Obama "Closing Argument" - 10/27/2008

General Colin Powell Endorses Barack Obama

Lifelong Republican, General and Former Sec. of State Colin Powell gracefully supports and endorses Senator Barack Obama. Is this prophetic? What do you think about his decision?

Debate Talk

Welcome all! Due to the available technology and the historical ramifications of this campaign we have the auspicious opportunity to share our positions and concerns before, during, and after the debate. This forum allows open discussion about what we are viewing and hearing, as well as gain perspective from others who are participating.

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Randy Pausch Last Lecture: Achieving Your Childhood Dreams

Whenever you think you have done all you can and can't achieve greater...view this video.

Iraq War: How did Americans benefit?

Immediately, after the conclusion of the Presidential town hall, a barrage of comments caused me great concern. Some were labeled with attacks on religious beliefs as other took aim at the Iraq war. One party asked, “Why does McCain associate winning a dishonorable war with honor?” This question was immediately followed with this response: “What exactly is so dishonorable about overthrowing a terrorist supporting, chemical weapon spreading and murderer like Saddam Hussein? And, yes he did support terrorists. He was known for paying the families of Palestinian terrorists for their 'martyrdom'.”

As a military veteran and concerned citizen, I found this to be very alarming. I began to wonder how individuals, who share this perspective, feel about the atrocities that are occurring in Darfur, Somalia, the Congo, or liberated countries that formerly belonged to the Soviet Union. It is important that we remember we enter Iraq on false pretenses and fictional intelligence when the real battle is in Afghanistan; where the Taliban and al-Qaeda were the targets. How did we go from funding these organizations to attacking them? The same occurred with Saddam Hussein, as we funded and trained their military to assist with Iraqis defense against Iran. By the way, where were the weapons of mass destruction and chemical weapons? It is naive of our government to invoke Democracy to the Middle East, with certain political and capital desires, that resulted to the deaths of thousands of U.S. servicemen and women.

What have the American citizens gained from this war? Is it the honor we feel seeing the Iraqi economy flourish to a surplus of over 70 trillion dollars while we gain a growing recession? How about the benefit of the anti-American sentiments to increase terrorist activities and minimize our ability to positively project prosperity to the rest of the world. Maybe, it is to give momentum to terrorism to gain a stronger foothold in the world; or perhaps so that we can be indebted to foreign nations who are lending our government the money to fund this unnecessary war. I don’t see how this benefits me or my neighbor; not even the citizens of tomorrow. As a matter of fact, I am longing for understanding why Americans had to endure at all? If our concerned government wanted to borrow money to fund a venture they could have spent that $10 billion per month domestically to fund health care, provide better services and support for veterans / their families, the create more jobs, a stronger infrastructure, education, to put in place the oversight to prevent the issues that caused our economy to tank, alternative energy, or better yet to compensate this so called “Bail Out” which causes the tax payers additional heartache.

Yes, I understand that we don’t want to end the war in dishonor; however where is the honor, for our service people, to return to an economic, energy, and housing crisis after fighting to liberate a country, providing it with a strong economy that doesn’t possess profit sharing. I guess there are some American entities that are benefiting from this war, such as private companies like Halliburton.

Our elected representatives, regardless of affiliation, are projecting their positions and using pundits / surrogates to dictate our perspectives; have they forgotten it is we, the people, who hired / elected them to serve our greatest and highest interest? I seems as though they have! It is time for us to stop depending on government to solve our issues and focus on removing the growing divide between social, economic, belief, and gender groups; as this is the true crisis surfacing in our country. These disparities shall continue to disavow the concept of freedom for all, while releasing our power to greedy corporate heads and government officials. If we gained anything from the Iraq War, it is a disdain to the way we have allowed things to be and a hunger for change.

Synergy: The sum of the whole is greater than its parts!

We are in the presence of history, with the potential of electing our first African American President or a female vice president; not withstanding are the economic woes we are experiencing. Currently, we are in a recession and if we do not have a significant and drastic change our economy will continue to decline to a depression. So, I am baffled at the developments of talking points and politics as usual when the citizens of our great country are feelings woes like many have seldom experienced and most have only read in history books or heard in stories shared by survivors of the “Great Depression”. What intrigues me the most is the racist epithets that are still looming in the hearts and minds in the most diverse country on the planet. AP-Yahoo News, in partnerships with Stanford University, recently released a study shedding light on the discomforts of some Caucasians to elect an African American man as president; highlighting some six percent. Something has to be done about this and it has to be dealt with now! Humanity has come too far to digress.

Growing up in the south, I witnessed and experienced my fair share of racism. I understand this is a learned behavior and many times developed out of misunderstandings. This does not lend itself towards a singular race of people; this behavior exists within ethic groups, towards genders and sexual preferences, worldviews and political affiliations. The question is when will we rid ourselves of such ignorance and rise beyond our fears to embrace the similarities we all share; such as the ability to care for our families, education, affordable healthcare, and job security…the “American Dream”! How can we truly be, as Ronald Reagan so eloquently stated, “that shining city on a hill” or “the beacon of light” for the rest of the world to follow? The answer is we can’t until we learn how to lead!

In closing, it is essential that we learn to lead by our actions, as well as the content of our character. If we want to provide the opportunity for democracy and human rights it is important we begin with ourselves, families, communities, and country. If you know or hear anyone who is not in sync with our change of leadership, it is time to call them on it! We, as a whole are greater than the sum of the parts; we are synergy.

Reciprocating Me!

What do I find invigorating in relationships? Someone like me is truly ideal! This ambiguous clarity was derived from many personal case studies that created disdain or at the very minimal, rupturing sound friendships; which at one time were perceived as assets. Not withstanding my personal experiences, I have also been privileged with the opportunity to observe other relationships; some endured the trials and tribulations while others dissipated into obscurity. I made a promise to myself that I would not be a statistic; I would not be so ambitions to claim someone as my “helpmate” who would in turn assist me to “help hate” myself for my lack of patience. How does one prevent such from occurring…by waiting and defining who I am, which will assist me in discovering who I desire. I can not depend on physical attraction or emotional connection alone; there must be balance. I look at clichés, which loom large in the religious sectors, such as “Equally Yoked” or “Wait on God” to possess substance; while lacking clarity. How about the pagan expression, “You complete me”!

Like many, I have applied these principles to my daily life as it was engrained into my psyche that I need someone to be the yin to my yang and likewise. Been there and done that… without success. Interesting enough I continue that pursuit even though it brought about the same results. It doesn’t matter how many time you have been told you can’t repeat the same action expecting different results, we continue. I guess it is human nature. Fortunately, I am not going to make excuses for myself. It was pure stupidity and I have arrived to the understanding that a healthy relationship is only that if the two parties are healthy individually; which means they must complete themselves allowing an environment of allowing, accepting, and embracing others; that is unconditional love! I realized I must love and be in love with me before I can share that experience with another. I will only receive that which I give!

Early, I mentioned two religious clichés that are engraved in our minds and spirits as youngsters. What does it mean to be equally yoked? Is it when two share the same belief, similar likes and dislikes, the same height and weigh, identify with the same cultural experiences or socio-economic background? I used to think so and I journeyed to find someone who fulfilled those criteria’s. However, I met challenges along the way. It was not until I expanded my mind that I was allowed to grasp the true essence of the statement. I am a philanthropist at heart so it may not be wise for me to engage with someone who is not as concerned with the welfare of others. Does weight or height really matter? It is more important that I find someone physically appealing, even if no one else does. As a matter of fact, it is better if no one else does! Besides, we all mature and will eventfully expire, not to mention if the internal appearance of the woman is not appealing it only debilitates her external assets and if she is amazing internally those assets have a way of resolving the perceived external flaws. Now, I will not discriminate on the ethnicity of a woman or what her social economic background is as long as she is cultured.

When I reference being cultured I am speaking about moving beyond social and ethnic expectations. Why is it that I have to date a woman from another race if I want to experience the opera, ballroom dancing, tango, elegant dining, or travel the world? I am a very diverse thinker and I often wonder why I can not participate in certain activities because of my religious belief or the color of my skin. Our ancestors fought to eradicate this mentality from those outside of our ethnic community so why will I allow myself to be enslaved to such. Communication is essential and I am not referring to only verbal. Non verbal communication is a necessity; as I need someone who provides entrancing eye contact, an embracing smile, a quiet confident walk, and a soft and nurturing touch.

Many women suggest the art of chivalry has expired. Well ladies, we feel like the art of nurturing has become a distant memory. The reassuring of a woman can lead a man to feel like he can accomplish anything. This reminds me of the quote, “Behind a great man is a great woman”. So ladies if you want a great man then you have to first be a great woman! Something that must cease is the drama and the denigration of the other. There is no need to compete between sexes. It doesn’t matter if a woman makes more money that I. As a matter of fact, I welcome that challenge. I desire a woman who can be her best and highest without flaunting it or trying to infringe upon my role as the man. A woman who is sexy without revealing too much skin allows me to use my imagination; however, she must have a chic but conservative style. My ideal woman is one who knows her way around the board room and the bedroom, possessing a sense of innocence. One who embraces the joy and privilege of the opportunity of being submissive with one whom she can trust is greatly exciting to me. Yes, I want a freak in the bed but I don’t need to feel like she is an around the way girl.

Spirituality is very important to me and encompasses much more that religion. Someone who is engaged in an empowering relationship with a higher power, inspiring personal growth and self awareness is greatly appealing to me. As well as the woman who can become one with “Mother Nature” making her impact, compelling greatness from all who encounters her, as well as inspiring me to take hold of my genius. She must be able to cook different types of foods as well as appreciate a clean and peaceful house. There is nothing sexier than me and my lady preparing our meals together and restoring cleanliness to the kitchen. I wash and she dries or she can rinse while I place in dishwasher. If you haven’t noticed yet I am a romantic and enjoy cupid remaining in close proximity. This is who I am and who I desire to enjoy the fullness of life with.