Saturday, June 07, 2008


Barack Obama!
Is this the next President of the United States with his First Lady?
Imagine how the world will start to change their thinking about America now that we have proven that we are not ancient Rome or the backwoods of South Carolina. The world will perceive a real shift in America. It feels like promise to me. Like hope. Perfection? Hardly. Our economy and world standing are so low right now that rebuilding is going to take a long time. And no one man (or woman) can fix them. But, I do think change is coming. We need a clean sweep.

I have great respect and admiration for John McCain for how he served this country. But he is not the catalyst for change or the maverick he calls himself any longer.
Go Barack Go! Feel free to disagree.




21 comments:

Amanda said...

Interestingly, the talk over this side of the pond is that the greatest factor influencing the popularity of Mr Obama is the series 24 which had a black president and therefore pre-conditioned Americans to the idea of a black leader. Any truth in it?

Laura said...

I AGREE! I've had the Obama Fever since our state caucus.

Amanda - That's a very interesting theory, and judging by our tv-obsessed culture, doesn't seem too far off! If it helps, I'll start handing out DVDs of 24 to people on the street. ;) I actually never watched the show, myself.

Stephen Parrish said...

I've wanted this since he gave the keynote address at the convention four years ago. No presidential election has been as exciting. I can't wait until November.

Michelle O'Neil said...

I've never seen 24. Didn't know there was a black president on it.

I'm for Obama.

Anonymous said...

Unfortunately, there isn't a candidate running who is truly right for the job. As a republican I will vote for John McCain, but I am not happy about it. Rather it be Mitt Romney or, even better, Fred Thompson. We are left with bad and worse...

Kim Rossi Stagliano said...

Anon, you can disagree with your name. This isn't Red China.... Obama wants to eliminate taxes on retirees earning less than $50K. McCain wants to lower taxes on people making $250K+ and corporations. Don't you think Exxon deserves a tax cut? It's time to think about the tens of millions of Americans who are going down the shitter because they can't pay for healthcare, gas and food. We aren't talking about dum dums who over mortgaged their homes or bought the boat or vacation home they didn't need. Most people no longer have a reliable pension, 401K's are great, but can most people really invest for the long haul safely? And Social Security was never meant to be the sole means of support. Wait to see what happens in Ohio and Michigan as GM cuts its SUV and Truck plants - those states are going to wither and die. Walmart will not make up for the paychecks and benefits. These are are fellow Americans, not deadbeats. They work hard. I've been in that boat - autism has wiped us out financially. Add two job losses over my husband's career and let me tell you, once you slip, it's damn near impossible to come back. Unless you sell your first novel for $100K. (fingers crossed.)

Josh Day said...

I'm with you, Kim. I used to kinda like McCain back in 2000, but I lost any shred of respect for him when he went on to endorse bush after what his campaign did to him.

Also, let's not forget his place in the Keating 5 during the Lincoln Savings and Loan disgrace in the 80s.

If he wasn't such a warhawk (I have a 1 year old son so anyone who talks of a century of occupation in a middle east country or countries gets my attention), I probably would have voted for him over Hillz, simply because her health care "reform" and pharma connections scare the hell outta me. Then again, probably not cause I could never bring myself to cast a ballot for a bushLite.

Win or lose, it will be exciting to vote for Obama.

Stephen Parrish said...

My story is similar to Josh Day's. Back in 2000 John McCain looked like an attractive candidate, especially in comparison to George W. Bush. But since then he has gotten uglier day by day. Like the picture of Dorian Gray, one day soon the apparition will be too gruesome to behold.

Amanda said...

Surely anyone would have been better than George W. Bush

Kathi said...

I have been for Obama from the beginning, but I recently lost respect for Hillary. And, McCain is a dinosaur whose time has passed.

Anonymous said...

I am so disappointed of the ideas here. I was lead to believe that this was about autism and not about politics. I know that there is a lot of politics involved but right off the bat there is flag waved for Obama.

The link I came from lead me to believe that this blog was a proper sight for professional credentials, learning,support,and /or advocation for autism. Am I wrong?

I feel like every person who hasn't really been touched by autism or hasn't realized the seriousness of autism, treat this cause as a "pet project". They lose sight of the cause. It is treated like something fun to do..a project,something they can do,leave and forget it, then go home at night to a happy home. Could it be to have some heaping helping of self-recognition or what?

I am usually not opinionated, but I feel I have to speak up. This kind of pomp is offensive to me.

I hope that others can learn and be helped in some way by your blog. I know you can say what you want. If you represent our family's cause, I ask that you carefully think what you blog. You don't realize all of the people you impact,or maybe you do.

Don't wave your flag of Obama for us. I am a Christian who is free to live,worship God,vote, and contribute to our society. I will keep any other political comments to myself unless I am invited to a proper place to discuss such things. As for here, I don't see this being the proper place.

I may have been linked to the wrong site, forgive me, but if I haven't, please remove it from the autism convention link to here or signify that this is your personal opinions and not factual statements or anything about autism in general.

I am most sorry for the harshness, but I am most disappointed in the views of persons whom have been chosen to speak and teach for autism. I will research more carefully.

Mother of 3, 2 having autism

Kim Rossi Stagliano said...

Anon, good morning. I think we have a disconnect here. I'm not sure where you thought you were linking.... This is my personal Kim blog. And I'm darn sure I can wave any flag I want here. Gay pride is likely to be next, so you've been warned.

I also run Age of Autism - perhaps you thought you were linking there?

I'm not sure why you're so angry with me or confused about my site. I am a mother of 3 girls with full blown autism - pet project? Try full time job x 1000.

Feel free to come back. I do welcome dissenting opinions here. And I have great respect for autism Moms like you who carry a similar load as I do.

Best,

KIM

bob said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
bob said...

Sorry about the delet, waaaay too many typos.

I find josh's comment interesting. I have 2 teenage boys who think about serving when they think about what they want to do when they "grow up". Their dad was a Navy man but wants them to make their own choices. I would much rather have someone who has been in it and seen the worst in charge of our military.

As to McCain saying we will be there for a 100 years, his comment is followed with - as long as our folks are not getting shot at - such as we are in Germany. Funny how the media leaves that part out.

I've also had a husband out of work for a year, we are settled now - thank God but we know how tough it can be.

I'm a middle of the road Republican and not over the moon with McCain but Obama's lightening speed through the "ranks" worries me even though I to am tired of the good old boys club. But I can't shake the thoughts people had about Carter (big hopes for change there to) and sorry he was a disaster. I'm all for change but not sure this is it.

And I'll say it, if you belong to a church for 20 years and leave because of political pressure, what does that say about your backbone or decision making process? Not much.

I'm a fan of 24 and the comment about it getting us ready for a black president is interesting, there was a show that had a female president as welll and it tanked. Does it mean something? Maybe, maybe not.

Amanda said...

Ah now you see the "anon" comments are very interesting. At first I had to persevere with this blog and I'm afraid to say you did irritate me to insanity at times Kimmy but then you turned out to be my very first American friend. So I say to anon come back and stick with her for a bit, be brave and come out of the anon closet she grows on you!

Also, on another point, who says that just because your life has been "touched by autism" (what kind of a crappy statement is that?!) you don't still have a mind and thoughts of your own? I adore my two autistic girls beyond reason but I do have other things to talk about. Glad to say here's a spot I like to ramble on.

Oh and "anon" if you want to swing by highlandmadness.blogspot.com you can get the ramblings of an autism mum in the UK!

Stephen Parrish said...

Don't wave your flag of Obama for us.

Don't wave your flag of Christianity for us.

I am a Christian who is free to live,worship God,vote, and contribute to our society.

Oops! There you go!

I will keep any other political comments to myself unless I am invited to a proper place to discuss such things.

Obama supporters all across the land are breathing a collective sigh of relief.

As for here, I don't see this being the proper place.

So good of you to tell us. We'll make sure next time to get your permission in advance before exercising our second amendment rights.

Kim Rossi Stagliano said...

Stephen, my love, do you have form 206KSD/IV, the second ammendment rights form? I've lost mine. Send me another? Or just hand it to me at the coven meeting on the 13th.

This is the place. PROPER place? Damn, I hope not. I'm tired of being a proper, perfect autism Mom.

Anonymous said...

I lost any and all respect for Obama after that Rev. Wright situation. Anyone who would follow a man so full of hatred and quite frankly, sick way of thinking, by blaming AIDS on the government, is not someone who I would ever vote for.

And bullshit he didn't know his own pastor was like this.

Anonymous said...

The one man (Dr. Ron Paul) who could have made a REAL difference, people either didn't understand (being too young to remember prayer in school, pledge of allegiance, nativity scenes at the court house), or they were afraid of his ideals because they DO remember the samples I just gave.

Government has gotten too meddling; and as long as this nation has that "I am better than everyone else" attitude it will get worse as a matter of self-preservation. We will have to start watching over our shoulders all the time and in ALL directions.

I feel for my native country and its citizens. I don't plan on being here for the final curtain though.

Kim Rossi Stagliano said...

Anon, are you a born again Christian? Remember some of the hideous things the leaders of the religious right have said? About AIDS, about 9/11, about Katrina victims. How many people became "unborn" after that? I'm Catholic. I believe the current Pope was in the Nazi party as a boy - as was the norm for German boys in the 1940's. Did I leave the Catholic Church? I've sat in the front pew at my Church fuming over what a priest is saying. One day a young priest talked for 25 minutes about celibacy and virginity and that if people lived together before marriage they should abstain for sex for two year - to what, regrow your hymen? All Churches are peopled by humans with faults. Some more egregious than others, I'll agree. If I were a black woman and had be stomped on and discriminated against all my life the Reverand Wright might have struck a chord within me. It's like when we autism Moms get together and bitch and moan about crapisodes, lack of sleep, IEP's and can get really down and dirty about it. We speak to our own choirs. That Obama didn't leave tells me not so much that he agreed, but that he was able to find the portion that spoke to him, process it and leave the rest behind. Does anyone agree 100% with their leaders in anything? My two cents. Thanks for the thoughts. I do find it intersting the dissenters refuse to use their names. Have the courage of your conviction. We can debate and discuss here. I won't throw any barbs. Probably. ;)

Lee said...

John McCain will win.

Why?

1. A lot of middle America will not vote for a black man. There's still a lot of racism in your country - as there is in mine :-(

2. The elections are rigged. The US has not had a fair and honest election this millenia - and possibly not since the 1980s. The voting machines are so easy to dupe that I've seen YouTubes of kids fixing them. And I think it was Princeton Uni did a study proving how ridiculously easy they were to sham.

3. Fear politics. The Republicans are really good at the Fear card. Look at how the PATRIOT act was brought in, and you'll see what I mean.

Actually, if Obama does win it's even more worrying in a way. Because it suggests that the whole of US politics is crooked. If you have two sides switching power in a fascist state, that's a whole lot of evidence that any democracy that ever existed in the US is well and truly defunct.

As it is, a lot of the world now sees the US as a rather scary fascist state in the making (you'd know about your medical laws versus, say, those in the NZ - take vaccination as an example!).

I find the whole situation very scary. It has got so bad with the US customs searching computers, stealing files and downloading from phones upon landing that my husband and his fellow academics will now not travel to the US, and veto conferences there.

So I think McCain will win. But where is Lincoln when you need him? I wish he were alive! Because the US could really do with some of its great and past leaders right now!