Unfortunately, I missed Ted Kennedy and some other prominent speakers. However, I did get home in time to see the future first black president of America, Barack Obama.
This man was insanely charismatic and seriously made Clinton's speech fade in my memory. Like everyone else in the convention, he talked about unity and a return to a UNITED states, but he also touched on many issues that politicians rarely discuss. Most notably his mention of the media-spread perception that blacks with a book are trying to "act white" raised eyebrows and drew applause. My favorite moment was when he said that a problem for one person is a problem for everyone. He touched on gay rights, labor rights and due process. In fact, nearly every other sentence drew applause, and the whole convention completely erupted when he endorsed Kerry. Go watch the speech, I don't think I've ever seen anything like it. Geez, I'm smitten.

Ron Reagan gave an endearing, if somewhat sales-man like speech making the case for stem cell research. Dems clung on to any hint of dissent with Bush, and even if this was not an issue that garnered a lot of excitement, having the son of a former republican president clearly thrilled the audience.

Thereza Heinz-Kerry's speech was not quite as exciting, but remarkable for a few reasons.
First of all, she directly courted minority and immigrant votes by addressing the audience in many different languages and sharing her experience growing up abroad. To me this was also a message that she will bring a unique perspective to her husbands foreing policy.
Second of all, she started right off by bringing up women's rights, here and abroad. Her blatant feminism is risky in this country, but I dug it.
Third, she pointed to the peace corp as the image america should by trying to promote overseas. An America of hope rather than fear, is how i beleive she put it. A good, and again somewhat risky point to make as the Peace corp is also linked with youthful naievete in the minds of some. It worked for me, though.
Towards the end of the speech she started to falter, talking in vagueries and touchy feely language that was a weak way to end the speech. Overall, though, this speech showed off the possible first lady as an intriguing and bright woman who will bring women's and immigrants rights to the dinner table.

After Obama, I honestly can't see how the RNC can possibly outdo this show of excitement and hope.

] Here at the Spawn of Satan convention in Boston,
] conservatives are deploying a series of covert signals to
] identify one another, much like gay men do. My allies are
] the ones wearing crosses or American flags. The people
] sporting shirts emblazened with the "F-word" are my
] opponents. Also, as always, the pretty girls and cops
] are on my side, most of them barely able to conceal their
] eye-rolling

For your reading pleasure, "pretty girl" Ann Coulter's article on the DNC that USA Today passed up. Proceed only if you have a strong stomach.

As usual, Coulter presents the worst of conservatism, wasting time calling democratic women ugly*, hybrid cars "dinky", and the speakers "nuts." Why make real criticism when you can name-call!?

I totally agree with USA Today's decision in not printing this unprofessional, petty, vapid piece of pseudo-journalism.

-Tina

*For the record, I know plenty of cute democrats. Anyone seen Maggie Schutz or Chris Heinz?

Ann Coulter's USA Today Column

Acidus wrote:
] ] Kerry is nice, but he's no Clinton with
] ] foreign policy, and right now is one of the most crucial
] times
] ] in recent history for foreign policy leadership.
]
] Sorry Tina, I call Bullshit. Please list some of Clinton
] awesome foreign policy moves that you don't think Kerry could
] do.

Its not that I don't think he can do what needs to be done, but Clinton was completely brilliant and dedicated to foreign policy.
He had a reputation abroad for being a great facilitator of the peace process in places like the Middle East, Bosnia, and Northern Ireland, but most of all he was respected for taking trips to 6 continents and showing that America cared about what was going on in the rest of the world. Even his failures, such as in the Middle East, left the US ahead rather than behind in public opinion.

I don't think these sort of goals are out of reach for Kerry but he is going to start at a marked disadvantage. If he wins, his first priority needs to be showing the world that we are doing a complete turn-around of foreign policy- that we will follow international laws and treaties, that we will respect the UN, and that we won't be arbitrarily invading any other countries. Even if he can get this message across, he will only be getting us back to square one.

Of course, there's no way he could be as unqualified as Bush, but I still wish that we were hearing more about his plans to improve international relations with allies and and enemies alike. All I'm hearing about foreign countries is this chant: Vietnam Vietnam Vietnam!

I guess my point is, I am hopeful about the guy, but I want to hear some specifics, and about countries other than Iraq and Vietnam.
(If anyone has some articles on this, please forward to me.)
-Tina

RE: DNC analysis

Ok, so now that I've had night's sleep and time to get out all my gushing, here is what I think was going on last night, strategy wise.

-Despite Kerry's name being brought up every few minutes, the focus is definitely on the democratic party as whole. The question on everybody's tongue was: are you better or worse than you were under Clinton? The answer was: put two democrats back in office and things will go back to normal. This logic may be a bit faulty. Kerry is nice, but he's no Clinton with foreign policy, and right now is one of the most crucial times in recent history for foreign policy leadership.

-Healthcare and the economy were brought up quite a bit, but where was the education? "No Child Left Behind" was one of the most controversial acts of Bush's four years, and not bringing this up is a mistake to me. With our public schools becoming more segregated and less funded, with gang violence up and teacher retention rates down, and blacks and latinos significantly trailing behind in high school completion rates, it seems to me that education ought to be a major focus this year.

-Another thing that escaped attention was the human rights violations at Abu Ghraib. Carter was the only one that even hinted at this scandal. I'm thinking that they were trying to shy away from it because it was such a downer, and the theme of the evening was to look onward and upward. Still, this subject is one that enrages repubs and dems alike, and I can't see why no one is addressing it.

-One of the absolute strongest points against the republicans is that they have effectively polarized the country. Despite running on a platform of unity, I can't remember a time when the nation was so split. (granted, I"m pretty young.) Clinton emphasized this point in his speech, saying that republicans need us divided, democrats don't. Even watching the coverage of the event it was clear how worked up everyone is on either side, and the whole situation is really getting out of hand. The question is, how can the Democrats change this? Isn't this damage irreperable, won't Kerry just come under the same kind of fire Clinton did? This question has not been effectively answered yet, but I'll be on the lookout.

-The main thing is, no one is trying to really sell Kerry. Everyone is just trying to say, without bringing up Bush's name, that he can't possibly F*** things up more than the current regime. Trying to oversell him as a war hero, an "ambassador of hope," and a economic genius may be hurting his credibility more than anything else. He can't encompass all the strengths of the democratic party, but he can promise to get democratic values back on the radar, and that is much more important to me, and many others in this country.

Can't wait till tonight!

-Tina

Notable quotes:
Al Gore:
"Lets make sure the supreme court does not pick our next president, and that this president is not the one to pick our next supreme court."

Jimmy Carter:
"Truth is the foundation of our global leadership, but our credibility has been shattered and we are left increasingly isolated and vulnerable in a hostile world."

Bill Clinton
"I never thought I'd be so well cared for by the president and the Republicans in Congress. I almost sent them a thank you note for my tax cuts until I realized that the rest of you were paying the bill for it. And then I thought better of it."

**************************************************************8

In a night full of democratic superstars, the one who shone the brightest was one who did not speak: John Edwards. Whether or not it was deliberate, it was clear that Edwards positive campaigning during the primary elections provided the Democratic Party with their formula for success. By bashing the methods rather than the people, and focusing on the fact that the country has become more polarized than ever under Bush, they took a cue from Edwards' campaign methods early on. He declared that he would not campaign on "their terms," but rather would focus on those concerns that all americans can relate to. This was a HUGE theme in the convention tonight, and I really think it was effective.

Gore blasted the 2000 elections, but mainly focused on how important it was to vote and move forward.

Carter was one of the angrier speakers of the night, blasting the Bush admin. for ruining our name and our human rights record which he worked so hard to improve.

Clinton delivered the best and longest speech of the evening, presenting the key argument for Kerry/ Edwards. And again, Edwards approach was evident. He emphasized that the republicans were patriotic people who stuck to their beliefs. He urged voters to get out there and vote for them if they believed those policies should continue. But of course, he offered a devastating argument on why those policies are bad for everyone.

All in all, the first night of the campaign offered up a view of an incredibly united and positive democratic party, one that will be hard to beat if they stick with it. (in my humble, clinton worshipping opinion.)

-Tina

Decius wrote:
] ] It's the economy, John Kerry.
] ]
] ] That's what delegates to the Democratic National
] ] Convention say their presumed presidential nominee or --
] ] they shudder to think -- President Bush should
] ] concentrate on first in 2005, an Associated Press survey
] ] of Democratic delegates found.
] ]
] ] Health care was the No. 2 issue, followed by the war in
] ] Iraq, according to the survey of some three-quarters of
] ] the 4,300-plus delegates.
]
] I think this is a very serious mistake. This election is a
] referendum on Bush, and how his administration has handled
] security and foreign policy in the wake of 9/11. As long as
] Kerry can maintain the perception that Bush has loused things
] up and that he can fix it he can will the election. This is
] not very difficult to do in the wake of the failure to
] discover WMD and the difficult security situation in Iraq.
]
] Putting out a numbered list of priorities, and putting
] national security in the middle of list, communicates only one
] thing, and that is that national security is not our top
] priority. This creates a fundamental weakness that will be
] easy for the Republicans to exploit. They can send the message
] that they care more about national security then the Democrats
] do, and if people believe that message the Republicans will
] win the election. A terrorist attack in this season would play
] right into that fissure.
]
] Healthcare is a very serious problem in this country, but no
] one understands it better then the people who operate
] businesses. In other words, as most voters don't operate
] businesses they are unlikely to understand how serious the
] problem is. They understand 9/11. And frankly, they understand
] that healthcare won't help much if they are victim of an
] attack no matter how affordable it is.

I disagree. The idea that this election is just about 9/11 and Iraq is one that has been propagated by the Bush admin and his supporters. As much as republicans want to distract from REAL issues by constantly bringing up the threat of an imminent attack, the people on the street have other things on their mind. Sure, when the news incessantly blares new vague bullshit threats, everyone gets worked up for a moment. But in between the morning and evening news, there's the fact that you can't feed your family or pay for your son's asthma meds. The fact that Democrats want to focus on making the country BETTER, rather than more barricaded against terror, is going to help them. Healthcare and the economy may seem boring in comparison to other so-called turning points in this election, but it has traditionally been democratic strongsuits, and I don't think it is a naieve move to focus on these issues and let the truth of Bush's actions take care of the reinvigorated 9/11 hype.
The truth is, this country is divided into those who think security is the main issue and those who want their civil liberties and economic security back. Who wins depends on who gets out there and votes.
(sorry this is all jumbled, I'm at work.)

RE: AP Survey: Top priority of Democratic delegates? It's the economy

] Shockingly, the results of its poll among 200 students at
] the Training Camp's UK residential courses reveal that
] developers are malodorous headbangers playing air guitar
] to Megadeth, Microsoft Certified professionals get their
] rocks off to Britney while IT directors can be found
] sipping the finest wines while Mozart tinkles away in the
] background. No stereotype-fulfilling findings there,
] then.

Just what I thought. People adjust musical tastes to fit in with their career stereotype. I get along best with d.a.'s.

Developers play air guitar to Megadeth | The Register

] "What we found is not that Fox is a conservative network,
] but that it's a network that follows the party line of
] the Bush administration," said "Outfoxed" filmmaker
] Robert Greenwald.

This is the most mobilized I've seen liberals in my lifetime. I almost feel bad for conservatives lately, they can't seem to get a break.
It's so important to keep the emphasis on debate and not on silencing though. Its great to expose lies, but its equally important to not cause a huge backlash when people think that their views are constantly going to be second-guessed just because they aren't liberal. I'm so sick of the conservatives raving about the liberal war on free speech, lets not prove them right.

Yahoo! News - Documentary Aims to Show Bias on Fox News

] The glitch in a state that President Bush won by a margin
] of just 537 votes could have been significant Hispanics
] in Florida have tended to vote Republican more than
] Hispanics nationally. The list had about 28,000 Democrats
] and around 9,500 Republicans, with most of the rest
] unaffiliated.

Yet another argument against felon disenfranchisement. If this was a "computer glitch" then I'm Catherine Harris.

ABCNEWS.com : Fla. Scraps Flawed Felon Voting List

] "Some of these people who have been reported to be
] arrested never showed up in any of the places of
] detention run by the U.S. where we visit,"

...Because its not like the Geneva convention has ANY importance anymore...

AP- Red Cross Fears U.S. Is Hiding Detainees