Listen to Patricia Wilson-Smith and Brenda Johnson of Black Women for Obama on WAOK 1380 Atlanta! 

The Georgia Black Women for Obama Chapter is SO excited to announce the first ever fundraiser for Senator Barack Obama!

 “A Night At the Atrium: A Fundraiser for Obama for America” will be held on November 10, 2007 at 7 pm at the historic “Atrium at Sweet Auburn”, located at in the heart of Atlanta at 236 Auburn Avenue, Atlanta, 30303. What better place to come together to celebrate the candidacy of man who promises to bring all the people of our nation together than Sweet Auburn Avenue!

If you are in the Atlanta area, you are in for a MAJOR treat! The ladies of BWFO will be in attendance, along with some of the most influential people in the Atlanta area. WAOK’s host of “The Right Side”, Shelley Wynter will be speaking, as will Reverend Wilbur Purvis  of Destiny World Church.

We have worked tirelessly to spread the word about Senator Obama over the last several months, but let’s face it – in the end, it’s about how much money can we get flowing into his campaign coffers, and the dynamic women of the Georgia Chapter of Black Women for Obama headed up by Joyce Spraggs has done amazing things to pull this all together!

Why is it important to get the money flowing? Money = exposure. Air time. Campaign materials, rent for offices, etc. The candidate who can get his message out the most often will have the greatest chance of resonating with voters. Here at BWFO, we are certain that the voters need only here in detail about the message of hope that Senator Obama brings to America to be swayed!

If you are in the Atlanta area and you wish to attend, please contact us at 770-232-9201, or email us at RSVP@blackwomenforobama.org. The event wil be an excellent networking opportunity as well, so bring your business cards! Yours truly will be in attendance, and everyone who’s anyone in the ATL!

By Patricia Wilson-Smith 

This week, I lost a sister and a friend.

On Tuesday, my sister-in-law, Vickie White, died of an extremely rare disease called “Scleroderma”. Vickie was 43 years young. She was a mother of five children (three step-children, and two by birth) and my brother’s wife. The video below, which I call “If Love Were a Kiss”, is my tribute to her life and spirit:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFA5J11pogo]

Vickie was loud, and vibrant, and talkative; she was strong, and truly one of the most loving, giving people I’ve ever met.  She was not perfect – early in her and my brother’s relationship, we argued a lot, mainly because she was very insecure about a lot of things. But despite our ups and downs, I quickly grew to know her as the generous, loving woman that she really was.

She was an amazing mother. She could always be counted on to take in a gang of kids for the weekend, mine included, just because. She and I planned dinners together, and cooked together, and bragged about our kitchen skills together for years. And we laughed – we laughed about current events, celebrities, family members, and ourselves. She was a comfortable fixture in my life that I just can’t imagine being without.

I realize now that it’s very easy to take someone like Vickie for granted; she was combative and confrontational at times, and a gossip. She was sometimes unhappy with her life, and often blamed the people in it. She made it very easy to want to avoid her occassionally, especially if like me, you were busy or just didn’t feel like hearing about her latest drama. Yes – it was very easy to take her for granted, even though I know that had it not been for her, I would have missed out on some of the greatest laughs of my life, and most definitely some of the greatest meals of my life. Vickie made potato salad that made you want to take a bath in it, put it on bread, in soups, spread it on crackers. And for all of the 16 years that she was a part of my life, I was definitely guilty of taking her special brand of love for granted, because I thought it would always be there. Losing her is devastating – for me and my entire family.

She talked me through troubles in my marriage, through my subsequent divorce, and through almost every relationship-gone-bad I’ve had since. When I decided to get my Master’s degree and needed every waking moment on the weekends to study because I was working full-time, she frequently picked up my son, entertained him, took him on outings with my niece, and never once asked for a thing.  I loved Vickie very much.

Most people have never heard of the disease that took my sister-in-law. Scleroderma is an extremely rare, chronic disease characterized by excessive deposits of collagen in the skin or other organs. The localized type of the disease, while disabling, tends not to be fatal. The generalized form of the disease, however, can be fatal as a result of heart, kidney, lung or intestinal damage. According to online sources, women are more likely to contract the disease, and there is evidence that black women are at a significantly greater risk than all other women of developing it. In addition, the fatal form of Scleroderma appears to occur more frequently among black women and starts at an earlier age.

Vickie was diagnosed in late Summer last year. I remember the phone call like it was yesterday, because it stopped me cold in my tracks. Amazingly, another very good friend of mine had died from Scleroderma several years earlier, and because I also worked with this person back then, my co-workers and I were forced to watch as her health failed, helpless to do anything to ease the debilitating affects of the disease. It was no different with my sister-in-law.

It was heart-breaking to see how she suffered, because I owe so much to Vickie.  A few years back, when I had major surgery, she was one of the few people who came to the hospital to make sure I was alright. She was there one night in particular after the surgery, when for some unknown reason I had a sudden and stark drop in blood pressure. I remember her standing over me as I threatened to slip out of consciousness; I remember her running from the room to summon a nurse, and standing over me, rubbing my hair as the medical staff worked to stabilize me again. Once I was home, she and she alone made her way to my house on more than one occassion during the six weeks that I was out of commission and cleaned it from top to bottom. She did it because she loved me – and it needed to be done. No other reason.

Most recently, and remarkably after getting her devastating diagnosis, my mother became very ill and was hospitalized for several days. I was unable to visit my mother during the day, and Vickie (who by then was on disability because of her illness) went to her hospital room every day in my place, argued with doctors to make sure she got the best care, and dutifully reported back to me and other members of my family. My mother, who was often irritated over all the fussing, took to calling her “Nurse Betty”. But the truth is, that’s exactly what she was – a nurse by nature, personally and professionally. Vickie loved and took care of everybody – and so I was so proud of her after I convinced her to get into a medical assistant’s program and she did.

There are so many lessons for me in losing Vickie. Losing her reminded me yet again to love the people around me, and to tell them so while holding them in a tight bear hug, because you never know when they’ll be suddenly taken from you. Vickie was at my house just three days before she died. She didn’t look well, but I don’t think any of the family that was gathered there that day knew that it would be the last time we would see her alive. I can distinctly remember walking out of the kitchen, and seeing her from behind, sitting on my love seat, chatting happily with other members of my family. And I can remember sneaking up behind her, and planting a kiss on her cheek and telling her, “I can’t believe you got out of the house today! I’m SO happy to see you!”

And in a cruel twist of fate that I’m almost too embarassed to recount, I can remember being in the restroom when she asked my brother and sister-in-law to pray with her then and there. I could hear the prayer from where I was, and when it was over, I said “Amen” through my closed door, hoping that she would hear me and know that I wanted in on the prayer for her strength and recovery. I knew she was about to leave, but before I could finish what I was doing, her daughter Alisha and my brother Gary had already helped her out of the house and into her car. I missed out on the hug, the kiss, and the “I love you” that I undoubtedly would have received otherwise. And I never spoke to her or saw her alive again.

There is also a lesson to be learned by those who take care of everyone but themselves (like me). As black women, we often become the caretakers of everything and everyone around us, and forget about doing the things necessary to keep ourselves going, like fitting in the annual mammograms, getting the regular health screenings, eating right, and exercising. I am the biggest culprit here – I’m caring for an aging mother, a young son, and heading up an entire department at work. Finding time to see to it that I’m okay has become almost impossible, but I’ve resolved to make the changes necessary to ensure that I’m here as long as I can be, for the people I love, and for myself.

But perhaps one of the greatest lessons I learned from all this came from remarks made during Vickie’s memorial service by my niece Brandy, who is also one of Vickie’s step-daughters. Brandy’s message was essentially that it’s only when we lose loved-ones, that all of the disagreements, the misunderstandings, and the stupid fights seem so petty.  Relationships in life are what they are – up and down, good and bad. I for one, personally think we only help ourselves if we can learn to see the petty squabbles for what they are as well, and learn to put them in their proper perspective. I know I’d take a healthy, smiling Vickie telling me off with her finger wagging in my face about something I said or did in a heartbeat, if it meant I could have her back. 

A greater spotlight needs to be cast on health issues that affect black women most, and more people need to know about this horrible disease. Sadly, our healthcare system, like our political system is predisposed to de-value black women. I wish I could believe that Vickie received the absolute best medical care possible, but studies have shown that as an African-American female in this country, she may not have. I believe fully that the kind of reform that Senator Obama has laid out in his healthcare plan will ensure that all Americans have a chance at better treatment of deadly diseases like Scleroderma. There are foundations and efforts to increase awareness of Scleroderma, but most people are simply not aware of them.

What I now know is that though there is no known cause for Scleroderma, and no cure, early detection can mean the difference in an improved quality of life made possible by treating the symptoms of the disease, and a very quick descent into the crippling later stages of the disease.  My friend Madonna, who died of the disease almost ten years ago, was consistently mis-diagnosed until there was almost nothing that could be done to prolong her life and ease her suffering. In a nation as great as this one, with a healthcare system unmatched in the world,  there is simply no excuse for this.

My heart is breaking, because I lost someone that at times drove me nuts, but that I loved dearly, someone that I wish I had told that a little more often. So, if you haven’t yet, look at the video. If you have, look at it again, and think about that person in your life that drives you crazy but that you love and can’t imagine life without. Then call them up and tell them so.

Rest in peace, sweet friend. I’ll miss you.

Vickie Juanetta White

July 11, 1964 – October 23, 2007 

For more information about Scleroderma:

Scleroderma Foundation – Home Page

Nonprofit organization dedicated to helping persons with scleroderma, enhancing public awareness, and funding research.

Scleroderma

Scleroderma information provided by the Arthritis Foundation

Scleroderma – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A variety of information regarding the disease, including a number of additional references.

SCLERODERMA FAQ

The Scleroderma FAQ is a comprehensive document about Scleroderma.

By Patricia Wilson-Smith

I had an interesting conversation with a friend today. 

We were discussing Senator Obama’s ‘hype-factor’; how he seems to have the market cornered on pure [blank] appeal - you can literally plug sex, mass, whip, broad, cross-over, or almost any other kind of appeal into the blank and accurately describe the man.

My friend mentioned that he hoped that Senator Obama could turn the ‘hype’ into votes. I agreed, of course, but it immediately occured to me that his statement revealed a series of interesting dilemmas, especially for BWFO.

Dilemma #1 - if you’re a single black woman, and you’ve started or joined an organization called “Black Women for Obama”, you are clearly in danger of getting the “Humph – you just like him ’cause he cute”  remarks from friends, family, and the occassional total stranger. I’m certain that there is a partial truth in that, I mean, heck, I’m not blind, and as far as I know, neither are any of the current members of BWFO. I see what the man looks like - for the love of pete, look at him!

(Pause to glance at GQ cover)

He is very attractive, there’s no doubt about it, so to those people I say – “Duh!” 

Yes – it’s hard for even a serious (clear throat) writer like myself to deny that Senator Obama is a cutie, but the fact is, even a slightly over-sexed, work-a-holic, love-starved, Internet junkie like me can keep my admiration for the Senator at bay, if for no other reason than out of respect for Mrs. Obama…

That was a cry for help if I’ve ever heard one. Let’s move on.

…and because not doing so is darned inappropriate if one expects to be taken seriously.

Dilemma #2 – it’s no secret that Senator Obama has a special appeal for the masses. References to the Senator have shown up in rap lyrics, on t-shirts, in music videos, and on college campuses all around the country. People from all walks of life have been mesmerized by his easy-going manner, and ability to connect with a crowd, and most recently he has been described in debate performances as ‘genuine’, and ‘more likable’ than the rest of the Democratic field . He oozes likability. The stories of his rock-star receptions at the events he attends are legendary by now. It’s an inconvenient truth- the man has star power.

Dilemma #3 – who couldn’t help but tear up a bit when they see blacks and whites standing side by side, joyously waving “Obama ’08″ banners as if their lives depended on it. I’m old enough to remember when a black politician of any kind was a complete novelty, and when the very notion of a black President of the United States was so far fetched that most people never even discussed the possibility. We are far from completely united in terms of race relations in this country, of course, but the images of Senator Obama being surrounded by people of all kinds, or being happily received by folks in towns both big and small, urban and rural, white and black, give me all of the cause in the world to hope, and inspires more than it’s share of hype.

So then what of the ‘hype’ factor? If it’s hard for me to contain the obvious crush I have on the Senator, is it possible that my friend is right, and that all of the hoopla, all of the media attention,  all of the fervor that Senator Obama’s campaign has generated is just hype?

Nah – here’s my take. I also think John Edwards is a cutie. He is – I can admit that. When he does that thing with his hands when he’s really trying to make a point – yuuuuum-y. And Rudy Guiliani certainly does have his share of Internet groupies, though I’m guessing a couple of them are probably already in line to be his next ex-wife. And the Hill-ster most definitely does have a broad base of appeal, if not across party lines, certainly across racial ones. She has Billy-boy to thank for that.

Then what is it? Why does the Senator invoke such a reaction in so many, and how can that reaction be translated into votes?

I’ll tell you what, I’ll tell you why, and I’ll tell you how. Senator Obama helps people like GQ sell magazines not just because he’s gorgeous (and he is) – but because his message excites people. The idea of a different kind of government doing things a different way just excites people. His intelligence, his insightfulness, his wisdom, his sense of family, his diverse background, his humble beginnings, and yes, his mega-watt smile - all combine to create a personna that seems to symbolize everything that America is about.

So how then do we translate all of that into votes? Well, if you’re Patricia Wilson-Smith (and I just happen to be), you target the demographic that you are most familiar with, in my case black women, and you vow to do everything in your power to help that demographic see beyond the GQ magazine spreads, the 30 second sound bites, and the rap video shout outs to get to why Senator Obama, who is intelligent, insightful, wise, and all the rest, is uniquely qualified to lead this nation at a time when:

• the Bush Administration is using every Jedhi-mind trick in the book to sell us on the ‘successes’ in the Iraq War
• the rest of the world thinks we’ve lost our monkey-a%$# minds
• Our schools are falling into disrepair, and turning out fewer and fewer accomplished students
• Our healthcare system is failing way more of our citizens than it should be and
• the Black family, the stability and viability of our communities, and the very idea of opportunity for the masses is under attack

(Bullet pointed for emphasis, and to prove I’m good at formatting stuff)

In elections, there is no such a thing as over-exposure; getting the image and name of your candidate burned into the very psyches of the American voter is Job 1. So it should come as no surprise to any of us that the Senator would grace the cover of magazines, hang out with Jon Stewart (who wouldn’t want to – another yum cake) or crop up as a new icon of the Hip Hop generation.  But it’s clearly not enough that everyone recognizes him – they have to get off their kiesters on election day and go and cast a vote for him. That’s where we at BWFO and Senator Obama’s other supporters come in.

Those of us who have committed to working on the Senator’s behalf are all busy organizing GOTV events, voter registration drives, house parties, and fund raisers, all designed to disseminate as much real and substantive information about the candidate as possible. We’ll let the news media and the national campaign choose his photo-ops; we’re working to make sure that everyone we can reach gets to know the Senator’s ideas.

And the national campaign is working hard to make sure that ordinary Americans like me all over the country are playing an active role in getting the message out – his is one of the first campaigns ever to make the every-day voter a crucial part of spreading the word, and the only one I’ve ever known to actively work at building a grass-roots machine that is meant to remain in place long after he’s taken up residence in 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

And so there is a place in all of this for the ‘hype’ machine, right along side the ‘truth’ machine. We’ll use the truth machine to see to it that the realities of the issues plaguing the nation are put in front of American after American, until the day comes when it will be obvious to everyone, even those who know how cute I really think Senator Obama is, that it’s about so much more than that for me, and his legion of supporters.  It’s about electing our greatest chance at a unified, transformed-for-the-better America.  Period.

A final parting shot – if it was really only about cute, heck – Al Sharpton and that fly little comb back? Va-voom!

You have to love the You-Tubers!

The creativity and passion with which YouTube dwellers have embraced the Obama cause has been nothing short of incredible! Now, I find that one Bubaloo37 has created a short video that is a testament to the love between Senator Barack Obama and his wife Michelle. Today’s Obama Video of the Day is called “She’s Got a Crush on Obama – Michelle Obama”:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24K52OUSZP0]

One interesting note: this video was actually posted to YouTube as a “video response” to the now infamous “Obama Girl” video, which I have never been able to bring myself to even discuss in this forum, let alone actually play for BWFO readers.  I’m not sure quite why that video irks me so much, but it does.

If I had to give it any real amount of thought, I would say that it’s the pure disrespect of it all. Satire or no satire, pretending that you have a ‘crush’ on a man who is running for what is arguably the most important office in the world, and even going so far as to pretend that you have a direct line to him when he’s a married man is not that cool.  Again, I understand that it was all for fun I guess, but that’s why it irks me (clear throat). 

The bottom line is, Michelle’s love and committment to her husband is evident in everything she does.  Any black woman knows that the love that these two share, the beautiful family they’ve built together is to be celebrated, not disrespected. As tempted as I might be to dish on how attractive Senator Obama is, I would never let it go beyond a trivial reference here and there, because his cute smile will not win him votes, no more than a ditsy super model dancing around in Daisy Dukes will.

At Black Women for Obama, we love Senator Obama, and we love and respect Michelle Obama, the next First Lady of the United States. Thank you, Bubal0037 for giving me the fodder I needed to get the “Obama Chick” off my chest. I feel a lot better.

If you’ve read any of the past “Commas for Obama” posts, you know that the goal here is to seek out opportunities for dialog for the political edification and reading pleasure of BWFO readers.

And so today, in a new installment of “Commas for Obama: We Pause for Thought”, we present a response to a previous blog entry entitled “Democracy to Aristocracy: Not in My America”. Written by your truly, of course.

If you’re a regular reader, you recall that this article points out the back to back “Bush-Clinton-Bush” presidencies, and discusses the possibility of (cringe) another Clinton in the White House in the context of a new-age aristocracy.

Well – the response to the post was incredible! I received death threats, anonymous, ominous calls to my home in the middle of the night, my tires were slashed, my house was painted with grafitti – okay not really. I did receive several really heated responses to my asssertion that Americans have collectively rolled over and allowed two families to occupy the highest office in the land for nearly a quarter of a century, though. My favorite is the subject of this edition of CFO, and comes from a woman who identifies herself only as GeorgiaCEOToday. 

My responses to this reader’s remarks are shown below in bold. To read the original post click here. 

 ————– Original message from GeorgiaCEOToday: ————–

By Sherry Pickett

Old habits die hard. The controversial “Voter ID” law was recently overturned here in Georgia. This law made it a requirement that a prospective voter have some sort of state issued identification or passport in order to be able to vote. A utility bill or paycheck stub will no longer be accepted as means to vote. Civil rights activists are against this law primarily because they believe it’s meant to disenfranchise and discourage poor, disabled, and minority voters. Some might say, well if you want to vote so bad just get an I.D., but the truth is there are people who can’t afford to spend the $35 (yes, $35 freaking dollars) for an I.D. They’re too busy trying to feed their families and keep a roof over their heads.

Of course the representatives behind this bill deny this is their intention. They cite past voter fraud as necessitating the voter ID bill. It’s funny to me when the political powers that be act as though Blacks simply suffer from some acute paranoia brought on by nothing in particular. I mean why wouldn’t we think these people would try to disenfranchise Black and poor voters? For years Blacks and the poor were denied the right to vote. And even when amendments to the Constitution were passed, those same people found other ways to keep them from exercising their civil rights. They managed to do it on the sly with little things like poll taxes and the grandfather clause. Poll taxes aren’t so far removed from us, they have been around in most of our parent’s lifetime. It hasn’t been that long since Poll taxes, so famous in the Jim Crow era, were repealed. The bottom line is blacks and the poor feel disenfranchised, because they have in fact been disenfranchised for so long. Blacks are skeptical about elections, because they’ve been shut out for so long. We’re no longer vested in this system. The “election” of our current president is ample proof of how easily our voting system can be corrupted, and how readily the votes we cast not even be considered.

I don’t expect white men to understand this and that’s fine. It’s hard to understand what its like to spend years being denied what by birth is a right. While I understand the distrust, I honestly believe that the Voter ID law is purely meant as a measure to preserve the sanctity of the election process (if there is any at this point. I don’t think it’s meant to purposely leave anyone out.  At one time, the government even provided free IDs for anyone that could prove that they could not afford one. An injunction was then filed last year halting that the free IDs. The program was only recently revived in the past few months. According to the www.gaphotoid.com Web site driver’s licenses, even if they’re expired, are still acceptable means of ID, as well as a passport, military, or tribal photo ID’s also work.

My charge to the powers-that-be is this. If this law is on the up and up and only about preventing voter fraud, continue to provide the IDs for free. Make it easy for those who want to get one. Put ID sites back in the grocery stores and places that are easily accessible to the poor. Don’t make this harder than it already is. If someone is informed and interested enough to vote there should be no reason that they aren’t allowed to. This isn’t 1935. More info on the free IDs for the poor is available by calling 1-877-725-9797, or visiting www.GaPhotoID.com. Spread the word guys. Voting is our right, don’t let it be taken away.
 

In today’s Obama Video of the Day, Alice Walker, the prolific author of “The Color Purple” and “Possessing the Secret of Joy”  tells why she endorses Senator Barack Obama: 

[brightcove vid=1201929195&exp=353515028&w=486&h=412]

So much of what Ms. Walker has to say here echoes how the many men and women who are volunteering tirelessly to get the word out about Senator Obama feel about the candidate. His quiet strength, his unique background, and his ability to bring people together are unprecedented in National politics, and is exactly what this country needs. The most important point Ms. Walker makes in the video is about the perceived “lack of experience” Senator Obama’s detractors love to harp on - she remarks that his inexperience with politics as we know them today is the very thing that makes him the only real choice as teh next President of the United States.

One only has to see Senator Obama speak to know that he is 100% genuine. One only has to read “The Audacity of Hope”, or “Dreams of my Father” to know that he is a brilliant thinker and communicator. But it takes a brave and enlightened soul to know that there is a better way to renew this country’s spirit, and that the politics of yesterday are not what we need and no longer what we want. The truly enlightened know that the politicians of yesterday are directly responsible for the divisive, immobilized, confused state that our nation currenty finds itself in. I’m enlightened. Alice Walker is enlightened. Many, many other Americans are similarly enlightened, and that’s why I believe that when Election Day comes for those important key primary states, the voices of the enlightened will be heard, and Senator Obama will prove to be a force to be reckoned with.

By Patricia Wilson-Smith 

Earlier this year in one of my very first blog entries, I asked the question “Did you know that there has been either a Clinton or a Bush in the White House for almost twenty years?” Back then, I forgot to mention that if you include George H.W. Bush’s time as Vice President, you have to pile eight more years on to that number:

President George HW Bush 1980-1991 (as VP and President)

President Bill Clinton 1992-1999

President George W Bush 2000-2007

Almost twenty-eight years of Clintons and Bush’s in the White House? What the hell is going on, and what the hell are we in for next?:

President Hillary Clinton 2008- 2015 (over my dead,  maggot infested body)

President Jeb Bush 2016-2023

President Chelsea Clinton 2024-2031

President Jenna Bush….and on and on and on?

I mean for real - am I the only one that’s bothered by the fact that our nation seems in danger of  being hijacked by a political aristocracy?

Dwell on that for a moment while you read the definition of “aristocracy”, courtesy of Dictionary.com:

ar·is·toc·ra·cy  

–noun, plural -cies.

(Clearing my throat, cracking my knuckles, and adjusting myself in my seat.)

At no time in the history of this nation have two families had such a death grip on the highest office in the land. It’s an odd development in a country that prides itself on expanding opportunity to anyone who works hard enough, plays by the rules, and has what it takes to make it. Suddenly, that all applies to pretty much every job in our society except the one where it should apply the most – the Presidency of the United States.

Have we really descended into such mediocrity as a nation that only a few “able” families, superior in stature by nature of their education, ability, wealth, social prestige and noble heritage are qualified to govern us? Is the prospect of a President David I. Smith (my gorgeous son) just completely out of the question now, and if so, why? 

I have a very close friend who I love to argue with about the Obama-Clinton rivalry, because he is so adamant that Hillary deserves his vote, yet he has no idea why. The best thing he can come up with is that she brings “built in political power and experience” to the office, and that at a time like this, we need as much political might as we can get.

I laugh at him when he says this. I tell him that the notion that Hillary Clinton would yield any more political power than Senator Obama or any other candidate who might become the next President is ridiculous. I remind him that it has been the case since the beginning of this nation’s history that becoming Leader of the Free World comes with all the political power anyone could need, whomever that someone is. Then, I lovingly remind him that there is absolutely no precedence for what we’re witnessing this election year, and that his judgement (like Hillary’s during the vote on the Iraq War) is clouded.

Think about it – after having George H.W. Bush do a term as president, a young upstart from Arkansas cleans his clock in his re-election bid, and becomes one of the most popular Presidents in recent memory (even if he was one of the most scandal-laden). After two terms, a rough and tumble Texas Governor by the name of (gasp!) George W. Bush is pushed to the national forefront by forces unseen and becomes the next President of the United States. Well, all hell breaks loose. The worst attack on our nation’s soil since Pearl Harbor results in mis-step after mis-step from this one – “Mission accomplished” on the deck of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, then “Oops my bad, still thousands more of our young to sacrifice”, and then “It’s all Sadaam’s fault”, and then  “Oops, maybe not so much, my bad again”, and then finally “We need mo’ money, mo’ money, mo’ money for Iraq, because if we keep throwing money at the problem, we’ll eventually win”, yada, yada, yada….

Just when we think this hell is about to come to an end – another blankety-blank Clinton – excuse me – the wife no less of the first Clinton steps up to remind us that apparently only two families are capable of running the country. Running it into the ground, maybe. What gives?

I’m sure none of us is quite certain of how it happened, but something is definitely amiss. The stranglehold these two families has on America politics is darned un-American, and I would submit highly out of step with what our fore fathers envisioned for our country. I think that if they could they’d bitch slap each and every American who would dare contemplate voting for Hillary Clinton just because she has some perceived political might that is somehow magically unattainable for anyone who’s name is not Bush or Clinton. That’s poppy-cock. The notion makes no sense whatsoever.

I think the problem comes down to 1)  a real need for campaign finance reform, and 2) the need to kick a lazy American electorate in its collective ass. Hard.

For many reasons – technological advancements, the proliferation of new media and communications, hell, 24-hour news channels – the way to win elections is to bring in the money. Candidates for office in this country are consumed with raising money, because they know that it’s the only way to get the massive marketing machine cranked up that they’ll need to keep their faces in front of the public. And because it is that marketing machine, with its 15 second sound bites, 30 second tear-jerker campaign ads, and new age substanceless, repetitive debates that drives us politically, he who markets the best wins the races. Poop on what a candidate actually stands for, or what they actually bring to an office -  all we care about is how much his friggin’ hair cut costs!

Imagine if all Presidential candidates were given a 1 million dollar budget, and weren’t allowed to spend another thin dime, how much more substantive their messages would become.  How much more knowledgeable of the candidates might we become, if we had to seek out their positions, or god-forbid, pick up a book and read all about them? And how even would the playing field become if the power-fundraisers with their special interest buddies didn’t always lead the pack? See where I’m going with this?

What makes it even worse is the laziness of the American people. We are all now so used to learning about our future leaders in 30 second snippets, through pointless and stilted election ads, and yes, through the oh-so-powerful media, that we no longer even think for ourselves. We don’t pull back the layers of any candidate to get to what’s real. We rely on what the media feeds us, and what we’re most comfortable with believing without actually having to burn off a brain cell to help us choose who we elect to political office, and that’s a low down dirty shame.

The Clintons may have some political clout, but is it the kind of clout that brings good judgement and results-driven  governance to the White House? When the campaigning is over, and the votes have been tallied, and its time to bring our troops home, solve our most pressing social problems, and restore our reputation in the world, do we really believe the people that have had their foots on our necks for the last twenty years can bring about that change?!?

Uh,  not me. And I can say definitively that I have pulled back the layers of the candidates, for the first time in my life, and what I know about them, and what I’ve learned about Senator Obama has made my choice as clear as day.

Another twenty years of Clintons and Bushes? Only if we’ve given up on the idea of a real democracy. Only if we’ve decided to give in to evolving into an aristocracy, and I just can’t believe that’s the case. We want more for our nation than that, pure and simple. We want the continued ideals of government for the people and by the people, and no one exempflies those ideals more than Senator Barack Obama. That’s why I know that Senator Obama will be the next President of the United States. Because the American people will not be held hostage by political elitism. Not now, not ever. Not in my America.

By Patricia Wilson-Smith

Sometimes the nightly political news, chocked full of the sound-bite jabs candidates take at one another is just comical. Sometimes it’s even thought-provoking, and at other times it’s down right scary. At times of course, it’s all three.

Recently, every Democrat in the 2008 Presidential race came out swinging at Senator Obama when during a press conference where he gave a major foreign policy talk, an AP reporter asked whether or not he would use nuclear weapons to ‘defeat terrorism’ and to ‘kill Osama Bin Laden’. No – no, stop laughing. That was really the question. The following was his response:

“I think it would be a profound mistake for us to use nuclear weapons in any circumstance, involving civilians…Let me scratch that. There’s been no discussion of nuclear weapons. That’s not on the table.”

(Source: Cnn.com)

(Hmmm…divide the first number, carry the one, multiply the mean by the deviated co-efficient) Nope – still sounds reasonable to me.

Now, I’m not normally paranoid, nor do I consider myself to be a conspiracy theorist; I also try my darndest to never be rude, but unfortunately this evening as my gorgeous son reads every word I type aloud, and nuzzles my arm impatiently, waiting for me to just stop working, I fear I’m going to have to be all three.

Is it me, or are a group of our fine Democratic friends a little too gleeful about what they are of course now trying to portray as a political mis-fire by our favorite Senator? I’ve haven’t seen a group of people this happy about the words coming out of someone’s mouth since I announced to my students that class was cancelled a few weeks back. From the Divine Ms. Hillary, to Governor Bill (“I love ya all as my Veep”) Richardson, they all had something to say about what I consider to be an intensely loaded question, one that I dare say I’ve never heard any of the other candidates OR President Bush have to answer. I’m just saying.

But listen, folks. Even I am not paranoid enough (yet) to suggest that the AP reporter with his out of the blue, hyper-hypothetical, would-you-risk-unleashing-Armageddon-on-an-entire-nation-of-women-and-children-just-to-toast-one man question was somehow planted in the audience at the press conference by the Dems or anyone else; but one has to wonder, doesn’t one?

As for the nuclear question itself, I mean, gee. I watch a lot of news coverage, and like many who oppose the war in Iraq,  I’ve often wondered to myself why it is exactly that we have to fight the war on terror either in Iraq or here on our shores; I mean to say, I’ve watched President Bush repeatedly mutter the same phrase over and over again when pressed to justify why we’re still in Iraq, spending colossal amounts of money each day that could be used to rid our country of important things like illit-, uh, elitt, uh, people who can’t read or spell:

“Our immediate strategy is to eliminate terrorist threats abroad so we do not have to face them here at home.”

(Source: Every Speech George Bush Has Made In The Last Four Years)

Ah – that’s right – got it. The thing is though, abroad is a pretty, well, broad term. Couldn’t abroad mean Pakistan, where they pretend to be our friends but yet seem to have a gift for hiding their “You Too Can Be A Nut-Job Terrorist” training camps? Or couldn’t abroad mean Afghanistan, where, after all, it’s generally believed that Osama bin Laden was last detected by American intelligence? Why, my dear friends, are we NOT fighting the war on terrorism in earnest in Pakistan and Afghanistan, instead of pummeling Iraq, a people and a country, who though very grateful to be free of Saddam Hussein’s dictatorial regime, also have been, let’s just say ‘less than shy’ about their desire to see us get out of their affairs and go on to the next botched war? And lastly, why (oh friggin’, why) hasn’t someone asked Bush (gee, I dunno) “Hey! Got any plans to actually secure the borders, or to get our brave soldiers out of that country that never ever really posed an imminent threat to us in the first place, in favor of going after the weird lookin’ bearded dude that mocked us on video after killing over three-thousand of our citizens? Oh – and will you be using a nuclear weapon to do so?!?”

Which brings us to the down right scary. Isn’t threatening to ‘win the war on terrorism’ or ‘kill Osama bin Laden with a nuclear weapon’ like threatening to get a mosquito out of your car with a wrecking ball? I mean to the normal and reasonable among us, doesn’t the very notion of annihialating an entire country just to get one man sound kind of, I dunno – creepy?

Which brings me back to my original point, if in fact I had one. To go all political on Senator Obama over a question that strains credulity is a waste of political brain power, and I’m surprised the candidates don’t see it that way. I would love for the AP to hunt them all down, one by one, hog tie them and throw them down in front of a few dozen hot lights and a camera, and force them all to answer the same question. I dare say, none of them could come up with a rational answer to such an irrational question.

Bottom line? There was nothing in Senator Obama’s remarks that said inexperience or lack of judgment to me, though that’s exactly what the feigned outrage from his Democratic opponents is meant to convey. All I heard in his response was the honest reaction of a man whose foresight in 2002 proved he is the sole voice of reason among this year’s Democratic field of contenders. Senator Obama has shown us yet again that he is a man of principle, who would think first of the good of mankind, and not go to the ugliest of extremes in answering a dopey question, not even if it means looking like less than a tough guy to impress a bunch of reporters anxious to capture any mis-step on tape so that they can blast it into ‘YouTube land’ for all eternity.

I say,”Bravo, Senator Obama”. You’d rather try every other option (including waging war in the right countries) before you’d drop an ending-life-as-we-know-it bomb on a population of innocent women and children, huh? Wow, I wish you’d made your voice heard before we got ourselves into this mess in Iraq – oh wait, you did…

Today’s “Obama Video of the Day” is short, but sweet – it’s a call to action, donated by YouTube-r ‘Rorchik’. And I love it.

It’s another example of how technology has made it possible for anyone to express themselves, and a continued testament to the impact that Senator Obama has already had on our society, just by running for the highest office in the land.

You don’t hear about it much – how people of all races, ages, socio-economic backgrounds, have all found a common hope in Senator Barack Obama – the news media won’t make the point, and clearly the conservative talk show kooks won’t shout it out loud. It’s only through the individual expressions of amateur videographers, the jittery hands of Obama supporters holding cell phones and camcorders, and posting their content all over the web for the world to see – technology run rampant – that we see the unifying miracle that is the Obama Movement:

 [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1bgd61JH6E]

I’ve never been part of a movement – I never cared to be. The real miracle here is that pretty much everyone I talk to who has gotten involved in the Obama campaign has a similar tale to tell – one of exclusion, cynicism, and political detachment. It took Senator Obama to awaken a sense of hope in me and so many others, which is how Black Women for Obama was born!

Long after Senator Obama takes office, millions of Americans will have a  renewed sense of citizenship that will serve us all as a nation, and unite us in away that we’ve never been united before. So yes – I’ll endure the twangy rock music in this video, because it was produced by one of my brothers – a fellow Obama supporter!

Man, this is a BEAUTIFUL time to be an American! Obama ’08!!!!