A Political Glimpse from Ireland

The Words They Use

Hi everyone it is 125am at the moment in Korea which means it is 1226pm on the East Coast. I am back to blogging, sort off, and I apologize to all my friends for not visiting your blogs first but I just wanted to get this post done and get back into my blogging routine. First of all I want to thank Gordon and Big Blue for posting and continuing to keep this blog going while I have been busy, your posts were both great and judging by some of the comments, well received.

Korea is actually amazing and not what I expected in any way or form, the people are really nice though I really need to improve my speaking and reading. I tried to take the bus to into the city today and only realized after 30 minutes that I was heading into the country. Thankfully I got off before I ended up somewhere I didn’t want to be. The language barrier is the biggest issue so far as I often have to resort to hand gestures that I am sure people perceive as: “another crazy foreigner.” I have taken some pictures and I will upload them in due course, but on to the politics.

I have managed to keep track of the politics while I have been here and regarding Sarah Palin, I think she is a smart move for the McCain campaign as evidenced by her energizing the republican base. This energy is only slightly less than the Obama campaign but the problem with choosing her is that Senator McCain can no longer use the experience attack line against Senator Obama because he will inevitably be criticizing his own VP who has minimal experience. Sarah Palin is too radical and conflicts with Senator McCain’s image of a reformer as she is by far more conservative than he is and this is not a good thing.

The New York Times has an interesting comparison up on their site detailing the number of times Democrats and Republicans have used certain keywords. The interesting thing to note from a liberal perspective is that the Democrats are hitting the economy more often than the Republicans which is what the majority of Americans care about at this juncture in the political race. The Republicans have talked about god twice as much as the Democrats but that is no surprise there given that evangelicals always side with conservatives. A cursory glance at this comparison gives me hope, yes I said it , if the Democrats keep hitting the right notes and the Republicans continue on old lines of attack, we are sure to win.

Moving To Korea

Hi everyone, I didn’t manage to make my daily post yesterday because I have some news, I am leaving to South Korea this week Saturday for at least a year maybe more depending on how I like it. The decision is not as quick as it sounds but has been in the pipe line for a while given my lack of success here in Ireland trying to earn decent money. I am often reminded of my dad who tells me all the time: “It is good to know how the other half lives.” I think that embodies my curiosity of Asia to a degree but I am not stopping blogging by any stretch of the imagination just a little slow down for the next two weeks. For the next two weeks, Big Blue will be in charge of this blog, moderating comments and doing anything else that he see’s as necessary. I trust him completely and I know he will do his best with his tight schedule to keep this site moving forward.

I expect to be back to full time blogging by September the 14th but will be posting periodically during this time period. I have really enjoyed the last couple months discussing the issues of the day with all of you, but I am extremely glad I won’t be missing Senator Obama’s speech on Thursday . I will be living in the Korean city of Incheon however I am not a city person as I have said in previous posts and hope to relocate somewhere to the country once I am settled. Good luck to everyone for the next two weeks, I will be back to my pro-Obama, liberal and sometimes badly argued posts in September:

Not The Prettiest Picture Of Incheon

The Cross-Post

A big thanks to Big Blue for making the first post of many in the coming months. I have also done the same on his blog, The Left Anchor entitled: “And The Youth Shall Run.” Please do stop by if you have time, for one thing, his blog is a lot better looking

Some Speech Thoughts

Well I was sitting in front of my TV today at 5pm on the dot, but no Senator Clinton, I flicked channels for a while before I realized I might as well do something else. Thankfully I left the TV on and once I heard the Senator speaking, I settled in to listen to the words of unity. It was a great speech, possibly the best one she has given so far and no one could disagree with that but did it accomplish the desired affect?  That being to unite the party…I am under no illusion that a single speech will change the minds of the millions of loyal Hillary supporters but perhaps this is the start of the process of unification? I hope so, because I really do believe that the party needs unity going into the general election to defeat the embedded GOP. I am really tired of referencing www.hillaryis44.org in this blog but I am sure they represent a portion of the hillary base that is still quite angry. If you have a look at this site today after the concession speech, they are still hating Obama and talking about voting for McCain. Do we need them? Should we court them? Those are the questions I want to answer or hopefully someone will answer them for me. My favorite part of the speech:

The way to continue our fight now, to accomplish the goals for which we stand, is to take our energy, our passion, our strength, and do all we can to help elect Barack Obama the next president of the United States.

I endorse Barack Obama

Two entries in one day, I know that is pretty amazing but I told myself today that with Super Tuesday looming, I would like to write this article or rather this endorsement. The few people that read this blog may wonder what is the point of writing a long endorsement that will not influence many people but it is to these people I say that the smallest difference is a difference none the less the few people that do read my blog go out and vote for Obama, I know than that I have contributed in part to electing the man who will change America and the world that we live in.

I live in Ireland for the moment where the two largest minorities are Polish and Chinese, and if I asked the average Irishmen if they would ever vote for a non-Irish  Taoiseach (Like the President), the answer would be no. I think America has come along way from the racial tensions of the 20th century into an age where race is not a major issue. I have listened to the commentary about Senator Obama since people were speculating that he might make a run for President and a lot have people do not notice he is black. I for one do not, the very first thing I noticed about Senator Obama is at the last DNC where I thought to myself, he is an excellent speaker. Does this mean he will be a good President? Far from it but it is one of the essential qualities.

 If we look back at the last century or so, society and civilization as we know it are defined by good speakers. From Winston Churchill to Nelson Mandela, people who can get on stage and rivet an audience so that no matter how long and boring the speech is, they stay interested. Senator Obama is one of these people, he will bring a passion and consistency to the presidency that we have not seen in many years. He will be the kind of President that we need in the 21st century to save the economy as well as bring America back into the limelight as the super power it is supposed to be.

 That being said, he will also said he will also realize that China and Russia are going to remain Super Powers for the foreseeable future and there is nothing that can be done about that. The USA is entering a new era where the President must work hand in hand with the likes of Dmitry Medvedev and Wen Jiabao to create the world that I want my children to live in. A world where the peace is prevalent and terrorism becomes a word of the past, immigration is no longer an issue because people can move freely around the world but most importantly the future president of the United States of America must create a world that is sustainable for future generations to come.

 No one country can be number 1 anymore, Senator Obama can assume the presidency without the baggage of the past. Larry King commented on CNN that people like John McCain and Hillary Clinton are using the same old playbook for a world that has changed. This is true, John McCain often talks about his time under the Reagan administration, that was a different time and a different world and Senator McCain cannot save the USA from the economic crisis that has arisen or increase the competitive level of the country compared to the likes of China and Russia.

For those of you that have read this blog, young and old I urge you to think about the long term future when voting for Senator Obama. Vote and Support a candidate who can remake America into the country it should be for the 21st century. I may be 25 and some people may discount my support as the folly of youth but look back at history, and it will tell you that knowledge gets you so far but you need charisma, talent, passion and strength to truly make a difference in this world. Senator Obama has this and I wish him good luck as the future president of the United States of America.