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A Visit

Greg — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 07:28:00 +0000

A good friend–and that’s the understatement of the year– is coming to visit next week. The 2+ years we’ve gone without seeing each other is a new record, and one I’m slightly troubled by, if only because it means we’re getting to that age where things move so fast we begin to ignore those “bff” pledges from way back when. Like me, he has one foot in popular culture and one in academia. And each of those two feet has its own one smaller foot in something and another in something else. It was with him that I learned to embrace everything, and to criticize it, too.

The timing of his visit couldn’t be better. It’s the first time in my life that I’ve come to find the weight of infinite open-mindedness unbearable. No, I don’t mean I’m questioning relativism. That was never an issue: being open to everything never meant avoiding making judgments of value. I am, however, reluctantly beginning to accept that most people settle down into a style, a career, a belief, a property, a spouse, a pattern. And they’ll try to box you in, too. Regardless if they succeed, they’ll nonetheless ultimately box you out. Not this friend, though. I can’t wait to reconnect.

I first heard “Obama” four years ago this month.

Greg — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 10:38:00 +0000

It was March 2004. Spain dealt with the Madrid bombings by electing a government that would meet the Spanish public’s new taste for vegetarian restaurants, and raise it with a vote for marriage equality. In Wisconsin, meanwhile, we were throwing displeased glances from the gallery onto the State Senate floor, while they were passing the “constitutional” amendment to define marriage as between “one man and one woman,” although I should mention they never specified which one man and which one woman. My hopes at the national level had also been shot, with Wesley Clark waiting until his Madison campaign stop to announce he was endorsing John Kerry and abandoning the presidential bid I’d volunteered for.

Driving through Chicago I heard the radio news: someone named Obama had just stunned the political establishment by winning the Democratic nomination to the United States Senate. I’d heard he was the most progressive of the bunch–and black–both of which bolstered my optimism that the rotting Republican stagnation that had afflicted the Midwest might be hitting bottom. I put him out of my mind until the famous 2004 Democratic Convention keynote speech. As beautiful as it was, all I remember is that he said the word “gay” in a non-pejorative context. I was hooked, and kept paying attention.

Some of my better friends have expressed fear that this guy, like every other politician before him, will be exposed as a “liar.” Or that he doesn’t know how things work, what sort of back-room negotiations go into getting things done. Well, I don’t know Obama, but I sure know his background. He’s not who the establishment wants us to elect. But that doesn’t mean he’s not the best choice to run things.

Below, his sister lets us in on his background. It’s not exactly familiar from watching “liberal” MSNBC.

Here, his University of Chicago Law School colleague hints at how Obama might manage the county.

Oh yes we still will.

Greg — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 11:12:00 +0000

With each (infrequent) loss, Barack has refused to return to the old-fashioned politics of divisiveness. He reaches out, comforts, and inspires again. Just words? The Clintons tell us they’ll bring actual change, not just words. We must remember that, in the end, those are just words. Whether or not they are good speakers–and I think they both are–the Clintons choose not to motivate us to come together to fundamentally restructure how we do politics in America.They choose to redraw old battle lines for the sake of fighting one narrow victory after another. It’s this sort of politics-as-usual that can only lead to a violently repressive backlash. Remember what followed eight years of Clinton? Eight years of GW Bush? Let’s move on, people! Don’t let them steal it at our convention. Let’s win Pennsylvania. We can do it. Don’t let them tear us apart. These next six weeks are how we’ll beat McCain. To hell with the politics of victimization! Let’s win this thang!

Update: 3/5 2:23 pm. With most delegates decided, it looks like Hillary’s “big” wins have netted her an approximately four-delegate gain. Yep, it’s not even close.