Barack & Michelle: Soccer Mom and Dad :-)

I normally wouldn't post something so "cutesy" but I watched this video today and couldn't help but smile.... so I thought why not share it.

If you haven't seen this nifty little video of Barack and Michelle attending their child's soccer game, click the picture below to check it out.

Viewing this video reminded me of that fateful speech, in which Michelle talked about how proud she was to be an American (you know, the one where people twisted her words to make it sound like she was saying she'd never been proud before?)

Well, in that speech what moved me was hearing her talk about how committed and involved Barack is a a father. She talked about how despite the grueling campaign, Barack had *never* missed a parent-teacher conference or a birthday for one of his daughters.

Seeing Barack and Michelle enjoy some time together as a family, watching the soccer game, and playfully joking with each other, really brought a smile to my face.

I like seeing how much they enjoy each other's company, how comfortable they are with each other, how they smile at each other, and how much they genuinely love each other.

This is possibly the next first family of the United States, and I couldn't think of a finer example. It's a far cry from the family life I had growing up, but in many ways they represent the kind of family I always wished I had.

Please click the picture to check out the video, and enjoy!

Why Does McCain Have a Problem with (Real) "Straight Talk?"

In case you missed my post earlier today noting how John McCain's new "Truth Squad" has a member of Swiftboat Veteran's For Truth on it, it looks like John McCain's relationship to the "truth" is growing more strained by the minute.

As Thinkprogress reports today, McCain's new "Straight Talk Express" campaign plane will have a "special" area for a group of reporters to interview him. The only requirement to get access to this "special area?" Write nice things about John McCain:

John McCain is now traveling in a new "Straight Talk Express" campaign airplane.

It "features a special area" with "a couch and two captain's chairs" where "McCain will conduct group interviews with the press."

But not all reporters covering McCain can enjoy this new lap of luxury. Top McCain aide Mark Salter said "only the good reporters' would get to sit in the specially-configured section for interviews."

"You'll have to earn it," he said. So how can these reporters "earn" a seat? Never challenge the Senator, as McCain biographer Matt Welch explained in a recent interview with the Los Angeles Times:

[McCain is] very open to people. You can come on the bus, everything is great but if he knows or if his team knows that you have a hostile line of questioning or you have a long and well documented critique, they're not going to talk to you.

As a human, he's haunted by the notion of honesty and about honor and truth. He wishes that he could speak the truth all the time. He doesn't. I don't think he speaks the truth any more than any other politician really, no more, no less .

True to form, John McCain is following in the footsteps of George Bush and Dick Cheney.

Want more "free speech zones?" How about audiences in town hall meetings picked for their loyalty?

Want more politicization of our government like DOJ hiring only "loyal bushies?" How about firing US Attorneys who aren't being partisan enough?

My friends, with John McCain we can expect more of the Same.

McCain's "Truth Squad" Has Swiftboater as Member

Thinkprogress reports today that John McCain's new "Truth Squad" has a former Swift Boat Veterans for Truth as a Member:

One of the members of McCain's new Truth Squad - Bud Day - was a member of the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, and appeared in an attack ad for the group in 2004. Day said of John Kerry’s military service: "My view is he basically will go down in history sometime as the Benedict Arnold of 1971."

So far John McCain is following in Bush & Cheney's footsteps true to form by using terms like "truth" in the name of a group whose purpose may after all be set up to disseminate lies.

Why else would he hire a former Swift Boat Veterns for Truth member as part of his own "Truth" group? Might at well call McCain's "Truth Squad" by a more accurate name: how about "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth Part II?"

Lastly, and true to form, John McCain seems to lack any sense of the irony that he formed this group to respond to those who might call into question his military career... by retaining the services of someone who ran one of the most famous and widely condemned attacks on military service we've seen in modern political history.

2 Great Books by 2 Great Rappers

I would like to recommend to completely different books with wildly different perspectives. What makes me pair them together? They are written by two of the most prolific and seminal rappers of our time: Fight the Power, Rap, Race and Reality, by Chuck D from Public Enemy - and Ruminations by KRS-One.

Each book goes into the very personal and interesting background stories of each of these artists, but while their individual experiences may be similar in ways, their prescriptions for the future could not be more different.

For example, Chuck D devotes a chapter to the notion of reparations and comes out in favor of the idea (and even provides some math to illustrate how much such a thing might cost), while KRS-One also devotes a chapter to reparations but speaks out against the idea - and you might be surprised at the reasons why.... (but I can't give that part away, you have to read it yourself to see why).

I highly recommend both these books for anyone interested in the topic of race, politics, and our cultural landscape in america. I especially recommend reading these two books as a way of informing yourselves about the very different perspectives, and the debate on the issue of reparations from within the black community.

The Hip-Hop Generation

Like the saying goes, never discuss politics at the dinner table, the same could be said of discussing race in politics.

But today is about breaking those taboos and - I hope - creating a safe environment where people can express their views frankly, and in a spirit of unity. We need to be sure that we are on the same page when discussing these issues.

That said, the books I am going to recommend I have read myself and found both illuminating and surprising. If the topic of race and politics in America is interesting to you - for negative OR positive reasons - then I believe you owe it to yourself and to the people you engage with to be informed in as many ways as you can about the topic.

The first book I would like to recommend is The Hip-hop Generation: Young Blacks and the Crisis in African American Culture, by Bakari Kitwana.

In recent debates here on Partybuilder, I have often seen references to "young blacks" and "hip-hoppers." This book delves into the public policies and cultural psychologies of those born between 1965 and 1985.

In this book, author Bakari Kitwana does a brilliant job of laying out compelling and well-researched evidence of racially biased laws, as well as looking frankly at cultural issues like misogyny and self-perception.

Kitwana has also done extensive research on underground economies, and generational differences between those who grew up under the banner of Civil Rights, and those people who grew up in a post civil rights generation.

The book concludes with an eye-opening discussion on the changing forms of activism in a post-civil rights era, and devotes the final chapter to showcasing Hip-hop generation activists and the novel approaches they are using to help our culture progress.

This is en eye-opening book, and may change the way you look at everything from republicans to crack cocaine. It is a must-read for anyone interested in how youth culture - and hip-hop culture in particular - factor into larger cultural issues of economics, class, gender, and race.

U.S. Major General: Bush Admin "Committed War Crimes"

As if it wasn't bad enough that Bush & Cheney have committed multiple crimes against our constitution, a new report released by Physicians for Human Rights found "clear" evidence of torture on terrorism suspects:

Former terrorist suspects detained by the United States were tortured, according to medical examinations detailed in a report released Wednesday by a human rights group.
...
The detainees were never charged with crimes.

In a 121-page report, the doctors' group said that it uncovered medical evidence of torture, including beatings, electric shock, sleep deprivation, sexual humiliation, sodomy and scores of other abuses.

The report is prefaced by retired U.S. Major Gen. Antonio Taguba, who led the Army's investigation into the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal in 2003.

"There is no longer any doubt that the current administration committed war crimes," Taguba says. "The only question is whether those who ordered torture will be held to account."

George Bush and Dick Cheney have perverted our constitution, and have soiled America's reputation as a beacon for liberty and human rights.

Today, I mourn for my country.

How dare you Mr. Bush. How dare you take these innocent people and torture them for years on end without charging them with a crime.

You have made our country less safe with your irresponsible and reprehensible actions. It will take us years to undo the damage you have caused to our nation; but even if it takes years to convict you of the crimes you are surely guilty of, Mr. President, rest assured justice WILL find you.

That these men were released without ever being charged with a crime is perhaps the most condemning thing of all, Mr. Bush. You are a disgrace to the office of the president.

I am speechless, except to say this to you Mr. President. In the words of Bob Dylan:

But there's one thing I know
Though I'm younger than you
Even Jesus would never
Forgive what you do

(Click "Read More" for the complete lyrics)

Barack Obama, Father of the Year

As a Democrat who grew up without a father, I usually spend Father's Day giving a second tribute to my mom - who raised me, my two brothers and my sister by herself.

At the same time, being raised in a single parent family, helps me identify with Barack Obama, who was also raised by a single mother.

But throughout my life I have still sought out male role-models and father figures; to learn from, and to rely on when I needed some "fatherly" advice.

It could be teachers, bosses, or friend's fathers. So even as being raised by a single mother gave me the strongest regard for the strength and equality of women, I was still able to find male role models - even of my own father was not one of them.

But this Father's Day is a little different. While walking through my neighborhood, I picked up the current copy of Rolling Out magazine, which gave this tribute to Barack Obama, "Father of the Year":

The junior senator form Illinois is now head of the Democratic house, and thereby shoulders the burdens, responsibilities, and aspirations for the entire political family - And for a large segment of the American populace.

Like a good and competent father, Obama exemplifies leadership and positive paternal attributes by giving Americans a reason to hope and a promise that things will change for the better.

As he continues to traverse the nation, receiving rock-star treatment wherever he goes, Obama has given stern lectures about a wayward government and what he plans to do to turn it around.

He has admonished his contemporaries and adversaries to eschew the politics of divisiveness in place of the spirit of cooperation and inclusiveness. He has implored his fellow citizens to actively participate in the country's campaign to reverse its perilous course. And, as we have seen thus far, the country has responded with unadulterated enthusiasm.

So on this Father's Day I will for the first time in my life give tribute to a father: our Democrat nominee for president Barack Obama, who throughout the tortuous primary never missed a single birthday or parent-teacher conference for his two daughters.

Wish I had a dad like you Barack! But through your example, may we see more good dads in the future. I hope you enjoy this day with your 2 wonderful children.

Best,
D. Tree