Convention-itis

Oh man, I could just be a bit hormonal right now, but the Michelle Obama DNC speech (and intro) made me tear up. It's nice to see words like "compassion"used in a real way, and lived in a real way. It was cool to see her and Barack talk about how they started dating in regular conversational speech, not overly rehearsed. And she seems kind of cool. I like the words they use: hope, compassion, future, change, gratitude.

I would love someone from a working class background, not to mention a person of color, in the White House. Someone who knows what it's like to grow up frustrated over money. I hated seeing that frustration in my parents, especially in my mom, who worked 4 jobs at once to be able to provide for us after my dad stopped paying child support. She still works in a factory, in a job that makes her back ache and her feet hurt. She works at a factory that makes frozen health food dishes, so she spends a lot of the day in a freezer. And she comes home to take care of my step-dad, who has a rare form of cancer that requires him to have chemo treatments every month, probably for the rest of his life.

The Ted Kennedy speech was also a bit inspiring. I wanted him to come out blazing, no bullshit now that he really doesn't owe anybody anything, but he was professional and thoughtful even. It must be hard to make that speech to a crowd that knows you don't have much time. I don't know if I could have done it, as he did, without cracking or tearing up. I heard a story that Ted Kennedy wore a t-shirt to a bbq this past summer (before he was diagnosed with cancer) that said "Bill Clinton for First Lady." Don't know if it is true, but if it is, that totally rules. The sexism of the message is totally trumped by the balls it took for him to wear it.


Ted seemed to have faith and hope in the future and even promised to serve the Senate during the next presidential term. I want to be hopeful. When I think of all the people in my life affected by cancer, it makes me sick. And some of them didn't have the health care that would have prevented tumor growth or made it easier to live with the treatments. That makes me feel even sicker.

The last two elections made me lose faith in humanity. One of my colleagues said after the last presidential election that he finally understood what it must have felt like to want to secede from the Union during the Civil War. Just that kind of feeling that there are really totally different ideological systems guiding people in this country. Just not being able to abide by that kind of thinking.

This Convention seemed important to pay attention to, which is kind of nuts, since I never really care for those speeches. A lot of hustling, preaching to the choir I always thought. But the choir needs preaching, I guess. That's what 8 years of Dubya will do to you. Have you seen the cover of Rolling Stone?

Quittin' time's a-comin'!