Politics of the Common Good

DemConWatch hypothesizes.

Other than the obvious large security and logistic concerns, this could be a huge, bold move.  Invesco Field holds 75,000 (and probably more if people game the system as Markos alludes to).

Keep an eye on it.  Many denials have been made so far, but there have been many hints by the DNC and the Obama campaign regarding a large event to close out the convention.

From MSNBC, the U.S. economy lost 62,000 jobs in June.  Unemployment remained at 5.5%.

It’s getting uglier and uglier.

Meanwhile, the average gas price in the U.S. reached $4.098 a gallon, an increase of 39 percent over a year ago.

I’ve been meaning to get this story out since I came back from Philly, but actually driving home and visiting with family and friends has gotten in the way a bit.

Molly and I had decided to stay an extra day in Philadelphia in order to sightsee a bit in the city.  We drove into the city and parked near the Philadelphia Art Museum (of Rocky fame).  In order to get to our destination of Independence Square, we took a trolley that Molly’s brother Mike had told us about.  Everything worked out fine; after we finished walking through the American galleries, we hopped on the Phlash Trolley to get to Independence Square.  After we finished walking around Independence Hall and touring the National Constitution Center, we realized that it was about 6:00 PM — the last stop for the trolley that evening.  Looking through the pamphlet and schedule for the trolley, we saw that we had some time to work with since the trolley was not scheduled to come back to Independence Square until 6:22.  Even so, we waited at the stop.  At 6:18 the trolley pulls up.  I got up, stood next to it, and waited for it to open its doors so we could get on — except the doors did not open.  The woman driving the bus seemingly ignored us (I think she knew she was going to have to drop us off someplace where she had already made her last stop) as she was stopped at the red light at the intersection.  When the light turned green, the trolley rolled on down the street with Molly and me watching in disbelief.

“What now?” I asked.  Molly called her brother and notified him of what had happened.  Mike advised us to find another trolley (luckily there was one within sight, across and down the street).  We asked the driver if she was headed in the direction of the Art Museum.  She was not, she told us, but the trolley that had driven off without us might be heading back in our direction.  Also, the SEPTA bus — the 17 line — should go toward the Art Museum.  Did we want her to wait on us?  No, I told her.  We’d figure things out on our own.

Sure enough, the Phlash trolley returned.  Instead of pulling up alongside the curb, though, it drove up to the same intersection as before, but in the opposite direction.  It was also in the left lane.  Choosing to notice us this time, the driver opened her doors and yelled toward us.  I couldn’t really understand her, but her face and her actions and mannerisms made clear that she had already made her last stop and we were not welcome to get a ride.

We elected to wait on the 17 bus.  It arrived fairly soon, but the driver told us that it would not take us to the Art Museum; instead, the driver said, we shoud wait on the other route at that stop, the 33 line, which would take us there.  Another five minutes passed before the 33 arrived.  Upon boarding, I inquired of the driver the price for tickets.  The driver said “$2.00″ and instructed me to slide the bill that I had in my hand — a $10.00 bill — through the machine and told me I would get change.  As I let go of the bill and the machine recorded the dollar amount, the driver suddenly became exasperated, asking me in disbelief why I would slide a $10.00 bill into it.  “If I had known you had a $10.00 bill, I would have given you the change myself.”  You see, apparently the machine on the bus does not process that amount.  Exasperated, tired, and ready to be out of the city, I, without thinking, replied, “Whatever.”  This is not a smart move when you’re around people that use the public transportation as a lifeline.  Immediately, I got the collective opinion of those on the bus.  “That’s a damn shame.”  “Unbelievable.  $10.00?”  Even the driver chipped in — “In my eighteen years on this bus, I’ve never had anyone do that.”  As the driver filled out the rebate form (for $6), I was bombarded with detailed instructions on how to redeem the rebate.  Eventually the driver asked us where we were headed.  When I told him the Art Museum, we again elicited frustration.  “We’re not even going there!” he exclaimed.  The driver dropped us off in an average-at-best neighborhood with coupons instructing us to get on the 43 line, which would take us to the museum.  After asking a local teenager for help, we eventually got on the 43 and got to the Museum — finally.

The point of all this?  I realized that while I spend so much time in the ivory tower, academic frame of mind, I really don’t have the opportunity to feel the differences between different lifestyles and cultures.  And when you’re in that situation, it’s so challenging to see the commonalities in all of us.  When we’re truly scared of something socially, we notice the differences in our dominant culture and the prevailing culture instinctively.  Too many people don’t get past that.  We need to challenge ourselves, no matter what the situation, to look at the things that bond us together.  No matter how big the differences are, there are those links.

Four months before he was shot, President Kennedy discussed these bonds in a commencement speech to American University (June 10, 1963):

…Let us also direct attention to our common interests and to the means by which those differences can be resolved. And if we cannot end now our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity. For, in the final analysis, our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this small planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children’s future. And we are all mortal.

Differences — things that make us unique — should be celebrated, and the linkages we share should be remembered.

What is a situation in which you found yourself challenged?

Call it a road trip for political junkies.

Millennials and recent college grads Ben Terris (Brandeis alum), Steve Kolowich (Bowdoin alum), and Rachel Pfeffer (Brandeis alum) have been on the road since June 7th reporting on the attitudes of members of their own generation.  They’ve driven through Huntsville, Alabama, Atlanta, New York City, and Philadelphia.

I encourage everyone to keep an eye on Ben’s reporting (updated daily) for an interesting look at what young people across the country are thinking about the election.  Steve, a former editor-in-chief for his campus’s newspaper, is maintaining a blog also, while Rachel, who is into photography, maintains a photo blog here.

I think that this might be something I’d like to do eventually when I have the resources to do it.

After a great weekend of wedding fun, walking around Philly, and getting semi-stranded in the city, my girlfriend and I are about to leave and head home.  I am impressed with the historical area in the city and the work that has been done in reminding visitors and residents of Philadelphia of the city’s importance to the new republic started some 217 years ago.

Off to drive a few.. alright — six.. hours on Interstate 80.  Happy Monday.

I’ll be traveling to Philadelphia over the next few days (I write this from my hotel room in Clearfield, PA) for a wedding.  I may not be able to post much, but I’ll try to get a few in.

Enjoy your weekend!

Last week Newsweek came out with a poll showing Obama up on McCain by a 51-36 percent margin.  Today’s LA Times poll reflected a similar fifteen point margin when including Ralph Nader and Bob Barr in the field (48-33).  This, more and more, is looking like a potential landslide.  While we’ve seen similar Democratic leads this early squandered by November in the past, there’s a difference.

As Chris Bowers reflects at Open Left today, Obama is acting like he’s going to be the winner (even if it did mean using this ugly seal) and he keeps doing it no matter what the polls show.  He acts like a man in control, and after eight years of you know what, how could the voters not want that?

One more interesting (and awesome) piece to the first Newsweek poll:  66 percent of voters aged 18-39 are choosing Obama.  Only 27 percent are choosing McCain.  The 40-59 and 60+ age groups are even.  Young voters are indeed making a difference.

I’ve waited a long time for a period of time in which most people are as obsessed with all things political as I am.  And not just self-serving politics, but, of course, a politics that serves everyone.

Matt Stoller, a blogger at Open Left, is attending the Personal Democracy Forum.  In a post today, he explained that he was hanging out with a man named Tom Steinberg, a civic engagement guru from England.  Steinberg’s enthusiasm led Stoller to reflect on the ramifications of a society leaning toward a wide-scale embrace of politics.  I got goosebumps reading it, as it sure resembles what I would like to see in the near future.

I’m going to guess that a good amount of 21st century campaigning will look like the 19th century, with a politicized business community, much stronger local political machines, and engagement levels at 80% or 90%.  Local debating societies, nonprofits that do service work and voter turnout, and a blurred line between government and politics are probably in the cards.  As social media and public spaces increase in importance in our culture, they will dominate our politics.  Right now, internet campaigns take people who like public spaces, harvest their time and money, and use it to target those who want consumer politics.  What happens when politics takes place entirely in social public spaces?

That last question is a great one to ponder; I can’t articulate a vision quite yet.  Soon, though.  What do you think?

You’d think the man would learn.

From the New York Times TV Decoder Blog:

Don Imus, who was fired last year for referring to the Rutgers women’s basketball team as “nappy-headed hos,’’ waded into racially treacherous waters again on his new radio program Monday morning, in a brief exchange about a suspended professional football player, Adam “Pacman’’ Jones.

When told by the program’s sportscaster, Warner Wolf, that Mr. Jones no longer wished to be called by his nickname — so that people might forget his record of multiple arrests in recent years — Mr. Imus asked, “What color is he?’’

“He’s African-American,’’ Mr. Wolf responded.

“Well, there you go,’’ Mr. Imus said. “Now we know.’’

Racist?  I’d say so.

Remember the SurveyUSA chart I posted a few weeks ago?  They conducted another poll of possible presidential/vice presidential tickets in four states:  Iowa, California, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.  Open Left has compiled both rounds for a few states to compare/contrast.  Here are the results:

As you can see, in all four of these “test” states Edwards is the only candidate that sustains and improves Obama’s campaign.  I agree with Paul Rosenberg from Open Left:  Of course name recognition (and lack thereof) limits the accuracy of these polls, they still mean something.  People are comfortable with what Edwards has to offer Obama and the country.  In a campaign that is apparently going to be focusing on the economy, Edwards is a great candidate to add, especially for Obama to continue to make some headway in the Appalachian demographic.

Let me know what you think.

From the AP, via The Page:

Former presidential candidate John Edwards and former Georgia Sen. Sam Nunn are on a list of potential running mates for Democrat Barack Obama, according to a Michigan congresswoman.

Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, who leads the Congressional Black Caucus, said Thursday members of her caucus suggested the two at a meeting with the officials vetting candidates. The vetting team, Caroline Kennedy and Eric Holder, indicated the two were on the list.

I still like an Obama/Edwards ticket, as it plays on the increasing importance of the economy in the voters’ eyes.  Edwards has waffled on the thought of being a vice presidential nominee again, but I bet he’d accept if offered.

Thanks to Luke Russert.

“This is the true joy in life - being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; being thoroughly worn out before you are thrown on the scrap heap; being a force of nature instead of a feverish selfish little clod of ailments and grievances.”
– George Bernard Shaw

This hardly serves the common good.

Veterans of the Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts suffering from mental distress, such as disorders like Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, are being used by our government for tests on pharmaceutical drugs which have been linked with violent and suicidal side effects.  ABC and the Washington Times have the undercover story.

In one of the human experiments, involving the anti-smoking drug Chantix, Veterans Administration doctors waited more than three months before warning veterans about the possible serious side effects, including suicide and neuropsychiatric behavior.

“Lab rat, guinea pig, disposable hero,” said former US Army sniper James Elliott in describing how he felt he was betrayed by the Veterans Administration.

Elliott, 38, of suburban Washington, D.C., was recruited, at $30 a month, for the Chantix anti-smoking study three years after being diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. He served a 15-month tour of duty in Iraq from 2003-2004.

Months after he began taking the drug, Elliott suffered a mental breakdown, experiencing a relapse of Iraq combat nightmares he blames on Chantix.

“They never told me that I was going to be suicidal, that I would cease sleeping. They never told me anything except this will help me quit smoking,” Elliott told ABC News and The Washington Times.

On the night of February 5th, after consuming a few beers, Elliott says he “snapped” and left his home with a loaded gun.

His fiancee, Tammy, called police and warned, “He’s extremely unstable. He has PTSD.”

“Do you think that he is going to shoot or attack the police?” the 911 dispatcher asked.

“I can’t be certain. I don’t know,” she said. (click here to hear part of Tammy’s 911 call)

“He was operating as if he was back in theater, in combat theater,” she told ABC News. “And of course, a soldier goes nowhere without a gun.”

When police arrived, they found Elliott in the street, with the gun in the front pocket of his hooded sweatshirt.

Stop and think about this for a minute — since we entered Iraq, how many different ways have we lost our credibility and integrity in the world’s eyes?  Let’s see — the invasion itself, after doing away with any effort to plan for the victory; the fact we even went into Iraq and let the Taliban re-form; the torturing that went on; and now, the horrible treatment our veterans receive after sacrificing themselves for a mission that was supposed to have been over in 2003.  I’m sure there are more that I’ve missed.

I can’t wait for January 20, 2009 (unless it’s John McCain).

While I am not surprised, this is still pleasant news to read.  CIRCLE has run some numbers and declared that the youth vote (ages 18-29) nearly doubled from the 2000 primaries to 2008.

Young voters turned out in record numbers, casting a 6.5 million votes. This year’s percentage of young voters was nearly double the turnout in 2000 (in the states that collected youth-voting data that year), according to figures compiled by the Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning & Engagement (CIRCLE).

…The more than 6 million votes cast is a dramatic increase in youth-voter turnout compared to the 2000 election and marks the first time the youth vote has risen in three consecutive election cycles since the voting age was lowered to 18 in 1971, according to CIRCLE.

“This primary season, the Millennials have gone to the polls in record numbers, showing they are an influential voting bloc in American politics,” CIRCLE director Peter Levine said. “They realize what’s at stake and the impact this election will have on their future and the future of our country.”

No doubt — an engaged youth is a sign of a healthy democracy.  And a health democracy is absolutely needed if the common good is to be served.

I picked up my Mac today from the repair shop.  Luckily I hadn’t stored too many things on my hard drive because all of it was lost.

But we’re back in business now.  They even detailed my computer a bit, as that stain just to the left of my caps lock key has been buffed and is barely noticable.

I feel like I finally might be able to make some headway with this blog.  So please, I beg of you, do not remove me from your RSS subscription list.  I’ll make up for it over the next few weeks, I promise.

Thanks for your patience!  It’s much appreciated!