the future world…that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive…that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet [it].”
America. In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children’s children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God’s grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.
It surprises me everyday at what we allow ourselves to be subjected to without even giving it a second thought. I really do believe that some of us have become so oversensitive to things that it has desensitized us. Or maybe I’m just one of those that thinks everything is a jab at something. to understand what I’m saying peep this.
Is it me or this racist? I mean they haven’t done anything like this for any other president. I get the whole idea of them doing it for whatever reason * They say that this is in recognition of one of the most defining moments in history and that they will donate a portion of the proceeds to the Thurgood Marshall college fund as a part of their continuing and longstanding commitment with the urban community. * I‘m not hating, but I’m just saying.. I find it kind of offensive but that’s just me. I mean there’s already a liquor store on just about every corner in the hood, so I guess they’re trying to capitalize off this as well.
Here’s another example.
*That’s Oklahoma State Senator Judy Easton Mcintyre on the right, if you were wondering*
I truly don’t like this. I mean an afro with the pick in it? come on we have got to do better! I really can’t see any black person proudly wearing this. but I guess I’m wrong. When I showed this to a couple of folks I got mixed reviews. Some offended, some wanted to know where to get it and some didn’t care either way. I can’t endorse this buffoonery. Sorry no sir/ma’am, not me. Not happening.
Oh and don’t forget these to go along with your shirt
Don’t worry I’m sure they come in all kinds of shades and colors… *closing the browser tab as I shake my head in disgust* But for real, you may want to cop those kicks because if you plan on going than you will have to walk everywhere!
I’m sure, matter of fact I know there are plenty of products out there made just to cash in on the 44th president, but please be aware that we are on display and this buffoonery needs to stop. I’m just tired of it. I knew that it would get worse as the inauguration event drew closer, but come on. I’m sure that on the 21st videos and pics of all kinds of stuff will be swirling around the internet. Like I said earlier, we have got to do better! Remember, The Inauguration is not Freaknik DC okay? Okay. Let’s celebrate it with the type of class that it deserves.
Okay so I heard this song a little bit ago as it was making it’s way around youtube and emails and I have to say it’s pretty offensive on many levels to many people. I understand that this is a satirical piece (similar to the cover of The New Yorker, with Barack dressed like Osama Bin Laden and Michelle as Angela Davis, months ago). I get that it’s supposed to be offensive and cause a stir, but when is offensive too offensive? when do we realize that even though controversy sells, it lowers our image and integrity. Come on people, we have to wisen up a bit. It’s a new day.
Larry Elder.
I have seen this guy around quite a bit on these news channels and it’s always the same. He’s an ass. Bottom line, no way around it. He’s written a few books (which I won’t plug by name or supply a website for to support) that I guess makes him feel he’s an expert on things. He’s a black republican, which I have no problem with. Heck, I’m a black libertarian/independent. But I mention that he is a black republican because it seems to me that in his eyes the republican party can do no wrong. At least that’s how it seems to be to me. He calls himself the “Sage from South Central” but seems more like the “Coon from California”. Dude seems, and his bio shows, highly educated but like Nana Sincere says ‘you can pay for school, but you can’t buy class”. Honestly, he’s real hit and miss with me though. it’s like he panders to the audience or host as opposed to be real and true to how he really feels about something.
Now back to the video. I understand we live in a politically correct world and that we are way too oversensitive when it comes to any and everything but did that somehow desensitize us? Has oversensitivity actually desensitized us? Hmmm… What I mean by that is, are we the little boy on the mountain? Have we been crying wolf for so long that when something offensive actually comes along that we can’t recognize it for what it really is?
2008 Rap Up-clean – Skillz
This year has been pretty crazy. I mean this is going to go down in history as a year to remember! Anything that could have happened probably happened this year. I know you’ll probably see all kinds of 2008 reviews but these are the stories that meant something to me. Enjoy;
(In no Particular order)
The most important and #1 event that took place this year was Nov 4th 2008. You all know what I’m talking about. That was the night that Barrack Hussein Obama won the presidential election! This was something that no one ever expected to happen. I truly never thought that I would see it in my lifetime, maybe Boogie’s but not mine. History in the making. A change we can believe in!!!
The AIG bailout- This was crazy because this was the first time something like this hit so close to home. You always think ‘ that’s messed up what’s happening to them‘, never realizing that you could be them. You know?
The price of gas goes through the roof- Remeber when gas was like $1 something? Yeah the good old days… This year we saw gas as high as over $5 in my area. It was crazy, and then after hurricane Ike hit Texas, while the rest of the country’s gas prices were going down, Atlanta had the nerve to have a shortage on gas! Something about the grade of gas being higher than the rest of the country or some other foolishness.
The $700 billion bailout – Crazy!! No one was safe!! first Bear Sterns, then Lehman Brothers, Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae and a host of other banks and institutions fell, were bought out by others (Bank of America racked up!) or the Feds took control of them. Everybody’s money was funny.
A metrolink train in California collides head on with another because one of the drivers was *allegedly* texting while driving and missed the signals to stop.
The Olympics – Micheal Phelps won a gang of gold medals. Not really a swim fan but it’s still an incredible feat to get gold in every event you participate in. Usain Bolt of Jamaica set fire to the track! He also took the gold in every event he participated in, but was overshadowed by his ‘so called’ lack of sportmanship by basically jogging the last 30 meters of the record breaking 9.65 sec 100 meter dash. They say he could have done at least 9.5 or maybe even 9.4 had he gone full out. I really don’t care because he does what he does. When you’re the best you do this. * sidenote: whatever happened to sportsmanship in pro sports period? No one follows through or plays the fundamentals that were embedded in them as kids. taking off on defense, not shaking hands at the end of game w/ opponent etc..* Dude from America came in second to Usain in the 200 but stepped on the line and was disqualified. That had to suck to know that you’re the second fastest but technically some other dude gets the award.
Lil Wayne sells a milli in a week- Whether you’re a weezy fan or not or even if you’re not a fan of hip hop/rap music you have to respect someone that sells that many records in one week. Especially in this economy and with the music industry’s troubles selling records. Now whether cash money bought 900,000 of those is unknown. The jury is still out on that one. Still think Jeezy’s Recession > Weezy’s Carter 3. It was cool but that’s just my opinion.
We lost some great ones this year as well – Heath Ledger, Bobby Fischer, Yves Saint Laurent, Bo Diddly, George Carlin, Jesse Helms, Eartha Kitt, Bernie Mac, Isaac Hayes, and Betty Page. I’m sure I missed somebody because I just thought of those names off the dome. Oh yeah, and Paul Newman.
There has been some wack music to come out this year, but some good music as well. I’ll just talk about the good… Here’s my list of artists that got heavy rotation from me in ’08 (google them):
Wale
Marky
The Cool Kids
Kid Cudi
Charles Hamilton
Young Jeezy
Black Milk
Talib Kweli
Jay Z
Nas
Jazmine Sullivan
Santogold
Kanye West
Lil Wayne
The Game
Ludacris
The Insomniaks
Kidz In The Hall
Lyriciss
Michael Jackson
N.E.R.D.
Raheem DeVaughnn
Robin Thicke
Shontelle
X.O.
Theo
Ra The MC
UCB
Chuck Brown
Trey Songz
New Edition
Joy Denalane
John Legend
Anthony Hamilton
Jamie Foxx
Frankie J
Scarface
The list could literally go on and on, but those were the ones that came to mind. As you can see I mixed in some ‘underground’ with ‘mainstream’ along with some ‘new school’ matched up against ‘old school’.
So those were my highlights and lowlights of 2008. Well those were the ones that mattered to me. I’m sure there were more I mean it was a leap year so 366 days plus an extra second so I know someone else may have your favorite moment out there if it’s not here.
Oh yeah, in ’09 can we please bury the word or term ‘swagger, swagga, swag’ or any interpolation of the word? I mean it has been so overused this year it’s ridiculous! When Old Spice comes out with a whole line (Body spray, body wash and deodorant) named ‘Swagger’ you know it’s a wrap! once mainstream gets ahold of it, it’s over!
I have wrestled with the idea of writing something on the election. I knew I had to say something about it but I don’t like to re-hash what’s already been said a milli times on other blogs. I think that’s why people come to my spot so they can get my thoughts on things and not a post of what someone else thinks. so I decided to put it my way. I am extremely excited to see ‘that one’ win the election, but we can’t stop there. I feel that this is a stepping stone to a better black america. We can’t rely on him to fix everything alone. The same way we all came together to get the word out and vote for him, we need to get together and make a difference in our individual communities. don’t get complacent and think that since we have a black president than we’re all good. He’s not just the president of black america, he’s the president of ALL america! Remember that. I want to start an initiative to mentor the youth and let them know that there’s more to life than what they can even imagine. Each one teach one type of thing.
I just feel like celebration is cool but we have got to get back on the grind and start making things happen. Obama has helped to break the some of the stereotypes surrounding black people (especially men) but it’s up to me and you to go even further and smash even more stereotypes. We’ve come a long way and there’s no turning back. Gotta keep moving forward!!
Rosa sat so Martin could walk. Martin walked so Barack could run. Barack ran so we could fly.
So on monday I went to do my advanced voting. I decided to go early because I didn’t want to take time off from work to do it and because I didn’t want to stand in line all day on Nov. 4th to get it done. I went after work but the line wasn’t as long as I thought it would be. I’m not sure if it was because of the location or the time. Some people that were leaving had been there for like 4-5 hours waiting. They said that at one point only one machine was working to verify voter’s info. When I got up there everything was working fine and the lines were moving fairly quickly. I was there about 2- 2.5 hrs before I was able to cast my ballot.
I really felt like I was a part of history. This is my third time voting and I have never felt that much electricity and anticipation as I inched closer and closer to the polling place. I say take advantage of the advanced/early voting because on the day of it’s going to be bananas!! I wanted to document the moment on film/digital but I was told that no cameras were allowed so here’s a short take I did later:
I tend to have these random thoughts that pop into my head at any given moment. I used to jot them down as they came but now that we are in the digital age I record the little tidbits on my phone. Here are a few from today:
Is it just me or is it a little late for Gen. Powell to finally endorse Sen. Obama? I mean, I know it’s not a publicity thing but a few weeks before the election When Obama is predicted to pretty much run away with it? I know it’s not a bandwagon thing, but better late than never right? I guess…
I think Twitter has taken me over. I am always on whether i’m replying or not. Kinda feel a little stalker-ish when I don’t say anything though.
Are Charles Hamilton and Asher Roth both really as good as the internet hypes them to be? Or are we caught in the matrix? Do people feel like ‘if this site links to the mixtape and says they are dope than I’ll link too to get traffic and say that they’re dope’. I was just listening to the Charles Hamilton jawn and I kinda dig it, but is it because everybody says I should dig it or do I really dig it? Kinda like when the radio plays that one song that you can’t stand all the time, after a while you start to think it’s hot even though it’s not. Hmm…
Why do people not know the definition of ‘Business casual’? The get the casual part but not the business. That means you can’t wear your pedicure shoes that you got from Ling Ling’s salon or those stretch pants you wear around the house to work. Okay? Okay.
Why is my wireless internet and cable ALWAYS having some kind of issue? Seems theres always an ‘outage’ in my area. Yeah right. Thanks Charter. Thanks for nothing!!
I really need to take some more pictures and actually print them, not just leave them on my sd card.
I wonder if I can clone myself. If I did would I do double the work or just double the goofing off?
That’s about it for now. Just some random thoughts I recorded today.
Seems the Obama campaign has turned that negative slight of tongue into a positive. In this video people of all backgrounds all say that they are ‘that one’ interwoven with Barack’s DNC Acceptance speech. The video was very well edited and kind of a slap to McCain and that whole ‘that one’ line. Please enjoy the video below and don’t forget to vote for change.
For like the past 2-3 weeks I have been sort of down in the dumps per se and the news I got on monday at work did not make things better. I guess when it rains it pours… Okay as we all know, unless you have been living under a rock or bunker somewhere, the country is in a recession. This really hit home for me earlier this week. As some of you may know I work for a major financial company that has been hit hard. When I say hard I mean hard! To the tune of a $75 BILLION debt with no collateral assets to use to bail us out. How the hell (excuse my language in this post, but I’m a little upset) can the 2nd largest company of it’s kind in the WORLD be in such debt and not have anyway of bailing itself out? That is crazy! Our stock is worth 90% less than it was a year ago. So the feds stepped in and loaned us $85 Billion over the next two years to keep the doors open and the company running. This comes with a price. In exchange for the loot, they now own 79.9% of the company and will be selling off portions with all proceeds going to pay back the loan. CEOs are being replaced left and right.
This actually could have been avoided, but we (when I say we I really mean they) wouldn’t accept any of the offers on the table thinking that the company was worth more than they were willing to give.
We (I mean we this time) really didn’t have any idea as to what was going on. I mean, there were little signs like not taking on new clients, closing of a division company wide, and different budget cuts but they are also doing construction upgrades company wide. $20 million worth in my building alone. I knew we weren’t doing as well as before but I didn’t know it was that bad.
So as the government steps in to help, some people are saying that they shouldn’t. “They got themselves into this mess, so they should get themselves out.” I can totally agree but you also have to think about the more than 127 million companies and people that we service worldwide on a daily basis. If they didn’t step in and bail us out, you think the economy is bad now imagine the millions of people all around the world that would be unemployed over let’s say a 3-4 month period. They had to act whether they wanted to or not. We had pretty much 24-48 hours to come up with %75 billion. It’s hard to come up with $100 at times let alone $75 billion!
Today we had a town hall meeting today where they explained some of what was going down and how to reassure our clients that we are going to be okay. This is a scary financial time right about now. If this doesn’t encourage you to go out and vote, and take a friend, than you gotta be crazy. I won’t tell you who to vote for, but I will say vote on the issues not so much the candidate. Put the right person in the white house this time. I support Barack Obama because I want a change and not more of the same. If you think John McCain has the answer than do you. Stand by your choice, right or wrong.
If any of you guys are like me, than I suggest you start filling those shoe boxes with loot for a rainy day and get your umbrellas and ponchos ready because it’s already drizzling and the dam is starting to show cracks.
Peace,
Sincere
PS: Video to accompany coming soon, just gotta take the time to sit and record.
Here is video and the full transcript from last night’s Democratic national convention as delivered be the presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama.
To Chairman Dean and my great friend Dick Durbin; and to all my fellow citizens of this great nation;
With profound gratitude and great humility, I accept your nomination for the presidency of the United States.
Let me express my thanks to the historic slate of candidates who accompanied me on this journey, and especially the one who traveled the farthest – a champion for working Americans and an inspiration to my daughters and to yours — Hillary Rodham Clinton. To President Clinton, who last night made the case for change as only he can make it; to Ted Kennedy, who embodies the spirit of service; and to the next Vice President of the United States, Joe Biden, I thank you. I am grateful to finish this journey with one of the finest statesmen of our time, a man at ease with everyone from world leaders to the conductors on the Amtrak train he still takes home every night.
To the love of my life, our next First Lady, Michelle Obama, and to Sasha and Malia – I love you so much, and I’m so proud of all of you.
Four years ago, I stood before you and told you my story – of the brief union between a young man from Kenya and a young woman from Kansas who weren’t well-off or well-known, but shared a belief that in America, their son could achieve whatever he put his mind to.
It is that promise that has always set this country apart – that through hard work and sacrifice, each of us can pursue our individual dreams but still come together as one American family, to ensure that the next generation can pursue their dreams as well.
That’s why I stand here tonight. Because for two hundred and thirty two years, at each moment when that promise was in jeopardy, ordinary men and women – students and soldiers, farmers and teachers, nurses and janitors — found the courage to keep it alive.
We meet at one of those defining moments – a moment when our nation is at war, our economy is in turmoil, and the American promise has been threatened once more.
Tonight, more Americans are out of work and more are working harder for less. More of you have lost your homes and even more are watching your home values plummet. More of you have cars you can’t afford to drive, credit card bills you can’t afford to pay, and tuition that’s beyond your reach.
These challenges are not all of government’s making. But the failure to respond is a direct result of a broken politics in Washington and the failed policies of George W. Bush.
America, we are better than these last eight years. We are a better country than this.
This country is more decent than one where a woman in Ohio, on the brink of retirement, finds herself one illness away from disaster after a lifetime of hard work.
This country is more generous than one where a man in Indiana has to pack up the equipment he’s worked on for twenty years and watch it shipped off to China, and then chokes up as he explains how he felt like a failure when he went home to tell his family the news.
We are more compassionate than a government that lets veterans sleep on our streets and families slide into poverty; that sits on its hands while a major American city drowns before our eyes.
Tonight, I say to the American people, to Democrats and Republicans and Independents across this great land – enough! This moment – this election – is our chance to keep, in the 21st century, the American promise alive. Because next week, in Minnesota, the same party that brought you two terms of George Bush and Dick Cheney will ask this country for a third. And we are here because we love this country too much to let the next four years look like the last eight. On November 4th, we must stand up and say: “Eight is enough.”
Now let there be no doubt. The Republican nominee, John McCain, has worn the uniform of our country with bravery and distinction, and for that we owe him our gratitude and respect. And next week, we’ll also hear about those occasions when he’s broken with his party as evidence that he can deliver the change that we need.
But the record’s clear: John McCain has voted with George Bush ninety percent of the time. Senator McCain likes to talk about judgment, but really, what does it say about your judgment when you think George Bush has been right more than ninety percent of the time? I don’t know about you, but I’m not ready to take a ten percent chance on change.
The truth is, on issue after issue that would make a difference in your lives – on health care and education and the economy – Senator McCain has been anything but independent. He said that our economy has made “great progress” under this President. He said that the fundamentals of the economy are strong. And when one of his chief advisors – the man who wrote his economic plan – was talking about the anxiety Americans are feeling, he said that we were just suffering from a “mental recession,” and that we’ve become, and I quote, “a nation of whiners.”
A nation of whiners? Tell that to the proud auto workers at a Michigan plant who, after they found out it was closing, kept showing up every day and working as hard as ever, because they knew there were people who counted on the brakes that they made. Tell that to the military families who shoulder their burdens silently as they watch their loved ones leave for their third or fourth or fifth tour of duty. These are not whiners. They work hard and give back and keep going without complaint. These are the Americans that I know.
Now, I don’t believe that Senator McCain doesn’t care what’s going on in the lives of Americans. I just think he doesn’t know. Why else would he define middle-class as someone making under five million dollars a year? How else could he propose hundreds of billions in tax breaks for big corporations and oil companies but not one penny of tax relief to more than one hundred million Americans? How else could he offer a health care plan that would actually tax people’s benefits, or an education plan that would do nothing to help families pay for college, or a plan that would privatize Social Security and gamble your retirement?
It’s not because John McCain doesn’t care. It’s because John McCain doesn’t get it.
For over two decades, he’s subscribed to that old, discredited Republican philosophy – give more and more to those with the most and hope that prosperity trickles down to everyone else. In Washington, they call this the Ownership Society, but what it really means is – you’re on your own. Out of work? Tough luck. No health care? The market will fix it. Born into poverty? Pull yourself up by your own bootstraps – even if you don’t have boots. You’re on your own.
Well it’s time for them to own their failure. It’s time for us to change America.
You see, we Democrats have a very different measure of what constitutes progress in this country.
We measure progress by how many people can find a job that pays the mortgage; whether you can put a little extra money away at the end of each month so you can someday watch your child receive her college diploma. We measure progress in the 23 million new jobs that were created when Bill Clinton was President – when the average American family saw its income go up $7,500 instead of down $2,000 like it has under George Bush.
We measure the strength of our economy not by the number of billionaires we have or the profits of the Fortune 500, but by whether someone with a good idea can take a risk and start a new business, or whether the waitress who lives on tips can take a day off to look after a sick kid without losing her job – an economy that honors the dignity of work.
The fundamentals we use to measure economic strength are whether we are living up to that fundamental promise that has made this country great – a promise that is the only reason I am standing here tonight.
Because in the faces of those young veterans who come back from Iraq and Afghanistan, I see my grandfather, who signed up after Pearl Harbor, marched in Patton’s Army, and was rewarded by a grateful nation with the chance to go to college on the GI Bill.
In the face of that young student who sleeps just three hours before working the night shift, I think about my mom, who raised my sister and me on her own while she worked and earned her degree; who once turned to food stamps but was still able to send us to the best schools in the country with the help of student loans and scholarships.
When I listen to another worker tell me that his factory has shut down, I remember all those men and women on the South Side of Chicago who I stood by and fought for two decades ago after the local steel plant closed.
And when I hear a woman talk about the difficulties of starting her own business, I think about my grandmother, who worked her way up from the secretarial pool to middle-management, despite years of being passed over for promotions because she was a woman. She’s the one who taught me about hard work. She’s the one who put off buying a new car or a new dress for herself so that I could have a better life. She poured everything she had into me. And although she can no longer travel, I know that she’s watching tonight, and that tonight is her night as well.
I don’t know what kind of lives John McCain thinks that celebrities lead, but this has been mine. These are my heroes. Theirs are the stories that shaped me. And it is on their behalf that I intend to win this election and keep our promise alive as President of the United States.
What is that promise?
It’s a promise that says each of us has the freedom to make of our own lives what we will, but that we also have the obligation to treat each other with dignity and respect.
It’s a promise that says the market should reward drive and innovation and generate growth, but that businesses should live up to their responsibilities to create American jobs, look out for American workers, and play by the rules of the road.
Ours is a promise that says government cannot solve all our problems, but what it should do is that which we cannot do for ourselves – protect us from harm and provide every child a decent education; keep our water clean and our toys safe; invest in new schools and new roads and new science and technology.
Our government should work for us, not against us. It should help us, not hurt us. It should ensure opportunity not just for those with the most money and influence, but for every American who’s willing to work.
That’s the promise of America – the idea that we are responsible for ourselves, but that we also rise or fall as one nation; the fundamental belief that I am my brother’s keeper; I am my sister’s keeper.
That’s the promise we need to keep. That’s the change we need right now. So let me spell out exactly what that change would mean if I am President.
Change means a tax code that doesn’t reward the lobbyists who wrote it, but the American workers and small businesses who deserve it.
Unlike John McCain, I will stop giving tax breaks to corporations that ship jobs overseas, and I will start giving them to companies that create good jobs right here in America.
I will eliminate capital gains taxes for the small businesses and the start-ups that will create the high-wage, high-tech jobs of tomorrow.
I will cut taxes – cut taxes – for 95% of all working families. Because in an economy like this, the last thing we should do is raise taxes on the middle-class.
And for the sake of our economy, our security, and the future of our planet, I will set a clear goal as President: in ten years, we will finally end our dependence on oil from the Middle East.
Washington’s been talking about our oil addiction for the last thirty years, and John McCain has been there for twenty-six of them. In that time, he’s said no to higher fuel-efficiency standards for cars, no to investments in renewable energy, no to renewable fuels. And today, we import triple the amount of oil as the day that Senator McCain took office.
Now is the time to end this addiction, and to understand that drilling is a stop-gap measure, not a long-term solution. Not even close.
As President, I will tap our natural gas reserves, invest in clean coal technology, and find ways to safely harness nuclear power. I’ll help our auto companies re-tool, so that the fuel-efficient cars of the future are built right here in America. I’ll make it easier for the American people to afford these new cars. And I’ll invest 150 billion dollars over the next decade in affordable, renewable sources of energy – wind power and solar power and the next generation of biofuels; an investment that will lead to new industries and five million new jobs that pay well and can’t ever be outsourced.
America, now is not the time for small plans.
Now is the time to finally meet our moral obligation to provide every child a world-class education, because it will take nothing less to compete in the global economy. Michelle and I are only here tonight because we were given a chance at an education. And I will not settle for an America where some kids don’t have that chance. I’ll invest in early childhood education. I’ll recruit an army of new teachers, and pay them higher salaries and give them more support. And in exchange, I’ll ask for higher standards and more accountability. And we will keep our promise to every young American – if you commit to serving your community or your country, we will make sure you can afford a college education.
Now is the time to finally keep the promise of affordable, accessible health care for every single American. If you have health care, my plan will lower your premiums. If you don’t, you’ll be able to get the same kind of coverage that members of Congress give themselves. And as someone who watched my mother argue with insurance companies while she lay in bed dying of cancer, I will make certain those companies stop discriminating against those who are sick and need care the most.
Now is the time to help families with paid sick days and better family leave, because nobody in America should have to choose between keeping their jobs and caring for a sick child or ailing parent.
Now is the time to change our bankruptcy laws, so that your pensions are protected ahead of CEO bonuses; and the time to protect Social Security for future generations.
And now is the time to keep the promise of equal pay for an equal day’s work, because I want my daughters to have exactly the same opportunities as your sons.
Now, many of these plans will cost money, which is why I’ve laid out how I’ll pay for every dime – by closing corporate loopholes and tax havens that don’t help America grow. But I will also go through the federal budget, line by line, eliminating programs that no longer work and making the ones we do need work better and cost less – because we cannot meet twenty-first century challenges with a twentieth century bureaucracy.
And Democrats, we must also admit that fulfilling America’s promise will require more than just money. It will require a renewed sense of responsibility from each of us to recover what John F. Kennedy called our “intellectual and moral strength.” Yes, government must lead on energy independence, but each of us must do our part to make our homes and businesses more efficient. Yes, we must provide more ladders to success for young men who fall into lives of crime and despair. But we must also admit that programs alone can’t replace parents; that government can’t turn off the television and make a child do her homework; that fathers must take more responsibility for providing the love and guidance their children need.
Individual responsibility and mutual responsibility – that’s the essence of America’s promise.
And just as we keep our keep our promise to the next generation here at home, so must we keep America’s promise abroad. If John McCain wants to have a debate about who has the temperament, and judgment, to serve as the next Commander-in-Chief, that’s a debate I’m ready to have.
For while Senator McCain was turning his sights to Iraq just days after 9/11, I stood up and opposed this war, knowing that it would distract us from the real threats we face. When John McCain said we could just “muddle through” in Afghanistan, I argued for more resources and more troops to finish the fight against the terrorists who actually attacked us on 9/11, and made clear that we must take out Osama bin Laden and his lieutenants if we have them in our sights. John McCain likes to say that he’ll follow bin Laden to the Gates of Hell – but he won’t even go to the cave where he lives.
And today, as my call for a time frame to remove our troops from Iraq has been echoed by the Iraqi government and even the Bush Administration, even after we learned that Iraq has a $79 billion surplus while we’re wallowing in deficits, John McCain stands alone in his stubborn refusal to end a misguided war.
That’s not the judgment we need. That won’t keep America safe. We need a President who can face the threats of the future, not keep grasping at the ideas of the past.
You don’t defeat a terrorist network that operates in eighty countries by occupying Iraq. You don’t protect Israel and deter Iran just by talking tough in Washington. You can’t truly stand up for Georgia when you’ve strained our oldest alliances. If John McCain wants to follow George Bush with more tough talk and bad strategy, that is his choice – but it is not the change we need.
We are the party of Roosevelt. We are the party of Kennedy. So don’t tell me that Democrats won’t defend this country. Don’t tell me that Democrats won’t keep us safe. The Bush-McCain foreign policy has squandered the legacy that generations of Americans — Democrats and Republicans – have built, and we are here to restore that legacy.
As Commander-in-Chief, I will never hesitate to defend this nation, but I will only send our troops into harm’s way with a clear mission and a sacred commitment to give them the equipment they need in battle and the care and benefits they deserve when they come home.
I will end this war in Iraq responsibly, and finish the fight against al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan. I will rebuild our military to meet future conflicts. But I will also renew the tough, direct diplomacy that can prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons and curb Russian aggression. I will build new partnerships to defeat the threats of the 21st century: terrorism and nuclear proliferation; poverty and genocide; climate change and disease. And I will restore our moral standing, so that America is once again that last, best hope for all who are called to the cause of freedom, who long for lives of peace, and who yearn for a better future.
These are the policies I will pursue. And in the weeks ahead, I look forward to debating them with John McCain.
But what I will not do is suggest that the Senator takes his positions for political purposes. Because one of the things that we have to change in our politics is the idea that people cannot disagree without challenging each other’s character and patriotism.
The times are too serious, the stakes are too high for this same partisan playbook. So let us agree that patriotism has no party. I love this country, and so do you, and so does John McCain. The men and women who serve in our battlefields may be Democrats and Republicans and Independents, but they have fought together and bled together and some died together under the same proud flag. They have not served a Red America or a Blue America – they have served the United States of America.
So I’ve got news for you, John McCain. We all put our country first.
America, our work will not be easy. The challenges we face require tough choices, and Democrats as well as Republicans will need to cast off the worn-out ideas and politics of the past. For part of what has been lost these past eight years can’t just be measured by lost wages or bigger trade deficits. What has also been lost is our sense of common purpose – our sense of higher purpose. And that’s what we have to restore.
We may not agree on abortion, but surely we can agree on reducing the number of unwanted pregnancies in this country. The reality of gun ownership may be different for hunters in rural Ohio than for those plagued by gang-violence in Cleveland, but don’t tell me we can’t uphold the Second Amendment while keeping AK-47s out of the hands of criminals. 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 the hospital and to live lives free of discrimination. Passions 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. 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.
I know there are those who dismiss such beliefs as happy talk. They claim that our insistence on something larger, something firmer and more honest in our public life is just a Trojan Horse for higher taxes and the abandonment of traditional values. And that’s to be expected. Because if you don’t have any fresh ideas, then you use stale tactics to scare the voters. If you don’t have a record to run on, then you paint your opponent as someone people should run from.
You make a big election about small things.
And you know what – it’s worked before. Because it feeds into the cynicism we all have about government. When Washington doesn’t work, all its promises seem empty. If your hopes have been dashed again and again, then it’s best to stop hoping, and settle for what you already know.
I get it. I realize that I am not the likeliest candidate for this office. I don’t fit the typical pedigree, and I haven’t spent my career in the halls of Washington.
But I stand before you tonight because all across America something is stirring. What the nay-sayers don’t understand is that this election has never been about me. It’s been about you.
For eighteen long months, you have stood up, one by one, and said enough to the politics of the past. You understand that in this election, the greatest risk we can take is to try the same old politics with the same old players and expect a different result. You have shown what history teaches us – that at defining moments like this one, the change we need doesn’t come from Washington. Change comes to Washington. Change happens because the American people demand it – because they rise up and insist on new ideas and new leadership, a new politics for a new time.
America, this is one of those moments.
I believe that as hard as it will be, the change we need is coming. Because I’ve seen it. Because I’ve lived it. I’ve seen it in Illinois, when we provided health care to more children and moved more families from welfare to work. I’ve seen it in Washington, when we worked across party lines to open up government and hold lobbyists more accountable, to give better care for our veterans and keep nuclear weapons out of terrorist hands.
And I’ve seen it in this campaign. In the young people who voted for the first time, and in those who got involved again after a very long time. In the Republicans who never thought they’d pick up a Democratic ballot, but did. I’ve seen it in the workers who would rather cut their hours back a day than see their friends lose their jobs, in the soldiers who re-enlist after losing a limb, in the good neighbors who take a stranger in when a hurricane strikes and the floodwaters rise.
This country of ours has more wealth than any nation, but that’s not what makes us rich. We have the most powerful military on Earth, but that’s not what makes us strong. Our universities and our culture are the envy of the world, but that’s not what keeps the world coming to our shores.
Instead, it is that American spirit – that American promise – that pushes us forward even when the path is uncertain; that binds us together in spite of our differences; that makes us fix our eye not on what is seen, but what is unseen, that better place around the bend.
That promise is our greatest inheritance. It’s a promise I make to my daughters when I tuck them in at night, and a promise that you make to yours – a promise that has led immigrants to cross oceans and pioneers to travel west; a promise that led workers to picket lines, and women to reach for the ballot.
And it is that promise that forty five years ago today, brought Americans from every corner of this land to stand together on a Mall in Washington, before Lincoln’s Memorial, and hear a young preacher from Georgia speak of his dream.
The men and women who gathered there could’ve heard many things. They could’ve heard words of anger and discord. They could’ve been told to succumb to the fear and frustration of so many dreams deferred.
But what the people heard instead – people of every creed and color, from every walk of life – is that in America, our destiny is inextricably linked. That together, our dreams can be one.
“We cannot walk alone,” the preacher cried. “And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back.”
America, we cannot turn back. Not with so much work to be done. Not with so many children to educate, and so many veterans to care for. Not with an economy to fix and cities to rebuild and farms to save. Not with so many families to protect and so many lives to mend. America, we cannot turn back. We cannot walk alone. At this moment, in this election, we must pledge once more to march into the future. Let us keep that promise – that American promise – and in the words of Scripture hold firmly, without wavering, to the hope that we confess.
Thank you, God Bless you, and God Bless the United States of America.
