mymorningcoffee's Blog

China's rising nationalism troubles West

2009-11-19T01:50:33Z

Obama's visit to China may be his most important foreign policy move yet, where he laid the groundwork for strengthening what is fast becoming the most crucial bilateral relationship for the United States.
Despite the ludicrous attacks from the American right wing, Obama's trip to Asia should be seen as an effort in creating good will for the U.S. overseas, at least an improvement over tense past relations.
Particularly in China, where rising nationalism among the population pushes the Chinese regime to take a hard line on foreign interference, Obama's representation of America's best intentions and values is a strong first step in building better ties to the newest super power.

Snark Attack

2008-09-04T13:08:31Z

After 8 years of Bush-style with-us-or-against-us politics, can Americans stomach the more of the same vicious tone of the Republicans? Is this how they plan to solve the enrgy crisis, the healthcare crisis, the Middle East crisis? With mocking, sarcastic character attacks?

We need serious leaders, not lip-curled, angry and divisive bitterness.

How to Be a Dick

2008-08-02T13:54:47Z

McCain needs to make voters afraid of Obama. That's how Dick Morris bluntly assessed McCain's campaign strategy even as he derided the campaigns current slime as "pit-pat" punches, not a knockout.

Morris is scum, but his point is sublime. Fear is their only weapon.

Reframe of Mind

2008-06-28T15:07:07Z

I'll admit it, I was thrown off the track by Obama's moves this week, but after better reflection, I'm rethinking my position.

That's exactly what threw me off--Obama's melding and changing line on several topics, most notably campaign finance and FISA. On the former, Obama came off looking arrogant, and on the latter he snubbed the liberal base by compromising on telecom immunity, a bete noir of the left.

Now I come to see his pragmatic and strategic moves to the center as smart and even principled. In terms of his campaign's overriding message this week, it has been "Obama can win." To put to rest, finally, Hillary's failed argument that only she could beat McCain. It's a step toward a robust fall campaign to come out saying "look at all the money and swing states we have."

Obama must be confident he has the party sewn up, and can go right at the general election campaign.

Stutter Step: Where's the Poverty Tour?

2008-06-26T15:09:21Z

What the hell just happened? Obama went from giant slayer and man of the people to cocksure overachiever in the matter of a couple of weeks. He's stumbled badly since sewing up the nomination, and he needs to step up or get trampled.

Obama's even getting flackon the left--see Nader, Ralph--and the netroots is abuzz with disaffection over FISA and Obama's not-too-subtle shift to the center for "general election mode."

I'm a bit concerned, and would be more concerned if McCain weren't so badly flubbing his own campaign. I think calls for Obama to focus on poverty and real economic issues are correct. I always thought, since the Edwards endorsement, that Obama was going to make a central theme of his election the economic populism that Hillary Clinton supporters ate up in the primaries.

Hopefully, with Hillary stepping bac iunto the limelight on behalf of Obama, the Dems can unify the party and make a united front on economic issues that affect poor and struggling Americans. I don't think Obama can afford not to use Hillary's working-class white advantages to bolster his image among these groups.

Narrative Negatives

2008-06-17T13:05:49Z

I've noticed a pattern in the campaign meta-narrative: all of the horserace discussion about polls and swing states keeps bringing up the "question" of Obama's electability--whether it be with working-class whites in state X, or as a subtle way to mention rumors and scandals like Jeremiah Wright, Tony Rezko, or Bill Ayers, Obama's patriotism, and how it impacts his "electability."

Obama has to turn this metanarrative around and make the question of his electability a story about why he would be America's first African American president, a man of mixed heritage and political skills to bring people together of all races and persuasions. This narrative needs a boost of support.

Obama: Lakers in Six

2008-06-05T22:48:52Z

This Celtics fan is voting for McCain:

Perhaps with an eye to California's 55 electoral votes, Obama also predicted that he Los Angeles Lakers would defeat the Boston Celtics in six games for the NBA Championship. But the longtime basketball fan said he didn't have a favorite team and is instead rooting for Celtics forward Kevin Garnett.
"I think he's great," Obama said.

This News Cycle

2008-05-20T22:20:04Z

Blog posts have a tendency to closely follow what is being reported in the MSM, which is not surprising. But I wonder if the so-called ability of blogs to see the wider picture is undermined by this tendency.

No doubt, TPM and other collaborative sites are doing good work connecting stories, as this site has done with such undernoticed stories as voter "fraud" and dirty tricks.

But on a day-to-day business, the blogs follow very closely to the conventional wisdom or story-of-the-moment. In fact, it may lead to the creation of a kind of "hive mind," in which the posters all begin to follow the same logic or spin.

The ability of Josh to frame an issue as he sees it in his video blogs and regular posting, also tends toward this direction.

I'm not sure where I'm going with this, but I have been thinking a lot over the past ocuple of days about the idea that Obama's "momentum" is criticized as a cult movement, and the discussion of how the media handles Obama's candidacy.

I propose that far-short of creating a cult, or even a fully legitimate mass movement, Obama has tapped into a consciousness, aided by the Internet, that he is able to manipulate with his speeches and statements.

The question is, can Obama ride this wave to the presidency?

Anti-Obama, Anti-Christ, and Blog Spam

2008-05-19T15:04:48Z

I found the same comment attached to news articles about Obama on two different sites. Each comment had the same mis-used words--saying he lies "without impunity," in comparing Obama to the "antichrist."

This is similar to other swill peddled about Obama by far-right bloggers who attack his flimsy association with Bill Ayers, who repeatedly tie him to Rev. Wright, and who make the possibility of negotiating with "rogue nations" akin to breaking bread with terrorists.

It's a despicable but effective line of attack, and it succeeds in sowing doubts about Obama in the minds of religious voters. Here is the comment, posted anonymously, at two web sites yesterday:

Obama seems the perfect antichrist except for his ugliness. Consider his popularity among young voters, his ability to continuously lie without impunity, his connections to mob members and terrorist both real and wannabes. His strong and unscrupulous desire for power, at any cost, regardless what it does to others, (he became senator simply by disqualifying his opponents). His empty words and changing promises, his desire to be friends with those who wish to destroy us. His wife Michele has expressed her hatred for this country and has publicly announced that her husband is the messiah. Perhaps you will need to explain to God why you voted for an antichrist, but I am not going to be on that dark on judgment day.

Anti/Christ

2008-05-19T00:19:51Z

The comments section of news stories about Obama can yield interesting fruit, and some reactions to Obama's surging candidacy take on a religious and paranoid tone. To wit,

Obama seems the perfect antichrist except for his ugliness.
Consider his popularity among young voters, his ability to continuously lie without impunity, his connections to mob members and terrorist both real and wannabes. His strong and unscrupulous desire for power, at any cost, regardless what it does to others, (he became senator simply by disqualifying his opponents). His empty words and changing promises, his desire to be friends with those who wish to destroy us. His wife Michele has expressed her hatred for this country and has publicly announced that her husband is the messiah.
Perhaps you will need to explain to God why you voted for an antichrist, but I am not going to be on that dark on judgment day.

Majority? Pledged Del Clincher

2008-05-18T12:32:05Z

Obama has had a great week. If he wins big in Oregon on Tuesday, he will get a huge "momentum" bounce. The media will all be talking about his clinching the nomination--sorry, the pledged delegate majority.

I'm sure Hillary will still be talking about Montana, South Dakota, and Puerto Rico. But she will be effectively out of the race. This week was the nail in her coffin. Obama pivoted brilliantly to take on George Bush and John McCain, and completely ignored Clinton. She was not even a footnote to his address on Friday, except as far as she can be lumped in wiht Bush-style attack politics.

What's so brilliant about this move is that Obama can take the high ground, and argue against the kind of warped anti-Democrat patriotic fascism leveraged by the Republicans for the past seven years. Americans are increasingly skeptical, and fed up, with Republican lies and bullshit.

Count me in that group.

Oh 'Bama O'Bama

2008-05-17T19:00:23Z

I was really lit up inside when I saw video of Obama's speech in that quaint farm setting in South Dakota. He fired up the crowd of 2,000 supporters, and looked very much like a Nominee.

He was wearing his American flag lapel pin for what must be a record fourth straight appearance, and looked sharp in a dark blue suit and striped blue tie. His remarks, condemning the attacks from George Bush and John McCain, were spoken with what sounded like sincere conviction, rather than "partisan" ranting as the Republicans later claimed.

By media acccounts of the speech, Obama comes out looking like a tough fighter of a campaigner, a proud Democrat and American, and someone who could stand on a global stage and denounce terrorism with authority.

I was personally invigorated by his robust posture in speaking. His authoritative voice and empassioned words speak to many people.

Viral Campaign: Obama's 'Sweetie' Moment

2008-05-15T13:40:30Z

Is anything more demeaning than having to suck up to a reporter after you called her "sweetie" and then left her a phone message saying it was a "bad habit?"

The video of Obama dissing a reporter's question,"Just a minute sweetie," is a youtube sensation.

Joint Ticket

2008-05-10T14:59:43Z

The Dems are still so divided over Obama-Hillary, even talk of a "unity ticket" doesn't appear to calm the storm.

I'd say this bodes poorly for the party in November, but a sense of excitement and unity would explosively boost turnout in the fall if BOTH Clinton and Obama were represented on the ticket.

Obama is the likely nominee and, hence, would be gracious to select Hillary as his VP. It would make the race almost without a doubt a Democratic win over McCain.

Obama's Electability

2008-04-23T17:40:22Z

A very good piece by John B. Judis at TNR (they took the article down behind a subscriber wall I think) wonders if Obama is the "Next McGovern?"

My take on Judis' well-crafted argument is that Obama still has time to win over the white working-class Reagan Dems that have been, shall we say, reluctant to come over to his side. But Clinton's tactics, combined with the media focus on some of Obama's negative associations, has created a wide playing field for Republican strategists to attack him.

It looks like Obama is going to have to ratchet up his rhetoric so he can appeal to these suspicious, patriotic, and less-educated voters.