Obama's Speech
I won't go on long about Obama's speech. (He went on long enough.) But what I can't believe is how many commentators were reminded of Martin Luther King's "I Have A Dream" speech.
They're simply not comparable. Sure, it was moving to many, and I supposed it accomplished what it was supposed to, but that's the point. This was a cover-your-ass speech. Obama wasn't simply appealing to our better natures, or giving us a vision of hope, he was trying to get himself out of a jam. King, on the other hand, was putting himself on the line, and paid the ultimate price.
Good or bad, if you want to compare this to another famous oration, it should be Nixon's "Checkers" speech.
posted by LAGuy @ 12:36 PM
1 Comments:
Here in Illinois everything Obama does is likened to the parting of the Red Sea. The Sun Times gave two full pages to the reprinting of his speech in a format that screams "clip and save". While I agree that it may not stand the test of time as MLK's speech has, you have to admit that the timing was PERFECT and the content nearly so. He covered not only his ass with respect to his association with the pastor, but most of what's been eating away at race relations since slavery, while addressing possible rebuttal points. He said some things that I've never heard any other politician say about how associations with other individuals, even loved ones, don't necessarily dictate our own points of view, and that it's still okay to remain close to them. Everyone has a story similar to the one he told about his grandmother, but while most politicians would try to hide their gaffe-prone grandmothers, Obama puts his out there & tells it like it is. Whether or not you agree with his politics, or whether or not you intend to vote for him, you have to give him credit for being among the more honest and well-intentioned public figures we've encountered in a long time.
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