Hitting it out the Park: Obama Accepts his Party's Nomination
A modern day Coliseum is filled to the brim with 90,000 cheering patriotic Americans. A parade of musical legends, civil rights leaders, and a certain Nobel peace prize laureate pay homage to the potential next President of the United States of America. An aura of excitement and historic expectation is palpable in the air as the candidate steps onto the stage and only one question is swimming in my mind:
Am I the only one who is disappointed that Al Gore didn't plant a [big ole nasty kiss on Barack Obama like he did to his wifey back at the 2000 convention]?
Last night saw Barack Obama deliver the most important speech of his career in the same football stadium that hosts the Denver Broncos and in tone, style and political substance it was a total home run (leave it to a gay boy to get his sports analogies wrong). It was a fitting end to a convention that saw many a winner and a few losers; here's but a small sampling of those:
The Winners
Economic Populism: Bammers drilled down hard on the country's economic downturnrecord home foreclosures, declining wages, heavy job losses, and out of control energy and healthcare costs. His solution? Tax breaks for people earning under $200,000; retooling factories so they can build the next generation of fuel efficient cars (heeeeeey, Michigan); legislation ending income disparity between the genders; and an universal health care plan. His words were aimed squarely at America's large middle class but also the throngs of Hillary supporters who are itching for a return to more family-centered economic policies.
The Gulf Coast: For four days the Dems have consistently brought up the failure of George Bush to respond to the victims of Hurricane Katrina, summed up by Barack's declaration that his administration will be better than one that allowed a "major American city to drown before our eyes." As another hurricane will hit the Gulf Coast next week, expect the GOP during their convention to pledge their aid to the region as well (they may even postpone the convention itself).
The Gays: From whatever team of gay boys styled the speakers on stage (especially that cougar of a woman Susan Eisenhower meow, girlfriend!!!) to convention speaker Rep. Tammy Baldwin (the Congress' only openly elected lesbian), it was a special four days as it marks perhaps the first time a presidential candidate in his acceptance speech clearly declared his support for the LGBT community by saying "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."
The Losers
The Axis of Evil: Want proof that Barack Obama can reach out to tough, intransigent and hostile world leaders and make them act responsibly? Just look at the job he did with former President Bill Clinton, [convincing him to deliver what is arguably his best post-White House performance] as a means of not only electing Obama but also protecting his own legacy within the Democratic Party. If Bam-Bam can do that with Bubba, what chance do you think North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il and Iranian President and part-time liberal arts college professor Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will have against him?
Jesse Jackson: Not only has Reverend Jackson lost his title as Black Man Supreme (white people, rejoice!), Barack Obama has been consistently speaking about the consequences of high rates of absentee fathers amongst Black families and insisted that "fathers must take more responsibility for providing the love and guidance their children need." This is a subject many Blacks feel shouldn't be discussed in such a public manner (i.e. in front of white people). [Jackson has chastised Bammers in the past for doing this], probably because it hits a little too close to home ([mmmmhmmmm](http://archives.cnn.com/2001/US/01/18/jackson.child.02/)).
The Opening Ceremony of the 2008 Olympic Games: The Chinese may have gotten over 15,000 individual, non-repeat performers to visually recreate the 5,000 year old history of China through the use of synchronized choreography, but Team Obama got over 80,000 Democrats to frantically wave American flags and cry on cue. Put that in your pipe and smoke it, Hu Jintao!