Denver: Day One

Got my personal e-mail (I'm not of the SMS generation) from Obama just as I left for the airport announcing the Biden pick. At first blush I feel pretty good about it, but have been too busy to think much or to absorb the pundit chatter. Over the past week I must have been asked by at least 15 people who I thought the VP would be -- as if I had any insider info. Sure. Barack would be sure to tell me before Wolf Blitzer.

Smooth flying: Raleigh-Dallas-Denver.My husband and I wore our Obama buttons which generated beaucoups smiles and thumbs up. Met a Democratic Party volunteer and fellow delegate on my flight out. Very good vibes.

One flight attendant on the second leg was a huge Obama supporter. He just gushed and asked for pointers on becoming a delegate in 2012 to re-elect Obama. Another whispered as I left the plane, "Kiss Bill for me, but don't let Hillary see you." Had a spirited talk with a Maine delegate on the plane which made me appreciate all the wonderful support we receive from the NC State Democratic Party (thanks, Julia Lee) -- apparently not the case in other states. A Manhattan activist asked about the Kay Hagen (running for Senator against Elizabeth Dole) campaign. Seems New Yorkers are excited about her chances.

The only negative note: I overheard 2 pilots talking on the jetway: "Biden hates pilots. Since 9-11. And he really hates airlines." Not sure what that is all about.

Arrival at Denver International Airport was stirring. We were met at baggage claim by 30 or more smiling Obama volunteers -- cheering, waving signs and so anxious to help. I felt enveloped by their spirit and by the sense that I was among people who share my values and my vision. It was such a powerful feeling that it made me cry. I think I cried because I realized how alone it feels to be a progressive in the South -- to be alienated from the larger social reality: conservative, Bible Belt, and on such a totally different wave length I never know where to start, how to connect.

Anyway, a warning: I am very emotional. When I'm emotional, I cry. I will cry a lot over the next few days. If a few like-minded folks have this effect, what will it be like at the Pepsi Center surrounded by thousands. I fully expect C-SPAN to catch me bawling.

The rest of the day:
We rented a car and are staying at a modest hotel 30 miles or so south of downtown. Made a detour to a highly recommended Mexican hole-in-the-wall restaurant in a very Latino neighborhood: Tacos Y Salsas. Rates among the best Mexican food I ever had. Six different kinds of salsas available -- 3 red; 3 green. All incendiary. All delicious. A guy is outside cutting a huge slab of meat. So fresh.

My Obama button prompted another delightful conversation with a couple of Obama canvassers taking a break from voter registration work in the neighborhood. Warm and very welcoming.

It feels wonderful to be here. For a few days a little oasis of Democrats -- in the America of my dreams.

More Denver Doings: A Sampler

The National Coalition on Black Civic Participation"Gospel Extravaganza"

I Fish, I Hunt, I Vote
National Wildlife Federation and NWF Action Fund

The HuffPost Oasis
Arianna Huffington has decided to demonstrate that a balanced life is possible even during the most compulsively hectic days in the political calendar. So during the Democratic National Convention in Denver, she will offer harried conventioneers -- including delegates and members of the media -- a chance to unplug and recharge. The Oasis will feature complimentary yoga classes, Thai massages, hand massages, mini-facials, healthy snacks and refreshments, music, and a comfortable seating area for lounging and unwinding.

SEIA (Solar Energy Industries Association) Sunfest

with a a keynote address by environmental advocate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.

Pro-Choice/Pro Life Town Hall Meeting sponsored by

Democrats for Life of America

Unconventional Women Roundtable

The 2008 Ronald H. Brown Memorial Golf Tournament

Comedy Kabob from the Arab-American Institute

Poker Players Alliance benefitting Paralyzed Veterans

EqualiTEA: a Feminist Gathering and Celebration of Women's Equality Day

What's this? 1968?

Here's a sampler of events around the Denver Convention that reflect the spirit of the 60s. . For those who remember the tumultuous Chicago convention, let's hope this one ends on a more unified and peaceful note.

Freewheelin': A Citywide Bike Sharing Program
Close to 1,000 bikes are available free of charge for anyone looking for an alternative to automobiles while the convention is in town. The Freewheelin' bike racks are set up at various points around the city.

Meditate08
We believe there is --or should be -- a place for quiet contemplation at the Democratic National Convention, so we’re conducting a silent meditation retreat. We’ve invited forty nationally recognized meditation and yoga teachers from the Buddhist, Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Muslim and Native American traditions to guide us in our practice.

Bovine's Improv Hootenanny

The Festival of Democracy
The Festival will include free music and performing arts, free food, and free institution building and political training -- addressing our community problems ourselves, without relying on the two party capitalist system. Also offering a 24 hour free medical clinic. ( Again anyone remember the Diggers from the 60s?)

Food Not Bombs Community Feeds
PLEASE BRING YOUR OWN PLATE, SPOON, CUP!!!
The Democratic administration that runs the City of Denver will be opening their emergency shelters to round-up and hide the homeless from the delegates. It would create too much guilt for the DNC to see the effects of an inhumane and destructive capitalist system as they spend $1,000 per plate for their fundraising dinners. We believe that we need to take care of the most vulnerable members of our community and not hide them from view. Therefore all food cooked for at the DNC protests will be free to all!

Resurrection City Free University
Created as a way to pay homage to Martin Luther King Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference’s original Resurrection City and Poor People’s Campaign. Forty years later, our intention at Resurrection City Free University is to provide activists and individuals from all over the USA who are attending the 2008 DNC with courses and trainings that will provide them with new tools and information that they can take back to their communities.

Green Frontier Fest
This is an open-to-the-public event promoting green practices and highlighting the sustainable aspects of the Democratic National Convention.

FUNK THE WAR - Funky Snake Marches
We're done with dying. Kick off the weeks activities by bringing the war to delegates--and getting funky while doing it. Bring drums, intruments, your bodies, and your desire to end the war! Show your solidarity by dancing in the streets, making music rather than war. We encourage a multiplicity of creative expressions of resistance (particularly those of a funky variety).

Shake Your Money Maker — Denver Mint
Time to redistribute the wealth. Between security and corporate pay-offs, the DNC will cost over 100 million dollars for a party. We think the people deserve that money. Join us as we encircle the Denver MInt (where U.S. currency is produced) and use our collective power to raise the mint building in the air and shake the money out of it for the people. Don’t forget a sack to put all of your loot in. Bring noise makers, energy, spells, magic, costumes, anything that gives you power. We’ll need it!

Freedom March
Join supporters of Leonard Peltier, Mumia Abu Jamal, The Cuban Five, and other political prisoners for the Freedom March and Rally! Leonard Peltier’s parole hearing will take place in 2008. Let us not forget that the Clintons left him in jail and did not pardon him. Free Mumia, the Cuban Five, the Guantanamo detainees, and others. Call for an end to Human Rights abuses.

Mile High and Oodles to Do

So what's happening in Denver other than the convention itself? Turns out plenty.

There seem to be 6 main categories of events:
1) Caucuses -- interest groups for women, people with disabilities, GLBTs, Asians/ Pacific Islanders, seniors and the like meeting to "form party policy and submissions to the party platform". I'd go to some of these if there weren't so much other stuff going on.

2) Wonky panels (loads of them) by groups such as the American Prospect, Common Cause, the AFLCIO and Families USA on topics like the economy, health care, and Israel/ Palestine. Wonky stuff is my element so I RSVPed for tons of these until I realized that my 'dance card' now has 4-5 events for the same time slot. Tuesday afternoon is especially crowded.

3) Parties galore -- 400 of them according to recent NPR story -- some of them hot, some hip-hop, some celebrity-laden, some all 3, but most all of these are invitation only. And my name isn't on any of those invites. The only parties I'm likely to attend are those of the NC delegation. But then I'm not a party girl anyway.

4) Entertainment -- concerts, documentary film festivals, comedy shows, etc. -- all with a political twist. I'm on a waiting list for 1) a freebie Willy Nelson concert; 2) live performances from a new film , based on Howard Zinn’s “A People’s History of the United States ” -- with actors Ben Affleck, Josh Brolin, and Rosario Dawson; and 3) an award celebration for a new film called 14 women (the women in the US Senate) with Annette Bening, Susan Sarandon, Spike Lee, Alan Cumming, Rachel Leigh Cook, & Quentin Tarantino.

5) Protestor parades /demonstrations -- at locations designed to remain far out of sight of the delegates at the Pepsi Center. Plus there are elaborate plans to process those expected to be arrested at an industrial warehouse with chain-link cells topped by razor wire -- a facility some have compared to Gitmo. A sign there reads "Electric stun devices used here." I'm planning to go out of my way to see what the protestors have to say. I'm hoping peaceful protests and that the Police behave themselves this time around,

6) Miscellaneous activities from arts projects and poker / golf tournaments to a tour of wind farms. All good stuff (well, not the poker and golf), but who will have the time?

What I Heard.Tonight

Obama spoke for one and half hours in the Raleigh Town Hall meeting. Some bits and pieces:

-- Republicans can't govern, but they are very effective at campaigning
-- McCain is not only adopting GWB's policies, but he is also adopting his politics. And it works. It feeds into real cynicism about government. People say, "a plague on both your houses."
-- He can talk all he wants about Brittany and Paris, but I don't have time for that. My goal is to reestablish the bond between government and the people.

-- In answer to question by Mom of 3-year-old with Down's Sydrome: all children are the children of G-d and all are special... We need to recognize the gifts and talents that people with disabilities have. The federal government had a commitment to provide 40% of the costs for ADA services; under Bush they only provided 18%.

--In answer to an ex-offender who can't find a job: People make mistakes early in life and we need to give them the tools so they can have a second chance. But the most important thing is to keep them out of jail in the first place. Jr. high and high school is where kids take the wrong path. Parents have to parent. Fathers have to be fathers. Government can't do it all...
I support faith-based service organizations if they do their jobs well and don't discriminate based on religion.

-- In answer to a question about the politicization of science: GWB is anti science. He used his first veto (in 2006) to oppose stem cell research. During his administration the budget for basic research was flatlined. It has cut our edge. In the past, discovery and innovation have driven our economy. We need to double our funding for scientific research.

-- On energy: Intelligent drilling is OK, but we can't drill our way out of our energy problem. 2-3 months ago, John McCain wasn't for drilling. Then he met with a group of Texas oil millionaires.
We're not proposing to tax them more --only that we take away some of their tax breaks --breaks they didn't deserve in the first place.

-- In answer to a question about party unity: Divisions in the party have been hyped by the media. We are passionate about our candidates. That's what politics should be.

-- In answer to a questions about drug ads on TV: we see happy people with big smiles running through fields, but you don't know what most of the drugs are for --- except for one drug and you know what that one is for (joke). 16-17 members of the Bush adminstration who pushed against government's negotiation with drug companies have left -- to work for the pharmaceutical lobby.

-- In answer to a question about the problem of obesity: If we went back to the level of obesity we had in 1980, we would save our health care system $1 trillion. .. Throw your kids out of the house. And you go with them.

There was lots more --- compelling statistics, stories about his own childhood (the lack of a father in his home, his mother throwing him outside to play), listening -- really listening, answers that were personal and responsive, a coherent vision.

You really had to be there. Live makes a difference. The grace of his body movements. The confidence. The coolness. The intelligence flickering behind his eyes.

I'm re-energized and ready for Denver. Even if the North Carolina delegation is relegated to the "boonies" of Invesco Field on August 28th. I saw Obama up close and personal. I shook his hand.

I Shook His Hand!

There is something mystical about flesh-on-flesh contact between charismatic politicians and regular people. Obama spoke here in Raleigh tonight at a Town Hall Meeting and yes, I shook his hand and yes, I swooned.

The handshake was electric and propelled me back into a seat and took my breath away.

But it had nothing to do with the outrageous McCain commercials about Paris and Brittany and celebrity and rock stardom. I swooned because I spent an hour and half listening to a man of substance -- who spoke in a way that continually engaged my mind, who had an intelligent answer to every question,, who was genuine and 'present' with every questioner, and who personified my deepest hopes and dreams for change in this country.

Exactly 40 years ago, I had a similar passion about another American politician and had the honor of shaking his hand as well. He, too, engaged my heart and my mind, my hopes and dreams. In fact, I remember I even trampled the shrubbery outside the library at Columbia University to snag that handshake. That politician was Robert F. Kennedy.

Ah, what might have been in 1968. Ah, what might yet be in 2008.

The Truth about Fiscal Conservatives

From cartoonist Steve Greenberg:

Back from the Relatives

Time out for a trip to New York and New Jersey to visit relatives after the death of my husband's cousin (alas, from breast cancer) -- a trip which had to be extended when his elderly father had to be hospitalized for pneumonia. Difficult situations. But really hard to blog on the fly so my apologies for the long lapse.

It was especially painful to interact with relatives and friends who don't share my Obamania. I encountered opposition, ambivalence, suspicion --and a general lack of enthusiasm. It made me profoundly sad.

The lone exception is my brother-in-law, an Egyptian Muslim and thank goodness a long time American citizen who can vote. He is exceptionally well informed on the campaign and was positively giddy to find another Obama supporter in the family. Until recently, he worked in pizza shops using an Italian sounding alias to avoid any anti-Arab stigma. He spoke of customers assuming he shared their racism who casually spewed rants about their disgust at the thought of a black man as President. More sadness, but there is something mildly amusing here. Ironically, these "super Americans" vowed to "leave for Canada" if Obama is elected.

Compare

Saddened

I, like many progressives, always held McCain apart from the ugly Republican smear machine. He was the affable, straight talker -- the most honorable in an increasingly dishonorable bunch. He himself had been the victim of a despicable Rovian rumor spread in the 2000 South Carolina primary that the dark-skinned daughter McCain and his wife adopted from India was in fact his "love child" from a liaison with a black women.

He had suffered -- as a prisoner of war in Vietnam and as the target of "dirty tricks".

He committed himself to a "civil" campaign. A debate on the issues.

He was a Republican with a modicum of empathy-- with a moral code. But now...

No More.

Worth reading on this subject:
Wanting the White House in the Worst Way by Joe Conason in Salon

The Low Road Express New York Times editorial

Running while Black by Bob Herbert in the New York Times

Meanwhile. I am saddened.

Not only because I held to an ideal that McCain was a different kind of Republican. But also because the 'low road' tactics seem to be working just fine.

Few in the media seem to take their honest broker role seriously. Instead of calling "foul" on McCain they relish the fight and label it "mud slinging on both sides". I thought American was ready to move beyond the "old politics of destruction." Apparently not.