Don't Know Much About History...

Obama wins North Carolina, concedes Indiana, calls for unity. 

Here is a transcript of his speech: this detail struck me:

I trust the American people to understand that it is not weakness, but wisdom to talk not just to our friends, but to our enemies, like Roosevelt did, and Kennedy did, and Truman did.

Obama's supporters are too young to know any of this, but Roosevelt led the United States in the war against Hitler; the Allied policy was unconditional surrender, so there was very little for Roosevelt and Hitler to discuss, and in fact, the two did not meet at all (but they did exchange correspondence before the war).

So my guess is that Obama is thinking of the Yalta Conference with Churchill and Stalin as talking to "our enemies", although of course we were still allied with the Soviet Union against Germany and Japan at that point.  Beyond that, is the Yalta Conference something Obama and his advisers view as a success worthy of emulation?  Puzzling.

HE'S KIDDING?   Maybe Obama's team is finally realizing they have a Michelle problem;from Obama's speech:

I believe in our ability to perfect this nation, because it's the only reason I'm standing here today. I know the promise of America, because I've lived it. Michelle has lived it; you have lived it.

It is the light of opportunity that led my father across an ocean. It's the founding ideals that the flag draped over my father's coffin stand for. It is life and liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

It's the simple truth I learned all those years ago when I worked in the shadow of all those shuttered steel mills on the south side of the Chicago, that, in this country, justice can be won against the greatest odds, hope can find its way back from the darkest of corners.

And when we are told that we cannot bring about the change that we seek, we answer with one voice: Yes, we can.

"Michelle has lived it"?  Any reasonable person would say that Michelle has lived the American dream, but I am not talking about a reasonable person - I am talking about the woman who whines about loneliness and crushing college loans every time she speaks.  Well, maybe they will gently ask her to go to re-write and try to find something to smile about.

ERRATA: "It's the founding ideals that the flag draped over my father's coffin stand for" - shouldn't that be "grandfather"?  Presumably granddad was entitled to a military funeral; dad was off in Kenya IIRC, probably not with an American flag.

Comments

[JM Hanes]

To clarify my comment above, Beckel was talking about a former mayor in a past election, not this one.

[JM Hanes]

Rick:

I think a dumbed down press which does nothing more than pass on talking points and asks undemanding questions that can be answered by rote is a bigger problem than a dumbed down electorate. It's all process and horse racing. Even Chris Wallace, who usually does better than most was huge disappointment last week. I truly think that Tony Snow's illness is a national tragedy. He's about the only person I can think of who can actually manage to do a substantive interview with anybody of any ilk anywhere.

[RichatUF]

Rick-

The "unknown unknown" going forward is whether the NEA educrats have succeeded in dumbing down the electorate ...

Clinton's 1996 re-election is instructive-"moral politics", "building a bridge to the 21st century", and school uniforms.

I'm getting discouraged over McCain's (and the GOP's) chances and it is a bit horrifying to think about what a BHO administration with substantial majorities in both houses will do. I read a graph about his "Patriot Corporation Act" and his buttering up of the Teamsters, and can only think what sorts of disasters will befall us if those sorts of things come to pass.

[Hoosierhoops]

And Barack Obama will require you to work. He is going to demand that you shed your cynicism. That you put down your division. That you come out of your isolation. That you move out of your comfort zones. That you push yourselves to be better. And that you engage. Barack will never allow you to go back to your lives....

mmmm.. 'baby jesus' sounds like he would make one fine basketball coach..he must have missed his calling.

[Charlie (Colorado)]

To whom do I turn my pundit card back too?

d00d, since when has being wrong been an impediment to being a pubdit?

[clarice]

Well, Rick and Richard, there's only one thing left for JOM to do--start building the Deathmobile.
http://www.tigersweat.com/images/anim14.jpg

[Porchlight]

it is a bit horrifying to think about what a BHO administration with substantial majorities in both houses will do.

Here's another one for you, Rich - from the Obama campaign in response to McCain's speech on judges:

"Barack Obama has always believed that our courts should stand up for social and economic justice, and what’s truly elitist is to appoint judges who will protect the powerful and leave ordinary Americans to fend for themselves."

Scary. The linked thread at Volokh is interesting. FYI, Eugene Volokh and Orin S. Kerr are both on McCain's judicial advisory committee

[Rick Ballard]

JMH,

I have a small chicken or egg problem with the journalism aspect. The educrats have been pushing "tolerance" rather than discernment of the difference between illusion and reality for about thirty years and journalism reflects that fact. Toss in journos desperate attempts to find the actual LCD of their shrinking customer base and "shoot low sherrif, those are midgets riding Shetland ponies" makes some business sense. I agree with you about the overall quality but a dumb audience gets what it deserves. We all just have to learn to tolerate that fact.

Or - cancel and push the OFF button more frequently.

Rich,

'Red' BHO is very beatable and McCain is doing fine with the Muddle. Not so hot with part of the base but the alternative should be enough to drive them ('cause he ain't gonna lead 'em) to the polls in November. It's just a tad more interesting than one might hope. I really expect the final outcome to resemble that of Senator Lamont's extraordinary success.

[Jim Miller]

First, happy birthday to Sara!

And to LindaK: Those people in the background were chosen to give you, and everyone else, that impression. I was struck by it myself, thinking the Obama campaign had gone overboard in putting a lot of whites behind the Arugula candidate.

[kim]

Speaking of which, I still think McCain should ask Joe Lieberman to be his running mate.
=================================

[Paul Zrimsek]

It's interesting that Obama makes a big point of how he will "talk to" America's enemies, and yet he will "require" Americans to get with his program.

I've been trying to work this into a slogan about how "we are the enemies we've been waiting for", but Pogo keeps butting in.

[MayBee]

"Barack Obama has always believed that our courts should stand up for social and economic justice,

Isn't social justice the catchphrase of Bill Ayers' education policy? Or is that social somethingelse or justice somethingelse?

[Sara]

Thanks everyone for the birthday wishes, it is a nice and uplifting way to start the day.

Although I think running against Obama will be much easier in the long run, I admit I was pulling for Hillary. I can't believe someone has actually come along to make me feel she is the lesser of two evils.

I don't have the numbers, but if you heard Rove last night, he was giving the numbers of BO and HRC supporters who say they will never vote for the other one. Numbers over 50% on both sides.

I wish I could ask those 91% of blacks who voted in lockstep for Obama just what they think he'll do for them. Don't they realize that he has even less in common with them than he does with the white over-educated voters? I don't like anyone who equates hardship with loss of dignity and making a new victim or victim class. I know it is a cliche, but this country was built on the philosophy of when things get tough, the tough get going, not on them crying about their loss of dignity.

[Tom Maguire]

I believe the reference to Roosevelt was pointing to the Good Neighbor Policy enacted in 1933.

Maybe. So who were our enemies in 1933? Or by "enemies" did Barack mean "allies and competing powers", which obviously is not the same?

[clarice]

If you read the JPod article I cited on the other thread he notes that given the huge turnout even if that many RW supporters keep their word and refuse to vote for O, he still stands a great chance of winning--turnout--monry---

[RichatUF]

Porchlight-

Scary. The linked thread at Volokh is interesting. FYI, Eugene Volokh and Orin S. Kerr are both on McCain's judicial advisory committee

Indeed. A leftist activist court, an indoctrination-for-revoloution educational program, a surrender-and-apologize first international policy, and a disgustingly fawning media-when it all goes badly, he'll have plenty of demonized enemies to blame.

Rick-

That cheers me up a bit. I can't figure out why the GOP has done so badly regarding its House and Senate campaign committees, and I'm pretty unenthusiastic for McCain as it is. It seems that waiting for the Bush administration to hit a grand slam before the end of his term and McCain leading off with a home run with his VP pick is a bit delusional...but there is always hope. Your probably right that BHO won't be able to hide the red til November and McCain does have a Reagan Democrat appeal.

How is puzzling out the prog plantations going?

[RichatUF]

...Your...->You are...I need coffee...

[vnjagvet]

You are exactly correct, MB.

Trust me, it is not by accident.

Community organizing, BHO's chosen profession before law and politics, is very often built around the concept of "social justice". The term essentially describes a situation in which someone who is needy in some way should be "entitled" to something they don't have by reason of social circumstances they perceive as "unfair". (Rick could do a much better job describing this than I because his description will be far more entertaining).

Great catch, MB.

A quick trip to the webpages of these worthy organizations will show the social justice term liberally sprinkle sprayed throughout the copy.

It is essentially a lefty mantra.

[Porchlight]

Isn't social justice the catchphrase of Bill Ayers' education policy?

Bingo, MayBee.

[vnjagvet]

Happy Birthday, Sara.

Many more, too.

[bgates]

TM - an enemy is just an ally or competing power who hasn't stopped trying to kill you yet.

[Rick Ballard]

"social justice"? That's easy. It's the process by which the illicit spoils hoarded by the greedy are redistributed to the community on the basis of perceived needs.

Take, for example, the recent case of Citizen Little Red Hen. Citizen Pig (a member in good standing within the community) accused Citizen Little Red Hen of having hoarded a supply of bread far in excess of her needs. A democratically selected group of fellow citizens made a determination that Citizen Pig's claim was, in fact, true, seized Citizen Little Red Hen's bread hoard and distributed it within the community, with portions divided according to size and the judged sincerity of the pleading of need by each individual (Citizen Cow, for instance, wound up with a greater share than Citizen Horse because Citizen Cow's claim that she could potentially become a single mother while Citizen Horse, having been gelded, could never be responsible for anyone but himself was judged as very convincing). Citizen Pig was voted a double share for having the courage to denounce Citizen Little Red Hen plus an extra share based upon the democratic judgment that his plea of extraordinary need was reasonable due to his obvious gross obesity. That, and the fact that he threatened to denounce anyone who voted against him. Citizen Little Red Hen was remanded to the custody of newly hired (from the proceeds of a community action grant acquired through the benefice of the Right Honorable Citizen Pig) henhouse custodian, Citizen Fox.

Unfortunately, according to the sworn statement of Citizen Fox, Citizen Little Red Hen escaped from the henhouse sometime prior to lunch on Sunday, and neither beak nor feather has been seen of her since. The Right Honorable Citizen Pig has called a meeting to discuss the growing food crisis...

Rich,

It's going slowly - I find looking at the data on prog plantations to be rather depressing.

[boris]

Turns out the main reason progs are chronically so unhappy is that the world just isn't equal enough (yet).

Who'da thunk it?

[MikeS]

Who pays a community organizer?
Do they get paid by the hour or by the quantity or quality of their organizing?

[Bill in AZ]

Turns out the main reason progs are chronically so unhappy is that the world just isn't equal enough (yet).

"It's about securing your portion of the American Dream pie"

...and because there is only one pie...

[richard mcenroe]

Don't be dissing Barry for his history! Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?

[glasater]

Speaking of which, I still think McCain should ask Joe Lieberman to be his running mate

That would absolutely disenfranchise the R base--the folks that know how to work the precincts.
Love Lieberman but choosing him as McCain's running mate would be disastrous.

[LifeTrek]

Trackback:
Obama's Role Model -- Diplomacy That Nearly Destroyed The World

[boris]

Joe Lieberman to be his running mate

That would absolutely disenfranchise the R base

With Beau Bama as the alternative McCain/Lieberman should pull a lot of Hillary dimorats though. It might be seen as a more honest ticket than McCain trying to convince the base he really is a conservative.

Despite the open hostility from the MSM, mandarin bureaucracy, academia, etc, conservatives are not the problem with the country at this time. IMO something needs to be done about dimorat pathology.

If M/L can call a timeout in the culture war and keep the country intact in the meantime, that would work for me. I would certainly like to see the koskoolaidmoonbats get royally spanked in a blowout election by grownups in both parties that discredits their poisonous hateful carp for a couple of generations.

[jimmyk]

Did anyone else notice that in listing who "met with our enemies," the man who is above partisan politics not only was ignorant in his history, but only mentioned Democrats. The most obvious example of a president who actually did meet with our enemies was Nixon, for better or worse. Barack just disgusts me.

[kim]

Kitchen Debate.
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[Pofarmer]

Ya know, ya'll are thinking to broadly on, "our enemies" I think.

It seems to me that who Barack is talking about being the enemy here is---------Conservatives.

[RCH]

IIRC FDR did communicate extensively with the Japanese before the war. Japan had some representatives in the US trying to find a way to lift the oil embargo against them, which they believed forced them to go to war to secure oil supplies or to be destroyed as a nation.
Cordell Hull as secretary of state passed messages between FDR and the Japanese but didn't trust them, and in one case talked FDR out of making concessions that would have avoided the war according to the Japanese.
Another problem was a demand that Japan pull out of China to lift the embargo, but the Japanese took this to include Manchuria which they believed was too much. At the time the other countries had colonies so the Japanese couldn't see why they couldn't as well.
So Obama is probably correct if he was talking about the Japanese. Interestingly Churchill and Hitler almost met before the war, but Churchill who was in Berlin at the time refused a dinner (or lunch) invitation with him.

[RCH]

IIRC FDR did communicate extensively with the Japanese before the war. Japan had some representatives in the US trying to find a way to lift the oil embargo against them, which they believed forced them to go to war to secure oil supplies or to be destroyed as a nation.
Cordell Hull as secretary of state passed messages between FDR and the Japanese but didn't trust them, and in one case talked FDR out of making concessions that would have avoided the war according to the Japanese.
Another problem was a demand that Japan pull out of China to lift the embargo, but the Japanese took this to include Manchuria which they believed was too much. At the time the other countries had colonies so the Japanese couldn't see why they couldn't as well.
So Obama is probably correct if he was talking about the Japanese. Interestingly Churchill and Hitler almost met before the war, but Churchill who was in Berlin at the time refused a dinner (or lunch) invitation with him.

[battery]

Interestingly Churchill and Hitler almost met before the war, but Churchill who was in Berlin at the time refused a dinner (or lunch) invitation with him.

[sophy]

Welcome to our game world, my friend asks me to buy some Metin2 yang .