Serendipity

Frank Schaeffer: Bad News! Obama Wins Nobel Peace Prize

Because President Obama has not been on a timetable of a fast-paced music video but rather has approached governing at a measured pace working for long term results the smart ass part of the left, raised on high sugar content breakfast cereals and too much TV, a group of people who think in soundbites and 30 second news cycles, will somehow, like the far right, turn this good news into bad news.

via www.huffingtonpost.com

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/frank-schaeffer/bad-news-obama-wins-nobel_b_314915.html

Interesting article which points out the various views of people about the award.  I thought the above point was especially well made.  Obama's measured and looking ahead far down the road and in this day of instantaneous decisionmaking and short-term fixes, that's hard to understand as a value.

Another funny from Huffington Post:  David Parker: Breaking News: Barack Obama Wins AL and NL MVP, Other Awards

In a stunning turn of events, President Barack Obama has swept baseball's postseason honors in both leagues, a feat never before accomplished and long considered impossible.

Fact Checking

St. Petersburg Time's PolitiFact.com is following Obama's various promises during the campaign and keeping an eye on them, as well as doing other fact-checking.  Might be of interest.

A separate page for the Inauguration Essay

Rather than add a post, I thought I'd just create a detailed description of events for that weekend and it can be found through the link on the left side of this blog, or HERE.

Pictures are posted at Flickr [VictoriaJZ].

Want to know what's going on with Barack?

A website full of information, videos, writings, links = admittedly biased.....but a good place to go!

Good Point

Obama on the financial crisis and finding a solution, in a speech today.

I know that many of you are feeling anxiety right now - about your jobs, about your homes, about your life savings. But I also know this - I know that we can steer ourselves out of this crisis. Because that's who we are. Because this is the United States of America. This is a nation that has faced down war and depression; great challenges and great threats. And at each and every moment, we have risen to meet these challenges - not as Democrats, not as Republicans, but as Americans. With resolve. With confidence. With that fundamental belief that here in America, our destiny is not written for us, but by us. That's who we are, and that's the country we need to be right now.

Trip to Denver for Convention Speech by Obama

Finally, I was able to get through the photos I took at the Invesco Field event. We drove out from Des Moines and arrived early Thursday, and picked up the credentials from the Iowa headquarters downtown. We then drove out to the hotel [which was way out of the city - all the downtown rooms were $300 or so and that was true far out to the surrounding towns]. On the way, one of the tires on my car went flat and a kind Samaritan from Denver came by and helped us figure out the repair [we were puzzled by the lugnuts]. Big Kudos to Denverites! And, fortunately, we had arrived early enough to deal with this and still get to the Field.

We then went to get in line [taking a bus from the hotel down to the Invesco Field stop] at about 2pm and waited. . . And waited . . . And waited. . . The line got about 2-3 miles long [the movie footage in an earlier blog entry is of that long line] and then we got in at about 6:30 p.m. after going through TSA-style security. We made it through security and went to our seats. We were way-y-y-y up high in the middle of the top section behind the right hand side of the stage. Fortunately, all the speakers and events on the stage could be seen on the huge screens to the left and right and behind us at the top of the arena.

Flags were handed out, as were 'Change' signs. When we left we took the flags we were given [they were certainly not trashed!]. The photos that I uploaded at my MobileMe gallery site are from the event.

It was an inspiring and exciting event and well worth the trip out and back. The energy in the crowd was palpable and everyone knew how historic the event was. And a good number of us had lumps in our throats or tears running down our faces.

Pictures coming

I have 500+ pictures from the Democratic Convention on Thursday evening and some movie footage and am still working on it and hope to post all in a day or two, now that I am back home.

Obama's Executive Experience

Excellent post in The Washington Monthly regarding Obama's executive experience matching if not overshadowing that allegedly had by Governor Palin.

There was another post from a day or so ago noting his work in Chicago when he was in charge of 10 staffers and hundreds of volunteers, but I can't find that post now.

Obama speech seen by 38 million people

AP is reporting that more than 38 million saw his speech last night. That's more than the Academy Awards, the opening ceremony at the Beijing Olympics, American Idol's final show, and since there is no estimate for C-SPAN or PBS coverage, the actual number may be more.

That was my concern, that his opportunity to break through and speak to as many people as possible would not have a large enough audience. Fortunately, it did.

Nice Kudos for Iowa

Everyone in Iowa who was involved in Obama's campaign, everyone in Iowa who stood for Obama, you should be proud - everywhere I went yesterday and through the evening at Invesco whenever I mentioned I was from Iowa, everyone said we should be proud = Iowa started it all.  Of course, Obama and his campaign and many others can be rightfully proud of this campaign.  But, Iowans, both those who supported Obama and those who at least listened to him and allowed him to practice his campaign skills in the state of Iowa, should be proud. 

It was a great and historic event for many reasons.  And Iowa and its citizens can be proud of their role in making history.

Obama's Speech

Gobs of photos [close to 500 plus to sort thru, probably much more] - but for now, I just have to say this was a stupendous, moving, wonderful evening = a lovely night [those wingers who were praying for rain failed] and a crowd of what I thought was 70,000 but evidently was closer to 80K...I do hope everyone in those long lines got in!

It was a thrilling and exciting evening and something I am moved to have been here, to witness.

It's a great day in Denver

Drove in and around 10 went downtown to the Iowa delegation's HQ to pick up the credentials, then headed out to the hotel [way out west in Golden - about the only place near Denver which wasn't $250 a night].  On the way there I sensed something was wrong with my car and on stopping, 'lo and behold, there was a deep gash in the right rear tire.  We went to change the tire and finally got the lugnuts off, except one.  Fortunately, a guy rode by on a bike and stopped and helped us.  He said he had been an auto mechanic and he was a great help, since we couldn't figure how to get the final lug nut off....pictures later tonite, when I have time to download.  We're haded to the RTD bus that will take us to the field - going green all the way [plus taking a bus makes a lot more sense than driving and parking].

Part of the Way

We drove and drove and drove on I-80 and finally made our stop in Sterling...we had trouble finding radio coverage of the Convention but lucked out and caught most of Bill Clinton's speech [great job!]...we were lucky to get to the motel and get to the room and put on the TV to catch the Convention and Joe Biden's speech...tomorrow we leave early and plan to get to Denver before noon, because it looks like there's going to be security and traffic nightmares. Should be quite an event...

This is a hoot....I was thinking about the same thing

Josh Marshall at TPM think's he's the Veep choice since he has not yet been informed otherwise...nor have I. Funny reading.

Excellent Point on Iraq

Now that the Iraqis have agreed to a timetable for our withdrawal, basically adopting Barack Obama's plan, we can start to focus on what will be true success there, leaving the country in the hands of its own people and its own government. Which was, I thought, one of the reasons advanced to go into Iraq in the first place.

Link:

ATTACKERMAN » Are You Gonna Go My Way? .

Going to Denver for 8/28 Obama speech

Just noting that I'll be going to Denver on next Wednesday to be there for the acceptance speech of Barack Obama at the Democratic Convention in Invesco Field. Looks to be a great time and I'm hoping/planning to blog, take pictures and share thoughts about the event.

As a person who worked on the staff of the Democratic National Committee in putting on the 1968 Convention in Chicago [remember the troops moving through Grant Park??] it's going to be fun to be in the crowd this time. It was fascinating but scary in 1968.