Obama on the Gettysburg Address.

Can you imagine Trump saying this in an interview with the New York Times in four years’ time?

[Obama: to Michiko Kakutani, the chief book critic for The New York Times.]

“I’d put the Second Inaugural up against any piece of American writing — as good as anything. One of the great treats of being president is, in the Lincoln Bedroom, there’s a copy of the Gettysburg Address handwritten by him, one of five copies he did for charity. And there have been times in the evening when I’d just walk over, because it’s right next to my office, my home office, and I just read it.”

It would be heartbreaking if it wasn’t so funny. Obama slow Jams the news.

The Western world has never had it so good having an American President as dedicated, in touch and committed to US economic recovery, healthcare and international relations.  God knows what faces us but Hilary is surely the lesser of two evils.

In this news slow jam on the peerless Jimmy Fallon show he underlines his achievements but, importantly, cites his party colleagues as brothers in arms.  Let’s hope they keep that work up under Hilary.

But this 7 minute sequence takes it all to a new level.  A hilarious blaxpoitation of his two terms in office.

Can you see Donald Trump doing this.

Can you fuck.

Can you see Hilary doing this?

Nope.

Could you have seen the Bush’s?

No siree.

Jimmy Carter possibly.  Reagan at a push but not with an ounce of this utter coolness.

He even raps.  (Badly).

And the killer gag.  Orange is NOT the new Black.

Lena Dunham of “Girls” backs Obama in “lose your virginity” call.

It’s an interesting and tightly targeted ad albeit presented slightly patronisingly by US TV star, Lena Dunham; creator and star of the excellent “Girls”.

Missed this at the time…

Fantastic clip from an Obama speech in April this year in which he has a go at Donald Trump (aka Dickhead) after he’d questioned Obama’s African roots.

To get him back he released not only his birth certificate but his birth VIDEO too.

Kanye west puts everything in perspective

Interviewed at the Washington MTV party Kanye was asked for his take on Obama’s inauguration. His response?

“Man; first ipods, now this.”

What a philosopher.

How the Aussies celebrated Bush’s inauguration

Classy. Thanks Stephen.

An ad for a female depilation cream in the Australian Daily Telegraph.

Today.

Obama’s inauguration speech

Cometh the time. Cometh the man.

I didn’t see him deliver it but I’ve just read it and it is a thing of beauty. Balanced, potent, humble but strong, honest in that he positions America’s future from a point in time where the nation is in crisis. He speaks simply but uncompromisingly. (Essentially he is saying you are with us or against us. The subtext is ‘God help you if you are the latter.”)

Al Gore will be proud. He puts the climate centre stage.

He talks brilliantly about policy in a hugely Democratic way without actually uttering a word of rhetoric or specifying any particular bill. His critics might say this is vague. I see it as vision-setting and principled.

He talks about the ‘truth’ of America. America the brand. As an adman I buy into that full square. His vision is not of warmongering arrogance and doled out retribution for wrongdoings against the Bald Eagle. It’s about work – hard work – community, opportunity, reward and democracy.

In short this was a wonderful, humble, dignified moment in time, setting out his stall as a strong man of reason and very great intelligence.

Not one single word was difficult to understand, contrived, showy or jargony.

That is no mean feat.

So I say, Obama…Yes you can. (And he didn’t say that.)

I sincerely, truly hope and pray that I will not be eating these words a year from now, but I sincerely believe that I will not.

And why? Because Obama does not politicise, he engages and reasons.

Not a single word of overpromise was in his speech but its intent was crystal clear.

a bit late in the day…

…but I never saw this at the time. I found it while researching my Napier project and it’s wonderful. Basically it’s a brilliant Apple Mac ad hijacked by Obama. Perfect targeting for a certain demograph and what a great way to sell yourself. Not sure if it’s a viral or a real ad, but judging from the lack of an “I’m Barack Obama and I approved this message” ending I suspect that sadly it is the former.

Whatever, it’s great.

The day after

The euphoria is over.  And I must admit I shed a few tears.

McCain has given a wonderfully dignified speech upon losing, but more dramatic still was Bush’s brilliant endorsement of Obama’s premiership and his call to arms, so that the current administration do not drop the ball in the 75 days leading up to his governorship.

I liked that.  That took humanity and a certain amount of pride-swallowing.

Good on ya dubbleya.

Hey, maybe we’ll all see the man in a new light.

Apparently Oliver Stone’s movie on the subject, starring Josh Brolin,  is by no means sycophantic but certainly sympathetic.

Justice is done

You may recall I blogged this image by Obey, a few weeks ago.

Well, a nice twist came out today.

Sorry the quality’s so poor, but that’s the credit crunch for ya.

If you want to enjoy the original’s quality click on the link.

This is the end…

This is the end
Beautiful friend
This is the end
My only friend, the end

Of our elaborate plans, the end
Of everything that stands, the end
No safety or surprise, the end
I’ll never look into your eyes…again

Can you picture what will be
So limitless and free
Desperately in need…of some…strangers hand
In a…desperate land

Lost in a roman…wilderness of pain
And all the children are insane
All the children are insane
Waiting for the summer rain, yeah

There’s danger on the edge of town
Ride the king’s highway, baby
Weird scenes inside the gold mine
Ride the highway west, baby

Ride the snake, ride the snake
To the lake, the ancient lake, baby
The snake is long, seven miles
Ride the snake…he’s old, and his skin is cold

The west is the best
The west is the best
Get here, and we’ll do the rest

The blue bus is callin’ us
The blue bus is callin’ us
Driver, where you taken us

The killer awoke before dawn, he put his boots on
He took a face from the ancient gallery
And he walked on down the hall
He went into the room where his sister lived, and…then he
Paid a visit to his brother, and then he
He walked on down the hall, and
And he came to a door…and he looked inside
Father, yes son, I want to kill you
Mother…I want to…fuck you

C’mon baby, take a chance with us
C’mon baby, take a chance with us
C’mon baby, take a chance with us
And meet me at the back of the blue bus
Doin’ a blue rock
On a blue bus
Doin a blue rock
Cmon, yeah

Kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill

This is the end
Beautiful friend
This is the end
My only friend, the end

It hurts to set you free
But you’ll never follow me
The end of laughter and soft lies
The end of nights we tried to die

This is the end

This is the day that America finally decides if they trust Obama to lead the West. Even at this late stage I fear a lurking Bradley effect. Every major poll predicts Obama will win, but not by much, for example in a key swing state, Ohio, the difference is only 4%. I can’t help thinking that’s not a cut and dried situation. Oh, I really hope I’m worrying unrealistically.

Finally, and my last thoughts before the result.

Which scriptwriter penned Obama’s grandmother’s death on the final day of electioneering? (Surely, as a result, winning him further sympathy votes.) Was it the same one that opened the heavens and stymied Glock’s car on Sunday?

Is it divine intervention?

Wassup 2008.

Thanks to Will Atkinson for providing me with this gem.

Not only is this very funny and a genius pastiche but it is a very true take on our current zeitgeist (yeah I know but it’s the right word.)

For those of you who don’t remember the vernacular hogging original it was truly the talk of the water cooler in 2000.

Colin Powell Backs Barrack Obama

Is this the end in sight for McCain?

For one of the Republicans’ most respected figures to publicly put his faith in the opposition raises a great deal of doubt about the credibility of McCain’s challenge and the fact that he says it’s because McCain chose Palin as his running mate says it all.

What’s more he feels Obama could be a transformational world figure.

Ouch.

The McCain-Obama Post-Debate “Handshake”

More disrespect from McCain to Obama.  He’s doing nothing to win over undecided voters with shit like this.

Vodpod videos no longer available.

more about “The McCain-Obama Post-Debate “Handshake”“, posted with vodpod

“That One”

Ouch. McCain is disrespectful in the extreme to Obama in this week’s debate..

Vodpod videos no longer available.

more about ““That One”“, posted with vodpod

game on

Just when we all thought Obama had nailed it (short of assasination) McCain pulls a rabbit out of the hat.

Now, this is an interesting development.

Sarah Palin has a CV to die for.

She’s a much lauded Alaskan Governor.  Check.

She’s a Christian.  Check.

She’s an ex beauty queen.  Check.

Obviously she’s a woman.  Check.

She’s sporty.  Check.

She’s in a steady and long term relationship.  Check.

She’s a mother of five.  Check.

One of her kids is going to Iraq in a few months.  Check.

One of them is disabled.  Check.

However the whole thing is all a bit random.  McCain has only met her once so one could hardly describe this as a meeting of minds.  She makes Obama look blessed with foreign affairs acumen and she’s called her kids Track, Piper, Bristol, Willow and Trig. (!)

I’m looking forward to this…

Obama death threat

Come on Barack. Cross the line.

Of course the real risk to Obama’s accession to world power is that some fanatic kills him.

The fact that a right wing white supremacy unit set out to pick him off on the anniversary of Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech might, in hindsight have seemed obvious but it remains a real and present danger to this man’s life.

And, in that respect it remains a real and present danger to this world being a better place to live in.

I think the FBI has to be congratulated (assuming it was them who did it) for uncovering the plot by a bunch of hick Nazis to kill one of the world’s most important people.  And let’s not kid ourselves he IS one of the world’s most important people.

Scotland is an exciting place to live, from a political perspective, right now because Alex Salmond’s SNP-led government has thrown off the shackles of what couldn’t be done before.  It has a real sense of the new and it’s genuinely rather exciting.  So imagine if you took that same approachh to American politics.

Sheesh.

Lots of comfort zones blown to smithereens.

That’s why we need Obama.

We all know that.

That’s why the wierdos need to be kept on top of.

Please, no Lee Harvey Oswalds.

Would you vote for this man?

Surely not?

He is rather right wing.

He does rather dwell on his Vietnam days.

TIME OUT! TIME OUT! TIME OUT!

(SFX: Pandemonium)

America hates/used to hate anything to do with Vietnam.

Here’s how he’s selling the new American Conservatism

624727.

mccAin v Obama

I dislike McCain’s latest cheap shot commercial very much.

See for yourself.

Popularity doesn’t necessarily mean lack of quality.

Methinks McCain doth protest too much.

Saying Obama is not fit for office because he has achieved celebrity status does not mean he is not fit for office.

Were the Beatles not good at pop music because they were popular?

Mugabe. If only Zimbabwe had oil.

If Zimbabwe had oil we’d be in there sorting the situation out.

But we don’t.

So we just sit back and watch.  Totally immoral and total double standards.  Maybe Obama will remember his roots and deal with this when he gets into the White House.

The tingle

You live through the last ten years of lying politics and suddenly things go a bit tingly.

Barak Obama is undoubtedly the most exciting introduction to the Western political world since Clinton (Mr , not Mrs) and some.

And in Scotland we are graced by Alex Salmond.

In between times Bush bombs; yes, I know, it’s a pun.

Brown just goes pear-shaped – but what can you expect when his boss/predecessor was an inveterate liar?

So.  Bring it on.  The Presidential election I mean.  Because, although I am massively predisposed to Obama, I think we all need to see the debate unfold.

Obama

You wonder whether the fight to beat Clinton has taken too much out of him.  OK, America probably wants a break from conservatism, and McCain is about as enticing as Hilda Ogden in a rainstorm but it’s still a big ask.

And, oh it’s been a right riveting nomination campaign.

But let’s not forget he is black and there is a mountain of opposition to that.

However, I think it is a rather exciting political development and that he is, potentially, the man.

Bring it on.

(This is clearly the sort of post that one might look back on in years to come as supremely visionary or supremely foolish.  Pray God it is the former.)

Is it my imagination?

Or did I hear that Hillary Clinton claimed she landed under sniper fire on a trip to Bosnia?

Because this is the news footage from her arrival at the time.

I think you can welcome President Obama to the world stage.

Maybe it’s not just Britain that has a Bliar.