(no subject)
I always hesitate to post things like this, because I'm always afraid of sounding stupid/naive/shallow/etc.. But.
I had a long and interesting but also unsurprisingly frustrating conversation with my dad about politics on Thursday night. My dad is 73 years old, and a lifelong Republican. He's a firm believer in voting for your party no matter who the candidate is. He's extremely conservative, both socially and fiscally, and we have some genuine philosophical differences--he's for tax cuts, small government, the free market, etc.; I'm pretty sure he thinks I'm half a breath away from being a socialist. He also brought out the typical BS arguments against Obama: "he's going to tax the hell out of us" (no, my parents would not see a tax increase under Obama's plan, but my dad does not believe this), "I don't trust him, Ayers/Wright/blah blah blah" (and any counter-argument I can provide is a product of the liberal media, and also he hadn't heard about the Palins and the Alaska Independence Party, which is I guess what happens when you get your news from Fox News, speaking of biased media sources), "he's going to be too invested in global interests" (I can't argue with this one, because yeah, I do think Obama is going to be invested in global interests, I just think that's a GOOD thing). We also touched on how the liberal media is a product of the liberal higher education system (to which, hi, Dad, YOU SENT ME WITH--at least in part--YOUR MONEY, so I don't know whether to feel grateful or sorry for you). It was good times. (Though, really it was interesting; I've never really talked to my dad about politics before, aside from some specific issues, and it was educational to get his point of view, even if I disagree with him.)
Anyway. My dad is 73 and he's going to vote the party line and no amount of reason or impassioned appeal from me is going to change his mind. However, there is one thing he said that I've been thinking about: he was telling me how all the people in his office under 40 are all about Obama. (My dad lives/works just outside of Denver.) And of course that's not new news; obviously Obama has a huge edge with younger voters. But it's part of what's allowing me to be sanguine about my dad voting for McCain. Because even if Obama turns out to be full of crap (and I don't think he is, but that's one of my dad's arguments), the point is that, generally speaking, the people of my generation want to believe in what he's saying. They want to believe in the things he's advocating. There is an unmistakable movement toward broader acceptance, toward global awareness, away from prejudice. And my niece's generation is going to have more of that movement, still. And it's incremental and there are setbacks all the time and it's not nearly enough to tell oppressed groups to be patient, that their time is coming... but still, in the midst of the world going to hell in a handbasket, I find it encouraging that I think the world is going to be a slightly better, more accepting place when my generation is in charge, and that the next generation after us is going to make it a slightly better, more accepting place. Not because we're so awesome, and not because the generations before us haven't done their part, but because the world is getting smaller, and that's just a fact. And nothing, ultimately, can take that away from us. It's not something we can sit back and be satisfied with, but it is something I'm clinging to in the midst of all this fear and uncertainty.
I also found out today that my mom is voting for Obama (in part because she can't stand Sarah Palin--which shocked the hell out of me, because my mom was all about Bush's "folksy man of faith" crap--but also because she believes in his message). Also, after watching the debates, my grandmother is strongly considering voting for him. O.O I find that tremendously encouraging, too.
In conclusion, because sometimes you just need a little frivolous feel-good political picspam: The Huffington Post did a slideshow of The Obamas' Greatest PDA Moments (and a follow-up, the Anniversary Album). They could be lying about everything else, but you will never convince me that those two are not completely into each other, and it's sort of amazing to see.
I had a long and interesting but also unsurprisingly frustrating conversation with my dad about politics on Thursday night. My dad is 73 years old, and a lifelong Republican. He's a firm believer in voting for your party no matter who the candidate is. He's extremely conservative, both socially and fiscally, and we have some genuine philosophical differences--he's for tax cuts, small government, the free market, etc.; I'm pretty sure he thinks I'm half a breath away from being a socialist. He also brought out the typical BS arguments against Obama: "he's going to tax the hell out of us" (no, my parents would not see a tax increase under Obama's plan, but my dad does not believe this), "I don't trust him, Ayers/Wright/blah blah blah" (and any counter-argument I can provide is a product of the liberal media, and also he hadn't heard about the Palins and the Alaska Independence Party, which is I guess what happens when you get your news from Fox News, speaking of biased media sources), "he's going to be too invested in global interests" (I can't argue with this one, because yeah, I do think Obama is going to be invested in global interests, I just think that's a GOOD thing). We also touched on how the liberal media is a product of the liberal higher education system (to which, hi, Dad, YOU SENT ME WITH--at least in part--YOUR MONEY, so I don't know whether to feel grateful or sorry for you). It was good times. (Though, really it was interesting; I've never really talked to my dad about politics before, aside from some specific issues, and it was educational to get his point of view, even if I disagree with him.)
Anyway. My dad is 73 and he's going to vote the party line and no amount of reason or impassioned appeal from me is going to change his mind. However, there is one thing he said that I've been thinking about: he was telling me how all the people in his office under 40 are all about Obama. (My dad lives/works just outside of Denver.) And of course that's not new news; obviously Obama has a huge edge with younger voters. But it's part of what's allowing me to be sanguine about my dad voting for McCain. Because even if Obama turns out to be full of crap (and I don't think he is, but that's one of my dad's arguments), the point is that, generally speaking, the people of my generation want to believe in what he's saying. They want to believe in the things he's advocating. There is an unmistakable movement toward broader acceptance, toward global awareness, away from prejudice. And my niece's generation is going to have more of that movement, still. And it's incremental and there are setbacks all the time and it's not nearly enough to tell oppressed groups to be patient, that their time is coming... but still, in the midst of the world going to hell in a handbasket, I find it encouraging that I think the world is going to be a slightly better, more accepting place when my generation is in charge, and that the next generation after us is going to make it a slightly better, more accepting place. Not because we're so awesome, and not because the generations before us haven't done their part, but because the world is getting smaller, and that's just a fact. And nothing, ultimately, can take that away from us. It's not something we can sit back and be satisfied with, but it is something I'm clinging to in the midst of all this fear and uncertainty.
I also found out today that my mom is voting for Obama (in part because she can't stand Sarah Palin--which shocked the hell out of me, because my mom was all about Bush's "folksy man of faith" crap--but also because she believes in his message). Also, after watching the debates, my grandmother is strongly considering voting for him. O.O I find that tremendously encouraging, too.
In conclusion, because sometimes you just need a little frivolous feel-good political picspam: The Huffington Post did a slideshow of The Obamas' Greatest PDA Moments (and a follow-up, the Anniversary Album). They could be lying about everything else, but you will never convince me that those two are not completely into each other, and it's sort of amazing to see.