Tag Archives: campaigns

July 31, 2012 · 3:26 pm

99 BOTTLES OF BEER ON THE WALL,By Louise Annarino,July 30,2012

99 BOTTLES OF BEER ON THE WALL, By Louise Annarino,July 30,2012

Political ads once were pieces of artful rhetoric. Remember “A Town Called Hope” extolling the virtues of presidential candidate Bill Clinton? Most ads were likewise lovely to watch, whether one supported the candidate extolled or not. They were inspirational, clarified a candidate’s position and beautifully if not nicely done. Even the infamous nuclear explosion reflected in the iris of a child picking flowers as an attack on presidential candidate Barry Goldwater was lovely to watch. It was consider-over-the top because it exceeded the extant of Senator Goldwater’s stance on nuclear armament, and was quickly pulled from the market having been shown only once. But once was enough to create an image of a man willing to lead Americans and the world into nuclear armageddon.

Just once, we were exposed to an ad which distorted and demeaned a candidate. Once was too much for television executives who pulled the ad because of public outrage and dismay. Today, political ads of distortion and outright lies are repeated ad nauseatum like the song “99 Bottles of Beer On The Wall”:

 

99 bottles of beer on the wall,

99 bottles of beer,

Take one down.

Pass it around.

98 bottles of beer on the wall.

(repeat with 1 less bottle until no more bottles are left and end with)

No more bottles of beer on the wall,

No more bottles of beer,

Go to the store and buy some more,(KOCH Bros. et al)

99 bottles of beer on the wall.

The internet messaging of lies is even worse. At least the possibility of vetting an ad or disclosure exists within broadcast and print news departments.The internet is unfiltered. The race-baiting, homophobic, misogynist attacks against President Obama, his staff, appointees, and supporters goes unchecked.

I recently received an email message from a childhood friend with the same old attacks (i.e. Muslim foreigner,baby and jobs killer, hates business, caused recession, brings terrorist infiltrators into government, stupid liar and cheat) against President Obama with a new twist. At top of the page was a photo of suit-clad smiling white man claiming he was a classmate of the president’s at Columbia and knew Barry well, and who knew the items in content of piece used to attack were true. At the bottom was a Snopes link which he asserted proved the truthfulness of the email content. My friend pointed this out to me since I had on several prior occasions disproved her attack emails by replying with the facts to dispute her specific allegations, and often used Snopes as secondary source since she found it hard to believe my research data from NYT, London Guardian, BBC, ABC, NBC, MSNBC, CBS, LA Times, historical texts, US Constitution, specific laws and regulations etc. I checked the Snopes link. The question Snopes agreed to answer was “Is this person the source of these allegations?” The answer was “Yes, this person is the source of these allegations.” The truth meter read “true”. What!

I answered my friend that the only truth was that the man who claimed to tell these lies did tell these lies. That does not make lies true! This person asked me two years ago to NEVER send her any political information, nor my blog articles since she hates politics. I never send her a thing until she sends me a pack of lies. Then, I reconstruct each issue, provide her factual data and point out the mistruths. I honor every persons right to their own opinion; but, no one is entitled to their own facts! How can one answer such idiocy? Her behavior is not based on a search for truth so we can each make an informed decision with the needs of all sides considered; it is simply a need to be right and justify her hatred for President Barack Obama.

What is so disturbing is not simply the ads and e-mail/facebook messages themselves, but the willingness of people to share demeaning and untrue attack ads with no effort on their part to check for truthfulness. I can appreciate that not every voter is a political wonk, not many have the time to fully explore issues or candidates, and very few take the time to research before forming an opinion. What I cannot accept, what I refuse to accept, is that these voters believe their opinion is so sound as the opinion of the voter who does explore policies, records and world views of each candidate. It is not. They are not of equal weight. The uninformed opinion has less value. It is often wrong. It is often based upon lies and distorted reality. It is worthless.

I de-friended a person on FB yesterday after she began posting increasingly racist imagery on poster cartoons attacking President Obama, baby-killer comments and other derogatory attacks. I had repeatedly pointed out her racist content over the past weeks. I once asked her why all of her posts were anti-Obama and none pro-Romney. To all of which I received no response. I chalked up her behavior to ignorance, not ill intent. Yesterday, she posted another hate-filled photo attack. I ignored it at first. Later I saw her friend had commented with a question, “ But, who can we vote for? I could never vote for Obama whom I hate with a passion.” She replied to her friend, “I don’t know, but I hate him too much to vote for him.”  Those comments explained a lot. I have had enough of hate and hate merchants. They sell hate. I don’t think they can consciously admit why they are acting so, because at the deepest level they really do know why. We all know why. We just are too polite to mention it. I am not so polite; the reason is racism.

What happened to the American voter who sought to learn the voting record of a candidate, wanted to understand a candidate’s policies on various issues and why a candidate espoused those particular policies? What happened is that those Americans in either party are demeaned along with the candidate they support. They are called names: Obmanoids, Romneyites, babykillers, feminazis, even N*****lovers. This is unacceptable in any America past or present. Racism seems to trump acting with American value behaviors. We fought a civil war over this already.

What happened to American voters who believed in playing fair in order to elect the best candidate? What happened to the American voter who would rise in outrage over lies and distortions? Who would not tolerate attacks from either party on constitutionally protected race,creed,color, or religion? Where are these Americans? Where is a press corps, news executive, ad executive who refuses to air outright lies as political ads. Where is the journalist whose follow-up question challenges the lie which has just been told? Who refuses to allow a false premise as the basis of a response? Who can look a candidate in the eye while asking the question? Who can frankly challenge racist comments? Who can ask why being Black in America disqualifies every action taken by our president?

Racism is at the core of my understanding of what is going on here. It is not a means of avoiding valid attacks on our president, who has never claimed perfection, who only does the best he can with faint support by his own party and extreme refusal to participate in governmental action of ANY kind by the Republican party. Racism; not pure and not simple.

It is painful to watch newspersons obsequiously ask questions they know will not be answered, while Romney smiles with superiority. The smile is not one made in response to a good joke, or as a punch line on himself as President Obama often uses in response to uncomfortable questions. It is a smirk and a grin responding, “I’m not tellin’ and you can’t make me. Na, na, na, na,na na!” This same “na,na,na” attitude is heard coming from the mouths of Mitch McConnell and John Boehner; from every republican House Committee Chair. Have you been watching? Are you listening? “I can hang you from a tree in a political ad any time I choose. Na, na,na,na.na.na!” Oh, it is clear what has happened to American politics, and why there is so little public outrage.

I understand such intransigence by a candidate and his party supporters, supported by subliminal racism, makes it difficult to report the truth. But not impossible. I dread to imagine the softball questions posed to candidates in upcoming debates. I hope the debates won’t be just another round of 99 bottle of beer on the wall. I need a drink!

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July 24, 2012 · 4:34 pm

THE FOOLISHNESS OF POLITICAL ADS THE AMERICAN WAY, By Louise Annarino, July 24, 2012

THE FOOLISHNESS OF POLITICAL ADS THE AMERICAN WAY, By Louise Annarino, July 24, 2012

 

Hey, everybody plays the fool, sometime 

Use your heart just like a tool, listen baby 

They never tell you so in school, I wanna say it again, 

Everybody plays the fool  – Songwriters: K. WILLIAMS, R. CLARK, J.R. BAILEY

 

 

No one plays the fool better than Americans. Where would we be without the ability to believe so wholeheartedly in the unreality of reality TV? Perhaps the bachelorette does believe, as she tells each family of her five finalists, that she thinks she is falling in love with their son/brother. But do we follow along so blindly that we believe it? Does anyone really believe survivor castaways are ever in danger while being followed night and day by a camera crew? And if anyone believes that a culture which produced Michelangelo, Galileo and me also produced shallow summers at the Jersey shore, I am insulted.

 

We suspend disbelief when watching a fictional production. No human bodies are autopsied on forensic cop shows. We choose to adopt an air of disbelief. But, do we choose to suspend disbelief when we watch broadcast news? Are we such fools as this? No. Since the news contains so much, if not more, entertainment as hard news we are to be excused for confusing the two. Herein lies the dilemma. We are foolishly confused between what is real and what is not. We have been in training by Ad Men to live in suspended disbelief for many years. We are told we are on a destination for truth when we are really on a path to buy the goods we are being sold by business and politics alike.

 

When the gunman entered the Aurora, Colorado theatre clad in body armor many believed he was part of the show. We have become so inured to the blending of reality and fantasy entertainment that we no longer are able to distinguish what is a game of misperception or the rhetoric of disinformation from factual reality. This confusion is rampant throughout our media world, where so many of us, including our children, spend a great deal of our time. Whether a video game transports us to an artificial world, a movie promotion stages a fantasy experience to enhance the movie-going experience itself, or a music video stages a mock-up of its lyrical message we eagerly go along with the unreality. This is not simply foolish;it is dangerous.

 

Such persuasive unreality feels real because it is used to touch our hearts. It speaks to our feelings, not our thoughts.  And yet, it pushes our thoughts to accept the feelings as real. The bachelorette and her viewers feel her love, and we all believe the feeling is real. The survivors and their viewers feel their fear, and we all believe they are afraid.and when real threats appear in our lives, we too often do not recognize them until it is too late. We fought a war in Iraq because of our inability to recognize a lie.

 

Creating a shared feeling, even among fools, is a powerful rhetorical tool. As we watch political ads, read internet messages, even read blogs we must remember how easily we fall prey to the feelings they compel in us. We should use our hearts just like a tool, and not be played like fools. As President Obama reminds us, “We are better than that.” They do not tell us this in school, so I just wanted to tell you this.T

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July 13, 2012 · 2:48 am

ROMNEY VS. BIDEN AT N.A.A.C.P. CONVENTION,By Louise Annarino, July 12, 2012

ROMNEY VS. BIDEN AT N.A.A.C.P. CONVENTION, By Louise Annarino, July 12, 2012

Mitt Romney knew to whom he was speaking at the N.A.A.C.P. convention. He spoke to the moneyed-base of the republican party. He did not expect to win the support of the civil rights group with his “self-deportation” policy. Apparently, he would have been a proponent of the “back to Africa” movement  to solve the “problem” of slavery decades ago. Nor did he expect his attack on Obamacare to meet with applause. And, of course he knew the members of an organization which fought for civil rights and faced police dogs and water hoses, beatings-bombings-lynchings, and the murder of its icons would not sit quietly while he called the first African-American president a failure who betrayed them. He had to know his comments would fall like boulders into a sea of opposition. What he did not know is that his policies are racist. Not only his policies, but his very presence.

How can I say his very presence is racist? Because he gave the impression, through his own body language and tone, and the publicly made and well-played talking points used to paint him as brave for going into the sea of blackness, i.e. “We have to give him credit for even attending this event.” Why does he deserve credit for making an appearance and asking for the vote of African-Americans? He wants to be president. Why does he deserve credit for going before this group?  Did we say he deserved credit for appearing before any white group? What is he afraid of? More politically important, what does he want us to be afraid of? He is playing on our own fears, the fears of white Americans of all things black and of African-Americans in groups. Oh, we easily offer, “I have a friend who is African-American”, but how comfortable are we as a lone white person in a black group?

I don’t ask these questions lightly. I spent years on college campuses, among the defamed by Mr. Romney liberal elite, watching students, faculty and administrators separate along racial lines in campus dormitories, study halls, cafeterias, fraternities and sororities, parties and social events at all levels. And, I notice white people move near the emergency call button when a group of African-Americans enter an elevator. I notice white waitpersons avoid taking the orders of African-Americans in certain restaurants. I notice African-American children disciplined by white lifeguards for running at the pool, as a group of white children run past the scene. I notice a white car dealer mistaking an African-American customer in a business suit arriving to pick up his new Lexus for the part-timer newly hired to wash cars. I notice white co-workers inviting everyone but African-American co-workers to week-end party. Even my noticing this last incident is tinged with racism. Why would I think African-American co-workers would want to party with people who treat them badly every day of the week? Do I, like Mr. Romney, expect credit for noticing? Being a white racist is a role with strong cognitive dissonance.

Day after day, in small ways white people don’t even notice, our racism shines through. it is a constant struggle. And Mitt Romney’s advisers know it. When they say “give him credit” we respond positively to Romney. Why? Because we want credit for fighting our own racism. We feel wronged when someone like me alleges racism is an issue in this election. We cannot admit our racism even to ourselves, especially to ourselves. But, we will never overcome it by hiding from it;it will only make us vulnerable to race-baiting like that we watched from a candidate who braved appearing before the N.A.A.C.P.

No one gave Senator Joe Biden credit for appearing before the N.A.A.C.P. Why not? He presented himself differently. He did not anticipate anything special. He came as an equal. He came with a commonality of interest which transcends race, yet addresses  the results of racism. He did not view his presence as a gift deserving of thanks. He came with thankfulness and respect. There was a moment when his tone seemed obsequious, when he shouted out to his friend “Mouse”,but Senator Biden was no stranger within this group. Long ago, Joe Biden faced his own racism and embraced his responsibility to address the results of racism. Joe Biden is a member of the N.A.A.C.P. The lovely thing about sincerely reaching across racial boundaries is the generous acceptance one is given. Senator Biden was well received. Mr. Romney could have been well-received had his appearance been sincere. Given his true motivation, his appearance, with only three sets of boos, was very generously received.

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July 11, 2012 · 3:38 am

PAY NO ATTENTION TO THE MAN BEHIND THAT CURTAIN: SEC.501(C)(4) AND THE 2012 ELECTION,By Louise Annarino,July 10, 2012

PAY NO ATTENTION TO THE MAN BEHIND THAT CURTAIN: Sec. 501(c)(4) and the 2012 Election, By Louise Annarino, July 10, 2012

We live in the Land of Oz these days; not the movie, but our very lives, Is anyone out there listening to Dorothy’s lament? She has suffered through terrible storms, as have we: climate change, unfunded wars, 9/11 attack, bank fraud, mortgage melt-down, economic recession/depression, privatization and de-regulation, destruction of the middle-class, erosion of a safety net, attacks on public servants,women, immigrants and union workers. She fears she has lost all. She sees no clear future. The American Dream seems to be merely that, a dream. She simply wants to find her way home, home to the familiar where she feels safe, where she awakes from dreams with the ability to make them happen. Unfortunately, like Americans today, she does not realize she has the power within herself to find her way.

One person finally listens to her; but only when he realizes he can benefit from bringing her within his fold.He opens the door to Oz, invites her in,and promises her exactly what she wants. She falls for the mirage created by a Karl Rovian version of a “very nice man” but “very bad wizard” who uses tricks and deceptions to build a false idea that Dorothy and her buddies must risk all, and take on the formidable Wicked Witch of the West, an enemy he fears and has been unable to contain, before he will help her go home to Kansas. He fully expects she will not survive the ordeal; thus, he is no danger of having to make good on his promises. A typical political operative.

But Dorothy, again like Americans, is determined to succeed with the help of her stalwart friends. It is her willingness to put every concern aside and throw a bucket of water on Scarecrow whom the witch has set afire, which melts away the witch, and her threats. Dorothy saves herself, her friends, the entire city of Oz, even the Wizard himself.

When Dorothy returns to Oz the Wizard plays games with her three compatriots:the Cowardly Lion is given a badge for courage, the Scarecrow is given a diploma for his brains, and a ticking clock to the Tin Man for a heart. Each of these qualities are already present within the characters, but like Dorothy, they have been unable to recognize this fact on their own.

In a memorable scene while Dorothy awaits word from the wizard regarding her return home, her dog Toto pulls back a curtain revealing a man turning gears on the machinery which has created the lie that is the Land of Oz, the lie the people of Oz have also fallen for. He shouts into his microphone, “Pay no Attention to the man behind that curtain.” The wizard sees his power crumbling, and Dorothy sees the truth. She confronts him with such conviction, not allowing him to pull the curtain closed again, and he admits his flawed humanity.  If only we had journalists, politicians, and jurists so brave as Toto, so fearless as Dorothy, so willing to pull back the curtains and reveal truth.

Perhaps we do. Despite the fact that the Federal Elections Commission (FEC) is slow to act, and probably will not do so before 2012 election, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee filed a formal complaint this week against three social welfare groups, charging them with willful violation of federal election law: Crossroads Grassroots Policy Strategies,Americans for Prosperity, and 60 Plus Association. THese organizations hid behind the curtain provided by section 501(c)(4) of the tax code, which grants them tax exempt status for social welfare work and allows donors to remain anonymous. Public policy is often written into the tax code. In the case of 501(c)(4)s all funds collected are deemed to serve a social welfare purpose which would likely save the government tax dollars which would otherwise need to be spent to assure the public welfare tasks performed by the  organization.

What are these organizations actually doing? Buying political attack ads against specific Democratic candidates. Crossroads (Rove and former RNC Chair Ed Gillespie) has already spent $25 million on ads attacking President Obama, and plans to spend nearly $40 million (Rove’s Crossroads GPS) attacking Democratic senatorial candidates. Americans for Prosperity (David and Charles Koch) has poured $1 million into Ohio to defeat Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown, attacks only Democratic candidates, and has chapters in at least 38 states.(see more at http://www.opensecrets.org/outsidespending/detail.php?cmte=Americans+for+Prosperity.) In 2009, Rachel Maddow opened the curtain on 60 Plus Association (Pharmaceutical Industry) disclosing its ties to the GOP, disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff and the lobbying group Bonner & Associates.  (see more at http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=60_Plus_Association) Social welfare? Welcome to Oz.

To anyone willing to pay attention to that man behind the curtain it is clear the major purpose of such groups is federal campaign activity, political benefit not social welfare. Therefore, they should not be treated as 501(c)(4) organizations but as political committees, and their donors must be disclosed. Then, each of us, like Dorothy and her companions, will be able to see the truth behind the messages, tricks, distortions and lies that are Oz; and, find our way home. As a result of CITIZENS UNITED, President Obama has for the first time accepted donations from PACS and SUPER PACS, but not from a 501(C)(4) organization. He refuses to draw a curtain over our eyes. His donors are disclosed, along with his tax returns, and bank balances. Is the Mitt Romney behind that curtain? He may be a very good man but he is a very bad wizard.

(see more at http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/c/campaign_finance/index.html) and http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/09/us/politics/democrats-want-fec-to-restrict-donor-shielding-groups.html?_r=1&ref=campaignfinance)

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July 9, 2012 · 10:00 pm

DOJ FIGHTS TO PROTECT TEXAS VOTERS,By Louise Annarino,July 9, 2012

DOJ FIGHTS TO PROTECT TEXAS VOTERS, by Louise Annarino, July 9, 2012

“He that would make his own liberty secure, must guard even his enemy from oppression; for if he violates this duty, he establishes a precedent that will reach to himself.” … Thomas Paine

For over 20 years I worked the polls, taking a vacation day off work to help others vote. I considered it a civic duty. When I moved to Upper Arlington from Athens I started at the bottom again, sent from neighborhood to neighborhood to fill-in as needed. Within a few years I was posted to my own precinct, a republican precinct. The presiding judge was therefore  Republican. I had been a presiding judge when posted in Democratic precincts because as an attorney, and after so many years working polls, I understood the ins and outs of election law. I recognized many of the voters. In primaries, they self-identified as Democratic or Republican voters in order to vote in their party primary. The republican judge consistently refused to issue provisional ballots, make name changes or address changes, or redirect voters to proper voting location to Democratic voters. When I intervened to do so I was told only she had authority to do so. I reminded her of the law, ignored her directive, and proceeded to assure every voter was helped to cast a valid vote within state and county guidelines.

She repeated this behavior at the following election. I reported our disagreements in our problem reporting booklet, for each voter she attempted to disenfranchise. I wanted a record indicating the validity of the voter’s right to cast a vote, and the need for my intervention to assure that vote was counted. Later, I discussed this presiding judge’s behavior with the Board of Elections trainer. She promised to look into the matter. Nothing changed. Following the next election, I not only documented the problem within the reporting problems booklet, I also wrote a letter documenting each charge against the presiding judge, and sent it to several parties, including the Board of Election and the Democratic Ward Leader who assigned me to that polling site. I called numerous times to review the matter with him. Each time he promised the matter would be looked into. The next election, there she was again, smiling at me as she told a Democratic voter  they could not vote since they had moved, instead of doing an address change and redirecting and/or allowing a provisional ballot as the situation required. She made it clear she was not going anywhere, nor was she going to change. Voter fraud by appointed or elected officials is the real threat to our democracy. This is why each polling site has persons from each party working together, to keep one another in check, and to protect voters. This is why tallies are taken throughout the day and posted in the front windows where anyone who wants to check can see what is happening. This is why exit polls are so important, to measure against the posted vote tallies.

It was in Florida 2000 that we saw so intimately how party operatives can corrupt the popular vote, when republicans delayed and challenged every vote, forcing recounts that would have gone on long after the US Supreme Court declared George Bush the winner of the Florida presidential campaign, pushing him into the White House. “The reality, therefore, is that Mr. Bush’s victory in the most fouled-up, disputed and wrenching presidential election in American history was so breathtakingly narrow that there is no way of knowing with absolute precision who got the most votes. After all, there is no perfect way to decide which disputed ballots should be counted and rejected.”(see more at http://www.nytimes.com/2001/11/12/politics/recount/12ASSE.html and http://www.factcheck.org/2008/01/the-florida-recount-of-2000/) Clearly,close elections are more easily subject to fraudulent manipulation, and less easily challenged.

This is the same year that tapeless electronic voting machines  which could be hacked and manipulated reared their ugly heads. MAnufactured by companies which poured millions of dollars into the Bush campaign. This is the type of fraud we must guard against. This is the real threat.

Everyone can agree that voter ID is not inherently wrong. But It is wrong when it disenfranchises voters; and we have a system in place to assure only qualified voters can cast votes and that only those votes will be counted. It works so well there is no evidence of meaningful voter fraud by voters. Dead persons on the rolls? Sure. Dead persons voting? No. Voter ID adds nothing to help eligible voters; it does disenfranchise eligible voters. In Texas, SB 14 requires voters to show one of short list of government-issued documents, excluding Social Security, Medicaid, or student ID cards. Gun licenses, however, are acceptable. 

Texas‘ own records estimate “a Hispanic registered voter is at least 46.5 percent, and potentially 120.0 percent, more likely than a non-Hispanic registered voter to lack this identification.” The DOJ found more than 600,000 Texans will be disenfranchised, most minority voters. Social security card? older voters disenfranchised. Student ID? students disenfranchised? Medicaid card? Poor and disabled disenfranchised.

Today, Texas will defend the law against Attorney Holder’s Justice Department, claiming it is needed to prevent voter fraud. “But the San Antonio Express-News reported that fewer than five ‘illegal voting’ complaints involving voter impersonations were filed with the Texas Attorney General’s Office from the 2008 and 2010 general elections in which more than 13 million voters participated.” (see more at http://thinkprogress.org/election/2012/07/06/512245/texas-voter-id-law-which-accepts-gun-licenses-but-not-student-ids-challenged-in-court/). Texas is one of more than 2 dozen states the DOJ is investigating in order to protect the right of eligible voters to cast their ballots.

What can you do? Help neighbors, friends, relatives, and community organizations identify voters in need of ID, help them obtain the ID, update yours and their voter registration with name or address changes, then get them to the polls to vote. If the margin between candidates is small, voter fraud by officials and parties is easily manipulated. Only if the margins are fairly large can such subterfuge succeed.

Help at the polls,as a poll worker, a poll watcher. Start now and attend local Board of election meetings;let officials know we are watching them and recording their comments and activities. MAke it difficult for them to disenfranchise ANY voter.

The Brennan Center for Justice at New York University College of Law (see more at http://www.brennancenter.org/content/resource/truthaboutvoterfraud/) after exhaustive study has determined that voter fraud simply does not exist. Yet, an orchestrated movement to end that which does not exists has taken off thanks to a well-financed disinformation and legislative action campaign. The 2012 reelection of the scary black man is justification enough,it seems. The only believable explanation some people have for how he was elected in the first place is rampant voter fraud. These same people don’t believe racism exists despite hundreds of years of factual data; yet believe voter fraud exists despite no evidence. This movement is not about election reform. It is solely for election manipulation by denying qualified voters opposing one party’s candidates their right to vote. In evidence: Pennsylvania State Rep.Mike Turzai (R-Allegheny) listed recent GOP accomplishments during his speech to Republican Central Committee members, including this one: “Voter ID, which is going to allow Gov. Romney to win the state of Pennsylvania. Done.” See video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87NN5sdqNt8  “If you have to stop people from voting to win elections, your ideas suck,” responded Pennsylvania Sen. Daylin Leach, D-Montgomery.

We must protect every voter: Democratic, Republican, Independent, or Libertarian. We must protect all voters or no voter is protected. We do not fear the vote of our opposition. We know President Obama’s ideas  are good ones. We believe he can win this election.

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June 24, 2012 · 8:54 pm

DON'T PUSH HUMPTY DUMPTY OFF THE WALL by Louise Annarino

DON’T PUSH HUMPTY DUMPTY OFF THE WALL

Louise Annarino

June 25, 2012

Democratic republics in the West did not emerge in full blossom overnight; nor will they in the East. The seeds of power within people must be planted in good soil and be kept moist despite periods of drought. Those who feed the country’s growth are ever in danger of being choked by weeds. Egypt’s journey, and that of other nations seeking some form of democratic republic, is our own.

As we watch the Egyptian military generals write and rewrite laws to secure their power base in the face of shared power with a president and parliament not of their choosing, let us recall the first parliaments in England which were made up exclusively of the privileged few, heirs to the original land barons granted fiefs by their king for military service to protect and defend his crown, and more importantly, his crown jewels. The king was loath to part with his landholdings which generated his wealth. The barons agreed to supply a percentage of crops, minerals, forest, game and resources to the king in exchange for permission to act as lord over the serfs who were attached to the land, and to  supply troops whenever called upon to do so by the king. In this way, both the king and his barons grew excessively wealthy. Sound familiar?

In 1215 King John agreed to the Magna Carta, the great charter, which gave legal rights to the Barons and Earls and mandated that the king listen to them and follow their advice. Before the Magna Carta the king called a parliament at his whim with no legal obligation to follow the barons’ advice. The Magna Carta granted no rights to the serfs; but, merely became a tool of the landed gentry (who had personal armies supporting them) to control the king in order to protect their own interests. Sound familiar?

In 1265, following a war between Henry III and Simon De Montfort, De Montfort briefly established a parliament which also included  burgesses, representatives from each county,city and town until Edward I, who killed De Montfort in battle, called is first parliament in 1275 which included churchmen,two knights from each county, and two commoners from each town ( the house of burgesses). Since 1327 parliament set the pattern we know today: House of Lords, House of Commons, Monarch.

It took another hundred years to establish that Parliament’s House of Commons controlled granting money raised through taxation to the king (usually to wage war); and wrote statutes creating the law of the land, replacing the writ to the king for favor system of an earlier day.

Overthrowing the leaders of countries does not necessarily mean more power to the people. It took great Britain several hundred years and a civil war to do so. The United States, copied Great Britain’s lead, replacing the monarch with a president. The House of Lords became our Senate; the House of Commons our House of Representatives. There are those who pressured newly-elected President George Washington to accept the appellation Your Majesty. He insisted on Mister, in a new nation where all men are considered equal. And so we say, Mr. President when addressing him.

The U.S. shortened Great Britain’s time-line: 1776 – Declaration of Independence, 1789 – Constitution and first 10 Amendments ratified, 1789 – Judiciaries Act passed, 1803 – Marbury v. Madison. Hopefully, emerging democracies can shorten the time it takes to become nations of law and not men, and avoid civil war. Building a strong middle class will help.

The industrial revolution which began in the 1500’s with the guild movement solidified in 1760-1850. It is no coincidence that the movement to end serfdom occurred on the same time frame. Prior to industrialization in England, land was the primary source of wealth. “The landed aristocracy held enormous powers [through] the feudal system. However, a new source of great wealth grew from the Industrial Revolution, that which was derived from the ownership of factories and machinery. Those who invested in factories and machinery cannot be identified as belonging to any single class of people (landed aristocracy, industrialists, merchants). Their backgrounds were quite diverse, yet they had one thing in common: the daring to seize the opportunity to invest in new ventures. It was these capitalists who gave the necessary impetus to the speedy growth of the Industrial Revolution.”1

In the United States, the Industrial Revolution made the North economically stronger than the South, which barely maintained a landed gentry system on the backs of slave labor and that of poor white sharecroppers. The bloody rise of labor unions prevented this quasi feudal-serf system from taking root in the North. Despite fighting a Civil War to end slavery, and the efforts of labor unions, we still see vestiges of the old feudal system within our economic institutions, policies and practices both north and south. Since the election of our first African-American president those differences in how we choose to govern ourselves have become more overt. Ohio and Wisconsin, as well as every other state,thanks to ALEC, are fighting to protect unions, not just to protect the unions but to protect all workers from being reduced, once again, to serfdom. 2

In China, Thailand, Guam, Africa and all over the globe multi-national corporations are locking in workers for excessively-long shifts, with little or no pay. Human trafficking in workers, slave or forced labor, is on the rise world-wide in every imaginable  industry including my favorite – chocolate. 3

What is the connection here? It is that human beings seek power over their own lives. Money is power, so they seek money. The reason taxes are a big deal to both Tea Party Republicans and Liberal Progressives, The US Chamber of Commerce and the churches, Wall Street banks and non-profit organizations, Democratic and Republican parties, the upper class-middle class- and poor is because money buys power. Money bought the King. Money bought the Corporations. Money bought the politicians. We all want money because we all value power. Why? Power brings freedom: the freedom from want, the freedom of choice over need, the freedom of association, the freedom to say no just because we want to do so. If we truly believe we are all entitled to be free, then we must also believe we are all entitled to enough money to feel power over our own lives.

When we are without money for too long we feel powerless as a result. It is this feeling of being powerless which brings out our racism, sexism, homophobia etc. Those who feel powerless resent others who seem to be acquiring power. Hidden in our psyche is the racist belief that an African-American has no business being so powerful when white men now feel so powerless. That is the crux of this election. Even Roman Catholic bishops, losing esteem and power over their flocks due to their misogynist attitude toward women and their cover-up of pedophilia within their ranks are fighting for power by attacking President Obama. Even Christian church leaders accustomed to financial power and preaching its attainment as a Gospel truth, which fell apart in the recession, are attacking President Obama. They have no qualms viciously attacking him, trying to knock him off his game. Unfortunately, his game is governing this country we all love.

What can we do? We can stop attacking people who want power, who want money, who want to feel safe; who cannot feel truly free without these things. We all want these things. We all want freedom.

We can stop attacking each other lest we all end up “Humpty Dumpty”. 4  Despite British and American love of freedom, and each country’s Civil Wars to establish equality among all its citizens and clearly unified governance, neither would suggest civil war as a positive step. We can learn from these past divisive periods. History does not have to repeat itself around the globe, nor within our own borders. We can stop being so afraid that we needlessly try to knock one another off the wall. We can recognize that there is enough wealth to share so that all feel powerful and free.

We celebrate freedom in this country without understanding its roots. No banker, no corporate executive, no shareholder, no priest nor bishop, no Tea Bagger, no liberal, no politician, no judge, no citizen will feel free until they feel financially secure. This was the beauty of a strong middle class; it made everyone feel free. It was an imaginable state of being for the poorest citizen aspiring to move higher through education and hard work; and for the richest executive who fell from grace, a safe place to land. Without a middle class, no American feels free.Not the wealthiest, not the poorest, and not the middle class.

To America and to the world a message of freedom: Build and protect the common man’s wealth, the middle class. The BRITISH COMMONWEALTH is a not a fluke. American economic success since the Civil War is not a fluke. Stop seeking to be excessively wealthy; instead, seek to build wealth within the middle class, a commonwealth within and among nations. With commonwealth comes common power. With such a sense of power comes a sense of freedom and peace. The Eurozone is struggling with this concept as I write.

Look at what Britain accomplished. Look at what the U.S. accomplished. Those lessons will serve us well. this is what President Obama has been trying to remind us.  Destroying the middle class destroys our commonwealth, pushes Humpty Dumpty off the wall; and, neither all the king’s horses nor all the king’s men can put us back together again. Life is too fragile for such nonsense.

 

 

1. http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1981/2/81.02.06.x.html

2.http://www.alecexposed.org/wiki/ALEC_Exposed 

3.http://www1.american.edu/ted/chocolate-slave.htm “Presently, about 700,000 children and women are trafficked around the world annually. The UN says that profits for this trafficking amount to approximately $7 billion a year (Anti-Slavery International).”

4.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humpty_Dumpty  “In 1648 Colchester was a walled town with a castle and several churches and was protected by the city wall. The story given was that a large cannon, which the website claimed was colloquially called Humpty Dumpty, was strategically placed on the wall. A shot from a Parliamentary cannon succeeded in damaging the wall beneath Humpty Dumpty which caused the cannon to tumble to the ground. The Royalists, or Cavaliers, ‘all the King’s men’ attempted to raise Humpty Dumpty on to another part of the wall, but because the cannon was so heavy ‘All the King’s horses and all the King’s men couldn’t put Humpty together again’. In his 2008 book Pop Goes the Weasel: The Secret Meanings of Nursery Rhymes author Albert Jack claimed that there were two other verses supporting this claim. Elsewhere he claimed to have found them in an “old dusty library, [in] an even older book”,but did not state what the book was or where it was found. It has been pointed out that the two additional verses are not in the style of the seventeenth century, or the existing rhyme, and that they do not fit with the earliest printed version of the rhyme, which do not mention horses and men.”

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May 30, 2012 · 3:53 pm

Time to Grow UP

AMERICA’S TEEN YEARS ARE OVER

Louise Annarino

May 30, 2012

 

In 1978, as Columbus Legal Aid Society staff attorney, I had a client who had traveled to the Nebraska Territory as a 5 year old, her bare feet dangling over the back edge of the Conestoga wagon. As she was making her way west with her family, my Italian immigrant grandparents were being processed through Ellis Island. The timing of these events seemed to my young mind to be in the ancient past. These were events I had studied in history books. Interviewing my client that day affirmed what I had also been taught in history class – America is a young nation.

 

Over the years, I have often had to remind myself that young countries, like young people are often impetuous, misguided, unable to imagine a future where they are not the center of everyone’s universe. As we age we realize we are but a small part of the whole, no one is really paying any attention to us, and we need to think before acting to avoid mistakes. Young people are the gods of instant gratification. Older people are surprised whenever they have reason to feel gratified. Accepting less than what one hoped for is all too commonplace. Okay replaces great, good replaces perfect in the  vocabulary of the mature.

 

Tall tales are told by every age group; but,the young are more likely to believe them. Ad agencies, abetted by entertainment-focused news media have institutionalized tall-tale telling in America. And America is still young enough, naive enough, and gullible enough  to believe what it reads, sees, and hears. We chide the ancient Greeks, Italians and Vikings for their ancient wisdom urging them to act like the teenagers we act like. Teens assume everyone is the same, and hide any unique characteristic which would set them apart from their friends. They travel in packs, alert for any opportunity to enhance their stature or wealth, with the least amount of effort and few accomplishments to justify it.

 

Maybe it is time America grew up. Maybe it is time we only reward those who contribute to the common good and the survival of America. Maybe it is time to realize we are not infallible and admit when we make mistakes. Maybe it is time to accept those civilizations which survive are those which have something positive to offer the world: art, music, freedom, education, compassion, wisdom, openness to the gifts of other nations.

 

Maybe it is time we grew up. Maybe it is time to see bravado and war-mongering as a sign of  fear and weakness. Maybe it is time to see stereotypes and discrimination as a lack of imagination and knowledge. Maybe it is time to see distorting truth and manipulating economic markets for private gain over public good as greed and piracy.

 

Mature nations and mature people know themselves well, take time to learn others well, remain true to reality, understand life is difficult and complex, make decisions calmly and  with the input of those more knowledgeable than themselves, can cooperate and assimilate, mediate and confront with more light than heat. Mature persons reserve their strength, their opinion, their actions for the greatest impact. Mature persons are other-centered, not me-centered. A mature person would not associate with a buffoon-ignoramus-racist, going to the lowest level of American politics to win the presidency.1

 

I do not intend to vote for a teenager. I shall vote for the adult in the room, President Barack Obama. His leadership during his first term has been measured and mature, focused and decisive, cooperative and comfortably confrontive. America is now a mature player on the world stage; steady and dependable, self-assured and polite, strong and supportive of a more mature and peaceful world. Neither America nor President Obama are perfect; but, they are good. They are very good!

 

 

1. Matthews: Romney ‘Going To The Lowest Level Of American Politics’ With Trump Appearance, Noah Rothman,5:59 pm, May 29th, 2012,  http://www.mediaite.com/tv/matthews-romney-going-to-the-lowest-level-of-american-politics-with-trump-appearance/

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May 24, 2012 · 2:23 pm

A POLL BY ANY OTHER NAME WOULD SMELL…

A POLL BY ANY OTHER NAME WOULD SMELL…

Louise Annarino

May 24, 2012

“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose

By any other name would smell as sweet.”

Romeo and Juliet (II, ii, 1-2)

It is estimated that William Shakespeare coined approximately 135 phrases in common use today. The quote above is a line spoken mournfully by Juliet on her balcony, as Romeo lurks below in the bushes. It is one of Shakespeare’s most memorable lines. Juliet has been taught that Montagues are bad. Romeo is a Montague. In coming to know him she learns that this is stupid point of view. Whatever his name or family affiliation, he is still the same person.

Obviously, this is a lesson many of us still need to learn. Political strategy developed and perfected by Newt Gingrich, Karl Rove, Grover Norquist et al. over the past 30 years continues to demonize opposition candidates within and outside its own party. Ironically, Newt Gingrich himself was a victim of this strategy during the 2012 Republican presidential primary.

The 2012 Republican primary was very ugly. How ugly? So ugly it stunk. Last night, Dan Rather told CNN’s Erin Burnett that the 2012 campaign is the worst campaign he has covered; and, he has covered eleven campaigns.  When he says, “There have been bad ones before, but this is the worst so far,” he is not exaggerating.”I hope I’m wrong about this,but I think by the time we finish with this campaign, not only will it be a three billion dollar presidential campaign – three billion dollars – but it will be ugly enough to choke a buzzard before we get through with it.”1

Media buzzards are circling the candidates, waiting to pounce on any sign of weakness as measured by daily polls. At the close of this piece is a list of poll info sites. Reviewing them may be fun, but not necessarily very useful. Watching them over time, one realizes that a single media story can shift the results temporarily; an aggregate of stories can shift it substantially.

Call in more buzzards, the admen, to create stories funded by PACS and SUPER PACS; some true, others created out of whole cloth without a stitch of truth.  Does it matter if the ads are true or false? “…a rose by any other name would smell…” as bad. To most of us, the whole thing stinks! Are we so overwhelmed by the stench of lies we can no longer smell the roses of truth?

As for the polls, they are not “truth” either. Even the best efforts fail to consider large numbers of our populace. A recent report on the 2010 census with strong outreach to historically undercounted persons, shows both an undercount and an overcount, although an improvement over past years.

The overcount was “due mostly to duplicate counts of affluent whites owning multiple homes.”  On the backside of the count, the census missed about 2.1 percent of black Americans,1.5 percent of Hispanics (1.5 million people), about 5 percent of American Indians living on reservations and nearly 2 percent of minorities who marked themselves as “some other race”. “While the overall coverage of the census was exemplary, the traditional hard-to-count groups, like renters, were counted less well,” Census Bureau director Robert Groves said. “Because ethnic and racial minorities disproportionately live in hard-to-count circumstances, they too were undercounted relative to the majority population.”2

The disparities of the census count which occurred in every community over many months makes daily polls made via landline phones even more suspect. Who are these people who have the time to answer the phone and answer questions? Not the working poor. Not young men seeking to make their fortune by sheer effort of will, not minorities suspicious of white people asking a lot of questions.”We remain deeply troubled by the persistent and disproportionate undercount of our most vulnerable citizens — people of color, very young children and low-income Americans,” said Marc Morial, president of the National Urban League and chairman of the Census Bureau’s 2010 Census Advisory Committee.2

The breakdown analysis of the census shows the following:

—Renters were undercounted by 1.1 percent, while homeowners were over-counted by 0.6 percent.

—Broken down by age, men 18 to 29 and 30 to 49 were more likely to be missed in 2010 than other age groups, while women 30 to 49 were over-counted; that is a pattern consistent with 2000. Adults 50 and older had over-counts of their population, while some young children ages 4 and under were missed.

—The District of Columbia had the highest shares of people who were missed, at 2.2 percent. West Virginia had the highest over-count of its population, at 1.4 percent.2

Polls and the census are useful tools; but they are merely tools, not truths. Political ads are useful tools; but,they are merely tools not truths. Too often these tools are being used to tell us “Montagues” are bad. Unfortunately, that messaging leaves us with no good choices. Such a paradigm undermines our faith in our  political system.

What can we do? Look at the record of accomplishments for each candidate;is it broad and deep,or narrowly focused? Watch how each candidate plays to a specific audience; does he factually present his record, or play on people’s fears and racism? How do the candidate’s surrogates describe their candidate; with a recitation of the factual record of each candidate, or with an ad hominem attack on their candidate’s opponent? Does the candidate talk down to voters, or respect them as equals? Does the candidate acknowledge our current situation in a realistic manner, or in a bombastic fashion?

Whom do we trust to assess candidates? Not political ads. Not polls. Not news analysts. Not all these buzzards! Trust yourself. Use your head. Set aside the stupidity of thinking a person is bad because of his name, the color of his skin, or even his party affiliation. Look for truth. Feel it in your gut. Replace fear with knowledge. Learn to know the candidates as well as you know your self; even if it means you have to learn to know your self first! This is your country. This is your election. Own it.

  1. http://www.politico.com/blogs/media/2012/05/dan-rather-worst-presidential-campaign-124418.html
  2. http://hosted2.ap.org/OHCOL/0798b35a2b9245c790110b1366b5cc82/Article_2012-05-22-Census%20Accuracy/id-51befaeae7d3442c967b4e951b5466e5

Poll Links:

http://www.nationalpolls.com/obama/independents.html

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/elections/

http://electoral-vote.com/

http://www.politico.com/2012-election/presidential-polls/

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May 10, 2012 · 8:03 am

ABUSERS AND ENABLERS CAMPAIGN TOGETHER

ABUSERS AND ENABLERS CAMPAIGN TOGETHER

Louise Annarino

May 10, 2012

 

I received the following e-mail tonight: “Louise: Thank you for all the e-mails with information on the campaign you have sent us and others over the past 4 years. You kept us well informed. Unfortunately, Pres. Obama publicly admitted today his preference for same-sex marriages, (emphasis mine) which prevents us now to vote for him. So, please take us from your distribution list.” I must not have understood President Obama. I did not hear him say he preferred same-sex marriage. I am certain Mrs. Obama would have been surprised to learn of her husband’s preference, from these former Obama supporters. http://www.cnn.com/2012/05/09/politics/obama-same-sex-marriage/index.html

 

The President, like many others, has struggled with his own perceptions, misconceptions, and stereotypes of those who are gay,lesbian,bi-sexual or transgender (LGBT), His past reluctance is even more poignant given his racial heritage. There are those who say he should have known better, having experienced prejudice himself. Others are grateful he was willing to openly engage in the struggle to face down his own prejudices. His journey is one we can all learn from.

 

It is 2:34 a.m. I could not sleep and decided to write. I found the above note as I first sat down at my computer. I had not intended to write about the president’s announcement. I had been thinking I would write about the similarities between the way we treat President Barack Obama and how an abuser treats his victim. The above e-mail fits right in to the puzzle that is abuse.

 

Few of us are strangers to abuse and bullying. If we have not personally been abused, we are close to someone who has been. It is never easy to be the victim, nor to be close to a victim. An abused person seeks to escape the abuse in many ways: denial, deflection, perfection-seeking, appeasement, depression, hostility, violence against self and against others, even suicide. To get close to a victim and stay close is a struggle indeed. It is hard to watch someone be slapped mentally, physically, emotionally – often all three. It is harder to the one slapped.

 

So many have told me over the past few months that they can no longer watch television news programs, nor read the newspaper, nor read on-line missives which contain one demeaning slap against President Obama after another. Even liberal commentators on MSNBC spend much of their programming discussing the attacks. There is no escaping the hateful distortions of his record, personal beliefs, character and leadership. There is no escaping the outright lies meant to undermine the country’s confidence in him. The bullies cannot even credit him with the death of Osama Bin Laden, the resurrection of the auto industry, the steady creation of jobs, the lower cost of health care, the investment in green energy, the increased production and glut of oil and gas since he took office. These abusers credit him with nothing, not even his humanity. They hide their racism behind their abuse. No wonder it is hard to watch. No wonder we cringe in distaste.

 

Obama supporters know the attacks are meant to not only act as cover for those who oppose the president, and seek to destroy his presidency and his historical record; but, are also meant to turn his supporters away from him, to make any close contact with him so unbearably hard to stomach that even his supporters cannot approach him or his campaign. This is classic abuser behavior: Separate then attack,repeat,repeat,repeat. We see it. We know it. We hate it. We avoid it; and, in so doing doing we fail our president, our country and our selves.

 

An abuser is charming. He disarms any potential supporters of his victim with a story-line upon which he acknowledges a commonality with the victim’s friends and family. His remarks appear innocent; hidden behind his smile and slight chuckles is a comment assuming shared agreement with the victim’s poor behavior. He assures friends and family he does not blame them for the victim’s shortcomings. At the beginning of the abusive relationship, both the victim and supporters strive to please the abuser, catering to his whims, reaching “across the aisles” to make everyone feel better about what is fast becoming a “situation”, a falsity created by the abuser to separate the victim from his support group. By the time the supporters get suspicious, and uncomfortable enough to express their doubts about the abuser’s veracity, supporters have already ostracized the victim. Media personalities awoke too late to the abuse game being played out in public view.

 

African-Americans, Native-Americans, and others are not so easily duped. After all, they have been victimized by abusers for over 200 years. They understand the methodology of abuse and oppression. When I voice my outrage to white supporters they too often express a desire to avoid the election entirely. When I express my outrage to African-Americans they often tell me “shoot, this is nothing new; if my people got this upset every time, they would have committed mass suicide! You got to be tough.” They offer this wisdom, “Only white people can afford to get upset; we got to survive!” Those who think African-American voters will avoid voting for President Obama because of today’s announcement, do not understand the strength and wisdom of African-Americans to face down abusers. White supporters need to “get tough” and face them down, too.

 

We are right to feel uncomfortable. We are correct when we acknowledge the abusive behavior. We are justified in saying, “I can’t stand anymore of this!” but, we are wrong to abandon the victim so we can feel comfortable again. None of us should feel comfortable so long as any of us is being abused. That is why President Obama changed his position regarding same-sex marriage. Knowing members of the LGBT community continue to be abused made him more uncomfortable than his own discomfort with same-sex marriages, and his concern of potential political fall-out. He put aside his discomfort and chose to take the courageous path. It is time we all do so.

 

It is time we all acknowledge the abuse of others sanctioned by law, the ongoing victimization occurring daily in our local communities, and the abuse being heaped upon a president who continues to “do the right thing” while abusers attempt to undermine and destroy his every effort on our behalf, his personal integrity, even his personal safety. If you have ever suffered abuse or bullying you can see it as clearly as I can. It can keep us up at night, but it cannot stop us from supporting the LGBT community and President Obama.

 

 

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May 2, 2012 · 5:55 pm

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE

Louise Annarino

May 2, 2012

 

Is it just me, or do you also find yourself surprised by talking heads’ commentaries? I often wonder if the commentator just watched the same speech or event I did. Our take-aways are usually quite different. Last night was no exception.

 

Earlier in the day, I watched president Obama and President Karzai  of Afghanistan sign a long-term strategic partnership agreement, President Obama acknowledging as he did so that there would be “difficult days ahead”; but, “By the end of 2014, the Afghans will be fully responsible for the security of their country.” This month NATO meets in Chicago and is expected to endorse a proposal to support a “strong and sustainable long-term Afghan force” (Obama).

 

Soon after, the president met with US troops at Bagram Air Force Base and addressed them with compassion and forthrightness. “I know the battle’s not yet over. Some of your buddies are going to get injured and some of your buddies may get killed and there will be heartbreak and pain and difficulty ahead. But there’s light on the horizon because of the sacrifices you’ve made.” He ended, “I could not be prouder to be your commander-in-chief.”

 

A few hours later, President Obama addressed the nation and the world in a more formal manner. “I will not keep Americans in harm’s way a single day longer than is absolutely required for our national security,” Mr Obama said. “But we must finish the job we started in Afghanistan, and end this war responsibly.” This is nearly identical language to that he used when he announced he would withdraw U.S. troops from Iraq. About 23,000 of the 88,000 US troops currently in the country are expected to leave Afghanistan by the summer, with all US and Nato combat troops out by the end of 2014.

The agreement President Obama signed promises Afghanistan an on-going partnership, just as he pledged a strong and enduring partnership with the government in Iraq.

Seemed pretty clear to me that we are positioning ourselves for major troop withdrawl ongoing economic and structural support, continued military monitoring and force intervention to prevent a resurgence of Al Quaeda, as we did in Iraq. Is it a clean end like WWII? No, but we are engaged in different struggle for survival; one calling more for strong policing than for traditional military maneuvers.

Then, the media begins its spin, arguing as Chuck Todd, with his cynical smile, body language of disgust, and obvious prejudice in a truly exceptional Mr. Darcy pose that anyone who believes what the president said is simply “naive”. He and others continue today to insist President Obama’s trip, speech and the signed agreement are merely political. Of course they are political, but there is no merely  about it. When two heads of state and NATO agree after months of negotiation to chart a course for continued partnership and mutual security that is a political act. That is why we HAVE a president, to represent our best interest and negotiate relationships with the rest of the world. TO BE POLITICAL. The reason we televise their speeches and appearances is because we believe in transparency, not because it is an election year, and not because our president is self-serving.

Does Barack Obama hope to be re-elected? Of course. Is he campaigning? Of course. But he is also about our business at home and abroad. The man is simply doing his job; the job a strong majority of us elected him to do. And, he is doing it very well. Those prejudiced against him may find that too much to bear. They would, if they could, deprive those of us who support President Obama of our pride in him.

President Obama will bring our troops home, with a sense of responsibility to Afghans who tolerated our presence on their soil for much longer than they should have had to do so, thanks to president Bush’s inattention to the Afghans. Packaging lies to our congress and to us citizens, President Bush opened a second front in Iraq and abandoned the effort to find and kill Osama bin Laden. He asserted, as Mitt Romney asserted, that getting one man was not all that important. It is estimated President Obama has eliminated 30 of the 40 leaders of Al Quaeda , and we can expect that effort to continue. President Obama understands that simply eliminating the leadership is not enough, we must also offer respectful support and partnership to a country mired in such poverty, hopelessness, and shame that its anger leads to re-emergence of such leaders.

President Obama will bring our troops home, with a sense of responsibility to our troops and to their families. He and Mrs. Obama are leading efforts to assure they receive health care, education benefits, consumer protection, and to prevent the plight of homelessness. This is not a cynical, but a loving president. He is proud to be our commander-in-chief and we should be proud of him.

 

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