Friday, August 29, 2008

"My Brother's Keeper"

Barack Obama gave his acceptance speech yesterday. He tried his best to make it an historic speech, but I'm not sure he succeeded. Granted, his nomination might be historic, but not the speech, not even if he did deliver it in front of a very poor representation of the Lincoln Memorial. The set was apparently intended as a reference to Martin Luther King, Jr.'s truly historic speech, but the fact that it required explanation shows that people were not really making the connection.

Meanwhile, Obama laid out his political philosophy which hinges on the belief that the government should take full responsibility for all of us. He couches this socialist ideology in charitable rhetoric that makes it sound like he is taking the moral highroad. However, while Obama lauded the importance of individual responsibility, his plans would eliminate it. The government will become the parent and provider of the citizens. According to Obama, when people fall down, they should not have to pick themselves up by their own bootstraps; the government should be there to pick them up.

This is what Obama means when he says we need to be a country who says "I am my brother's keeper. I am my sister's keeper." If you think he was referring to an ideal of individual responsibility for ourselves and our fellow men, consider the peculiar irony of those words. Barack Obama has a brother who lives in a hut in Africa without even running water, barely surviving on an income of $1 per month. It seems that Obama does not feel a need to personally be his own brother's keeper.

5 comments:

  1. He is so...ugh I cant wait until I don't have to listen to and see him anymore. Oh I so hope he does not end up in the white house.

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  2. Wow you should have written his speech for him, then it would have been truly historical!

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  3. How can you even listen to his speeches. I can last about 2 minutes and I have to turn it off, he makes me want to rip my ears off and move to another country!

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  4. Rachelle - I would love to be done with him, too. Having him in the White House would be truly painful.

    Kimberly - Too right you are. ;) It would have gone down in history as the most conservative Democratic speech ever.

    Amy - Listening was not easy. And I paid a price--I hold Obama and his speech fully accountable for the kidney stone I had to suffer with yesterday.

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  5. ouch Amy hope your feeling better!

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