So what did you think about Barack Obama’s speech? This take sees two different–and clashing–motifs:
Listen closely to the 46-minute address, however, and you heard two speeches crushed somewhat jarringly together.
The first half, one suspects, was the speech that Obama felt he had to give: a traditional partisan appeal that, for all his sonorous cadences, read like it could have been stitched together randomly from speeches delivered on any given day from rank-and-file Democrats on the floor of the House of Representatives.
There were denuciations of outsourced manufacturing jobs and promises to save Security Security and frequent baiting of John McCain for being the candidate of the rich and a weakling against Osama bin Laden.
The second half sounded like the speech Obama wanted to give: a plea for a new brand of politics, one in which politicians don’t attack each other’s motives or character, and Washington calls a ceasefire in such drearily familiar fights as abortion and gun control.
Obama did not acknowledge the two halves of his address—the partisan top and the post-partisan close—much less try to reconcile them.
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(an attempt at humor) Here and there, the speech was interesting; my husband is a teacher and he promised him a pay raise. And how could I not vote for a Christian man who proclaims : “Let us keep that promise - that American promise - and in the words of Scripture hold firmly, without wavering, to the hope that we confess”. That hope is that we will no longer be judged by our sins because we are covered by the blood of Jesus Christ. He is referring to Hebrews 10:23, which in context says:
“Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”
I love a good scripture reference!
The speech was outstanding. Now we have to work to get him elected.
A speech that is a stinging partisan attack and at the same time a plea for an end to the stinging partisan attacks. Hmm. So, in other words, “you guys are wrong, now let’s stop telling each other we’re wrong and work together!” Or, “Let’s work together, but we don’t want any of your stupid ideas at the table.” Interesting.
And when the word got out that it was Sarah Palin as McCain’s VP selection, the Obama camp immediately issued a statement condemning her for “being in the pocket of Big Oil”. No attack on motives there, eh? Amazingly, he also attached her for being a small town mayor and having no foreign policy experience. Does he want to debate McCain over that one, with his vast foreign policy experience? He did give a speech in Germany, after all.
It’s interesting that Obama used scripture, but attached it to hope in America, not hope in Jesus. It’s this kind of clever manipulation that reminds me of Clinton and I’ve grown to distrust Obama more and more. Also, I cannot reconcile in my mind a pro-choice Christian, who wants to fight for the common man. Like the two personalities of his speech, he wants to please everyone. You can’t do that and have character.
ps–Not sure what I think yet of the VP choice. Interesting remark from Don S about Obama debating McCain over foreign policy–I like it.
GOP Logic 101 -
Obama is 47 and is serving his first senate term. He is therefore too inexperienced to be president.
Palin is 44 and is 2 years into her first gubernatorial term. She is therefore experienced enough to be president.
QED
He then went on to claim that that hope we confess is his platform, not Christ and Him Crucified.
Don’t forget that Hitler’s favorite Lutheran statement was “Gott mit uns” We need more than quotations out of context.
Meanwhile his believers attacked an ABC newscrew and had them arrested for being on a public sidewalk, and mobilized to try to force radio stations to not cover anything that wasn’t pro-Obama.
I think the classicist reference has to be the Athenian Tyrant.
Palin has 10 years experience in the executive branch. McCain, Obama and Biden have together, cumulatively, zero.
Palin is really pro-life and lives it, and is genuinely opposed to the abomination that causes desolation, and the forcing of that black mass onto Christian pastors (Obama favors such forcing)
Anon#7 A big “Amen!!” to everything you said! Obama is a pretender and deceiver, in my opinion!
I can’t look at Bill Clinton, and I can’t listen to Obama. So I’m sorry that I am unable to answer your question.
We had music practice at our church that hour anyway.
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