TALK TO THE DADDY

Hello. Come on in. The daddy writes about current events, literature, music and, once in a while, drops something on you from back in the day to make you pause and ponder, stop and stare, and begin to wonder. Who knows? You may start to pace the floor, shake your head from side to side, then fall down on bended knees in a praying position and cry, "Lawd, have mercy! What is this world coming to?" Check yourself! But this blog is NOT about the daddy. It's about you: your boos, your fam, your hood, your country...our hopes and dreams of a better tomorrow. So let's make a pact: the daddy will put it on the track if you'll chase it down and hit him back. Together, we can definitely take it to another level. Shall we?"

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Barack Obama's State Of The Union Address

The dome of the U.S. Capitol building is lit in the evening hours of February 24, 2009 in Washington, DC. U.S. President Barack Obama will address a joint session of the Congress at 9:01pm tonight where he plans to address the topics of the struggling U.S. economy, the budget deficit, and health care.

"Now is the time to act boldly and wisely-- to not only revive this economy, but to build a new foundation for lasting prosperity."--President Obama

"If we come together and lift this nation from the depths of this crisis; if we put our people back to work and restart the engine of our prosperity; if we confront without fear the challenges of our time and summon that enduring spirit of an America that does not quit, then someday years from now our children can tell their children that this was the time when we performed, in the words that are carved into this very chamber, "something worthy to be remembered."--President Obama

Listen up. The daddy is going to depart from the Black History Month series for a moment to respond briefly to the e-mails asking him about his thoughts about President Obama's first State of the Union speech?

Overall analysis of the speech?

First, it was not a State of the Union Address so much as a State of Psyhche speech. If the state of the psyche is bad, no recitation of state affairs in detail is worth noting. A pep talk may be overdue.

It was a populist speech, acknowledging America's anger at banks for taking our tax dollars and taking it to fancy hotels to party all night long and get massages and pedicures the next day and promising to do something about it.

It was a good speech but not one of his better one. For example, it did not come close to the eloquence of his speech in accepting the democratic selection as President nominee for President of the United States. Nor did it contain a lot of details.

This speech was good, because it accomplished three things: It promoted the stimulus plan, highlighted where his administration wants to go in the next four years, and it introduced a new tone in dealing with a troubled economy. President Obama said he wants to end the Iraq war. He wants to bring our soldiers. He said he wants to focus on energy, education and healthcare reform. And he said with conviction that he believed the economy will turn around.

The most important thing about the speech?

Two things:

1. It was a left-of-center speech by America's standard (out of Iraq, education and healthcare reform) talking about meeting goals that are true to campaign promises. The speech showed a sense of consistency in the Obama administration even as it seeks to deal with a bad economy.
2. It represented a change in tone that American and the economic market need at this time. The speech was more upbeat and ended with stirring and convincing words by the President Obama that the U.S. economy will recover.

Purpose of the speech

This gets to the heart of why the speech was good. It was good not because of its level of details, eloquence, or necessarily believability that its ambitious goals can be achieved, or achieved anytime soon. Its real purpose was to communicate to the American people and the market: to educating them about the economy, to provide them an outline of where his administration is going, and to express confidence that the economy will turn around.

Regardless of what obstructionist Republicans think or doubting democrats believe, this speech gave America what it needs: A sense that all is not lost, that American can indeed recover.

12 comments:

rainywalker said...

I voted for the President and I will support him in the challenges we all face. However I do not trust that the House and Congress have the countries best interest at heart. It comes down to reckless spending, throwing billions at companies and people who are already rich. What about the average poor person on the street and living in a city apartment somewhere eating dog food.

j said...

Daddy, I think you're right to focus on the change of tone. That's what struck me most, and I guess I needed a little psychological boost, too. I wanted him to tell me what we can do, not how shitty everything is. I know that already - I'm alive and breathing the dire state of the nation. And it was unbelievably reassuring to me to have him talk left of center. It made Jindal's response sound like he never heard the speech...

Christopher said...

Obama shined -- period.

He towered over the silly, irrelevant Republican obstructionists on the other side of the aisle.

I think what Obama really did last night was reassure a nation of people who are afraid the country is coming apart and may cease to exist in another 5 years.

This is important. Can you recall a single time in 8 years where the Motherfucker from Midland ever reassured this nation? Even after 9/11, Bush sounded weak and pathetic, like a mindless middle manager at some widget factory.

Obama is the right man for the job. I truly believe he will guide this nation out of the mess Bush and Cheney created and set the country back on course.

Mac Daddy Tribute Blog said...

Your distrust in House and Congress is in line with the thoughts of the American people in general. Their positive ratings are very low.

As to your other point about reckless spending,I agree. That's all political stuff too. Reckless spending is alright when you do it in the form of tax breaks to major corporations but it's not okay when takes the form of helping middle and low-income people. Then it's socialism or borrowing from the next generation.

If persons living on the street lost their job recently, they could be real soon. They could go to the doctor too. If they're on welfare, they'll get increased food stamps.

In broad terms, I agree with what you say. I, too, have criticisms of Obama's plan. Nonetheless, I think it's the best President Obama could get out of the House and the Senate.Despite Obama's ascenion to the presidency, America is really a conservative nation. Other European nations like Denmark and Sweden already have both universal healthcare and universal education; and they have done more on environmental issues.

Once, they played catch-up with us. Now, we're playing catch with them.

Mac Daddy Tribute Blog said...

Christopher: Amen.

Judy: Yes, he struck the right tone. He also told us where he intended to go and he inspired us. What a speech!

Anonymous said...

I was PROUD of Barack, and I stand tall thinking that other World leaders must be so impressed....It makesme happy to know that we have an INTELLIGENT president, and one who surely puts in an eight hour day!!! Details? Last night was not the night for that...Hopefully the next few days will spell some of these out......And how about Michelle?! Wasn't she stunningly gorgeous?!!

Mac Daddy Tribute Blog said...

Nun: Agreed.I know she graduated in law and did community work, but she looks like a model too.And I think she's just as good a speaker as he is. Imagine that!

SagaciousHillbilly said...

Good analysis Mac. I've been hoping for the past couple weeks that O Man would step up and give a good policy speech coupled with a little pep talk. The man knows how to talk and he needs to lead this country by talking to us and letting us know what's going on and generally what it be like. I've never believed that we can't overcome anything in this country given the tools and the progressive leadership. The proles need to be reminded of that now and then.

Mac Daddy Tribute Blog said...

Sagacious: Thanks.

rainywalker said...

daddyBstrong I see your point. The poor, minorities and those that are different have got the shaft since day one. Just once I would like to see more money going down the food chain than up.

Anonymous said...

I was very pleased with this speech, especially the parts when the GOP sat silently in their seats and faced the music while Democrats (and Independent Bernie Sanders) stood and gave Obama a standing O. :)

Barack Obama State said...

Thanks. We've got your point.