The Call Up
More responsible liberal bloggers tended to weigh last night's proceedings as a policy tossup, with the advantage going to Obama for appearing more presidential. The bloggin' Drum didn't think Obama looked that sharp (I disagree) and expresses surprise that the snap polls went so widely in his favor.
I'm not surprised. At several points in the evening Sen. InSane reminded me of a lurching Charles Foster Kane tearing up his wife's bedroom. He looked older than his 72 years. He repeated himself. His zingers fell flat. He name-checked long-dead presidents as though they'd been friends of his. Oh, and pardon me for observing this, Mr. and Mrs. North America, but as someone who is old enough to remember the last years of American aparteid, pointing to a black man and referring to him as "that one" is about as racist as you can get in so-called polite company.
Yr. Hmbl. Svt.has spent the last few days volunteering at Obama headquarters downtown, calling lists of campaign supporters in different parts of Illinois to see if they'd like to canvass and GOTV in Wisconsin, Iowa, and Missouri. And I am here to tell you that, while I leave a lot of messages in voice mail, NO ONE I've spoken to has been indifferent or unenthusiastic. EVERYONE I reached has heard me out and I'd estimate about ten percent of them signed up to help in one capacity or another.
Ten percent!! This is astonishing, an amazing phenomenon that, near as I can tell, has not been discovered by the national press or polls.
Yesterday I called downstate and, buddy, if you want to talk to the heartland, I had it on the line. One man said he couldn't get out but he had Obama in his prayers, a woman told she'd like to help but her son was coming back from Iraq today and she had to help him move to Ft. Donnelson, a prison guard said he isn't a racist anymore because of his work, and kept me on the line for a while as he talked about what we need to do in this country. Most of these people spoke to me in the cadences of Kentucky and Missouri. All of them promised they were voting. After yesterday I have a feeling Obama will do better on election day than anyone in the press corpse dreams.
I bring up my volunteer work only to encourage those of you with the spare time to do the same--not to help the senator (though his is a very worthy cause), or feel good about yourself (though one comes away feeling pretty damn justified), but as a way of parting that deadening scrim that hangs between you and your fellow citizens. Putting it aside for only a day, you will be amazed how alive you'll feel.
UPDATE: Heh. Joe Biden also says McCain was lurching. Niiice.
I'm not surprised. At several points in the evening Sen. InSane reminded me of a lurching Charles Foster Kane tearing up his wife's bedroom. He looked older than his 72 years. He repeated himself. His zingers fell flat. He name-checked long-dead presidents as though they'd been friends of his. Oh, and pardon me for observing this, Mr. and Mrs. North America, but as someone who is old enough to remember the last years of American aparteid, pointing to a black man and referring to him as "that one" is about as racist as you can get in so-called polite company.
Yr. Hmbl. Svt.has spent the last few days volunteering at Obama headquarters downtown, calling lists of campaign supporters in different parts of Illinois to see if they'd like to canvass and GOTV in Wisconsin, Iowa, and Missouri. And I am here to tell you that, while I leave a lot of messages in voice mail, NO ONE I've spoken to has been indifferent or unenthusiastic. EVERYONE I reached has heard me out and I'd estimate about ten percent of them signed up to help in one capacity or another.
Ten percent!! This is astonishing, an amazing phenomenon that, near as I can tell, has not been discovered by the national press or polls.
Yesterday I called downstate and, buddy, if you want to talk to the heartland, I had it on the line. One man said he couldn't get out but he had Obama in his prayers, a woman told she'd like to help but her son was coming back from Iraq today and she had to help him move to Ft. Donnelson, a prison guard said he isn't a racist anymore because of his work, and kept me on the line for a while as he talked about what we need to do in this country. Most of these people spoke to me in the cadences of Kentucky and Missouri. All of them promised they were voting. After yesterday I have a feeling Obama will do better on election day than anyone in the press corpse dreams.
I bring up my volunteer work only to encourage those of you with the spare time to do the same--not to help the senator (though his is a very worthy cause), or feel good about yourself (though one comes away feeling pretty damn justified), but as a way of parting that deadening scrim that hangs between you and your fellow citizens. Putting it aside for only a day, you will be amazed how alive you'll feel.
UPDATE: Heh. Joe Biden also says McCain was lurching. Niiice.
posted by Will Divide at 4:17 AM
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