The Audacity of Dope

Masterful.  Inspirational.  Heroic.  Epic.  Brilliant.  Educational.  Transcendent.  A moment in history.

Was it the potential all-timer that I talked about yesterday?  No, but it was up there.  Again, I don’t recommend trying to blog at 6 AM, especially about an event as monumental as Barack accepting the Democratic nomination last night in Denver, but I’ll give some quick thoughts before I crash.  My sleep schedule is so effed up.

First off, the spectacle was outstanding.  Barack effortlessly pulled in 85,000+ people to watch him speak, not to mention the thousands that watched it from outside the venue and at special events all around the globe.  Oh, and the millions on television.  While the crowd wasn’t as large as the 200K he drew in Berlin, it speaks to the same undeniable inspiration that Barack has brought to the world.  The Republicans have tried to attack him by saying this popularity is actually a negative, and he’s nothing more than a celebrity or phenomenon.  How completely false.

Obama is not here because he’s a celebrity, he’s a celebrity because he’s here.  He’s a celebrity because of the man he is, what he’s accomplished, and what he has already meant to the world.  Without his fundamental ideals, morals, policies, and passions, he would not be in this position.  Any attempt to trivialize that is absurd.  I’m sorry John McCain pulls crowds the size of local musicians and can’t read off a teleprompter.  Perhaps if he could, or had any worthwhile ideas and policies (did you hear he was a prisoner of war?), the Republicans would focus their campaign around their candidate.  Since he’s a sham, they have no choice but to try to tear down Barack.

Unfortunately for them, it won’t work and tonight Barack struck back.  The difference between McCain’s attacks and Barack’s is that Obama stays focused on the issues and policies to score direct hits.  McCain and his cronies continue to insinuate that Barack is an “other” and he’s not ready to lead this country.  While there are surely legitimate criticisms centered around Barack’s “inexperience,” far too many are using that word as code for “different,” or perhaps too bluntly, “black.”

As I mentioned last night, Barack is one of us.  He’s the face of the new America.  The multi-racial America.  The America that is pushing past the social problems of our past like Usain Bolt down the straightaway.  Is he all the way there?  No, he’s not.  For example, like many in his age group, he’s a little behind on gay rights.  However, he still understands that everyone deserves equal treatment and even if his religion doesn’t understand them, he welcomes “our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters” into the fold.  That is what a true leader does.  When speaking at a college during the primaries, he said that he “may be on the wrong side of history” in respect to his personal beliefs on homosexuality and I think that will ultimately be proven true.  The important thing is that he understands this and understands the importance of looking towards the future.

This election is not about rich vs. poor, white vs. black, left vs. right, blue vs. red, etc..  This election is about the past vs. the future, and whether we want to be progressive in moving forward, or conservative while holding on to the notion of “the good ol’ days.”  You know what?  The good ol’ days had their share of bright spots, but they were far from perfect.  We’ll never achieve any sort of utopia, but we must always strive to “work towards a more perfect union.”  We can be better in the future, every single one of us.  We can be smarter.  We can be healthier.  We can be friendlier.  We can be more understanding.  We can be harder, better, faster, stronger.

But, we have to work for it.  For Barack to become president, we all have to show people how important this particular election is and how we are teetering on a knife’s edge.  Do you think we can afford four more years of the current policies?  Not if you want to maintain or better your standard of living and participate in the global economy of tomorrow, no way in hell.  Make sure you and everyone you know are registered to vote.  [Hov] It’s so necessary [/Jay] and it’s easy, especially if you know how to use a computer.

Hmm, I guess that rules John McCain out. Think about it people: he can’t even use a computer (“ahhh…it’s beeping at me!”), so how could he possibly guide the free world without basic understanding of the single most important invention of our time?  I’m adding a rule to my presidential threshold test:  if you don’t know how to use the internet, you can’t be president.  I’m sorry, it’s 2008.  I demand you to be elite.

John McCain and the Republicans are simply on the wrong side of history right now.  They are wrong about the war.  They are wrong about health care and social security.  They are wrong about the rights of women and homosexuals.  They are wrong about education.  They are wrong about foreign policy.  They are wrong about taxes.  And most importantly, in our dollar euro dominated world, they are wrong about the economy.

They will do whatever it takes to maintain their power, so we have to rise above it and overpower them with our organization, numbers, and intelligence.  We don’t want to stoop to their level, but instead we need to brush them off and keep pushing forward.  Recognize and value where you’ve been, then apply what you’ve learned as you move in to the future.  gObama.

“They thought I’d make another Illmatic,
But it’s always forward I’m movin’,
Never backwards, stupid, here’s another classic”

Now this is the Bill I remember.  I can’t believe we impeached this man because of a booty call while George ‘Strategery’ Bush literally broke law after law while ruining our country and his only punishment is going down as the worst president of all time.  What a world.

Anyway, at last night’s Democratic National Convention, Bill dusted off his boots and got that old Clinton swag going with an excellent speech in support of Barack Obama.  Again, my late night blogging hours are killing me, so I won’t get too in depth here.  I just wanted to toss it up on TAOD, along with Hillary’s (good, not great) speech from Tuesday and Biden’s rousing performance, to remind y’all that tonight is the main event.

Forty-five years to the day after Martin Luther King Jr.’s iconic “I Have A Dream” speech, Barack is set to formally accept the nomination tonight in Denver.  I hate to build the hype, but I’ve been saying for a while that Barack has one of the greatest speeches in history in him, it’s just a question of when he’s going to drop it.  You could argue that he’s already given a couple (2004’s keynote address at the Convention, “Yes We Can” in New Hampshire, and “A More Perfect Union” from earlier this year), but I think he’s capable of an all-timer.  I’m talking MLK meets JFK meets Gehrig meets Jimmy V meets William Wallace.  Will that be tonight?  Will that be his victory speech in November?  His inauguration speech in January?

Regardless, we’ll see history tonight.  Whatever you’re doing, make sure you tune in to watch. It’ll be on every channel and there’s a good chance it’ll be a moment you remember for the rest of your life.

Hit the jump to watch the speeches from Hillary and Biden (especially recommended).

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(I know what you’re sayin’)

AllHipHop caught up with Bun at the Convention to get his take on hip-hop’s role in the political process.  That’s interesting that he’s planning on going to the Republican National Convention next week in Minnesota too.  I understand where he’s coming from, but you couldn’t pay me to be surrounded by that much ignorance.  As Bill said last night, “thanks, but no thanks.”

To hear more of Bun talking politics, peep the interview I did with him for Sound Session back in April right here.  Video swiped from Eskay.

(Memo to the Repubs: She loves this country.)

If you missed our next first lady speak at the Democratic National Convention last night, here’s the video of her speech.  It’s late, so I won’t go into much detail, but the basic idea behind this week is to make sure everyone in America gets to know Barack and Michelle as much as possible.  Too many people are still using the excuse of “I don’t know much about him” when explaining why they’re hesitant to vote for Obama.  If you disagree with his positions, that’s fine.  Vote for the candidate who believes what you believe.  But if you just don’t know enough about the Obamas, that’s your fault.  Educate yourself.  I strongly recommend that everyone read The Audacity of Hope as soon as possible.  Read up on the issues.  This election is too important for people to be lazy.  For real.

Some people are also falling for the despicable, false, and at their core, racist, attacks that Barack and Michelle are somehow “others,” not like the rest of us.  The Republican attack machine smartly depends on the naivete and downright ignorance of American voters, so this is the year where all that needs to change.  They’re trying to tell you that the Obamas are different.  They’re too radical.  They don’t love America.  They’re doing this for selfish, personal reasons.  They’re not like us.

False.  They are us.  They are the symbol of progression and the embodiment of all that is possible in our country when you work hard and do things the right way.  Yes, they are from outside the system.  With a broken, prejudiced system in place since our founding, that’s exactly what we need.  It’s time to move into the future and catch up to the rest of the world.  It’s time for change.

Use this week to watch as much of the Convention as possible and educate yourselves on the issues and the candidates.  Make sure you and your friends are registered to vote.  It’s time we take responsibility.