think tank forum

I am happy that a (half) black man has been elected president of this country. I appreciate the role that he can serve as a model for children of color who now know that it is in fact possible for them to be elected to the highest office in the nation by their fellow citizens.

I am also, however, skeptical that an Obama presidency will be all that people are expecting it to be. a shitty system with a president of color vs. a shitty system with a white president doesn't make all that much of a difference in regard to my desire to live under the system or the value of the system. I guess I'm just not convinced that our government is salvageable, worth being salvaged, or will be salvaged by Obama.

we'll see what he can do I suppose, but I'm not gonna start dancing around and celebrating until the president helps to enact legislation that closes the achievement gap, provides healthcare for everyone, includes the histories, values, & perspectives of marginalized "races" and ethnicities in our society's power structures, or pursues a fairer, more just, & noble foreign policy.

I will close with some lyrics from Propagandhi:

Does it seem strange to you?
The confetti. The balloons.
The mile-wide grins
And the victory dance to welcome in the heir
To a state of (utter and complete) disrepair?
Because it sure seems strange to me:
they’re acting like they won the fucking lottery!

I mean, shouldn’t they feel terror
At the task that lies ahead:
To feed and house the people that this system’s left for dead.
And could I have hit the nail much harder on the head?

It’s profits before lives. They are motivated by greed.
First they taught us to depend on their nation-states to mend
Our tired minds, our broken bones, our bleeding limbs.
But now they’ve sold off all the splints
And contracted out the tourniquets
And if we jump through hoops then we might just survive.

Is this what we deserve?
To scrub the palace floors?
To fight amongst ourselves?
As we scramble for the crumbs they spit out,
Frothing at the mouth about the scapegoats that they’ve chosen for us.
With every racist pointed finger I can hear the goose-steps getting closer.
They no longer represent us so is it not our obligation to confront this tyranny?

I think he'll be able to do pretty much whatever he wants, notwithstanding supreme court fun

I'm glad Obama won, because now I can provoke people even more by calling them racist towards our new president. Excerpt from my argument with one of the bartenders at my work:

Me: oh boy! ANOTHER white president!
Her: Obama's not white, he's black!
Me: Excuse me for not believing in the one-drop theory, you racist.

Oh boy, the next four years will be FUN!

(I'm also glad he won because the next four years won't be just like the previous 8 ... though I don't believe much will change.)

haha, keepin' em at a steady keel, eh phi?

Yea We'll see what happens. the democrats have majority rule in the Senate. I really think things have a chance of changing. However, there will be conservatives trying to stop each act.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27521807/

Yea We'll see what happens. the democrats have majority rule in the Senate. I really think things have a chance of changing. However, there will be conservatives trying to stop each act.

and Democrats still passing bullshit like the Patriot Act and FISA.

oh great :(

If Obama repeals the UIGEA, I will consider him a success no matter WHAT happens.

I'm terrified someone is going to shoot him.
DISASTER

president killers are retarded

wait, where has Bush been?

there is still hope
http://www.zefrank.com/from52to48withlove/
http://www.zefrank.com/from52to48withlove/Photo%205 .jpg

aw I like the "you complete me" one. that lifted me up a little after reading this thread .

I love zefrank!

at the same time it's really just the democratic way to gloat :D

That chick with the gentler index card is fuckin hot.Man that last one where she says, I don't care who you voted for, you voted. Damn. That was rockin.

i don't get it. why do people think it is so awesome to vote in general?

I just think it's fun.

the illusion of democracy

> the illusion of democracy

Ditto.

If he sucks as a president... it'll be fifty years before another "black" man can run again.

Also he's pretty much got to not do ANYTHING illegal.

And lord knows the secret service are going to have to do their jobs better than ever....

yeah. i think there definitely is the potential for obama to influence racial stereotypes by how he handles the presidency. if he is generally loved then it will disperse some prejudices, especially among school aged children. if he is generally hated..

http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/11 … a-caption/

haha, Emanuals pose is great.

That's a badass photo man.