Penmachine

The problem with Obama is he is an empty suit. He promises so much change and hope, but we won't see it. Special interests, the federal reserve, wallstreet, and multi-national corporations run the show. It's been that way since Reagan and it won't change.
 

The change that we all look for is to see someone trying to make things better, not the guarantee that success will be a sure thing. Only with hard work toward change can a difference be made. I think Obama is a man who will do that hard work, a president of the USA who will keep his vision, even if all the special interests try to pull him in many directions.

To not attempt change would be wrong. Best wishes to Obama in his positive outlook and in his efforts to make changes!
 

You say the special interests and the multinational corporations control everything. But the only way to overcome that is to have a president in power who is a man of the people, that can communicate directly with the people of the USA, who will be on his side. Then, the policies can change. W couldn't change the policies that allowed the special interests to control things, because they were part of his constituency. With Mr. Obama, this can be rectified, if he gets two terms and stays in touch with the people.
 

Current numbers on Prop 8 don't look good. Seems hate will be in my state's constitution. Sigh.

Funny, my marriage never felt threatened the whole time gays were allowed to marry in my state.
 

It's tempting to think that Obama is an empty suit because of his lofty (some might say "empty") rhetoric. Bill Clinton, for example, may be a good and effective speaker, but it's been so long since the U.S. has had a truly inspiring and electrifying orator as president (perhaps since Kennedy; in Canada, Trudeau was our equivalent, regardless of your feelings about their policies). We have all become much more cynical during that time, and today many of us automatically think that a great speaker must be an ineffective thinker.

But I think there's more to Obama than that, and I certainly hope he makes the effort to prove it. I don't think those of us outside the United States expect him to be magic and solve everything, but rather that he will set a better course for his country. His victory speech last night started to set those expectations.

Speaking of oratory, I'll also say that McCain's concession speech was perhaps his best of the entire campaign: intelligent, factual, nuanced, I'd even say presidential. It's like the old McCain came back now that the race is over -- if he'd been more like that all along, maybe he would have had a better chance.
 

The United States can be proud for having elected Senator Obama to be our next president.

I agree with your comments about John McCain's, concession speech, Derek, but I heard booing a couple of times when he mentioned Senators Obama and Biden; I didn't hear any booing when Senator Obama mentioned John Mccain...
 

McCain's audience wasn't nearly as gracious as he was, and reflected the way his campaign had run up till then. On the other hand, it's pretty common to hear boos when an election loser congratulates the winner: I recall that from Canadian riding election coverage last month. It's much easier to be magnanimous when you've won.
 

of course, i should have added to my usw elko plant committee blog comment, that i am Ron Fisher, owner of that blog, job steward, and editor of our blog for the union plant committee at our place of work. I also should have added to those who "nay say" Barak Obama and his team...."Yes we can!" What a powerful statement of hope, and an ideal of don't give up, that i personally have followed all my life. The changes he may bring about may be the dreams we all hope for to make a better world.